These air fryer neck bones are melt-in-your-mouth tender. Made with pork neck bones, BBQ sauce, ground paprika, and garlic powder these sweet, smoky, and sticky neck bones are the ultimate comfort meal!

Neck bones are a very inexpensive and versatile cut of meat loaded with flavor. While neck bones seem intimidating to make at home, they are actually very easy to cook!

One of the best parts about making these pork neck bones in the air fryer is how quick they are to make. Neck bones are known for being tough and for taking a long time to cook.

As a result of this, neck bones are usually slow-cooked in a broth or gravy for 2 - 3 hours until tender. Try my other Instant pot neck bones recipe and baked neck bones recipe.

Using the air fryer, the cooking time is cut drastically down, so instead of taking hours to cook, these BBQ pork neck bones are done in only 35 minutes.

Air fried pork neck bones are full of the best flavors. Marinated with BBQ sauce, seasonings, and liquid smoke for an extra kick of savory smokiness, this air fryer pork recipe is one that your whole family will love!

Recipe ingredients

Pork neck bones. 1lb of cleaned, fresh, or completely thawed pork neck bones.

Seasonings. Garlic powder, onion powder, ground paprika, salt.

Liquid smoke. Increases the savory smoky flavor of this dish.

Olive oil. Added to the marinade and helps the neck bones get crispier in the air fryer.

BBQ sauce. Used to marinade the neck bones before air frying, use a BBQ sauce you like the flavor of.

How to make air fryer neck bones

Prepare neck bones. If they are frozen, defrost them overnight in the frideg or for a few hours on the counter. Wash bones with cold running water and place in the zip lock bag.

Add all the seasonings ingredients on top. I used garlic powder, onion powder. ground paprika, salt, liquid smoke, olive oil and some barbecue sauce. Close the bag and shake shake shake until all the neck bones are well coated in seasoning sauce.

Let marinate for at least 30 minutes or overnight if you can. Take pork neck bones out of the bag and transfer to the air fryer basket. Leave some space between the bones for the hot air to circulate and cook it properly. Cook for about 20 minutes at 350 degrees.

Open the basket, brush more barbecue sauce on top of each neck bone and cook for additional 5 minutes. Chop cilantro and garnish your dish. Enjoy!

What are neck bones

Neck bones refer to the meat and bones found in the neck or collar of the animal they come from. I am using pork neck bones for this recipe, but turkey or beef neck bones are great alternatives.

They are fairly inexpensive because they are made mostly of bones and contain a very small amount of meat. This is why it is essential to cook them slowly or in the air fryer until the meat is tender. Another excellent way to use neck bones is to add them to broths, soups, stews, gravy, beans, or greens as a way to add more flavor to your dishes.

Substitutions

Neck bones. If you don't have pork bones or prefer a different type of meat, swap the pork for beef, turkey, or chicken neck bones. Keep in mind that the cooking time might differ slightly.

Liquid smoke. Use smoked paprika or chipotle powder instead, or simply leave it out.

Variations

If you prefer a spicier meal, the addition of hot sauce, chopped jalapeno peppers, or cayenne pepper increases the flavors in this dish and really makes it very comforting and flavorful.

If you don't have an air fryer, you can cook these BBQ neck bones in a pressure cooker. They will take slightly longer to cook but they will still be delicious!

For a southern-style recipe, air fry the pork neck bones without the bbq sauce then serve them with brown gravy over rice.

Switch up the seasonings. Add a few tablespoons of brown sugar, or honey, add a dash of freshly ground black pepper, or cover with your favorite BBQ spice rub.

Frequently asked questions

Side dishes

Try my favorite salad to try with any pork dish- Turkish red cabbage salad, so crunchy and delicious! Also serve air fryer neck bones over creamy mashed potatoes or a nice bowl if white rice.

If you want to keep it on a healthy side make a garden vegetable salad. Mix chopped cucumbers, onions, cilantro, tomatoes and bell peppers. Add a splash of live oil and some salt and pepper to taste.

Leftovers

Store air fryer neck bones leftovers in the air tight plastic or glass container in the fridge for up to 5 days.

You can freeze leftovers as well. If you will use a freezer safe zip lock bag or a container, store in the freezer for 6 months to 1 year easily.

Thaw overnight in the fridge or for couple hours on the counter. Reheat in the oven, microwave or air fryer.

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Hope you will like this air fryer neck bones recipe as much as we do. Please rate the recipe if you made it and leave a comment below if you have any questions or suggestions.