Air Fryer BBQ Chicken Legs
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Looking for a new way to cook up some chicken legs? If so, this chicken recipe is for you! These BBQ chicken legs in the air fryer are so quick and easy to make. My entire family is OBSESSED!
Air Fryer BBQ Chicken Legs
Summer is here and all I want to eat are chicken legs! I don’t why but I just love to spend those warm summer evenings eating these delicious pieces of meat. Especially, when they’re nice and crispy on the outside and tender and juicy on the inside…yum!
A few weeks back, I attempted to make a couple of really simple chicken legs seasoned with salt and pepper in the air fryer. And, I gotta tell you, I was not disappointed. They were absolutely delicious!
So I was inspired to try this recipe again, except this time, I decided to go with a BBQ-style. All you need are three simple ingredients: chicken legs, bbq sauce, and salt. That’s it! It really is that simple.
Don’t have an air fryer? That’s okay! Try baking these BBQ chicken legs in the oven instead.
Make Your Own BBQ Sauce
I know it’s 10x easier to just run to the store and buy a bottle or 2 of BBQ sauce to add to these chicken legs. Trust me—I do it all the time. But, nothing beats making your own homemade BBQ sauce right in your own kitchen. The flavor alone is completely different (in a good way) and it’s much more wallet-friendly so you can make a couple of batches.
You can even mix BBQ sauce ingredients together and let them cook in a pressure cooker like this BBQ sauce in the Instant Pot!
Want to make these BBQ chicken legs keto? Easy, just use sugar-free keto BBQ sauce!
How To Make BBQ Chicken Legs In The Air Fryer
Before you start making anything, make sure to spray the air fryer basket with non-stick cooking spray so that the skin on the chicken leg doesn’t stick.
Rub the chicken legs with some salt and place them into the air fryer basket in a single layer. Make sure to not overcrowd the basket!
Cook in the air fryer at 400 degrees for about 15 minutes.
Take the basket out and brush all of the chicken legs with BBQ sauce. Place the basket back into the air fryer and cook at 400 degrees for 5 minutes.
Flip the chicken legs over with tongs and cook for another 5 minutes. When you pull them out, make sure the internal temperature is 165 degrees using a meat thermometer.
Serve the BBQ chicken legs with extra BBQ sauce for dipping!
What To Serve With BBQ Chicken Legs
These juicy BBQ-sauced chicken legs go great with a side of fresh potato and egg salad along with roasted corn on the cob and a piece of homemade cornbread (I make mine in the Instant Pot)! The options are truly endless with this tasty dish.
More Air Fryer Recipes
If you loved this air ‘fried’ bbq chicken legs recipe, check out some of my other air fryer recipes!
Besides chicken legs, I also love to make these other recipes in the air fryer:
- Crispy Chicken Wings In The Air Fryer
- Air Fryer Hamburgers
- Juicy Italian Sausage In The Air Fryer
- Air Fryer Cornish Hens
- Tender Meatballs In The Air Fryer
Air Fryer BBQ Chicken Legs
Recipe Video
Ingredients
- 1 lb chicken legs
- 1/4 cup bbq sauce
- 1/2 tsp salt
Recommended Kitchen Tools (click the links below to see the items used to make this recipe)
Instructions
- Spray the air fryer basket with non-stick cooking spray.
- Rub the chicken legs with salt and put in the air fryer basket in a single layer.
- Cook in the air fryer at 400F for 15 minutes.
- Brush the chicken legs with BBQ sauce all over and cook in the air fryer at 400F for 5 minutes.
- Flip the chicken legs over with tongs and cook in the air fryer at 400F for another 5 minutes.
- Serve the BBQ chicken legs with extra BBQ sauce for dipping.
The chicken was perfectly crispy and the BBQ flavor was fantastic. It’s now a family favorite and so easy to make!
Using simple ingredients makes it a go-to for me—thanks for sharing this fantastic recipe!