I’m sure by now we all know that the air fryer makes life just a little bit easier, so if you’re looking for a simple way to get dinner on the table, then you can’t miss this easy Air Fryer Chicken Breast recipe. I happen to love baked chicken breasts, and I cook them quite often, but being able to cook juicy, tender, and super flavorful chicken in less than 20 minutes? That’s a huge win for me!
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“This recipe has become the rockstar of our weekly menu. It makes for really tasty, juicy chicken breasts that are sensational on the first day and pretty darn good leftovers the next day. I have made similar chicken breasts in the frying pan, but they take longer, require far more attention, and wreck my stovetop (and the shirt I’m wearing if I neglect to don my apron).
We are partial to a 50/50 steak seasoning and lemon pepper mix. Rest five minutes after air frying, slice into bite-size morsels, and sprinkle over burrito bowls for the win.”
Vin
These air-fried chicken breasts are one of my favorite things to meal prep. You can cook them at the beginning of the week, slice them up, then store them in meal prep containers along with your favorite sides. And because chicken is so versatile, this is simply a great recipe to keep in your back pocket!
Air Fryer Chicken Breast
Servings 4Ingredients
- 2 tsp steak seasoning ($0.20)
- 1 tsp sweet paprika ($0.10)
- 1/2 tsp smoked paprika ($0.05)
- 1/4 tsp black pepper (freshly cracked, $0.02)
- 2 chicken breasts (boneless, skinless, (about 1.3 lb. total) $5.25)
- 1 Tbsp olive oil ($0.12)
Instructions
- In a small bowl mix the steak seasoning, sweet paprika, smoked paprika, and black pepper together.*
- Place both chicken breasts on a cutting board, cover them with plastic wrap or parchment paper, then use a rolling pin or the flat side of a meat tenderizer to gently pound the thicker side until the entire breast is an even thickness from one end to the other (about 1/2 to 3/4 inch thick).
- Preheat the air fryer to 400°F. Brush the olive oil over both sides of each chicken breast.
- Generously coat both sides of each chicken breast with the seasoning blend. Rub the seasoning into the breasts with your hands, making sure they are evenly coated with spices.
- Place both chicken breasts inside the air fryer basket and cook for 7 minutes.** Then flip them over and cook for 6 more minutes. After a total of 13 minutes, use a meat thermometer to check the chicken breasts and make sure the internal temperature has reached 165°F, and if not, cook for 1-2 minutes longer.***
- Promptly remove the chicken from the air fryer basket and rest on a clean cutting board for 5 minutes before slicing. Serve them with your favorite sides and enjoy.
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Video
Equipment
- 5-Quart Air Fryer
- Meat Thermometer
Notes
Nutrition
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How to Make Air Fryer Chicken Breasts – Step by Step Photos
Make the seasoning mix: Add 2 tsp steak seasoning, 1 tsp sweet paprika, 1/2 tsp smoked paprika, and 1/4 tsp freshly cracked black pepper to a small bowl and mix. Set the seasoning mix to the side.
Pound the chicken: Place 2 chicken breasts on a cutting board, cover them with plastic wrap or parchment paper. Using a rolling pin or the flat side of a meat tenderizer, gently pound the thicker side until the entire breast is an even thickness from one end to the other (about 1/2 to 3/4 inch thick).
Season the chicken: Preheat your air fryer to 400°F (mine is a 5-Quart). Brush 1 Tbsp of olive oil over both sides of the chicken. Then generously coat both sides of each chicken breast with the seasoning mix. Rub the seasoning into the breasts with your hands, making sure each is evenly coated with the seasoning mix.
Cook: Place both chicken breasts inside the air fryer basket and cook for 7 minutes. Then flip them over and cook for 6 more minutes. After a total of 13 minutes, use a meat thermometer to check for doneness and make sure the internal temperature has reached 165°F. If they haven’t, cook them for 1-2 minutes longer.
You may need to work in batches depending on how big your basket is and how many breasts you’re air frying.
Serve: Remove the cooked chicken from the basket as soon as it’s done and let them rest on a clean cutting board for 5 minutes before slicing. Resting gives the juices time to redistribute through the meat so they don’t run out onto the board, which keeps the chicken moist and flavorful.
Enjoy these juicy, easy air-fried chicken breasts with your favorite sides for dinner, in a salad or sandwich for lunch, or for an easy meal prep protein!
Recipe Tips
- Thick chicken breasts take longer to cook. In order to make sure everything cooks evenly, use a rolling pin or the flat side of a meat tenderizer to gently pound the thicker side of the chicken breast until the breast is an even thickness from one end to the other (about 1/2 to 3/4 inch thick).
- If using frozen chicken breasts, cook directly from frozen at 400°F for 30 minutes, flipping halfway through. Make sure to separate the breasts before cooking them.
- Once the chicken is cooked, remove them promptly from the air fryer to stop the cooking process. This will help prevent the meat from overcooking and drying out.
- Allow the chicken to rest for 5 minutes on a cutting board before slicing and serving. This helps the chicken breast retain all of those yummy juices.
Serving Suggestions
Chicken will always be one of my favorite ‘meat-and-potatoes’ meals, so I like to serve these air fryer chicken breasts with mashed potatoes and steamed green beans. Our oven-baked steak fries are also a winner in my house (they go great with everything!). But if you have a machine with a double basket, I highly recommend you make some air fryer sweet potato fries. The natural sweetness of the sweet potatoes pairs perfectly with the savory flavors of the chicken! I also think this chicken is great for dipping. My personal favorites are a simple mayo or honey mustard sauce.
More Seasoning Ideas
If you want to switch things up, here are some other ways you can season your air-fried chicken breasts:
- Taco Seasoning
- Cajun Seasoning
- Lemon Pepper Seasoning
- Creole Seasoning, like Tony Chachere’s
- Chili Seasoning
- Greek Seasoning
- Jerk Seasoning
Meal Prep Ideas
Meal prepping is a great way to save time, money, and reduce waste in the kitchen. And this recipe is absolutely perfect for meal prep! You can easily slice the chicken into equal portions for your meal prep containers, then just add in your favorite sides and vegetables.
Chicken breasts are also great to meal prep with salads, sandwiches, wraps, and even chicken burrito bowls! And if you love meal prepping as much as I do, then make sure to check out our full list of budget-friendly meal prep ideas.
Storage & Reheating
Leftover chicken will keep in the fridge for up to 3–4 days. I usually use the microwave to reheat leftovers for quick and easy lunches. Place the chicken in a microwave-safe container (or a dish with a plate placed on top) and add a splash of water, and warm it in the microwave to help keep it from drying out. However, chicken is always best the first time around, since it can lose some juiciness after storing and reheating! You can also freeze leftovers for up to 3 months and thaw overnight in the fridge before reheating.
This recipe worked in most ways except the steak rub. It was so salty I had a difficult time eating it. So salty I was put off. We ate it but never again and I would not even recommend this recipe unless you make your own rub.
I am here to say that even if you are tired and accidentally overcook the chicken and put on 2 tbsp of steak seasoning rather than 2 tsp, you will still have a decent dinner. I’m looking forward doing it correctly a second time, with less user error.
Easy and excellent results. First chicken breast in air fryer that was actually tender. Very good recipe. Excellent instructions. Readily available ingredients. This is a keeper. Any spice combo can be used. I added capers.
My chicken turned out juicy and delicious. Bookmarking this for the future. Thank you for sharing.
Good recipe but in what world are 2 chicken breasts $5.25?
This recipe has become the rockstar of our weekly menu. It makes for really tasty, juicy chicken breasts that are sensational on the first day and pretty darn good leftovers the next day. I have made similar chicken breasts in the frying pan, but they take longer, require far more attention, and wreck my stovetop (and the shirt I’m wearing if I neglect to don my apron).
We are partial to a 50/50 steak seasoning and lemon pepper mix. Rest five minutes after air frying, slice into bite-size morsels, and sprinkle over burrito bowls for the win.
Such an easy way to cook delicious chicken – fast!
Thank you, even though I get nervous cooking chicken if it’s not in a slow cooker, I’m glad to have a new method!
Amazing ideas, amazing recipes it saved me ,my wife went away for a week and I fed my rugrats with the air fryer. Five stars.
Quick, easy, and delicious. Another winner – keep those air fryer recipes coming!
This recipe is great, its simple, quick, and easy and was perfect for some leftover chicken breasts I had. I only had generic paprika and wanted a bit of sweetness so I added 1-2 tsp of brown sugar to the spice blend and that made it even better.
Looking good and tasty, but using olive oil to bake?? In the temp of 400 as your recipe instructing, olive oil becomes trans fats… olive oil should be used only in room temperature.
I believe it is a myth that olive oil turns to trans fat at high temps. Or if it does, its such a small amount that it is barely detectable.
I agree. I made this with Avocado oil instead with my Misto. Perfect!
Thank you for a recipe that finally recognizes how large today’s boneless chicken breasts are. I bought a family pack at Aldi’s yesterday–4 boneless skinless chicken breasts weighing in at more than 5.6 pounds. It was pretty cheap at $2.29 per lb, but still, 1 of those giants–about 1.4 lb–makes an adequate meal for 4. Typically the boneless breasts I buy are smaller, averaging about 12 oz each, but most recipes want a 4-6 oz breast and those, at least in my area, no longer exist.
I used your low fat/high flavor recipe for lunch. One breast, split horizontally and then cut in half for 4 pieces. I was gentle with the pounding so that my pieces would be of uniform thickness–in my case a bit over 1/2″ thick (the thick part of the uncut breast was more than 1.5″). Since my “air fryer” is a countertop oven model, there was plenty of room. I would never have thought of using steak seasoning, but it was delicious with chicken. Next time, however, I think I will try Tajin instead of paprika for a little more heat and that yummy lime flavor, but still using the steak seasoning, too. I have plenty of leftovers!