If you're lucky enough to find some young chicken of the woods mushrooms, then I hope you get to make these Air Fryer Chicken of the Woods "Wings!" They're so delicious and satisfying to eat that they feel like real chicken wings!
Just a few simple ingredients and you get crispy pieces of mushrooms that go so perfectly well with your favorite wing sauce.
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Chicken of the woods recipe
Chicken of the woods mushroom is so versatile and easy to cook with—you can sauté, pan fry, air fry, roast, grill, or add it to soups. In this chicken of the woods recipe, I am air frying it. I wanted to get it nice and crispy so that I can toss it with wing sauce and still retain that crisp crunch.
Air frying works best for young chicken of the woods that is not tough or woody. If yours is old or too woody, you might want to try a cooking method that will allow it to steam and soften a little, or you can use it to make stock or dehydrate it for later use.
I used a similar recipe and technique as my air fryer orange chicken, but instead of tossing the air fried chicken of the woods with orange sauce, I used Buffalo wing sauce and BBQ sauce. But I am sure using the orange sauce from the orange chicken would be delicious with COTW as well.
Related recipe: Pan Fried Lion's Mane Mushrooms
Does chicken of the woods taste like chicken?
Not exactly. Meat eaters will definitely taste the difference. But Chicken of the Woods has a nice meaty texture that "shreds" and pulls apart similar to chicken wings. So when chicken of the woods is coated in a light flour breading, air fried until crispy, and coated in wing sauce, it definitely feels like chicken. And it is just as satisfying.
Perfect vegetarian alternative to chicken wings!
Related recipe: Fried Enoki Mushrooms
Ingredients
- ½ lb chicken of the woods mushroom, washed, dried, and roughly torn into wing-sized pieces
- ¾ cup all-purpose flour
- ¼ cup cornstarch
- 1.5 teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon paprika
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1 teaspoon onion powder
- ½ - 1 teaspoon ground black pepper, to taste
- 1 extra large egg
- ¼ cup milk
- Oil spray for air frying (I love this refillable one that I fill with olive oil)
- ½ - 1 cup wing sauce of your choice (such as Buffalo sauce, BBQ, or the honey ginger garlic sauce that I use for my Instant Pot Chicken Wings)
Equipment
- Air fryer - I have the Instant Pot Vortex and I love it!
- Oil sprayer - I love this refillable one)
- Small tongs or a fork - to dredge the mushroom pieces in flour and egg and not get your hands too dirty
- 2 bowls
- Measuring cups and spoons
Related recipe: Lion's Mane Mushroom Steaks
Instructions
Prep your chicken of the wood mushroom: brush off any dirt or dust, cut off any tough or woody parts, soak it in a bowl of salt water to get rid of any critters, rinse it, and pat it dry. Use your hands to tear it into chicken wing sized pieces. The exact size doesn't matter as long as the thickness is about the same.
In a medium bowl, combine the dry ingredients: ¾ cup flour, ¼ cup cornstarch, 1.5 teaspoons salt, 1 teaspoon paprika, 1 teaspoon garlic powder, 1 teaspoon onion powder, and ½ - 1 teaspoon black pepper.
In another medium bowl, whisk together the egg and ¼ cup milk.
Set up your dredging station with the flour and egg bowls, and the air fryer basket/tray on top of a large plate or cutting board (that's to catch any loose flour from under the basket/tray).
Dip each piece of the mushroom into the flour on both sides, then into the egg mixture, then back into the flour. Make sure to coat completely in flour, you can scoop some flour on top if needed. Shake off excess flour, then gently place on the air fryer tray or basket.
Preheat your air fryer to 375F, if your air fryer requires preheating.
Spray cooking oil on the tops of the floured pieces of mushroom "wings." I like to hold the air fryer tray over the sink or over the trash can so the loose flour doesn't go flying all over the counter or the floor.
Air fry the chicken of the woods for 16-18 minutes, flipping halfway. If there is a lot of loose flour on the other side, you can spray the other side of the mushrooms before putting it back in the air fryer. The cook time will vary depending on your air fryer model and if it needs preheating, but the mushrooms should be crisp on the outside without being too dry.
Toss the air fried mushroom pieces in your favorite wing sauce and serve warm.
More foraging recipes to try: Garlic Mustard Pesto
More recipes using Buffalo sauce
- Buffalo Chicken Ring
- Cheesy Buffalo Chicken Dip
- Buffalo Chicken Tortilla Pinwheels
- Instant Pot Creamy Buffalo Chicken
If you enjoyed this recipe, let me know with a comment and a star rating below. And don't forget to share it on Facebook and save it on Pinterest for later!
Air Fryer Chicken of the Woods "Wings"
Ingredients
- ½ lb chicken of the woods mushroom - washed, dried, and roughly torn into wing-sized pieces
- ¾ cup all-purpose flour
- ¼ cup cornstarch
- 1.5 teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon paprika
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1 teaspoon onion powder
- ½ - 1 teaspoon ground black pepper - to taste
- 1 extra large egg
- ¼ cup milk
- oil spray for air frying - (I love this refillable one that I fill with olive oil)
- ½ - 1 cup wing sauce of your choice - (try Buffalo sauce, BBQ, or the honey ginger garlic sauce that I use for my Instant Pot Chicken Wings)
Special equipment
- Oil sprayer I love my refillable one!
- Small tongs or a fork to dredge the mushroom and not get your hands dirty
Instructions
- Prep your chicken of the wood mushroom: brush off any dirt or dust, cut off any tough or woody parts, soak it in a bowl of salt water to get rid of any critters, rinse it, and pat it dry. Use your hands to tear it into chicken wing sized pieces. The exact size doesn't matter as long as the thickness is about the same.
- In a medium bowl, combine the dry ingredients: ¾ cup all-purpose flour, ¼ cup cornstarch, 1.5 teaspoon salt, 1 teaspoon paprika, 1 teaspoon garlic powder, 1 teaspoon onion powder, and ½ - 1 teaspoon ground black pepper.
- In another medium bowl, whisk together the egg and ¼ cup milk.
- Set up your dredging "station" with the flour and egg bowls and the air fryer basket/tray on top of a large plate or cutting board to catch any loose flour.
- Dip each piece of the mushroom into the flour on both sides, then into the egg mixture, then back into the flour. Make sure to coat completely in flour, you can scoop some flour on top if needed. Shake off excess flour, then gently place on the air fryer tray or basket.
- Preheat your air fryer to 375F, if your air fryer requires preheating.
- Spray cooking oil on the tops of the floured pieces of mushroom "wings." I like to hold the air fryer tray over the sink or over the trash can so the loose flour doesn't go flying all over the counter or the floor.
- Air fry the chicken of the woods for 15-18 minutes, flipping halfway. If there is a lot of loose flour on the other side, you can spray the other side of the mushrooms before putting it back in the air fryer. The cook time will vary depending on your air fryer model and if it needs preheating, but the mushrooms should be crisp on the outside without being too dry. Thinner pieces will take about 15 minutes, thicker pieces might need 18 minutes.
- Toss the air fried mushroom pieces in your favorite wing sauce and serve warm.
Notes
Nutrition
The nutritional information displayed is an estimate and not to be used as dietary or nutritional advice. Consult a nutritionist or dietician for nutritional info based on the exact ingredients you use.