Low Sugar Air Fryer Lemon Pepper Wings
Crispy, golden wings with a bright, buttery lemon pepper coating — this air fryer recipe delivers everything you want from a classic wing night without a drop of added sugar anywhere in the process. So many bottled wing sauces and seasoning blends sneak in sweeteners, which makes store-bought shortcuts a minefield if you're keeping tabs on what goes into your food. Here, the sauce is built from scratch with just unsalted butter, fresh lemon juice, lemon zest, cracked black pepper, and salt — clean, punchy, and completely in your control. The real secret to that shatteringly crisp skin is baking powder in the dry coating, which draws out moisture and creates a texture that rivals anything deep-fried. Cooking in a single layer at high heat means every piece gets evenly caramelized and cooked through to a safe internal temperature without any guesswork. A finishing toss in the warm lemon butter sauce coats every inch of the wing in tangy, peppery flavor that hits hard from the very first bite. Pile them on a platter with fresh parsley and lemon wedges and watch them disappear.
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Learn more →Ingredients
4 servings
- 2 lbs chicken wings, split into flats and drumettes, tips removed
- 1 tbsp baking powder
- ½ tsp kosher salt
- ½ tsp garlic powder
For the lemon pepper sauce
- 3 tbsp unsalted butter
- 2 tbsp fresh lemon juice
- 1 tbsp lemon zest (from about 2 lemons)
- 1 tsp coarsely ground black pepper
- ¼ tsp kosher salt
For serving
- 1 tbsp fresh parsley, finely chopped (optional)
- lemon wedges, for serving (optional)
Instructions
- 1
Pat the chicken wings thoroughly dry with paper towels. In a large mixing bowl, toss the wings with the baking powder, 1/2 tsp kosher salt, and garlic powder until evenly coated.
- 2
Preheat the air fryer to 400°F (205°C) for 3 minutes. Arrange the wings in a single layer in the air fryer basket, leaving a little space between each piece — work in two batches if needed to avoid crowding.
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