While it’s certainly possible to cook frozen chicken in an air fryer, I recommend thawing the chicken first. This will allow you to cook the meat more evenly and avoid any potential safety or cleanliness issues related to handling raw poultry. It also makes it easier to handle when you’re cutting up your pieces before placing them into the basket of your air fryer.
Table of Contents
Chicken breast
Frozen chicken breast is best cooked at 375F.
Cook for 12 minutes, turn halfway through cooking and do not cook more than 2 breasts at a time.
Frozen chicken wings are best cooked at (375) F. Cook for 16 minutes, turn halfway through cooking and do not cook more than 6 wings at a time.
Frozen chicken drumsticks are best cooked at 400F because they have more fat which makes them tastier on the outside when air fried and doesn’t dry out as easy as other parts of the chicken! Cook 20 minutes turning 4 times in total – do not cook more than 4 drumsticks per batch as they will take longer to cook!
Chicken wings
- Don’t overcrowd the air fryer basket. As with all things in life, it’s important to use restraint when cooking chicken wings in an air fryer. If you put too many wings in at once, they’ll heat unevenly and may not cook properly—and nobody likes a soggy wing!
- Don’t use too much oil. It may seem counterintuitive to skip the fat if you’re going to be eating fried chicken, but since we want these wings to be as healthy as possible (that means even more so than usual), we’ll save some calories by opting for just a mist of oil rather than slathering them in an entire bottle of vegetable oil or coconut oil.
- Don’t forget about them! Shaking up the basket every 10 minutes ensures that everything cooks evenly and makes sure nothing sticks together or falls apart during its journey through hot air (just like shaking your kale salad does). When flipping halfway through cooking time, make sure all sides have been seared equally—no one wants half-burned bits on their plate!
- Preheat your air frieser before adding food into it—this way everything will come out nice and crisp without sticking together due to moisture from other foods being cooked beforehand (like frozen fries). And remember: cold food doesn’t cook well at all—so defrost first if necessary before putting anything into an unfrozen machine!
Chicken drumsticks
You’ll want to cook the chicken drumsticks in a heated air fryer that has been preheated at 390F. Cook the drumsticks for 20 minutes, then check their temperature. If they’re fully cooked, take them out and let them cool for about 10 minutes before serving them.
If you need to leave it in longer than 30 minutes or so then we recommend using an instant read thermometer (or any type of thermometer) to ensure that your drumsticks have reached an internal temperature of 165F before removing them from the air fryer.
You should also note that if there is skin on one side of your chicken breast (and not both), flip it over halfway through cooking time so both sides get equal exposure to high heat which will help prevent uneven browning since only half was exposed initially
. If you’re using a convection air fryer, reduce your temperature by 10 degrees Fahrenheit to avoid overcooking your chicken. The same rules apply for cooking time and temperature as the conventional air fryer method above.
Chicken thighs
To cook chicken thighs in an air fryer, start by placing the frozen chicken on a wire rack in your air fryer basket. Cover with a sheet of parchment paper and close the lid. Set the temperature to 375°F and cook for 25 minutes (allowing for about 10 minutes per pound). If you want to add some seasoning before cooking, sprinkle it on now and rub it into the meat with your fingers.
When your timer goes off, remove from the air fryer basket using tongs or kitchen mitts and let rest for 5 to 10 minutes or until cool enough to handle comfortably. Serve as desired!
You can also use this same method for wings! Just make sure they’re not too big: if so trim off any extra parts that are sticking out before placing them in an air fryer basket with plenty of space around each wing so they don’t touch each other during cooking time
. When you’re ready to cook, set the temperature to 375°F and cook for 25 minutes (allowing for about 10 minutes per pound). If you want to add some seasoning before cooking, sprinkle it on now and rub it into the meat with your fingers.
You can air fry frozen chicken without thawing first.
The air fryer is a great way to cook frozen chicken. You don’t need to add any oil or fat to the chicken because the hot air circulating in an air fryer cooks your food from all sides at once, making it crispy on the outside and juicy on the inside! Since there’s no oil involved in this process, you can be sure that your fried food will be healthier for you than if you were cooking it with a traditional deep fryer.
Now that we’ve covered how to cook frozen chicken using an air fryer, let’s go over some other tips and tricks for making sure your meal goes smoothly:
- Before starting out make sure that your meat is thawed completely. This could take at least 2 hours depending on its thickness and size. For reference: Thawing times vary based on type of meat but generally should take between 30 minutes – 1 hour per pound.
- Make sure not only does it look good but tastes delicious too! Be generous when it comes time for seasoning so that every bite has just enough flavor without overpowering any other ingredients present within each dish.* Don’t forget about vegetables either! They’re often forgotten about when preparing meals but vegetables can add complexity while also providing nutrients needed throughout our daily lives like fiber which helps keep us regular (which we all know is important).
Conclusion
The best part about air frying frozen chicken is that it’s super easy. You don’t need to thaw the chicken first, and you can cook it in a variety of ways—all while using less oil than most other methods! Just follow the instructions above and enjoy your tasty, crispy-on-the-outside and juicy-on-the inside meal.
