Air Fryer Roasted Chicken Thighs are a crispy meal with a sweet and slightly spicy flavor. Easy to make and ready in about a half hour!
The air fryer cooking method is a great way to cook your favorite crispy foods fast. You can get the same crispy perfection that you expect from fried food but without the excess of unhealthy oil. Because the food is contained in such a tightly sealed and small space, the cooking time is also faster, and it cooks all the meat more evenly.
I’ve already posted a recipe for Juicy Air Fryer Chicken Breasts. Now you have this option, so you can also make a quick and easy Weeknight Dinner with crispy chicken thighs!
Table of contents
- Sabrina’s Air Fryer Roasted Chicken Thighs Recipe
- Ingredients
- Kitchen Tools & Equipment
- How to Make Chicken Thighs
- Can This Be Made Ahead?
- Nutritional Facts
- Tips for Air Frying Chicken
- What to Serve with Chicken Thighs
- How to Store Chicken Thighs
- Frequent Questions
- Recipe Card
- Variations on Chicken Thighs
- Related Recipes
Sabrina’s Air Fryer Roasted Chicken Thighs Recipe
Air fryer recipes have really changed the game for easy meals with chicken. Just throw your meat inside and let it fry with less than a 20 minute cook time. Once it’s done, you’ll have perfectly Air Roasted Chicken Thighs. The best part is you get mouthwatering crispy skin without having to fry the chicken in oil, for a tasty easy dinner that is healthy too!
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Ingredients
- 4 Chicken Thighs: The bone-in, skin-on chicken thighs make the perfect protein for so many delicious weeknight meals. Cooking them in the air fryer forms a crisp, flavorful layer outside while the inner meat remains tender and juicy.
- 2 tablespoons Vegetable Oil: Because of the air fryer, you need a lot less oil than you would for deep frying chicken, but you get the same delicious crispy skin. Just coat the chicken in 2 tablespoons vegetable oil, and spray a little oil on the basket so that the chicken thighs don’t stick.
- Spice Mixture: You only need a few simple ingredients to flavor the chicken. Mix garlic powder, kosher salt, black pepper, and cayenne pepper in with the oil. Depending on how spicy you want the chicken, you can use more or less cayenne pepper. You can also use your own blend of spices. See the Variations section below for some good ideas!
- 1 teaspoon Brown Sugar: Adding brown sugar to the coating is an excellent way to bring a little bit of sweetness to the common spices flavoring the chicken. The recipe only uses 1 teaspoon, so it’s not overpowering, but it gives the Air Fryer Chicken a rich flavor.
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Kitchen Tools & Equipment
- Air Fryer: There are a lot of air fryers on the market and any one of them would be great with this recipe. Depending on how big the air fryer basket is, you may need to work in batches. Ideally you want to make them all at the same time, but you don’t want to crowd the air fryer or they won’t cook properly.
- Paper Towel: These are essential for drying the chicken which will help it to cook better and get crispier. The paper towels can easily be thrown away after use.
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How to Make Chicken Thighs
Time needed: 25 minutes.
- Preheat and Pat Chicken Thighs Dry
Start by preheating the air fryer temperature to 400 degrees, and prepare the air fryer basket by spraying it with canned cooking spray. Then use paper towels to pat chicken dry.
- Add Brown Sugar Coating
Add the vegetable oil, brown sugar, garlic powder, kosher salt, black pepper, and cayenne pepper to a large mixing bowl. Then whisk dry ingredients into the oil. Add the pieces of chicken to the bowl, and coat the chicken skin well.
- Air Fry
Place the chicken thighs skin-side down in a single layer over the air fryer basket. Then set the cooking time to 20 minutes.
- Serve
When done, carefully remove the air-fried chicken thighs and serve warm. Enjoy your juicy chicken thighs!
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Can This Be Made Ahead?
Yes, absolutely! You can make it a day in advance if for a party, but it will last in the fridge for up to 4 days. Freezing these for meal prep is just a matter of storing them with the other meal ingredients for up to 3 months.
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Nutritional Facts
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Tips for Air Frying Chicken
Use a Meat Thermometer to Check for Doneness
After the cooking process, use an instant-read thermometer or a meat thermometer at the thickest part of the meat to check that the internal temperature has reached 165 degrees. If it hasn’t reached that temperature air fry the chicken for a couple of minutes extra until it reaches that safety temperature.
Air Fryers Need Dry Air
While easy recipes like this give you a chance to experiment with various seasonings, the one thing you want to remember though is not to add too much liquid. Air frying works in part by rapidly circulating dry heat and too much moisture won’t allow the food to get crispy or cook properly.
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What to Serve with Chicken Thighs
- Sides: The flavors in the chicken are pretty versatile so you can try them with many different sides. Serve them up with your favorite easy sides like Mashed Potatoes and Green Beans.
- Desserts: Air Fried Chicken Thigh would be great in the summertime with a sweet dessert like Key Lime Cupcakes or an ice cold Strawberry Milkshake.
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How to Store Chicken Thighs
- Store: Don’t leave this Air Fryer Chicken Thigh recipe at room temperature for more than 2 hours. If you have leftovers, wait for them to cool down. Then you can put them in an airtight container to store in the fridge for 3-4 days.
- Reheat: If you have leftovers from this chicken thigh recipe, you can also reheat them in the air fryer. Just preheat the fryer to 350 degrees. Then place the cold chicken in the basket and cook for 2-3 minutes until warmed through.
- Freeze: Seal the chicken and store it for up to 3 months in the freezer. Let the meat thaw in the fridge overnight before you reheat it to serve.
Ways to Use Leftover Chicken
Though it makes a delicious meal served fresh, you can also use the leftover chicken meat in other recipes. Simply cut the chicken into bite-sized pieces, and you can use the flavorful meat for Chicken Salad or Chicken Noodle Soup.
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Frequent Questions
This recipe is made with bone-in, skin-on chicken thighs. Bone-in chicken usually turns out slightly more flavorful, and the meat is a little less expensive. However, if you prefer boneless, skinless chicken thighs, you can absolutely make them in the air fryer, and they’ll taste great. Keep in mind that boneless chicken usually cooks a little faster. So, you’ll want to subtract a few minutes from the air frying time. To ensure they’re done, check the internal temperature is at least 165 before serving the boneless thighs.
This all depends on the space available in your air fryer. If you’re trying to bake a large batch of chicken thighs, I’d recommend using my oven baked Crispy Rotisserie Chicken Thighs or Slow Cooker Rotisserie Chicken Thighs recipes. This way you’ll be able to cook in bulk!
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Recipe Card
Ingredients
- 2 tablespoons vegetable oil
- 1 teaspoon brown sugar , packed
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
- 1/2 teaspoon coarse ground black pepper
- 1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
- 4 chicken thighs , bone in, skin on
Instructions
- Preheat air fryer to 400 degrees and spray basket with vegetable oil spray.
- Dry the chicken thighs well with paper towels.
- In a large bowl stir together the vegetable oil, brown sugar, garlic powder, salt, black pepper and cayenne pepper.
- Add in chicken thighs and coat well.
- Put chicken in the air fryer basket skin side up, cook for 20 minutes.
Notes
- Click on the yield amount to slide and change the number of servings and the recipe will automatically update!
- Click on times in the instructions to start a kitchen timer while cooking.
- To convert measurements to grams, click on the Metric option next to Ingredients in the recipe card.
Nutrition
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Variations on Chicken Thighs
- Seasonings: You can use different spices and seasoning blends (like Italian seasoning) in the oil coating to change up the flavor of your Air Fryer Chicken. A little onion powder, paprika, cumin, ground mustard, or coriander would taste wonderful!
- Lemon Garlic Chicken Thighs: To make a refreshing lemon-flavored chicken recipe, you can whisk together 3 minced garlic cloves, 2 teaspoons fresh rosemary, 1 teaspoon fresh thyme, 1 teaspoon lemon zest, 1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice, and ¼ cup melted butter. Then spread the lemon mixture over the chicken in place of the typical brown sugar coating. Cook per the instructions
- Honey Chicken Thighs: An easier way to change up the chicken coating is by using honey instead of brown sugar. It’ll give the Air Fryer Roasted Chicken Thighs a brighter, more floral sweetness. You can also set some of the spice and honey blend to the side while cooking the chicken. Brush the remaining mixture over the thighs before serving.
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