Chicken drumsticks are a quick and easy dinner to cook in an air fryer. You can vary up the flavour each time you make them by altering the seasoning you add.
An air fryer will crisp up the skin of chicken drumsticks without oil, but for some extra flavour and crunch, you can brush a little oil over them when seasoning.
There isn’t much preparation required to cook drumsticks in an air fryer; if you prefer your chicken legs without seasoning, you can just add them as they are.
I like to vary up the taste a little, so I add different flavours, from a simple sprinkling of salt to other more adventurous spice mixes, including Piri Piri seasoning, Chinese five-spice, Cajun seasoning, curry powder, smoked paprika – you can get as adventurous as you want!
Do You Need To Add Oil To Air Fryer Drumsticks?
You don’t have to; the air fryer does a good job of crisping up the skin (as long as you don’t overcrowd the air fryer basket). Personally, though, I like to brush a little oil over the skin before adding the seasoning – but you can skip the oil if you wish.
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How Long Do Chicken Drumsticks Take In An Air Fryer?
Chicken drumsticks take 22-25 minutes to cook and crisp up when cooked at 200°C. Flip the chicken over at the halfway mark. Check that the chicken is cooked through, preferably with a meat thermometer if you can – chicken needs to have an internal temperature of 75°C.
If the chicken skin hasn’t crisped up enough, cook it for a further few minutes.
Have you made air fryer chicken drumsticks yet? Let me know in the comments what your favourite seasoning is!
Air Fryer Chicken Drumsticks
Ingredients
- 8 – 12 chicken drumsticks
- Seasoning*
- Oil optional
Instructions
- Preheat the air fryer to 200C for 5 minutes.
- Optionally brush the drumsticks with some oil.
- Season the chicken drumsticks with your favourite spices. You can just use salt if you prefer.
- Add the drumsticks to the air fryer basket. You might need to use a trivet to fit them all in, or if you have a smaller air fryer, cook them in batches.
- Cook for 22 – 25 minutes, turning halfway through.
- Check the chicken is cooked all the way through – they should reach 75C internally, use a meat thermometer if possible.
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Nutrition
Sheila Paulin
Thursday 22nd of June 2023
I mix olive oil, garlic, ginger powder, balsamic vinegar, mango chutney, salt, and pepper with water, and brush chicken to cover, leave marinaded chicken drumsticks for as long as you want. Then put the chicken in the air fryer, with marinade still covering your chicken.
Liana Green
Sunday 24th of September 2023
That sounds delicious Sheila!
Andrew
Sunday 23rd of April 2023
My favourite seasoning is just salt and pepper - I've also added a sprinkling of thyme/rosemary/sage/thyme too (pestled first) which comes in at a great second :)