Air Fryer Stuffed Chicken Breast

This quick and easy air fryer stuffed chicken breast wrapped with bacon and a cream cheese center are amazing for dinner! Make this spicy or mild Ninja Foodi chicken or any other brand tonight and enjoy! 

Air Fryer Stuffed Chicken

Ok so I am obsessed with my Ninja Foodi at the moment, though I do have 2 other electric air fryers and any brand will do. 😉 Honestly I rotate according to whichever is clean or happens to be on my countertop at the time.

This one has a lot of variations to it. If you want to make it as directed with a stuffed jalapeno and cream cheese it is out of this world delicious. I wouldn’t say it is way too hot if you remove all the seeds but there are also milder varieties you could choose.

Air Fryer Stuffed Chicken Breast Wrapped in Bacon

You really could use thighs if they were rather large boneless if you wanted to. The thinner your pieces whether white or dark meat the faster it will cook thru.

1. Boneless skinless chicken breasts
2. Cream cheese
3. Bacon – I prefer that they’re NOT thick slices
4. Cheese
5. Jalapenos 
6. Seasoning
7. Meat tenderizer
8. Plastic wrap
9. Toothpicks may be needed to secure bacon

Cooked in the air fryer basket of your machine the cooking time is short at just 20 minutes! Of course always use a meat thermometer and remove toothpicks before putting dinner on the table. I’m telling you, golden brown air fried chicken is the bomb!

If you’ve never tenderized chicken it is quite easy.

• You just use a sharp knife to butterfly the chicken breasts in half lengthwise
• Put it flat in between plastic wrap
• Use mallet to hit it so it’s flatter
• This helps make the meat more tender, you’ll get juicy chicken every time

How do you tenderize chicken breast without a mallet?

Slice and put in between plastic wrap or inside a freezer bag sealed, then:

1. Roll over with a rolling pin
2. Hit it with the back of a saucepan or cast iron skillet
3. Roll on top with a can of tomatoes
4. Smash inside a cookbook or tortilla press

Then you’re going to season your meat with salt and pepper. Now mix your room temperature cream cheese, cheese and cumin in a bowl until smooth. Jalapenos need to be prepared at this time. It is the same process as preparing stuffed jalapenos, but this time you’re going to use the whole thing and put it inside your chicken.

Should you seed jalapenos?

• Generally smaller and brighter peppers are hotter
• You need to decide if you want the seeds or not, meaning how much heat are you prepared for?

The seeds and inner membranes hold the most heat so the more of those you remove will adjust the heat level down.

Stuffed Chicken Air Fryer

Once you’ve removed all the inners you want you’re going to spoon your cream cheese mixture inside of both halves, then put them back together.  Now slide them into the middle of your flattened chicken breast and roll it up so it is like a little package.

The bacon wrapped outside comes next. I prefer Hickory smoked regular slices as opposed to thick slices. Thicker ones are tough to wrap around well, and sometimes don’t get as crispy. Use toothpicks to secure if necessary. Now it’s time to put your stuffed chicken breasts in the air fryer basket! Do not overlap them for optimal results. 

• Cook at 340 degrees for 20-25 minutes depending on the thickness of the breasts.
• When done ensure the inside of the chicken is at 165 degrees for safety.
  • an instant read thermometer is convenient to have for this

If you want an EXTRA crispy outside spray some olive oil on the top and raise temp. to 400 degrees for the last few minutes. Allow them to rest for at least 5 minutes before slicing to maintain juiciness.

Ninja Foodi Stuffed Chicken

Next try our air fryer chicken parmesan or air fryer frozen chicken wings recipe. Here are more air fryer chicken breast recipes. Printable instructions to make bacon wrapped stuffed chicken breasts is below.