Air Fryer Chicken Nuggets

4.51 from 126 votes

It's hard to tell these air fryer chicken nuggets aren't deep fried! They get so crispy, and without all the extra oil, they're healthier, too. Homemade chicken nuggets are easy to make.

Prep Time15

Cook Time7

Total Time22

Course: Chicken

Cuisine: American

Servings:

Author: Rachel Gurk

Ingredients

¼ cup whole wheat flour (or all-purpose flour)
¼ teaspoon salt, more if preferred
¼ teaspoon black pepper, more if preferred
1 large egg
⅔ cup whole wheat panko bread crumbs (or regular panko)
⅓ cup grated Parmesan cheese
2 teaspoons dried parsley flakes
1 pound boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cut into 1-inch cubes
olive oil spray

Instructions

Preheat air fryer at 400ºF for 5 minutes.
Set out three small shallow bowls. In the first bowl, place flour, salt, and pepper; mix lightly. In the second bowl, add egg and beat lightly. In the third bowl, combine panko, Parmesan cheese, and parsley flakes
¼ cup whole wheat flour, ¼ teaspoon salt, more if preferred, ¼ teaspoon black pepper, more if preferred, 1 large egg, ⅔ cup whole wheat panko bread crumbs, ⅓ cup grated Parmesan cheese, 2 teaspoons dried parsley flakes
One at a time, coat chicken pieces in the flour mixture, then dip into the beaten egg, and finally coat with the panko mixture, pressing lightly to help the coating adhere.
1 pound boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cut into 1-inch cubes
Place chicken nuggets in basket of air fryer, in a single layer. Spray the nuggets with olive oil spray (this helps them get golden brown and crispy). You probably won't be able to cook them all at once. Cook each batch of chicken nuggets for 7 minutes, or until internal temperature reaches 165ºF. Do not overcook.
Serve immediately with your favorite dipping sauce, such as ranch, honey mustard, honey, BBQ sauce, etc. Refer to the post for more suggestions.

Video

Notes

Pro tip: Don’t try to cook the nuggets all at once unless you have a very large air fryer. They should be in a single layer with space in between so there will be plenty of air circulation.
Options: Omit the parsley flakes if you're not a fan of green in your food. You can also change up the seasoning, maybe using my all purpose seasoning (it's like seasoned salt) or garlic salt, instead of the salt and pepper in the recipe. If you don't have olive oil spray, you can use non-stick baking spray.
Gluten-free/dairy free: Use your favorite gluten-free flour and breadcrumbs for breading. To make dairy-free, omit Parmesan cheese.

Nutrition

QR Code

Scan this QR code with your phone's camera to view this recipe on your mobile device.

*If you're viewing this on your phone, press and hold the QR code to open in your browser.