This recipe for Breaded Air Fryer Chicken guarantees perfect results every time. It is easy to make and is a great healthy weeknight meal. Air Fryer chicken breast is crispy and succulent, it’s the best way to fry chicken! Lower in fat and calories, fried chicken in an air fryer is now my go to!
The first thing I made with my new air fryer was air fryer potatoes! And the second thing I made was this breaded air fryer chicken. I think those are two essential recipes that most people test out first in an air fryer. Once I tested both and realized how flavorful and easy the recipes were, the air fryer was my new BFF. If you just bought an air fryer and looking for beginning recipes to get you started, start with these two!
You can do straight air fryer chicken if you wanted to, but I think that tastes better on a skillet cooked on the stovetop. But breading the chicken and air frying it creates a golden crisp and very juicy flavorful chicken. It tastes like healthy fried chicken. I used very thinly sliced chicken breast, so these were done in minutes and pair so well with a salad!
Is air fried chicken healthy?
The whole concept of an air fryer is fast-circulating air at very high temperatures. In this process, the moisture from the outside of the chicken gets evaporated, creating a crisp crust. So you get the texture of fried food without frying the chicken in a whole pan of oil.
This way you’ll make chicken healthier because it will have less fat and less calories from not using much oil for cooking. Just like oven baked chicken is healthy, air fried chicken is healthy – of course as part of an overall balanced diet.
How to make breaded air fryer chicken breast
Traditionally, you can bread chicken by dredging it in flour, eggs and breadcrumbs. I made this a little healthier by skipping the flour and eggs. Instead I start with thinly sliced chicken breasts, spray them with olive oil, and then dredge them in seasoned breadcrumbs. The oil helps the breadcrumbs stick to the chicken and create that crisp exterior.
Many people will ask “how long do I cook chicken in the air fryer?” This will depend on the thickness and cut of the chicken, along with whether or not it has skin. Chicken thighs with skin will take the longest, up to 30 minutes. Chicken tenders without skin will only take 10-15 minutes.
These super thinly sliced chicken breasts only take 9-12 minutes. So they are the easiest and fastest to cook! As always, you can check that the internal temperature of the chicken breast reaches 165°F. I cooked mine in the NuWave air fryer (affiliate link).
