Garlic-Parmesan Air-Fryer Chicken Wings Recipe

Garlic-Parmesan wings occupy a strange place in the chicken wing canon. They’re everywhere—sports bars, pizza joints, chain restaurants that also serve mozzarella sticks—yet they’re rarely memorable. Too often they’re greasy but bland, aggressively garlicky but oddly flat-tasting, or coated in a pasty sauce that dulls any hope of crispness. We set about to change that with this recipe, developed by Craig Ruff in our Birmingham, Alabama, test kitchen. The goal is a wing that’s rich, savory, and unapologetically garlicky, without sacrificing the crackly, shatteringly crisp chicken skin.

Craig’s recipe takes a straightforward approach, using an air fryer to cook the wings and a quick microwave sauce to finish them. Together, they deliver consistently crisp skin, juicy meat, and a glossy garlic-Parmesan coating—with no vat of hot oil to deal with.

Why the Air Fryer Works So Well For Wings

The air fryer is uniquely suited to chicken wings, thanks to its intense, evenly circulating heat. It’s a supercharged convection oven that does in about 25 minutes what a conventional oven takes about one hour to accomplish—often with better results. Wings have delicate skin and just enough fat underneath the skin to render quickly, which means the air fryer can dry and blister the skin while keeping the meat inside tender and juicy. 

To push the wings firmly into “convincingly fried” territory, they’re tossed with salt and a small amount of baking powder before cooking. This technique, borrowed from Serious Eats culinary director emeritus Kenji’s oven-fried wings recipe, raises the skin’s pH, promoting better browning and the formation of tiny micro-blisters that create a welcome crunch. You can cook the wings immediately after tossing them in the mixture, but if you have time, let them rest in the fridge for up to 24 hours to let the brine season them deeply.

The 2 Main Rules for Making Great Wings in the Air Fryer

There are only two things you really need to get right when making wings in the air fryer. First, don’t overcrowd the basket. Wings need a little breathing room so hot air can circulate fully around them; pack them too tightly and you’ll end up with pale spots and flabby skin. So if needed, cook them in batches, depending on the size of your air-fryer basket. With a 6-quart or larger air fryer, two pounds of wings fit comfortably in a single batch. Smaller models may requirecooking the wings in batches, but the total time investment is still minimal. 

Second, preheat the air fryer. Starting hot ensures the wings begin sizzling immediately, jump-starting fat rendering and crisping, rather than allowing them to gradually steam as they come up to temperature.

The Easy Garlic-Parmesan Sauce

Once the wings are deeply golden and crisp, they are tossed in a sauce that’s as low-effort as the cooking method itself. Butter and minced garlic are gently microwaved just until bubbling, which softens the garlic and blooms its flavor without browning or bitterness. Grated Parmesan, parsley, and salt are stirred in while the mixture is still hot, creating a loose, glossy sauce that clings easily to the wings.

The microwave is the safest, easiest tool for the job. There’s no risk of scorching the garlic, no broken emulsions to worry about, and no need to dirty a saucepan for something that takes less than two minutes start to finish.

Tossed while hot, the wings absorb just enough of the buttery garlic-Parmesan mixture to coat every ridge and blister while staying crisp. Serve them immediately, with ranch for dipping and lemon wedges for squeezing, and don’t expect leftovers.