Air Fryer Ranch Chicken Wings

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Air fryer ranch chicken wings make a tasty game day snack! They are golden brown, tender and crisp with lots of ranch flavor which makes them perfect for dipping in your favorite sauce.

The air fryer excels at cooking chicken wings because it gets them crispy without any additional oil. So ranch wings in the air fryer are better for you than deep fried wings while still being crunchy and delicious.

And they are super simple to make! You don’t have to search through your spices or measure out seasonings, just grab a packet of ranch dressing seasoning and dump it on the wings.

Why You Should Make Air Fryer Ranch Wings For Your Next Party

Since these wings are flavored with a dry rub, not a sauce, they are finger food that is not messy.
There are only 3 ingredients, making this a very low effort recipe. If you are having a game day party you can prep these wings during a commercial break!
They are full of ranch flavor, which goes amazingly well with wings. Dip them in Buffalo sauce for the opposite of Buffalo wings dipped in ranch!

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Key Ingredients

Wings – I like to serve wings that are cut into wings and drumettes, but you can also cook and serve them in one piece. My local meat market sells wings already cut apart, which is a great time saver. If you are using frozen wings thaw them before making this recipe.

Ranch seasoning – I rarely make ranch dressing, but I like to keep some seasoning packets in the pantry for recipes or for seasoning potatoes. You can also buy a jar of ranch seasoning mix if you use it a lot.

Baking powder – The baking powder is necessary to get the wings nice and crispy. It helps break down the protein in the skin so the wings brown.

Love wings? Check out my recipe for Lemon Pepper Wings in the air fryer or Sweet Chili Wings!

How to Make Ranch Wings in the Air Fryer

1. Prep

If you have whole chicken wings you can cut them into three pieces, the wingette, the drumette and the tip. This blog post gives a nice description of how to cut chicken wings if you haven’t done it before.

You can also season and cook them whole, but you might not be able to fit as many in the air fryer basket because whole chicken wings are awkwardly shaped.

Tip: It is important to dry the wings before cooking them. Use paper towels to blot them dry or they might steam instead of fry.

2. Season

Put the wings in a bowl or a zippered bag and add the ranch seasoning mix and baking powder. Toss the wings with the seasoning until they are completely coated.

3. Air Fry

There is no need to preheat the air fryer for cooking chicken wings. Put the wings in the air fryer basket in a single layer.

The air fryer works by circulating hot air, so don’t over fill the basket. My 5.8 quart Cosori air fryer holds about 2 pounds of wings in a single layer. If you have more wings than fit in a single layer make multiple batches.

wings in air fryer basket before cooking

Air fry the wings at 360 degrees F for 18 minutes. After 10 minutes of cooking time use tongs to flip them over so that they brown more evenly.

Once the 18 minutes is up turn the air fryer up to 400 degrees F and cook the chicken wings for another 6 minutes. This higher temperature cooking helps ensure the ultimate crispiness of the wings.

Use an instant read thermometer to check the wings and make sure that the internal temperature has reached 165 degrees F. I’ve never had wings not be cooked at this point, but air fryers vary and it is always better to be safe!

How to Serve

Serve the wings with your favorite dipping sauce! If you love ranch go with ranch sauce for the ultimate double ranch taste.

Buffalo sauce is a fun choice for a reverse of the classic flavors. Some other great ideas are chili lime sauce, barbecue sauce, fry sauce or blue cheese dip. And if all else fails they are tasty dipped in ketchup. 🙂

Variations

I really like the simplicity of this recipe and it is my go to wing recipe when I want low effort wings, so I don’t vary it much. But if you are a big garlic fan you could add garlic powder to the wings for extra garlicky ranch flavor.

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FAQ

How do I reheat the wings?

If you have leftover chicken wings you can reheat them in the air fryer. Just put them in and cook them at 400 degrees F for 5-7 minutes. This works both for homemade wings or leftover wings from a local pizza place.

Can I air fry frozen chicken wings?

The best way to air fry frozen chicken wings is to thaw them, dry them off and then proceed with the recipe. If you put frozen wings in the air fryer the ranch seasoning won’t really stick and they will not be as tender. But if you really want to do it check out my instructions for air frying frozen chicken wings.

Do I need to add oil to air fryer wings?

There is no need to add oil to this ranch chicken wing recipe. Wings have a lot of fat and that fat will render as they cook and make them crispy on the outside.

If you are adding a breading to the wings then oil would be needed but dry rub wings don’t need extra oil. The ranch seasoning coats these wings well but it really isn’t a breading, just a light coating.

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