Shoutout to the random cookout at my cousin's place that changed how I do chicken wings

I was at my cousin's backyard in Phoenix last Saturday and he pulled out some wings from his air fryer that were crackling crispy. He said he pats them dry, then tosses them in a mix of baking powder and salt, and lets them sit in the fridge for an hour before hitting the fryer at 400 for 20 minutes. I tried it myself when I got home and the skin was insane, way better than my old method of just tossing them in sauce straight away. Has anyone else found a good dry rub trick that makes the skin pop?

2 comments

2 Comments

laura_ross1mo ago

Not really sure the air fryer trick is as big a game changer as people make it sound. Good wings have always been about proper drying and heat, not some magic powder combo. Feels like every few months someone rediscovered baking powder and calls it revolutionary.

abby_scott1mo ago

Oh man, that's the kind of thing that sticks with you. It's funny how one little tweak in the kitchen can totally flip what you thought was the "right" way. I think it's like that with a lot of stuff in life actually. Like with grilling, my neighbor showed me to let steak sit at room temp for 20 minutes before cooking and I'll never go back. Or with laundry, my mom finally got me to stop cramming the washer full and things actually come out clean now. It's those small steps that people probably figure out through trial and error or just getting lucky once. Makes you wonder what else we're all doing the hard way.