Crispy Air Fryer Chicken Nuggets In 5 Min

Published 9/10/2023 Are you looking for a chicken nugget recipe that leaves you with crispy and delicious bites of heaven? Using an air fryer to cook chicken nuggets will seriously change your life (speaking from experience)! Simply dredge your chicken pieces in an egg wash and then into a panko + seasoning mixture. Air fry at 400ºF for about 5 minutes. Serve your air fryer chicken nuggets with your favorite sauce or freeze them for later! While you don’t need cups of oil to fry these nuggets, our secret is a nice olive oil drizzle before air frying to get them nice and crispy!

Ingredients You Need for Air Fryer Chicken Nuggets

Chicken breast: white meat is best when making homemade chicken nuggets. Make sure to buy boneless, skinless chicken breast. Breadcrumbs: for this recipe, you can either use plain breadcrumbs, whole wheat, or gluten-free. Any of these options will work. Heck, you could even use Italian-flavored breadcrumbs! Eggs: eggs are used as an egg wash to make sure the breadcrumb topping sticks. Olive oil: olive oil helps crisp up the breadcrumbs. Don’t skip this part! Spices: spices used in the topping include garlic powder, thyme, paprika, salt, and pepper. Feel free to add whatever else you are craving.

Variations for Chicken Nuggets in Air Fryer

Make them spicy

If you want to spice these air fryer chicken nuggets up add a 1/4 teaspoon of any of the spices below to the spice mixture and you’ll be left with a little kick.

cayenne pepper red pepper flakes dried adobo pepper

bread crumbs substitute

If you don’t have regular bread crumbs, no fret! You can use panko bread crumbs, gluten free bread crumbs, or even crushed up corn flakes.

go for the spice mixes

Another way to take the flavor profile of the air fryer chicken nuggets up a notch is to skip the spices in the recipe and add a couple of teaspoons of any of the spice mixes below to the bread crumbs.

everything bagel seasoning taco seasoning cajun seasoning

Why do I have to air fry the chicken nuggets in batches?

You want to cook your chicken nuggets in batches because you don’t want to overcrowd the air fryer basket when you are making chicken nuggets. You want the oil and the air to be able to circulate around the chicken nuggets so the WHOLE nugget gets crispy and delicious. Air Fryer

Can I cook these in the oven?

Yes, you can cook these in the oven. Place a wire rack on a baking sheet and place the chicken nuggets on the rack. Bake them for 14-16 minutes at 400ºF, flipping them half way through.

Storage

Got leftovers? Simply let your baked chicken nuggets cool completely. Then, transfer them into an airtight container and store them in the fridge for up to 3-5 days.

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