Air Fryer Chicken Thighs

Ingredients

See recipe card for exact amounts.

Ingredient Notes

• Chicken Thighs: We use boneless skinless chicken thighs for this particular recipe. See below for how to air fry bone-in chicken thighs.
• Canola Oil: While you don’t technically need oil to air fry chicken it helps the spices stick. It also helps keep the chicken moist.
• Seasonings: Our chicken is seasoned simply with a little granulated garlic, onion powder, salt and black pepper. See below for other seasoning ideas. 

How to Make Air-Fried Chicken Thighs

1. Trim any large pieces of fat from the thighs.
2. Combine the oil and seasonings in a large bowl and toss the chicken to coat it evenly.
3. Place chicken in the air fryer basket in a single layer.
4. Air fry at 380° for 7 minutes, flip over and cook an additional 5-7 minutes. 

How to Air Fry Bone-in Skin-on Chicken Thighs

1. Prepare the chicken in the same manner with oil and spices.
2. Place in the air fryer skin side up and air fry at 400° for 20-24 minutes flipping them over halfway through. 
3. If the skin isn’t as crispy as you would like fry them in 2-3 minute increments until the skin is the desired crispiness.

Air Frying Tips

• Don’t over crowd the air fryer basket. For best results cook in batches if they won’t all fit in one layer. 
• If food sticks to your air fryer then go ahead and spray it with nonstick cooking spray before you put the chicken in.

Don’t have an air fryer? These can be baked too!

While air frying is a faster cooking method than the conventional oven, these can be baked in a relatively short amount of time. 

1. Prepare the thighs the same way you would to air fry and place them on a parchment paper lined sheet pan.
2. Bake in a 400° preheated oven for 25 minutes. 

How to Tell When Chicken is Done

Since air fryers cook differently and not all chicken pieces are the same size you may need to experiment with cook time. The most foolproof way to tell if chicken is cooked all the way through is with a meat thermometer. The internal temperature of the chicken should be 165°. If you don’ t have a thermometer the next best way is to make a small cut on the thickest part of the thigh to see if the juice is clear. If it’s still pinkish then cook it a little longer. 

Substitutions & Seasoning Ideas

• Instead of canola oil avocado oil, vegetable oil, or olive oil can be used. 
• To keep the calorie count down cooking spray can be used instead of oil. 
• Dried herbs like Italian seasoning or parsley would be a tasty addition. 
• Smoked paprika will give nice flavor and help the chicken to brown.
• Taco seasoning would be great if you are going to use the chicken in tacos, burritos, or Mexican bowls. 
• Slather some bbq sauce onto the thighs before they go into the air fryer, then add a little more for the last couple of minutes. 
• A dry rub seasoning blend, such as lemon pepper or Montreal Chicken Seasoning, would be delicious on these chicken thighs.
• These can be cooked in a marinade too, store bought or homemade both work great.  

Storage

Store leftover chicken in an airtight container for 3-4 days. 

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