How Long To Air Fry Chicken Breast?

Learn how long to air fry chicken breast as part of our air fryer back to basics series.

Let us share with you the ideal air fryer chicken breast cooking time and temperature, as well as a master recipe that you can keep as is or make your own.

Air Fryer Chicken Breast

Are you like me and eat more chicken breasts than any other chicken. It’s just so easy and convenient and also so versatile.

Here in the Milner house we buy big packs of chicken breasts that usually have about 9 medium/large chicken breasts in the pack. We can then spread them over a few days for dinner in the air fryer, or we can pack them into freezer bags for the freezer for another day.

Or of course, check out our air fryer chicken marinades, for some fun ideas for your chicken breasts.

Today, we will be running through our top FAQ for chicken breasts, how long to air fry chicken breasts depending on the type you are doing and so much more. Plus, you have the chance to grab our free air fryer time and temperature printable which features plenty of chicken ideas!

The Complete Air Fryer Cooking Guide

The Complete Air Fryer Cooking Guide is new for 2024, following on from our first air fryer cookbook. Our first cookbook sold over 160,000 copies worldwide is still selling well and has changed the way people use the air fryer.

In this newer mini book, we provide you with the air fryer cooking times and temperatures for more than 275 everyday air fryer foods. It also highlights with symbols when to flip, shake and spray your air fryer food.

Read more about The Complete Air Fryer Cooking Guide here.

Free Air Fryer Time & Temperature Printable

During the pre-order promotion of our first air fryer cookbook “The Complete Air Fryer Cookbook”. We gave away a free time and temperature air fryer chart of a lot of the single item foods that were featured in the cookbook.

It was a HUGE success and you asked for, so here I am with more for you. A FREE air fryer time and temperature chart that features the top 30 most cooked air fryer food including these yummy air fryer frozen egg rolls. You will no longer have to scroll whilst cooking dinner, because you can print it out and save it for later!

Can You Air Fry Chicken Breast?

Yes, you can air fry chicken breast! It tastes amazing, plus it’s much quicker and easier than other cooking methods.

Can You Air Fry Frozen Chicken Breasts?

Yes, you can also air fry frozen chicken breasts, you can meal prep chicken breasts and then freeze them in the marinades, and cook the chicken from frozen.

While you can air fry frozen chicken breasts, I don’t recommend doing so without using a marinade because they dry out too easily.

Can You Air Fry Raw Chicken Breast?

Yes, you can air fry raw chicken breasts, it’s really easy to do in the air fryer as long as you don’t stack them on top of each other.

In an average sized air fryer, you can fit 4 chicken breasts without stacking, a perfect amount for mealtimes!

How Do You Keep Chicken Breast From Drying Out In An Air Fryer?

To prevent chicken breasts in the air fryer from drying out, its all about the time and temperature.

For standard food in the air fryer, you cook things at 180c or 360f, but when cooking frozen food, try reducing it to 160c or 320f.

It can make such a difference in preventing your chicken from coming out too dry.

What Is The Best Way To Cook Chicken Breasts To Keep Them Moist?

I find that the best way to cook chicken breast and to prevent them from drying out is to cook them in a marinade, and marinade the chicken a few hours before air frying.

You can always tell such a difference when you’ve used a marinade.

If you’re worried about mess in the air fryer, you can use paper liners, a foil tray/pan, etc.

Should I Wrap Chicken Breast In Foil In An Air Fryer?

You can also wrap your chicken in foil in the air fryer, and it will be beautifully moist and just like a foil packet meal, or chicken in a bag as Jamie Oliver calls it.

But because the food is wrapped in foil, expect to add a couple of minutes to the cooking time as the foil slows the cooking a bit.

Also read: can you use foil in the air fryer?

Air Fryer Easy Everyday + Meal Prep

In our first air fryer cookbook, The Complete Air Fryer Cookbook (get it here) we taught you how to cook chicken breast with a simple dry rub.

But in our 2^nd air fryer cookbook Air Fryer Easy Everyday (get it here) we were asked to show you how to flavour your chicken and we did just that in our meal prep section.

So, if you want to give your chicken breasts the wow factor, we recommend that you plan an hour, maybe once a month, where you marinate the chicken for the freezer. Then you will have plenty of ways to enjoy your air fryer chicken without feeling like mealtimes are getting boring.

How To Cook Chicken Breasts In Air Fryer?

• Season. Spray the tops of the chicken breasts with olive oil spray. Then season the chicken generously with salt and pepper and half the dried seasoning.
• Cook. Then place the chicken into the air fryer basket and air fry for 10 minutes at 180c/360f.
• Flip. Use silicone tongs to flip the chicken breasts over.
• Season. Season the chicken breasts again with the remaining dried herbs and extra salt and pepper.
• Cook. Air fry for a further 8 minutes at the same temperature or until the chicken breasts reach an internal temperature of 70c/160f or above. Though adjust for a larger, or smaller chicken breast.

That is how simple it is to cook chicken breasts but now let’s talk all about how long to air fry a chicken breast.

How Long Do You Air Fry Chicken Breast?

The air fryer chicken breast standard time is 18 minutes at 180c/360f. This is for medium chicken breasts that you have bought from the grocery store and are not overly big or overly small.

You may have to increase your cooking time a bit based on the size of your chicken breasts, if you’re cooking from frozen, or if you have chosen to wrap your chicken breasts in foil.

How Long To Air Fry Thin Chicken Breast?

If you are air frying thin chicken breasts, you may only need to cook them for 8 minutes at 180c/360f.

Always check for an internal temperature of 70c/160f to ensure your thin chicken breasts are cooked properly.

How Long To Air Fry Diced Chicken Breasts?

Diced chicken breasts should be cooked for 8 minutes at 180c/360f, being sure to adjust the time depending on the size of your diced pieces.

How long to air fry frozen chicken breast? For frozen chicken breasts we would recommend air frying for 38 minutes at 160c/320f.

This will slow cook your chicken to prevent it from drying out while also making sure the inside is perfectly cooked. Cooking from frozen at a lower temperature will produce a far better result than air frying at the standard temperature.

Remember to check for an internal temperature of 70c/160f when your chicken breasts have finished cooking.

How long to air fry breaded chicken breast? For breaded chicken breasts, we recommend air frying for 10 minutes at 180c/360f.

How long to air fry stuffed chicken breast? For stuffed chicken breasts you will need a little longer cook time. I recommend 18 minutes at 180c/360f.

This slightly longer cook time will produce a delicious stuffed chicken breast without drying out your final result.

If you love stuffed chicken breast, you may also like our air fryer chicken kiev, our air fryer homemade chicken schnitzel and our air fryer homemade ritz cracker chicken.

How long to air fry two chicken breasts? It is the same time and temperature for chicken breasts in the air fryer regardless of if you are air frying 1,2,3 or 4. As long as they are not sat on top of each other, the cooking time is the same.

How long to air fry large chicken breast? If you are cooking a different sized chicken breast, we have found that the cooking time differs but its easy to remember the difference to the cooking time.

For example, a small chicken breast takes 15 minutes, a medium takes 18-20, and a large takes 25 minutes.

How long to air fry marinated chicken breast? We have cooked marinated chicken breast in foil trays/pans, silicone cake pans, paper liners and also directly in the air fryer. We have found that it only needed longer compared to standard chicken breasts with a dry rub if you used silicone.

Even so it was only slightly more at a couple of extra minutes.

How long to air fry chicken breast at 400? We don’t recommend cooking chicken breasts at 400f instead, reduce the temperature down to 360f (180c) and cook for 18 minutes.

What temp to air fry chicken breast? We recommend that when air frying chicken breast that you stick to 180c/360f. You don’t want dried out chicken but you don’t want to be waiting forever for it to cook. 180c/360f becomes your happy medium.

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Plus, don’t forget more chicken you can cook in the air fryer. Our favourites include air fryer chicken drumsticks, air fryer frozen chicken breast, air fryer whole chicken, ninja foodi whole chicken, and air fryer frozen chicken wings.

Learn all about air fryer chicken breast cooking times below, note you can print it out with or without photos, adjust servings, or click between metric and imperial depending on where you are in the world.

Though before you do, don’t forget to subscribe, and grab your FREE VIP Pass to Recipe This. You will get access to our latest recipes first, you will be able to request recipes, you will have access to free mini courses, free ebooks and useful cooking time charts and so much more.

Can’t make it now? Then save it for later!