It’s time for my finger-lickin’ air fryer chicken recipe! Is there anything in the world more satisfying than the CRUNCH you get when you bite into perfectly fried chicken? The tender, moist chicken paired with the crispy, crunchy crust is the pinnacle of chicken recipes.
A lot of people often shy away from making fried food at home, but thanks to Air Fryers, our kitchens will never be the same! We can have all the decadence of fried food with none of the mess, risk, or fat.
If you love using your air fryer as much as I do, I hope you’ll try my air fryer meatloaf, air fryer turkey burgers (we eat these more often than I can admit!!), air fryer egg rolls, and authentic Italian air fryer arancini too!
Let’s make this!!!
What I Love About Air Fryer Chicken Recipe
Any time a recipe takes a complex restaurant dish and makes it easy to whip up at home, I’m sold!
- CRUNCH! CRUNCH! CRUNCH!
- Who can resist fried chicken?
- Great for lunch or dinner
- Goes well with any side!
Air Fryer Chicken Ingredients
- Buttermilk: If you’ve ever made fried chicken before, you’ll know that with fried chicken comes buttermilk! Buttermilk acts as an acidic dairy product that works to tenderize your chicken. Soaking chicken in buttermilk will ensure you get perfectly moist chicken in each bite!
- There are some easy substitutes for buttermilk though, including combinations of vinegar and regular milk.
- Oil: A must-have with any air fryer is an oil mister. This allows you to evenly disperse oil when you’re using your air fryer and helps the food cook properly. Use any neutral-flavored vegetable.
- Honey: Add the perfect sweetness to the brine. Your chicken won’t taste sweet at all.
- Garlic: Please use fresh garlic from the garlic head.
- Flour: All-purpose flour. I use the Gold Medal.
- Egg: I use a large egg.
How To Make Air Fryer Chicken
- Whisk together buttermilk, vegetable oil, honey, salt, and pepper.
- Place chicken pieces in a resealable plastic bag and pour buttermilk over the chicken.
- Refrigerate overnight for up to 2 days.
- Take the chicken out of the ziplock bags and place it on a wire rack so any extra marinade will drip off.
- Dredge the chicken pieces in the flour mixture, shaking off excess
- Dip it into the egg.
- Dip again into the flour mixture, shaking off excess.
- Mist the chicken with vegetable oil and cook the chicken in the air fryer.
- Serve.
***See the full instructions below.
Storing + Freezing + Make-Ahead
- How Long Can You Keep This In The Fridge? You can store your cooled fried chicken in the fridge for up to four days. You won’t want to store poultry for any longer — you risk bacteria growth — and the breading will start to get unsalvageable.
- You can reheat your refrigerated chicken much the same way you did when it was frozen, either in a toaster oven, regular oven, or your air fryer.
- Can You Freeze This? Yes! Once fully cooked and cooled, you can store your chicken in the freezer for up to four months.
- To thaw, let sit in the fridge overnight. Then, once ready, you can either rejuvenate your chicken in a toaster oven, regular oven or let it quickly crisp up in your air fryer. No need to settle for soggy breading here!
- Make-Ahead Tips: This chicken recipe is already geared towards make-ahead lovers — you have to let the chicken marinate for up to two days to get optimal tenderness! When you’re ready to cook, there’s not much more you can do to save time. The frying process is all about quick!
Serving Suggestions
This is perfect to serve with KFC coleslaw, carrot salad, make ahead mashed potatoes, brown sugar glazed carrots, Arkansas green beans, and southern style green beans!
Of course, my family needs biscuits or rolls! We love Bisquick biscuits, Bo Berry biscuit, butter swim biscuits, cat head biscuits, Lion House rolls, or my favorites, homemade crescent rolls (so truly delicious and worth the time!!).
More Air Fryer Recipes
- Air Fryer Hot Dogs
- Air Fryer Potato Wedges
- Air Fryer Green Beans
- Air Fryer Crab Rangoon
- Air Fryer Hard Boiled Eggs
Tried This Recipe?
Leave a review, I love hearing your feedback! ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
Air Fryer Chicken
Ingredients
- 1 cup buttermilk
- 2 tablespoons vegetable oil
- 2 teaspoons honey
- 1 large garlic, minced
- teaspoon salt
- teaspoon black pepper
- 4 pieces bone-in chicken pieces
- 1 cup all-purpose flour
- 1 tablespoon season salt
- 1 large egg, beaten
- cooking spray
Instructions
- In a small mixing bowl, whisk together the buttermilk (1 cup), vegetable oil (2 tablespoons), honey (2 teaspoons), garlic (1 large), 1 1/2 teaspoons salt, and 1/2 teaspoon pepper. Place chicken pieces in a 1-gallon resealable plastic bag and pour buttermilk over the chicken. Press out as much air as possible and seal bags. Place on a rimmed dish or plate in case the bag leaks. Refrigerate overnight for up to 2 days. Flip the bag halfway through marinating time.
- Take the chicken out of the ziplock bags and place it on a wire rack so any extra marinade will drip off.
- In a shallow bowl whisk together flour (1 cup), seasoned salt (1 tablespoon), and 1/4 teaspoon black pepper.
- Dredge the chicken pieces in the flour mixture, shaking off excess, dip into the egg (1), then dip again into the flour mixture, shaking off excess. Place coated pieces on a piece of foil. Mist the chicken with vegetable oil.
- Preheat the air fryer to 390ºF (199ºC) for 5 minutes.
- Place coated pieces of chicken in a single layer on the bottom of the air fryer. Set the air fryer to 390ºF (199ºC) for 18-30 minutes (depending on the size of the chicken pieces and brand of Air Fryer) or until an instant-read thermometer registers 165ºF (74ºC) when inserted into the thickest part of the chicken, not touching the bone.
Fans Also Made:
Nutrition
Oh my, this is so good. We love your buttermilk roasted chicken too!
I’m so happy you like this and the roasted chicken. Thanks Abigail 🙂
I don’t own an Air Fryer but I have a Mealthy Crisplid which is the upper, most important part of an air fryer that does all the work and have made Fish filets with homemade bread crumbs,
chicken wings using my instant pot as the base and I will try your recipe with chicken parts and let you know how they turn out.
Alright! Thank you so much, Vinnie! Looking forward to your update 🙂
I don’t have an air fryer….can I bake it in he oven & at what temp and time ? I looked for instructions in this post, however I did not find any….
Hi, Ela! Follow the instructions up to step 4. Then heat oven to 400 degrees. Line a baking pan with aluminum foil and place the chicken in a single layer on the pan. Roast chicken at 400 degrees for 45 minutes, then turn off the oven, and allow the chicken to continue to cook (just in the remaining heat-don’t open the door) for 7-10 minutes more or until chicken is done or until an instant-read thermometer registers 165 when inserted into the thickest part of the chicken, not touching the bone. Allow chicken to rest for about 7-10 minutes then serve.