Let’s set expectations here, first and foremost. I’m not going to pull your leg and tell you that air fryer fried chicken is exactly the same as cast iron or deep fried chicken. The crust isn’t quite as crispy, and the chicken isn’t quite as obviously juicy.
But you know what? It’s pretty darn close! I would say it’s even 90 percent, if not 95 percent there. The crust is crackly and tasty, and as long as you don’t forget about it in your air fryer, it’s still going to be juicy.
As with many things in the kitchen, it’s all about tradeoffs, but I think you would be silly to not try this if you have access to an air fryer. I loved the recipe and was surprised by how close it got to my traditional deep-fried version.
Why Air Fry?
There are two reasons why you might want to make air fried chicken instead of classic fried chicken.
- First, there is a health benefit to air frying over deep frying or pan frying. While I do recommend very lightly spraying the fried chicken with oil before and during air frying, you don’t submerge the pieces entirely in oil, and as a result, they undoubtedly absorb less oil in the process.
- For me though, the bigger advantage is time savings. It takes 30 seconds to flip on the air fryer, and the cleanup is worlds easier than dealing with big pots of hot oil.
Here’s a crispy chicken recipe for the air fryer that gives you that golden crunch without deep frying:
Air Fryer Crispy Chicken
Ingredients
- 500g (about 1 lb) chicken pieces (wings, drumsticks, or boneless tenders)
- 1 cup buttermilk (or 1 cup milk + 1 tbsp lemon juice, let sit 5 min)
- 1 cup all-purpose flour
- ½ cup breadcrumbs (panko for extra crunch)
- 1 tsp paprika
- 1 tsp garlic powder
- 1 tsp onion powder
- ½ tsp black pepper
- 1 tsp salt
- ½ tsp chili powder or cayenne (optional, for heat)
- Cooking spray or a little oil
Instructions
- Marinate Chicken
- Place chicken in a bowl, pour over the buttermilk, cover, and refrigerate for at least 30 minutes (up to overnight). This tenderizes and adds flavor.
- Prepare Coating
- In a shallow dish, mix flour, breadcrumbs, paprika, garlic powder, onion powder, salt, pepper, and chili powder.
- Coat Chicken
- Remove chicken from buttermilk (let excess drip off) and coat well in the flour-breadcrumb mix.
- Press the coating onto the chicken so it sticks.
- Preheat Air Fryer
- Set to 200°C / 400°F for 5 minutes.
- Cook
- Lightly spray chicken with cooking spray (or brush with a little oil).
- Arrange in a single layer in the air fryer basket (don’t overcrowd).
- Cook 10–15 minutes for boneless pieces or 20–25 minutes for bone-in chicken, flipping halfway through, until golden and crispy.
- Internal temp should reach 75°C / 165°F.
- Serve
- Enjoy hot with your favorite dipping sauce.
