Air Fryer Garlic Parmesan Wings

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Our recipe for Air Fryer Garlic Parmesan Wings starts with frozen chicken wings to keep things easy and it’s all topped off with our buttery garlic parmesan wing sauce! Perfect for a quick dinner or snack!

air fryer garlic parmesan wings in basket.

Going out for wings is a always a win in my house, but man, they sure get expensive! We’ve been making frozen chicken wings in the air fryer at home for ages now – so much cheaper and you won’t believe how easy! You literally toss the frozen wings right in – no need to even thaw them!! And ooh boy, they get nice and crispy!

We love our lemon pepper wings around here, but Chad’s been asking for me to come up with a garlic parmesan wing sauce.

Well, my first sauce was, shall we say, pure freakin’ garlic. I needed to modify it a bit (although I secretly liked it a little on the strong side). We tested these over and over to be sure we had the sauce right where we wanted it.

This is buttery, cheesy, and loaded with garlic. We added just the tiniest hint of spice with a sprinkle of red pepper flakes. Seriously, these crispy wings in this buttery sauce is just irresistible.

Table of Contents

Ingredient Notes:

Wings – We used frozen party wings for this recipe. No need to thaw them.

Sauce ingredients– You will need garlic and Parmesan, along with some butter, Italian seasoning, and a sprinkle of red pepper flakes.

Need to make more than one pound of wings? You can easily double, triple, or quadruple this recipe, so long as you’re not overcrowding your air fryer basket. If you need a large batch, it may be best to follow the recipe for these crispy baked chicken wings and toss them in our garlic parmesan sauce.

How to Make Garlic Parmesan Wings in the Air Fryer:

Cook the wings-Spritz the air fryer and wings with oil spray and cook at 400 degrees for 30 minutes, flipping halfway through.

Make the sauce– Add butter to a skillet and melt and then add your pressed garlic and seasonings. Let cook over very low heat to let the flavors infuse the butter – about 5 minutes. Stir in the Parmesan.

PRO TIP: If your heat is too high, you’ll burn the garlic. Keep it as low as possible, just to keep things warm.

chicken wings in glass bowl with garlic parmesan wing sauce.

Sauce the wings– Get a large bowl and add the wings to it, then pour the sauce from the saucepan over the top. Toss the wings until they are fully coated in the sauce.

Are Garlic Parmesan wings spicy?

We would rate these garlic parmesan wings as quite mild, with just a little bite from the garlic and the sprinkle of red pepper flakes. To increase the heat, add more red pepper.

If you’re very sensitive to spice, you can leave the red pepper flakes out altogether.

FAQ:

What is the best dip for garlic parmesan wings?

We love to serve our wings with a side of ranch dressing or blue cheese dressing for dipping. We prefer ranch, but both are popular.

Why aren’t my air fryer wings crispy?

You’re likely overcrowding the air fryer. Make sure to leave a bit of space for air to flow between each chicken wing. That hot air is what will crisp up the skin.

How long does it take to cook frozen chicken wings at 400 degrees in an air fryer?

For perfectly crispy air fryer wings, start with frozen chicken wings and spritz them lightly with oil (optional). Cook in the air fryer at 400 degrees for 30 minutes, flipping halfway through cooking.

More chicken recipes you might like:

overhead view of garlic parmesan chicken wings.

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We’d love to hear what you think of this recipe! Leave a comment and star rating down below! And don’t forget to pin and share!

Air Fryer Garlic Parmesan Wings

Yield: 10 wings

Prep Time: 5 minutes

Cook Time: 30 minutes

Total Time: 35 minutes

Nothing beats a pile of crispy wings tossed in sauce and we worked hard to get this Garlic Parmesan sauce just right. It's rich and butter, loaded with garlic flavor, and just a touch of heat thanks to the red pepper flakes.

Ingredients

For the wings:

10 frozen chicken wing sections, about 1 pound

For the sauce:

¼ cup butter
2 large garlic cloves
1 teaspoon salt
½ teaspoon Italian seasoning
¼ teaspoon red pepper flakes, more to taste
2 tablespoons grated Parmesan cheese

Instructions

To make the wings:

Spritz the air fryer basket with oil spray and arrange the wings in an even layer.
Spritz the wings lightly with oil spray.
Cook at 400 degrees for 30 minutes, flipping the wings halfway through cooking.
Toss in the sauce just before serving.

To make the sauce:

Add the butter to a small sauce over low heat and let melt.
Use a garlic press to press the garlic cloves into the pan. Alternately, finely mince the garlic.
Add the salt, Italian seasoning, and red pepper flakes to the pan and cook for 5 minutes until the sauce is very fragrant and garlic has softened. Keep the heat on the lowest setting, so as not to burn the garlic. Stir often.
Remove from heat and stir in the Parmesan.

To assemble:

Add the wings to a bowl and pour the sauce over the top. Stir or toss the wings to coat in the sauce.
Serve immediately.

Notes

No need to thaw the wings - just toss them straight from the freezer to the air fryer.

We find these wings to be quite mild, but you can skip the red pepper flakes entirely if you don't like any spice at all. Alternately, add more red pepper flakes to the sauce or spinkle over the top before serving for more heat.

We use the powdered Parmesan in this recipe. It gives a better texture than shredded, in our opinion, when making sauce.

This recipe is easily doubled (or more) to feed a crowd. Be sure not to overcrowd the basket. Keep wings warm in a low oven while cooking the other batches. Alternately, skip the air fryer and make these crispy baked wings (big batches just aren't great for the air fryer, unfortunately) and toss them in this wing sauce.

Nutrition Information:

Yield: 1 Serving Size: 1
Amount Per Serving: Calories: 1343

All information and tools presented and written within this site are intended for informational purposes only. This information is provided as a courtesy and there is no guarantee that the information is accurate.

Air Fryer Garlic Parmesan Wings

Ingredient Notes:

How to Make Garlic Parmesan Wings in the Air Fryer:

Are Garlic Parmesan wings spicy?