Learn how to make these Whole30 and keto air fryer drumsticks EXTRA crispy and addicting. Oven method is also included in case you don’t own an air fryer!
Crispy chicken drumsticks are very popular in our house. We probably eat it once a week and we just love how flavorful and juicy they turn out every time with the most addicting crispy skin. You truly don’t even need bbq sauce!
I’ve probably cooked chicken drumsticks many different ways, but these crispy chicken drumsticks cooked in the air fryer are always our favorite. If you don’t own an air fryer, no worries. I’ve included oven instructions as well!
How to Make Extra Crispy Air Fryer Drumsticks
Every time I make a skin-on chicken dish with a dry cooking method (without bbq sauce), it’s important that the skin turns out super crunchy. It’s honestly my favorite part when I’m eating it! I’ve found that the high concentrated heat and air circulation of the air fryer makes this possible, along with coating the chicken with baking powder.
I’ve been using baking powder for crispy chicken for a while after reading this excerpt from Serious Eats:
“Baking powder, it turns out, is good for quite a lot more than baking. The slightly alkaline mixture raises the skin’s pH levels, which allows proteins to break down more efficiently, giving you crisper, more evenly browned results. Simultaneously, it combines with the bird’s natural juices, forming carbon dioxide gas that leaves you with a layer of tiny bubbles. It’s these bubbles that increase the skin’s surface area, allowing it to develop a crunchy texture once cooked.”
Serious Eats
Isn’t that super cool? The first time I tried it, I was so surprise at how well it worked and using this method really yields the best air fryer chicken legs!
Ingredients for Air Fryer Chicken Legs
- chicken drumsticks
- avocado oil or your favorite cooking oil like olive oil
- baking powder
- paprika
- onion powder
- garlic powder
- salt and pepper
Instructions for Cooking Drumsticks with the Air Fryer
I have several Whole30 and keto air fryer recipes on the blog and I love using the air fryer so much, because of how fast food can cook in it and it yields a much better texture than a standard oven.
Here’s an easy and quick step-by-step of how to cook chicken drumsticks in the air fryer:
- If your air fryer instructions say that it needs to be preheated, make sure to preheat it for at least 5 minutes before cooking.
- Coat the chicken drumsticks with avocado oil or olive oil, then with the dry rub spices. The spice combo will also include baking powder which will give the chicken an extra crispy skin.
- Cook in the air fryer in a single layer for 20 minutes, making sure to flip halfway through for even cooking. I also try to not have the drumsticks touch each other for more thorough cooking, but it’s not necessary especially if you have a smaller air fryer.
- Enjoy right away! They will be the crispest right out of the air fryer.
Instructions for Cooking Drumsticks in the Oven
Don’t own an air fryer? You can also make these crispy chicken drumsticks in the oven and I’ve included instructions for that as well. The skin will definitely be more crunchy and crispy using the air fryer method, but they’ll still turn out delicious!
- Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F, then coat the chicken drumsticks with the same spices and baking powder combo as the air fryer method.
- Bake for 40 minutes until the cook through and become golden and crispy, flipping them halfway through.
If you are looking for a quick and easy dinner, these low carb and Whole30 chicken drumsticks come together in no time and go so well with various sides. They taste better than any other bbq chicken recipes I’ve tried!
Frequently Asked Questions
Yes! In fact, the chicken drumsticks in this recipe are cooked raw. By the time they are done, they are tender and juicy in the inside while being deliciously crispy on the outside.
Yes, they will take a longer time to cook, but it can be done. However, for this recipe, I recommend defrosting them first so the spices and the baking powder stick to the skin better.
Of course. In fact, I wouldn’t consider these chicken to have a batter, since it’s just thin coat of baking powder and spices.
Other recipes you might love…
Lemon Garlic BBQ Chicken Drumsticks (Paleo, Whole30, Keto, AIP Option)
Extra Crispy Whole Roast Chicken
Air Fryer Keto Popcorn Chicken (Paleo, Whole30)
Paleo & Whole30 Sesame Chicken – Stovetop & Air Fryer Method
Extra Crispy Air Fryer Drumsticks (Paleo, Whole30, Keto) – Oven Method Included
Ingredients
- 8 chicken drumsticks
- 1 tbsp avocado oil or your favorite cooking oil
- 1 tbsp baking powder gluten free
- 1 tsp paprika
- 1 tsp onion powder
- 1 tsp garlic powder
- 3/4 tsp sea salt
- 1/2 tsp ground black pepper
Instructions
- Preheat the air fryer to 400 degrees F for 5 minutes, if needed.
- Place the drumsticks in a large bowl and toss with avocado oil.
- Combine baking powder and the spice in a separate bowl.
- Sprinkle the chicken with the spice mixture and toss together until evenly coated.
- Cook in the air fryer in a single layer for 20 minutes, flipping halfway through.
- The internal temperature of the drumsticks should have reached 165 degrees F. If not, cook for longer until they do.
Oven Method
- Preheat oven to 400 degrees, and coat the chicken with spices the same way as the air fryer method.
- Place the drumsticks in single layer on a greased baking sheet.
- Bake for 35-40 minutes, flipping halfway through.
- The internal temperature of the drumsticks should have reached 165 degrees F. If not, cook for longer until they do.
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After using this recipe, I knew I wouldn’t make chicken drumsticks any other way anymore! Thank you!
There’s nothing better than crispy and delicious chicken! So good!
So good! This is the perfect dinner!
I love that you include air fryer and oven-friendly directions in this recipe. I’m collecting air fryer recipes but don’t have one yet, still with my little ol’ oven 😉 Drumsticks are my favorite pieces so I’ll 100% be making this recipe!
Every time you post one of your delicious air fryer recipes, I head to Amazon to look for one of these gadgets. Definitely need to invest into a good one. Which air fryer do you use? Not sure if you mentioned in this post.
Wayfair has great prices. I bought a 6qt for $89. It’s perfect.
I have a power XL air fryer and I absolutely love it but I’ve been looking to upgrade to the new power XL vortex. There’s more space in the bottom it comes with grilling racks and it’s supposed to cook more evenly though I’ve never had a problem with my power XL cooking evenly
Oooh so good — I just have a little air fryer and I didn’t want them to touch (for extra crispiness) so I made in 2 batches. Need to get a bigger air fryer!
I don’t have an air fryer but the oven version worked perfectly for me. So good!
I’m obsessed with my new air fryer and have been looking for more recipes for it. This one is so simple & I love it!
I only had Chipotle Avocado Oil, which gave my chicken a kick. DELICIOUS! I will certainly make this recipe again.
Sounds amazing. So glad you enjoyed!!
These came out AMAZING! Thanks!
So glad you liked it! 🙂
I don’t have Avocado oil available at this time.. what will be a good substitute if any?
Any cooking oil you have will work like olive oil.
I made this recipe in the oven I was good but turned out soggy not crispy why ?
I’m not sure what could have happened, but your chicken might have been to wet before you added the spices. You can try patting it dry next time. Also, baking them on a wire rack over the sheet pan may help as well.
So good! Thanks for the help. Got my air fried two years ago and just didn’t used it. Can’t wait to see what is next.
Ok so the 400 degrees in the oven does not work. Halfway through when I turned over it stuck to the greased pan.
And the chicken was not browned. Soggy skin. Not hood.
Being from deep GA and learning how to cook from my grandmother and this includes fried chicken and homemade chicken and dumplings, makes me judge all food to that standard. This is by far the easiest and great chicken in no time. I added more seasoning and cooked it a total of 23 minutes and the results were awesome. Thanks for adding and I will cook this again when I don’t want to cook in my cast iron frying pan.
I used this recipe last week and the drumstick where soooooo delicious..perfect …
I’m going to do a whole chicken tonight . Assume I could use this recipe as well . Similar crispy ness
I had these tonight pared with instant pot buttered cabbage and it was a delicious meal! The chicken was even better cold from the fridge for a quick snack so I’m sure I will be making this often! Thanks so much for sharing this great recipe!
So glad you enjoyed!!
My first recipe in my new toaster oven air fryer! It felt very experimental to me and I learned a few things. Anyway delicious outcome and I had all the ingredients on hand. My only issue is cleanup. How does one clean the air fryer basket? That’s quite a chore. Thanks for the amazing recipe.
I have a toaster oven style with a removable base so it’s fairy easy to clean. When I had a basket style air fryer, I just used my handheld vaccuum to suck up as much debris as possible and then wiped it down with a kitchen rag and all-purpose spray.
Best wat to clean is soaking the screen/grill in soapy hot water for as long as you can.
The whole family loved them!
The best compliment. 🙂
Wow! Just wow! It was delicious!
Thanks so much!!
So Great! Perfect directions! my whole family loves it! It comes out delicious
Thank you for sharing!
This fried chicken recipe was a hit, even with my pessimistic daughter. She found out there was hot sauce in it & she spent days trying to convince me not to make it. She begrudgingly admitted that she liked it. I WILL be making this a regular in our house. Thank you
Haha that’s amazing!! Thank you so much for leaving a review
I have made these several times and they are very flavorful we love them. Thanks for the recipe.
Thanks for this recipe. I’m still getting used to using my new air fryer. I came across your recipe and it came out great. I had to sub chili powder because I didn’t have paprika, but the chicken legs still came out great.
Sounds wonderful with chili powder!
I made this tonight for dinner and it was delicious. The entire family enjoyed it. Will definitely made it again.
Amazing! Thank you!!
Why avocado oil? Who has that in their pantry?!
It’s a healthy cooking oil that won’t oxidize at high heat like many other oils. You can use any kind of cooking oil you prefer though.
Can you cook them from frozen or do they need to be thawed 1st?
They need to be thawed first.
we just love how flavorful and juicy
This was delicious. Came out crispy and juicy. Been looking for a good fried chicken recipe that I didn’t have to do on the stove. Well I found it and it’s done in the air fryer even better. Thank you for the recipe. Will definitely be making again. Also can you use this recipe for boneless skinless chicken thighs and also can you use it on fish? Thank you.
Thank you so much! You can definitely use it with fish and chicken thighs, but if there’s no skin, it won’t turn out crispy. You can add some breading if you want to get them to crisp up!
Thank you. I tried the fish last night. I added 2TSP almond flour to the spice mix. Oh I use smoked paprika instead of regular paprika so much better. It turned out delicious. Oh it did need some lemon added to it next time.
OMG! So easy and delicious! A new family fave
Aww, yay! Thank you so much!!
My oven is broken right now, so air fryer to the rescue!! This had great flavorf, but I accidentally used too much salt. Sea salt is really strong! That was my fault. I don’t know why mine started to burn after 20 minutes; maybe I used too much oil….Live and Learn!
This is the first recipe I made in my IP Air Fryer! I had 10 drumsticks and stood all of them up to cook. It took 25 minutes and I rearranged them halfway through. They were perfectly cooked. The spice was a little too heavy on the paprika, but they were a hit with my family. I’m definitely saving and trying this recipe again!
Yes, I’m a huge paprika fan so I get that. Thanks for trying it out and reviewing!
If i don’t have baking powder, can I use something else? Looks delish!
Baking powder is what makes it crispy. You can just omit for regular drumsticks or use some kind of breading, like breadcrumbs!
I broke in my air fryer with this recipe and it was delicious. Didn’t have avocado oil, so I used canola oil instead. I’ll definitely be making this again!
This recipe was SOOOOO good! I was originally going to use airfryer but since I had a few things I needed to make with the air fryer, I decided to use the oven route. Honestly it came out so well that I have no regrets going the oven route. Everything was on point. Thank you for including all the details you did 🙂
Yay, thank you! So glad you enjoyed!!
Really loved this recipe. I cooked mine at 180 but next time I’ll do it on 200. Very tasty and succulent- thank you
So glad you liked it!
I tried it for my family. My family loves it and requests it for family get togethers. Thanks you!
I made the recipe, following the directions. It was delicious! Thank you for sharing amazing recipe.
Easy to make it, and very tasty. My family loved it.
Thank you
Family hit! When the boys want something “fried” I whip these up and it’s an instant hit. I follow recipe as is in the air fryer and they are perfect every time. Served these with a bowl of homemade ramen and strawberries for the kiddo! Thank you for sharing the recipe!
Sounds amazing with ramen. So glad you enjoyed!!
This crispy chicken was out of this world. I loved the flavorful crust. My husband, who is not a fan of chicken enjoyed this recipe. Santa brought my attention fryer and I am learning one recipe at a time.
Thank you so much!! So happy you loved it.
Didn’t care for this at all. It was extremely salty! All I could taste was salt. I had to tear the skin off to eat it. The skin was crispy though so I’ll keep the baking powder tip and use different spices next time.
I haven’t heard anyone say it’s salty yet so I’m sorry to hear that! Your drumsticks might be smaller than normal. I would try reducing the amount of salt for next time.
Did you use sea salt? I just made it tonight and didn’t notice a strong salt flavor.
This was my first Air Fryer recipe and let me tell you, it will make you slap yo mama!! Using the baking powder was amazing! It will be my go to ingredient when I need my fried chicken fix!! Thank you!
Haha thank you so much!!! So appreciate this review.
I made this last week and it was delicious! So easy but full of flavor.
Chicken juicy and flavorful but skin not as crispy. Chicken was dried before cooking and did use canola oil.
First thing I made in my new air fryer. Excellent flavor. I cooked them an extra 5 minutes as the chicken legs were huge.
Just purchased 8 qt air fryer. Have not used it yet. Did I go too big?
I think that’s a personal question. It depends on how many people you regularly feed and how much food you plan to cook in it.
Cooked perfectly in the Air Fryer. Thought the flavor was very good. Will definitely hold on to this one. Thanks,
Thank you!!
The recipe was quick and easy! Not many problems, except the baking powder? The taste was near unbearable.
Are you sure you didn’t use baking soda? Baking powder shouldn’t taste like anything and gives the skin a super crispy texture.
These were delicious! I cooked quite a lot at a time and they were layered/touching each other. However, they still turned out perfectly—crispy and juicy! This is how I’m making these from now on!
Thank you!!
Thank you so much Loved it.
Yay! Of course!
All anyone could taste was the baking soda, all the chicken went in the garbage
That’s because you need to use baking POWDER. Please do not use baking soda.
This recipe is amazing when you actually FOLLOW it! You really shouldn’t give a one star review when YOU made the mistake.
Love the recipe! Very easy to make, best flavor ever!!!
I saved this recipe and of course when I went to make it I didn’t have baking powder. So I improvised with corn starch and it turned out excellent! Air fryers are the best!
I’m so glad it worked out. I’ll have to give that a try!
These are a staple in my home. So flavorful and easy. My kids ask for them all the time!
We all loved this recipe – great flavor and very crispy. However, I do wish recipes included table salt measurements if someone doesn’t have sea salt (or kosher salt.) I’m seeing this trend more and more in online recipes. The amount of salt in this recipe is small enough it probably doesn’t matter, but it could make a big difference in other recipes. Yes, I’ve looked for conversion calculators but all I find is charts that never seem to have the exact amount I actually need at the moment.
I’m going to try your other recipes soon.
First time using my aiirfryer and tried these out. Just right, crispy and juicy! Will be making these again.
Thank you so much!