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While fried chicken wings have been a staple of Southern cooking for centuries, the idea of deep-frying chicken wings, coating them in a spicy sauce and serving them as appetizers or snacks is relatively new. In 1964, in Buffalo, New York, the owner of the Anchor Bar cooked some leftover chicken wings and covered them in hot sauce. She served these to her son and his friends after the restaurant had closed.
The boys thought this was so delicious, that she decided to serve them the next day to her restaurant patrons. Of course, these snacks were an instant hit, especially paired with blue cheese dipping sauce.
Air Fryer Hot Wings Recipe
Everyone loves hot wings as a delicious appetizer or even as a dinner entrée. However, most recipes for hot wings or those that are served in restaurants are deep-fried in oil. This is definitely not healthy. But, when you have an air fryer you can enjoy hot wings that are a bit healthier than your standard recipe. Our recipe for Air Fryer Hot Wings is quick, easy, and totally delicious.
Equipment
- Air Fryer
- Dinner Plate
- Microwave Safe Bowl
- Fork
- Sharp knife
- Cutting Board
- Meat thermometer
Ingredients
Ingredients for Hot Wings
- 2-4 pounds chicken wings
- ½ cup flour
- ½ tsp paprika
- ¼ tsp garlic powder
- ¼ tsp ground red pepper
- ½ tsp salt
Ingredients for Hot Sauce
- ¼ cup Hot Sauce we used Louisiana hot sauce for a fairly mild wing
- ¼ cup butter
- Nonstick cooking spray
- Dipping sauces that you enjoy
Instructions
- On a dinner plate, measure out the flour, paprika, garlic powder, ground red pepper, and salt. Stir these together with a fork until fully combined.
- Using a very sharp knife and a cutting board, cut the tips off of the chicken wings and discard them. Also, cut off any excess skin or fat from the wings.
- Put the chicken wings in the flour mixture, roll them around, and fully coat them in a thick layer.
- Place the coated chicken wings on a clean plate and put them in the refrigerator for about an hour. This will help the coating stick better.
- After the hour has passed, preheat the air fryer to 400 degrees for about 10 minutes.
- Coat the basket of the air fryer with a light layer of coconut or olive oil to prevent sticking.
- Put the chicken wings in the air fryer basket in a single layer. Spray them with the cooking spray to help them brown.
- As the wings are cooking, you can create the sauce. In a microwave-safe bowl, melt the butter by microwaving it for about 30 seconds. Stir it until there are no lumps of butter left.
- Add the hot sauce and stir it. Set this aside.
- When the chicken wings have been cooked for the second period of ten minutes, use an instant read meat thermometer to check the doneness of the chicken. It should read about 165 degrees.
- If they are not fully cooked, return the chicken to the air fryer for another 3 to 5 minutes. You may have to cook these wings in batches.
- When the wings are fully cooked, coat them with the hot sauce. Roll them so that they are fully coated all over in the sauce.
- Serve the wings piping hot with your choice of dipping sauces.
Notes
It was the advent of a new style of butchering chicken that led to the increase in popularity of hot wings. In the late eighties and early nineties, meat processors began offering chicken packaged in individual pieces rather than whole chicken. In particular, the boneless skinless chicken breast began being offered, and consumers started enjoying this easy to cook, nutritious meat.
However, for every pair of chicken breasts that come from a butcher’s shop, a pair of wings is generated as well. Chicken wings became an inexpensive by-product of poultry butchering.
Those who ran bars found that they could inexpensively make hot wings to serve as appetizers and the patrons would love them. In addition, the spicy nature of the wings made their customers thirstier. The patrons bought more beer and other drinks, increasing revenue for bars.
Hot wings have become a popular snack, particularly for parties where sports are the main entertainment. You can buy takeout hot wings or even buy a deep fryer to make your own version of hot wings. However, with an air fryer, you can enjoy hot wings without all the grease and mess of deep-frying them.
Simply spray breaded chicken wings with a light coating of oil and the breading will end up crispy and browned, just like traditional wings.
These wings might be labeled as hot wings, but they are not terribly spicy. They do have a bit of the hot kick that a good wing should have, but they are not so bad as to set your mouth on fire. If you like your wings to be spicier, you can use a hot sauce with a bit more heat to it.
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