This Air Fryer Chicken Thighs recipe is so quick, easy, and simple. You only need a few ingredients (bone-in chicken thighs, oil, and seasonings) to cook juicy, crispy chicken in the Air Fryer. Dinner will be ready in under 30 minutes!
What’s in Chicken Thighs in the Air Fryer?
All you need to cook chicken thighs in the air fryer is some oil and seasonings. So quick and easy!
- Chicken Thighs: This recipe uses bone-in, skin-on thighs. This is the best option for juicy, crispy chicken!
- Oil: Olive oil is used to coat the chicken to help crisp up the skin.
- Seasonings: Use a mix of salt, white pepper, paprika, garlic powder, onion powder, and black pepper.
Pro Tip: Let the thighs warm to room temperature before putting them in the Air Fryer. I take them out of the fridge about 30 minutes before I start cooking dinner so they’re ready to go.
Variations on Air Fryer Bone in Chicken Thighs
I love the simple seasoning mix in this chicken recipe, but there are plenty of other ways to spice things up. And since you’ll want to be making this Air Fryer recipe week after week, a bit of variety will be nice.
- Lemon Herb: Add lemon zest and your favorite dried herbs, like rosemary, thyme, mint, or this Italian seasoning blend.
- Creole-style: Rub in this creole seasoning for a deliciously savory flavor.
- Ranch Chicken: Rub a dry ranch mix into the skin of the chicken.
- Buffalo Chicken Thighs: Slather on buffalo sauce before air frying, or just brush it on for serving.
- Parmesan: Mix grated Parmesan in with the listed seasonings, and rub on to coat the chicken.
- Extra Spicy: Mix in cayenne pepper–the spicier the better!
- KFC Thighs: Use the “secret” seasoning mixture from this KFC copycat recipe.
These bone-in, skin on chicken thighs will take about 15-20 minutes to cook in the Air Fryer.
Yes you can, just know that skinless thighs won’t get as crispy. Boneless thighs will cook through faster, so check the temperature about 5 minutes earlier.
Set the air fryer to 400°F. Chicken should be cooked to an internal temp of 165F.
These thighs will be at their crispiest if served fresh out of the Air Fryer. If you want to cook them ahead of time, check the storage and reheating info below.
How to Store and Reheat Crispy Air Fryer Chicken Thighs
Store leftover chicken in resealable bags or airtight containers, and keep in the refrigerator up to 3 days. I like to wrap each thigh separately in foil to help keep moisture off the skin.
To reheat, you can warm through in the Air Fryer or oven. Make sure the internal temp reaches 165°F again when reheating.
How to Freeze Air Fryer Bone-in Chicken Thighs
Wrap thighs in foil and place them in a freezer-safe resealable bag. Freeze up to 3 months. Thaw in the fridge overnight before reheating.
What to Serve with Chicken Thighs in an Air Fryer
These simply-seasoned, crispy thighs make the perfect main dish for any meal. They go well with everything from creamy mashed potatoes and au gratin potatoes, to corn casserole and cheesy broccoli and cauliflower.
They also go well with corn on the cob (air fried), Southern-style cornbread, and garlic Parmesan sweet potato fries.
Air Fryer Chicken Thighs Recipe
Ingredients
- 4 bone-in, skin-on chicken thighs
- 4 tablespoons olive oil
- ½ teaspoon white pepper
- ½ teaspoon kosher salt
- 1 teaspoon ground paprika
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1 teaspoon onion powder
- 1 teaspoon ground black pepper
Equipment
Instructions
- Preheat air fryer to 400°F. Combine the seasonings in a bowl.½ teaspoon white pepper, ½ teaspoon kosher salt, 1 teaspoon ground paprika, 1 teaspoon garlic powder, 1 teaspoon onion powder, 1 teaspoon ground black pepper
- Coat the chicken thighs in olive oil on one side. Rub seasonings on chicken thighs.4 bone-in, skin-on chicken thighs, 4 tablespoons olive oil
- Flip the thighs and coat with remaining olive oil and seasonings.
- Spray basket with non stick cooking spray.
- Place chicken thighs into basket and cook for 15 minutes, skin side up.
- Flip chicken thighs and cook 3-4 minutes skin side down, or until internal chicken temperature has reached 165 degrees Fahrenheit.
- Remove chicken thighs from the air fryer and serve immediately.
Last step! Don’t forget to show me a pic of what you made! Upload an image or tag me @thecookierookie on Instagram!
Becky’s tips
- The thighs should be at room temperature when you put them in the air fryer. I like to take them out of the fridge 30 minutes before I plan to cook them so that they cook through evenly.
- Don’t overcrowd the air fryer basket. If you want to double the recipe, cook the chicken in two batches.
- Preheat the fryer before adding the chicken so that it cooks through evenly.
Nutrition Information
Incredibly good! Perfect in every way… I added a bit of lemon juice too
Will definitely make frequently
Thank you
Thanks for dropping by and sharing, Marya!
Omgosh! My first air fried chicken and it is delicious!! Definitely will be making this recipe again! I’m so excited to make more rookie recipes. My fryer took longer than 20 minutes though…but im not a huge chicken fan, but these, these are a game changer.
.yuuummmy
Those look amazing, Penny!
Very tasty. This is the first time to cook in my air fryer. I was afraid the smoked paprika would overpower other flavors but you really don’t even realize it’s in there. My chicken thigh was a little larger than the one she must’ve used but I just cooked it few minutes longer. Definitely recommend a good instant read thermometer if you use an air fryer to cook protein. Better than baked because the skin renders more fat and is very crispy.
Thanks for sharing, Deborah!
My first use of our just purchased air fryer. We had air fried chicken at a friends home and thought it was really good. This was perfect. Easy and delicious. We will only have air fried chicken from now on.
Air fryers open up a whole new world!
These were very good and quick. Fried taste & texture but healthy.
Happy to hear you enjoyed it!
My husband said save this recipe it is delightful. I used boneless thighs and cooked a few minutes less. Definitely a keeper
Thanks for sharing, Janet!!
Great. abslutly the best i have ever had.
Thanks for sharing, Gary!
Love the seasoning on this! So easy and quick to make.
Thanks for stopping by and sharing, David!
Hi Becky,
I plan to try out this recipe for dinner tonight. Would it work for chicken leg, as well?
You can give it a shot!
Question: When I spray my air fryer with non stick spray, it leaves a funny residue difficult to get off on the basket. What do you use to avoid this? Thank you.
Unfortunately, I haven’t had this issue, but definitely research and see if there is dish soap or sponge that helps!
I read on my instructions not to use oil in aerosol can. I think you can buy a special bottle to use your regular oils that pump up so they spray.
Use avocado spray or grape seed oil spray.