This air fryer BBQ chicken is perfectly juicy and tender and is so much faster than firing up the grill. It needs a handful of ingredients and cooks in under 20 minutes.
Craving barbecue but don’t have the patience to whip out the grill? This air fryer BBQ chicken recipe is your answer.
Ingredients Needed
This air fryer BBQ chicken breast is so easy, and besides the chicken and the sauce itself, there isn’t much else needed to make. Here’s what you’ll need:
- Chicken. Opt for fresh, pink, uniformly sized chicken breast fillets. The smaller they are, the easier they will be to fit in the air fryer basket.
- Salt & pepper. To taste.
- Onion & garlic powder. Because BBQ sauce already has tons of flavoring in it, I like to keep things simple with just a smidge of garlic and onion powders.
- BBQ sauce. Use your favorite barbecue sauce or choose one with the least added sugar. I like the Sweet Baby Ray brand because it uses wholesome ingredients and tastes incredible!
How to make air fryer BBQ chicken
As someone who loves a good barbecued chicken, this air fryer version has been an absolute game changer, and it’s so fast. Ready to whip some up?
Step 1- Prep the air fryer. Grease the air fryer with oil or cooking spray and preheat it at 180°C/350°F.
Step 2- Prep the chicken. Dry the chicken and rub the spice mix all over it.
Step 3- Air fry the chicken. Cook the chicken for about 8 minutes on each side.
Step 4- Brush with BBQ sauce. Remove the chicken briefly from the air fryer, baste it with BBQ sauce, and cook for 1-2 minutes.
PrintAir Fryer BBQ Chicken
- Prep Time: 5 minutes
- Cook Time: 19 minutes
- Total Time: 24 minutes
- Yield: 4 1x
- Category: Main Course
- Cuisine: American
Ingredients
- 4 small chicken breasts
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon pepper
- 1 teaspoon onion powder
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1/2 cup barbecue sauce
Instructions
- Preheat the air fryer to 180C/350F. Grease the air fryer basket with cooking spray.
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Pat dry the chicken with a paper towel. Rub the spices all over the chicken.
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Air fry the chicken for 8 minutes, flip, and cook for another 8 minutes.
- Remove the chicken from the air fryer basket and cover generously in the barbecue sauce.
- Return the covered chicken to the air fryer basket and cook for another 2 minutes.
Notes
TO STORE: Allow the chicken to cool down completely. Then, refrigerate it in an air-tight container for 3-4 days.
TO FREEZE: Toss the leftover BBQ chicken in a freezer-safe container and freeze for 2 months.
TO REHEAT: If using frozen BBQ chicken, let it thaw in the fridge and warm it in the air fryer until ready.
