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Frozen Breaded Chicken Breast In Air Fryer

5 from 48 votes (Click on the stars to vote!)

Frozen Breaded Chicken Breast In Air Fryer may be the crunchiest and easiest meal ever! Crunchy on the outside, and juicy on the inside, these chicken breasts taste better than cooked in the oven. No oil, pre-heating, or thawing is required. Dinner is ready from the freezer to the table in 20 minutes.

Cooking Whole Chicken in an Air Fryer? Check out our Brined Chicken Roast for a perfect Sunday meal.

air fryer frozen breaded chicken breast in plate with salad

Why You Will Love These Frozen Breaded Chicken Breast In Air Fryer:

This is one of the fastest and easiest hands-off recipe there is. It is great to have a stock of frozen chicken breasts in the freezer for when you are short of time and energy or when you just cannot be bothered to cook elaborate meals from scratch.

No prepping is required here, as all you do is pull these chicken breasts out of the freezer and throw them in your air fryer. Wile the chicken cooks, toss a salad to eat on the side or to stuff everything as sandwich filling. These are lovely to carry as lunch as well.

Incredible Texture: A very satisfying crunch, without deep frying in oil.

No oil spray, oil, or any additional ingredients are required to cook the chicken.

chicken breast air fryer
With sauce
frozen chicken breast recipes

Advantages Of An Air Fryer

Before I got an air fryer, I would cook breaded chicken breasts in the frying pan with oil. But the soaked up oil always added way too many calories to my overall meal. Since I was often distracted with a million things, I would end up forgeting about the stove, and burn my schnitzels to a charred crisp.

The oven took much longer to cook these chicken breasts, and that did not include the pre-heating time. Also, I needed just 2 or 4 schnitzels for dinner, which made heating up a whole oven, such a waste of energy. It also heated up my kitchen, which was not pleasant during some of our Aussie summer days.

With an air fryer, the cooking time reduced by a lot. A relatively smaller air fryer basket needs less energy to heat up. Since the timer is set before cooking, I have never burnt my food. Not having to use much oil is a big plus too. I like that I do not have to hang around the kitchen to supervise the cooking. A big plus, is that its safer than the stove or oven for my tweenager to use as well.

How are Breaded Frozen Chicken Breasts / Chicken Schnitzels made?

chicken breast recipe air fryer
Frozen Breaded Chicken Breasts / Chicken Schnitzel

Schnitzel is a German term for thin slice of meat. Meats like beef, pork, or chicken are lightly pounded by a mallet-like tenderizer, breaded and then fried. It is similar to Japanese Katsu or French Escalopes.

Frozen breaded chicken breasts are raw inside. So we are not just re-heating them, we need to cook them thoroughly.

List of things you need to Air Fry Chicken Breasts

Frozen Chicken Breasts / Chicken Schnitzel

Tongs

Meat Thermometer (not a must, but it is inexpensive and good to have)

how to cook chicken breast in air fryer
how to cook chicken breast in air fryer

How to cook Frozen Breaded Chicken Breasts in Air Fryer

frozen chicken breast in air fryer

how to cook chicken breast in air fryer

1. Place frozen breaded chicken breasts straight in to the air fryer. There is no need to thaw them. Make sure there is enough space between them.

2. Close the air fryer basket, and turn the temperature up to 400 F / 200 C. Cook for 10 minutes. Then with a pair of tongs, carefully turn the chicken breasts, and continue to cook for another 5 minutes. Insert the meat thermometer in the thickest part of chicken breasts and check if the internal temperature has reached a minimum of 165 F / 75 C. At this point the meat will be completely cooked and the juices will run clear.

If you do not have an air fryer, just follow the instructions on the packaging for oven cooking.

air fryer chicken breast recipes - Sandwich

Some Useful Tips and Notes

1. There is no need to pre-heat the air fryer. if pre-heating, reduce cooking time by a few minutes.

2. I have cooked these Frozen Chicken Breasts Schnitzel in a Phillips XXL Air Fryer. If using a smaller air fryer, you may need to increase cooking time till the internal temperature reaches a minimum of 74°C / 165°F. Cooking time also depends on the thickness of your chicken breasts.

3. You do not need extra oil for Air Fryer Frozen Chicken Breasts. You do not even need an oil spray.

4.  Breaded Chicken Breasts can be cooked frozen. Due to their thickness, you can cook them without thawing. It is safer to reach a high internal temperature as quickly as possible. So skip the thawing.

5. Air fryers work by circulating hot air in the basket, making for efficient frying. For best results, keep the gap between the chicken breasts. If they do not all fit in one basket, batch fry in smaller quantities. The extra time will be worth it. Since the air fryer is already heated from the first batch, the following batches may cook a bit faster. 

6. Once cooked, let the chicken breasts rest for 5 minutes. The muscle fibres relax and reabsorb the juices, which keep the chicken moist and juicy. If cut into immediately after cooking, the juices will evaporate and make the chicken breasts drier.

7. Since the heating element and fan are from top to bottom, flip food at halfway point. It is helpful to have an alarm for reminder. 

frozen chicken air fryer
Air Fry Frozen Chicken

Frequently Asked Questions About Frozen Breaded Chicken Breasts In an Air Fryer

What can I serve with these chicken breasts?

These chicken breasts make a great protein snack. To make a meal out of them, add some carbs like potatoes, rice or sandwich bread. To keep the carbs lower, serve with a side of soup, or salad.

Some suggestions are as follow

Gourmet Mixed Green Salad

Guacamole

Curried Peas Rice

Air Fryer Roasted Root Vegetables

Nasi Goreng Kampung (Indonesian Fried Rice)

Lao Gan Ma Chili Noodles

Chickpea Cucumber Feta Salad

Cauliflower Fried Rice

Honey Roast Carrots In Air Fryer

Air Fryer Crispy Cauliflower Bites

Mango Dragonfruit Lemonade

How long will cooked chicken breasts last in the fridge?

Cooked chicken breasts will stay in the fridge for about 2-3 days. To eat, heat in microwave or air fryer till internal temperature reaches 75 C or 165 F.

frozen chicken breasts in air fryer

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Some suggestions for Air Fryer Boneless Breaded Chicken Breasts

Woolworths Chicken Schnitzel

Bird’s Eye Chicken Tenders

Kirkland Signature Chicken Breasts

Perdue Boneless Skinless Frozen Breasts

Aldi Chicken Breasts Schnitzel

Tyson Panko Breaded Chicken Breasts Tenderloin

Fast Fixin Homestyle Chicken Breast

Perdue Chicken Breasts Tenders

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Frozen Breaded Chicken Breasts

Frozen Breaded Chicken Thighs In Air Fryer

Crispy Breaded Chicken Thighs Cooked Straight From Frozen Without Oil
5 from 48 votes (Click on the stars to vote!)
Print Pin Rate
Course: Main Course
Cuisine: American, Frozen Food
Keyword: Easy Dinners, Low Prep Meals
Categories: air fryer
Cook Time: 15 minutes
Total Time: 15 minutes
Servings: 2 servings
Calories: 317kcal

Equipment

  • 1 Air Fryer

Ingredients
  

  • 2 Pieces Frozen Breaded Chicken Breasts 5-6 oz (150 g)

Instructions

  • Place chicken breasts in the air fryer basket.
  • Space them well in a single layer
  • If cooking larger quantity of chicken breasts, cook in multiple batches so that air fryer basket is not too crowded.
  • Air Fry for about 10 minutes at 400 F / 200 C
  • Flip chicken breasts and cook for another 10 minutes
  • Check that the internal temperature has reached minimum of 74°C / 165°F

Notes

  1. There is no need to pre-heat the air fryer. if pre-heating, reduce cooking time by a few minutes.
  2. These Frozen Chicken Breasts Schnitzel are cooked in a Phillips XXL Air Fryer. If using a smaller air fryer, you may need to increase cooking time till the internal temperature reaches a minimum of 74°C / 165°F
  3. No oil is necessary for breaded schnitzel. 
  4. Breaded Chicken Breasts can be cooked frozen. Due to their thickness, they can be cooked without thawing. It is safer to reach a high internal temperature as quickly as possible. So skip thawing.
  5. Air fryers work by circulating hot air in the basket, making for efficient frying. For best results, keep the gap between the chicken breasts. If they do not all fit in one basket, batch fry in smaller quantities. The extra time will be worth it. Since the air fryer is already heated from the first batch, the following batches may cook a bit faster. 
  6. Do not overcrowd the air fryer basket. Lay chicken breasts in a single layer.
  7. Since the heating element and fan are from top to bottom, flip food at halfway point. It is helpful to have an alarm for reminder. 

Nutrition

Serving: 150g | Calories: 317kcal | Carbohydrates: 23.9g | Protein: 19.1g | Fat: 15.6g | Saturated Fat: 1.8g | Sodium: 435mg | Sugar: 4.4g
DID YOU MAKE THIS RECIPE?Mention @caramel.and.spice or tag #caramel.and.spice !

Disclaimer:

SInce we are not medical professionals, nothing shared here should be taken as medical advice. Always consult with your doctor if a particular diet, fasting regime, supplements, or exercise program is suitable for you. Our nutritional values are calculated by Spooncular API. While we try our best to ensure these values are correct, please confirm these independently.

10 Comments on “Frozen Breaded Chicken Breast In Air Fryer”

  1. 5 stars
    This recipe made me fall in love with my air fryer all over again! Easy, delicious chicken recipes are a favorite for weeknight dinners and this one did not disappoint. So good!

    Reply

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