This air fryer chicken breast recipe is an easy and flavorful chicken dinner to make for the family on any day of the week! The boneless skinless chicken breasts are seasoned with a simple dry brine and then cooked to tender, juicy perfection. This is a quick and easy recipe for a practically effortless meal!
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Instructions
Prepare the chicken breasts by placing them on a cutting board and wrapping them with a large piece of plastic wrap. Use a meat mallet or a rolling bin to pound the chicken breasts until they are even in thickness.
Place the chicken breasts on a plate and season them with salt, pepper, garlic powder, onion powder, and paprika as a dry brine. Place the plate into your refrigerator uncovered for at least 40 minutes or up to 24 hours.
When you are ready to cook, let the chicken breasts set at room temperature for 15 minutes to take the chill off. Place them smooth side down in the air fryer basket and cook at 380°F (195°C) for 6 minutes. Use kitchen tongs to flip over and cook for another 6-8 minutes or until the internal temperature reaches 165°F (75°C).
Remove the chicken breasts from the air fryer and transfer them to a plate. Cover with a square of aluminum foil and rest for 5 to 10 minutes before serving.
Notes
If you decide that you would like to skip the dry brine (though I highly recommend it), you can coat the chicken breasts with 1 tablespoon of olive oil in a large mixing bowl and season evenly on both sides. Dry brining will season the breasts all of the way through which results in the juiciest chicken and best-tasting results.
To ensure that the internal temperature reaches 165°F (75°C), I recommend using a meat thermometer if you have one. Check out my article on chicken internal temperatures for more information.
You could also leave the chicken breasts in the air fryer basket to rest if you'd like, just be aware that there will be a lot of juices from the chicken. *Note that this continues cooking the chicken a lot more than the 5°F you would normally see in carryover cooking during resting any cooked meat.
To store: Place any leftovers in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 4 days.
To freeze: Wrap your leftover chicken with plastic wrap and place the chicken in a freezer-safe container or heavy-duty freezer storage bag. Thaw overnight in the refrigerator and enjoy within 3 months.
To reheat: Use your microwave and heat the chicken until it is warmed to your liking. You can also return the chicken breasts to the air fryer to rewarm them too.
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