Air Fryer Blackened Chicken Recipe

This air fryer blackened chicken recipe will help you prepare a nutritious, delectable meal in about 30 minutes. It features flavorful chicken and a fresh salad.

What Is Blackened Chicken?

Blackening is a cooking technique that locks in some unique flavor. The meat is slathered with seasonings and then grilled or broiled until the seasonings on the outside turn black. The seasoning mix varies from one place to another, but it typically includes Cajun seasoning, cayenne, paprika, garlic powder, onion powder, salt, and pepper.

Thanks to all that seasoning, the meat gains a strong taste and a serious kick of heat. Even non-spicy eaters can give it a try, as the heat won’t linger, and you can adjust its level to your liking.

Is This Air Fryer Blackened Chicken Healthy?

A long-running rumor insists that eating burnt foods increases the risk of cancer, which still lacks evidence till this day.

Until then, a more realistic approach to healthy eating is to keep a close eye on your calorie, saturated fat, and sodium intakes. They might exceed the daily recommended amounts if you don’t control your portion sizes and seasonings.

Save

At Healthy Recipes 101, we use tools to precisely monitor those nutritional values. As a result, each portion of our air fryer blackened chicken recipe contains:

• 464 calories
• 7 g saturated fat
• 540 mg sodium

Ingredients You'll Need

• Chicken

This dish welcomes all types of meat cuts, even dry ones like chicken breasts. We particularly enjoy the skin, which becomes delectably chewy and flavorful when cooked.

• Spices

The seasoning blend is what makes blackened chicken what it is. On top of the standard spices, we also added some herbs like thyme, oregano, basil, etc. All of them are part of the Italian seasoning mix, so it’s a fairly simple addition.

Since we love the aroma of thyme and oregano so much, we decided to add a little extra. Feel free to skip these if you don’t have them on hand.

Finally, we cook the chicken with some lemon slices. They impart a fresh, citrusy aroma that really makes the meat tastier.

• Vegetables

Blackened meat goes great with a fresh salad on the side. Try tossing your favorite one with our basic mayo-yogurt dressing (formula in the recipe card section).

We’re using some lettuce, cucumber, and radish. Simple, fresh, and versatile.

Save

Can I Use Frozen Chicken to Make Blackened Chicken?

Frozen chicken works fine, but it needs to be thawed ahead of time. Only meat that’s been thinly sliced should be cooked from a frozen state. Thicker cuts may leave raw, cold pockets inside even after the outside is cooked or burnt.

The easiest way to thaw meat is to move it from the freezer to the fridge the night before. If you forgot this important step, partially thaw the meat in just 30 minutes using the methods in this guide.

Our favorite trick from the guide is to wrap the meat tightly in plastic wrap, then submerge it in a bowl of constantly changing water. We usually turn on the tap and let it run slowly into the bowl for about 30 minutes until the cold meat gradually thaws.

It’s also important to cook the meat as soon as it’s pliable. If it comes to room temperature, harmful bacteria in the meat multiply and begin to spoil it.

How to Store and Reheat

As long as the blackened chicken is properly covered, it can be refrigerated for up to 5 days or frozen for up to 3 months. When we have enough fridge space, we prefer reusable airtight containers. Otherwise, Ziploc or biodegradable bags work just as well.

To reheat the meat, air fry it for 7 minutes at 300°F (or for 20 minutes if it is frozen). Halfway through, you can slice it open to speed up the reheating process.

What to Serve With

Seeing that this meat lacks some satisfying carbohydrates and a drink, we thought these dishes were the most suitable pairing from our archive:

Save

Other Delicious Air-Fried Chicken Recipes in Our Archive

• This Air Fryer Chicken Shawarma will help you delve into the heart of Middle Eastern cuisine with a popular grilled chicken dish. The skin is so grilled it's chewy and almost crispy, the seasonings are on point, and everything is served with rice and veggies.
• Our air fryer chicken pot pie recipe makes it simple to recreate this American classic. This pot pie is a nutritious meal that includes lean meat, vegetables, a cream sauce, and a homemade pie crust.

Air Fryer Blackened Chicken Recipe

5 from 2 votes

This air fryer blackened chicken recipe makes you a delectable meal in about 30 minutes. Once the air fryer is running, you can sit back and relax, knowing you'll have a succulent meal in no time at all.

Pin Print

• cook TIME 20 mins
• prep TIME 10 mins
• total TIME 30 mins

• COURSE Main Course
• CUISINE American
• SERVINGS
  4

  servings
• CALORIES 464 kcal

INGREDIENTS

1x2x3x

• 24 oz boneless chicken breast
• 4 oz lettuce
• 4 oz cucumber (halved then sliced)
• 0.5 oz radish (thinly sliced)
• 2 oz lemon (thinly sliced)
• 2 1/2 tbsp olive oil (divided to 1 1/2 tbsp and 1 tbsp)
• 1 tbsp Italian seasoning
• 1 tbsp cayenne powder
• 2 tsp paprika
• 1 tsp traditional Dijon mustard
• 1/2 tbsp onion powder
• 1/2 tbsp garlic powder
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1/2 tsp ground black pepper
• 1/2 tsp fresh thyme
• 1/2 tsp dried oregano
• 1/2 tsp Cajun seasoning
• 2 tbsp plain Greek yogurt
• 2 tbsp Japanese mayonnaise
• 2 tbsp parsley (chopped)

INSTRUCTIONS

Image instructions

1

Slice each breast (20 oz in total) open, but not all the way through, to create little pockets.

2

Season the chicken with 1 1/2 tbsp olive oil, 1 tbsp Italian seasoning, 1 tbsp cayenne, 2 tsp paprika, 1 tsp Dijon mustard, 1/2 tbsp onion powder, 1/2 tbsp garlic powder, 1/2 tsp salt, 1/2 tsp ground black pepper, 1/2 tsp fresh thyme, 1/2 tsp dried oregano, and 1/2 tsp Cajun seasoning. Season both the outside and inside of the chicken.

3

Arrange the seasoned chicken in the air fryer along with 2 oz of lemon slices. Cook at 400°F for 20 minutes.

4

Meanwhile, prepare the salad dressing by combining 2 tbsp Greek yogurt, 2 tbsp Japanese mayonnaise, and 1 tbsp olive oil. Place in the fridge.

5

To serve, toss the vegetables (4 oz lettuce, 4 oz cucumber, and 0.5 oz radish) with the dressing. Pull the chicken out, plate it, sprinkle with parsley, and enjoy with the side salad.

NUTRITION

Nutrition Facts

Air Fryer Blackened Chicken Recipe

Amount Per Serving (1 serving)

Calories 464Calories from Fat 270

% Daily Value*

Fat 30g

46%

Saturated Fat 7g

44%

Polyunsaturated Fat 4g

Monounsaturated Fat 13g

Cholesterol 120mg

40%

Sodium 540mg

23%

Potassium 602mg

17%

Carbohydrate 8g

3%

Fiber 3g

13%

Sugar 2g

2%

Protein 37g

74%

Vitamin A 1537IU

31%

Vitamin C 14mg

17%

Calcium 70mg

7%

Iron 3mg

17%

* Percent Daily Values are based on a 2000 calorie diet.

Keywords: air fryer blackened chicken, air fryer blackened chicken recipe, how to make blackened chicken in an air fryer