Not sure about what to cook for dinner? Learn how to make air fryer frozen chicken thighs for a quick and tasty meal any day of the week.
When we bought this air fryer my daughter mentioned that her boyfriend uses it to cook frozen thighs all the time. I was intrigued by the idea of going from freezer to fryer for an easy dinner. After all how many times have you bought chicken to cook only to have something come up and end up throwing it out or tossing it in the freezer?
So I decided to try it with some skin-on bone-in chicken thighs I had in the freezer.
Making Frozen Thighs in an Air Fryer
- Start with a sauce or paste to give it flavor. If you are in a big rush you can simply use BBQ sauce or your favorite dry herbs and spices.
- Preheat the air fryer by setting it to 380 degrees for 5 minutes.
3. Rinse and pat dry the thighs, season with salt and pepper, brush on your sauce, and set them in the air fryer basket skin side down. Air fry for 15 minutes.
4. Flip the chicken for even cooking and baste them with more sauce or seasoning.
5. Cook for 30 minutes and check the internal temperature with a meat thermometer. It should read 165F for chicken thighs.
These air fryer chicken thighs came out tender and juicy. I especially loved the crispy skin. Definitely crispier than a traditional oven. If you decide to try making this with boneless chicken thighs keep an eye on them as the cooking time should be even faster.
Serve them with a salad or other favorite side dishes and you have a tasty meal in no time with little effort.
Air Fryer Frozen Chicken Thighs Recipe
Equipment
- Tongs
- Basting Brush
Ingredients
- 4 Bone-in skin-on chicken thighs frozen
- 2 tablespoons Tomato paste
- 2 tablespoons Olive oil
- 3 tablespoons Fresh lemon juice 1/2 lemon
- 1 tablespoon Garlic powder
- 1 teaspoon Dried Basil
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1/4 teaspoon black pepper
Instructions
- Remove chicken from the freezer, unwrap, rinse, and pat dry with paper towels.
- Season with salt and pepper on both sides.
- In a medium mixing bowl combine tomato paste, olive oil, lemon juice, garlic powder, and basil. Mix well
- Preheat the air fryer to 380 degrees for 5 minutes.
- Brush the tomato mixture on both sides of the chicken and place them into the air fryer.
- Cook for 15 minutes.
- Flip the chicken thighs and baste the tops with more of the tomato mixture.
- Cook at 360 degrees for 30 minutes.
- Check the internal temperature with a meat thermometer. It should read 165 °F.
- Remove and let sit for a few minutes before serving.
Notes
Nutrition
Nutritional information is provided as a courtesy and is an estimate only. This information comes from online calculators. Although attempts have been made to provide accurate nutritional information, these figures are only estimates.
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