AIR FRYER CHICKEN WINGS the best lemon pepper flavor!

Today we're making the most delicious air fryer chicken wings that have made me a convert when it comes to using air fryers. I'll talk more about that in a second, but let me just say that these chicken wings have ridiculously juicy insides, crispy skin perfection, and the most addictive lemon pepper seasoning and sauce that will have everyone reaching for a second plate during game night or Super Bowl. This recipe is extremely simple and cleanup is a breeze thanks to the air fryer, so let me show you how to make it. You'll need one pound of chicken wings for this recipe and because Super Bowl is this weekend, my butcher had a huge pile of chicken wings already broken down into drumettes and wingettes. But if you buy whole chicken wings, make sure to watch my oven baked chicken wings video for a tutorial on how to properly break down a chicken wing with your knife. One pound of chicken wings is about 10 individual pieces and that's about how many can fit in my air fryer in a single layer, which is key because you don't want them overlapping for maximum crispiness. Pat the chicken wings dry with a paper towel, making sure any excess moisture is removed, and then add them to a bowl. Drizzle one tablespoon of olive oil or avocado oil on the wings and then add one tablespoon of lemon pepper seasoning. Lemon pepper seasoning is a blend and it also usually includes onion and garlic powder, and while it does include salt, I like to add a little bit more, about half a teaspoon of kosher salt for extra flavor. And then mix that all together with tongs or your hands to make sure all of the individual chicken wings get well coated in the lemon pepper seasoning. All right, so let's talk air fryers. This video isn't sponsored and there's lots of great options on the market nowadays, but I purchased the Ninja Air Fryer Max at Christmas and have been loving it. It has a larger basket and cooking capacity than the regular Ninja, which is great if you're making air fryer potatoes or veggies, and it has a max crisp function that's great for frozen food items that cooks up to 30% faster. The drawback, of course, is that it's also a bigger appliance, so you have to make sure you have room to store it. To cook air fryer chicken wings, it's as easy as clicking the air fry preset button, which cooks at 390 degrees Fahrenheit, and then set the timer for 20 minutes. When you place the chicken wings in the basket, make sure to get them in a single flat layer. You don't want them on top of each other, as that would prevent the super crispy outside, which is the best part of chicken wings. To be honest, the only drawback with this recipe is that I can't cook more than about a pound of chicken wings at a time in my air fryer, because I can easily polish off this whole pound of chicken wings all by myself, and in fact, I did right after this video. The size of your air fryer may be different, and you can buy optional stacking racks as well, but just remember to leave a little space for airflow around the wings, and then set the timer for 20 minutes. While the chicken wings are cooking, you can quickly make the lemon pepper sauce. Melt a quarter cup of butter, and you can do this on the stove or in a glass in the microwave. If you use the microwave, just make sure to cover the glass or container, or else you'll end up with splattering butter all over the inside of your microwave, which is never fun. While there's lemon pepper seasoning both on the chicken wings and in this sauce, I also like to add fresh lemon for a zingier flavor. I usually add about one teaspoon of lemon zest, but if you like a stronger lemon flavor, feel free to add more. And then juice half of one lemon, which is about one and a half tablespoons of juice, and add that to the melted butter. Again, you can add more lemon juice if you'd like, or you can squeeze that extra lemon half into a glass of water and just enjoy it on the side. For a smidge of sweetness and gloss, add half a tablespoon of honey, and then one teaspoon of lemon pepper seasoning. Give that a stir to combine the ingredients together, then set it off to the side for now. After about 10 minutes, flip your chicken wings over using tongs. You'll notice a beautiful golden color starting to form on the top side, but you want them to be golden and evenly cooked all around. An alternative to flipping the wings individually is to remove the basket and give it a good shake. If you go with the shake method, I'd suggest doing this every five minutes just to make sure that the chicken wings are perfectly golden, sizzling, and crispy when they're done, just like this. I mean, how amazing do those chicken wings look? Plate this batch of chicken wings, and if you'd like to make a second batch, which I honestly recommend you do, you can pop another pound of chicken wings back in the air fryer. Don't underestimate how addictively delicious these wings are, because you might think to yourself, oh, I'll only have one or two or three, but I am telling you right now, that's an impossibility, unless you have way more willpower than me. As I mentioned at the beginning, they're juicy on the inside, super crispy on the outside, and I found that this lemon pepper flavor is universally a favorite. But let me also give you an alternative approach to the dipping sauce, and that's simply coating the chicken wings in the sauce while they're warm and fresh out of the air fryer. Just add the chicken wings to a bowl, drizzle a little bit of the sauce on top, and toss them around to coat. To be honest, you'll have plenty of sauce, so you can both toss them in a bit of sauce, and then still serve some dipping sauce alongside, if you so wish. And if you're dairy sensitive, you can swap the butter for ghee or omit the sauce entirely. The wings on their own are still amazingly delicious and loaded with flavor. If you're an air fryer beginner, this is a foolproof recipe to make, and I'm sure it will get you pumped about your air fryer purchase, as it did with me. I hope you enjoyed this video today, and if you did, make sure to give it a thumbs up, share it with your family and friends, and let me know in the comments below what kind of air fryer recipes you'd like to see me make next.