Planning on having chicken for dinner but forgot to defrost it first? Air fryer frozen chicken breast is the answer!
Made right from frozen with no thawing time involved, this frozen chicken breast turns out flavorful and juicy.
Similar to cooking fresh chicken breast in the air fryer, all you need is a few spices, some oil, and your air fryer!
This chicken makes a great meat component to go with a larger meal or can be used as an ingredient itself in homemade quesadillas or similar.
Recipe Tips/Substitutions
Before making air fried frozen chicken breast, you should check out these recipe tips so that you know what to expect!
- There is no thawing time involved – you can spice and oil this chicken breast right from frozen and it cooks perfectly.
- Because it’s harder to massage the oil onto the breast when it’s frozen, just be sure to sprinkle it on evenly so that the meat is covered all around.
- You can always change up the spice blend. We like a simple blend of basic spices, but you can change it up to suit your taste buds. Just make sure to use dry spices. If you want to use sauce, add it after the chicken is done cooking.
We use this air fryer for our recipes and it has been great.
Step by Step Instructions
If you are wondering “can you cook frozen chicken in the air fryer”, the answer is absolutely! To see visuals for how we make ours, have a look at the process photos in this section.
Otherwise, you can skip below to the recipe card to get started cooking!
First, add the spices – salt, pepper, garlic powder, paprika, and cayenne pepper – into a small bowl. If you don’t like a bit of spice, skip the cayenne pepper!
Stir until the spices are well mixed.
Lightly spray all sides of the frozen chicken breasts with avocado oil. Alternatively, you can also brush them with 1/2 teaspoon of oil per frozen breast.
Then, sprinkle the spice mix on top of the breasts. Flip the chicken over and add the seasoning mix to the other side as well.
Preheat the air fryer to 380 degrees Fahrenheit.
Once the air fryer is up to temperature, place the frozen chicken breasts on the air fryer tray.
Cook the chicken for 9 minutes, then flip them and cook the chicken for 8-9 more minutes or until fully cooked through.
Your cook time might be slightly different based on what size of air fryer you have and the size of the chicken breasts.
Once cooked, remove the chicken breasts from the air fryer and place them on a clean plate.
Take tin foil and cover the chicken and plate and let the chicken sit for 3-5 minutes. This helps the chicken stay juicy.
You don’t have to do this step, but we would recommend it because it can make a difference.
Once the time is up, remove the tin foil from the plate and serve the chicken breasts hot. Enjoy!
Storage Tips
Chicken breast made in the air fryer keeps well in the fridge. Just be sure to wrap it in tin foil or place any leftovers in a sealed container. This will help it stay moist and keep it from drying out.
Consume the leftovers within 3-4 days maximum.
To reheat, you can place the chicken on a plate and pop it in the microwave. You can also toss it back in the air fryer for a few minutes!
What to Serve Air Fryer Frozen Chicken Breast With
You can serve air fried frozen chicken with so many different sides. This is because the spices are tasty yet simple and chicken breast is a versatile meat option.
We like this chicken breast with potatoes – any style, like homemade wedges – as well as another vegetable like asparagus or corn on the cob!
Related Recipes
For more air fryer chicken recipes, have a look at these recipes made with fresh and frozen meat:
- Air Fried Chicken Wings
- Air Fryer Chicken Drumsticks
- Air Fryer Chicken Thighs
- Frozen Chicken Thighs in the Air Fryer
Air Fryer Frozen Chicken Breast
Ingredients
- 2 frozen chicken breasts, 7-8 ounces per breast
- avocado oil spray
- 1/4 to 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1/4 teaspoon pepper
- 1/4 teaspoon paprika
- 1/8 teaspoon cayenne pepper, optional
Instructions
- Add the spices – salt, pepper, garlic powder, paprika, and cayenne pepper – into a small bowl and mix them together until the spice is a blend.
- Lightly spray all sides of the frozen chicken breasts with avocado oil. Alternatively, you can also brush them with 1/2 teaspoon of oil per frozen breast. Then, sprinkle the spice mix on top of the breasts. Flip the chicken over and add the seasoning mix to the other side as well.
- Preheat the air fryer to 380 degrees Fahrenheit.
- Once the air fryer is up to temperature, place the frozen chicken breasts on the air fryer tray. Cook the chicken for 9 minutes, then flip them and cook the chicken for 8-9 more minutes or until fully cooked through. Your cook time might be slightly different based on what size of air fryer you have and the size of the chicken breasts.
- Once cooked, remove the chicken breasts from the air fryer and place them on a clean plate. Take tin foil and cover the chicken and plate and let the chicken sit for 3-5 minutes. This helps the chicken stay juicy.
- Once the time is up, remove the tin foil from the plate and serve the chicken breasts hot.
Notes
- You don’t have to thaw the chicken at all. They can go right from the freezer to cooking in the air fryer.
- We would recommend not skipping the last step of covering the chicken with tin foil on a plate – this is how the chicken turns out juicy!
- If your frozen chicken breast is a lot smaller or larger than 7-8 ounces, you’ll likely have to adjust the cooking time.
Nutrition
This nutritional information has been estimated by an online nutrition calculator. It should only be seen as a rough calculation and not a replacement for professional dietary advice.
I made this recipe, following each step, especially covering with foil after I took it out of the air fryer.
Easy to prepare, and most tasty. However, the breast was TOUGH – toooo chewy-tough.
Any suggestions would be appreciated.
Hi Ree! Thanks for your comment – glad to hear the chicken was tasty but sorry to hear it was tough. Considering you covered the chicken as indicated, it doesn’t sound like the recipe is to blame. Depending on the size of the chicken breast and your air fryer there could always be a chance it was overcooked – this can cause a stiffer texture. That’s where a meat thermometer comes in handy. However, what you described sounds more like a “woody breast” which is a more common phenomenon in the poultry industry. This means the muscle fibers are stiffer and therefore tougher when cooked – regardless of whether the meat was frozen or not. Sometimes this meat gets sorted out, sometimes it gets packaged. My advice would be to try the recipe again with another chicken breast or two (perhaps from a different store or brand). Woody breast and a related condition called “white striping” can be difficult to judge in the store even with a keen eye. Hope that helps! /Eric
Were yours at all thawed? Because I tried this from frozen to fryer – literally, straight out of the freezer – even jacked it up a bit (400F for 12 on each side). I got a beautiful seasoned crust, but it temped at 75F in the middle.
I ended up putting it in the oven for an additional 15m at 400F. That temped at 155, so I pulled, foiled, rested – and then when I cut into the breasts they were pretty nicely done. Not perfect, but not under and not dry.
Was using a Ninja 6-in-1.
No, the chicken breasts were not thawed first. We usually take them out of the freezer, add the seasonings and put them straight into the preheated air fryer. The problem is that there are so many different air fryers around now and they all cook differently. When you say Ninja 6-in-1, are you referring to the Ninja® Foodi® Smart XL 6-in-1 Indoor Grill & Air Fryer? If so, based on the design, I can imagine it would cook quite a bit different than a basket style air fryer. That might be why your cooking times are so different. I’m sorry our instructions didn’t work out for you (we use an Instant Vortex 6-quart air fryer). When making it again, you could try a lower temperature (maybe 360 degrees Fahrenheit, but just guessing here) for a longer period of time so that the crust doesn’t get too dark too quickly and the inside gets a chance to actually cook. I hope that helps a little bit! /Lisa