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Air Fryer Chicken Drumsticks

These air-fried chicken drumsticks are lightly seasoned, without flour or breading, and cooked until the skin is crispy and delicious. Made with a simple blend of pantry spices, these juicy chicken drumsticks are ready in about 30 minutes.

Chicken drumsticks on a white platter garnished with chopped parsley.

Juicy, crispy chicken drumsticks are a quick and easy meal. Cooking these chicken legs in the air fryer saves time, allowing you to get dinner to the table quickly.

We love to serve them with a dish of Ranch Mashed Potatoes, or a simple side of Air Fried French Fries.

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I love using my air fryer to cook chicken. It cooks quicker than using the oven and the chicken stays tender, juicy, and delicious.

This recipe for air-fried chicken drumsticks is super easy. It uses simple pantry ingredients, and there is no breading involved so preparation is quick.

The seasoning blend is full of flavor, savory but not spicy. The smoked paprika in this recipe gives the chicken a bit of a BBQ flavor, and the other spices and herbs work well together.

If you like heat and want to spice things up you can add a bit of cayenne pepper or chilli powder to the seasoning blend.

Because chicken drumsticks are readily available and often go on sale, they also make for a pretty inexpensive meal.

We love serving them with potatoes, Twice Baked Potatoes are a favorite, especially since they can be made ahead of time and reheated. We also love serving these chicken legs with Creamy Jalapeno Mac & Cheese, or a delicious Street Corn Pasta Salad.

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Ingredients & Substitutions

For a full list of ingredients and measurements, please see the printable recipe card at the bottom of this post.

The best thing about this recipe is how simple the ingredients are. You will need:

Chicken drumsticks: This recipe is made with skin-on chicken drumsticks. It will also work well with either chicken thighs or chicken leg quarters, without the need for any adjustments. You can use skinless chicken drumsticks if you don’t like the skin, but you will want to watch it closely and turn them more often to make sure they don’t dry out.

Olive Oil: A drizzle of olive oil helps make the seasonings stick to the skin and makes it extra crispy. You can replace this with other oils such as vegetable oil, or avocado oil. You can omit it if you prefer, however, the seasoning may not stick quite as well and the skin may not be as crispy.

Seasonings: This recipe is made with a blend of simple spices. We use smoked paprika, which gives the chicken a smoky BBQ flavor, along with dried mustard, onion powder, garlic powder, dried parsley, and kosher salt. Regular table salt will work fine, but you will need to reduce the quantity.

This recipe is easily customizable so you can use any spices or blend that you like. Adding chili pepper or cayenne will add some heat. If you don’t want to make your own you can use your favorite seasoning blend such as cajun, BBQ, or buffalo seasoning.

Ingredients for air fryer drumsticks.

If you prefer to use fresh garlic, you can substitute two cloves of minced or crushed garlic for the garlic powder. Mix it with olive oil before drizzling it over the chicken.

Step by Step Instructions

Season the Chicken

Place the chicken drumsticks in a large bowl and drizzle with olive oil. Toss to coat.

Add the seasoning and toss the chicken until well-coated.

Raw chicken drumsticks in a bowl tossed with olive oil and seasonings.

Air Fry the Chicken

Place the chicken in the air fryer basket, or on the tray, in a single layer. A little bit of overlap is ok, but do not stack it fully.

Cook the chicken at 380°F for 22-25 minutes until crispy and golden, turning halfway through.

If you are using a meat thermometer you will know it is done when it reaches 165°F.

Chicken drumsticks in an air fryer basket before and after cooking.

Storing Leftovers

Leftovers can be stored in an airtight container in the refrigerator for about three days.

Reheating Leftover Chicken Legs

Cooked chicken legs make a delicious cold lunch, making them perfect fo the lunch box, but they are easy to reheat if you prefer them hot.

You can reheat these in the microwave, oven, or air fryer.

To reheat chicken drumsticks in the air fryer, place them in the basket and set the air fryer to 350°F.

Heat the drumsticks for 5-7 minutes until heated through.

More Air Fryer Chicken Recipes

Seasoned, baked chicken drumstick on a platter.

Printable Recipe

Air Fryer Chicken Drumsticks

Chicken drumsticks are lightly seasoned and cooked until crispy and delicious.
5 from 25 votes
Print Pin Save Recipe Rate
Course: Main Course
Cuisine: American
Prep Time: 5 minutes
Cook Time: 25 minutes
Total Time: 30 minutes
Servings: 12
Calories: 190kcal
Author: Deanna

Equipment

Ingredients

  • 12 chicken drumsticks
  • 2 Tbsps olive oil
  • 1 ½ tsps smoked paprika
  • 1 teaspoon garlic powder
  • 1 teaspoon dried mustard
  • 1 teaspoon dried parsley
  • ½ teaspoon onion powder
  • 1 teaspoon kosher salt or half teaspoon table salt

Instructions

  • Place the chicken drumsticks in a large bowl. Add the olive oil and toss to coat.
  • Add the seasonings to the bowl and toss until the chicken is well coated.
  • Place the drumstick in the air fryer basket in a single layer (a little bit of overlap is ok)
  • Place the basket into the air fryer and set to 380°F.
  • Cook for 22-25 minutes, turning half way through, until chicken is golden brown, lightly crisp and the meat is no longer pink. If using a meat thermometer you will be looking for 165°F.

Notes

I’ve used skin-on chicken drumsticks, but this recipe will work just as well with skinless.
If you prefer, you can use chicken thighs or 6 chicken leg quarters. Cook time will remain the same.

Nutrition

Estimated Nutrition Facts
Air Fryer Chicken Drumsticks
Serving Size
 
1 g
Amount per Serving
Calories
190
% Daily Value*
Fat
 
11
g
17
%
Saturated Fat
 
3
g
19
%
Sodium
 
284
mg
12
%
Carbohydrates
 
1
g
0
%
Protein
 
22
g
44
%
* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2000 calorie diet.

Nutritional information is based on third-party calculations and should be considered estimates. Actual nutritional content will vary with brands used, measuring methods, portion sizes and more.

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This recipe was originally published in 2021 and was updated with new content in 2024.

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5 from 25 votes (24 ratings without comment)
Recipe Rating




Susan

Tuesday 28th of January 2025

These were a winning recipe in my house! Everyone loved them. I made them exactly as instructed and the result was perfection. I served with leftover mashed potatoes and steamed broccoli.

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