Tender frozen chicken breast in air fryer is so easy to make! Great hack if you forget to defrost your chicken but dinner is just minutes away. Yes air fryer frozen chicken wings are great but to feed hungry kids you’ll want more than that. Works great to make Ninja Foodi frozen chicken too.
Want to make air fryer chicken breast with no breading but forgot to defrost it?? We’ll show you how to make tender frozen chicken breast in air fryer so dinner isn’t ruined! (affiliate links present, originally published 9/19)
Frozen Chicken in Air Fryer
First we made a KFC copycat air fryer fried chicken breast recipe. Then the next time I thought about it they were still rock hard! SO I had to figure that one out in order to save dinner for us, and share my findings with all of you too. 😉
Yes, we shared how to cook frozen chicken in the Instant Pot but now it’s time to use our other favorite appliance! And yes you can use those instructions for frozen chicken Ninja Foodi style too, they both have the high pressure function.
If you love air fryer recipes too, here are some resources to start with:
- THIS is my Favorite Air Fryer!
- You can find more Air fryer recipes here, we have Ninja Foodi recipes as well; bookmark them both!
- Grab the best air fryer cookbook here.
- Here’s a printable air fryer cook times chart here for your fridge.
- It has temp. and times for making the best frozen foods for air fryer too.
Then join our Facebook page where you can share and find more ideas you’ll love. We have a Foodi social media group as well.
Air Fryer Frozen Chicken Breast
I am far from perfect. I have 3 girls, am homeschooling 2 of them, work full time (here), and sometimes forget to prep dinner. I always have a bag of frozen chicken in the freezer so that is usually my go to.
Yes I have made Crockpot frozen chicken before and that is great for shredded chicken tacos. BUT you have to remember to take that out and put it in the pot in the morning.
I am not always totally together in the morning to do this especially if we have a busy day of work and horseback riding ahead of us. 😉 SO I’m here to share my air fryer hack with you here today.
Ninja Foodi Frozen Chicken Breast
Yes this is a healthy air fryer recipe, so if you’re following a keto or low fat diet this will be great. We didn’t use any bread crumbs this time to keep the calories down, and if they’re rock hard nothing is going to stick anyway.
- If you’re looking for something more like air fried chicken with a coating follow this recipe, or the one for homemade Ninja Foodi chicken tenders.
BUT this basic chicken in the air fryer recipe is great for everyone, even my 11 year old loves it. We’re using medium to large chicken breasts found in a bag in your local grocery store freezer. Timing is set for the size and thickness you see here, it may vary slightly depending on the size of your chicken pieces.
360 F – 380 degrees Fahrenheit is the best temperature to air fry frozen chicken keeping the inside tender. You don’t want to cook it too high or else the middle won’t get done by the time the outside gets crispy.
Use at least salt and pepper on the outside after spraying with a bit of olive oil so it sticks. You can use any other herbs you normally would use on fresh or defrosted pieces.
The outsides should be golden brown and the insides should be tender. Lift the piece(s) out of the basket and it needs to register a safe 165 degrees in the thickest part before consuming.
Frozen Chicken Breast Air Fryer
Let’s start with putting 2 into your air fryer basket. Then you’ll want to sprinkle with seasonings like garlic powder and anything else you’d normally use.
- Bag of frozen chicken breasts – 2 at a time fit comfortably
- Salt and pepper
- Garlic powder
- Parsley
This is what we sprinkled on before we began to cook the chicken. Add any other dry seasonings you’d like as well.
How Long to Cook Frozen Chicken Breast in Air Fryer
Steps to follow: I like to preheat the air fryer but I will admit I don’t always remember to. If you forget don’t worry, the cooking time won’t change a lot. Ideally I do because it creates more of a deep frying crisp on the outsides of my food.
- Now place your frozen chicken into your basket, we’re talking about previously fresh and not breaded chicken here
- Add your seasonings
- Close your basket and set to 360 degrees for 15 minutes
- if your meat is on the smaller side I would set for 12 minutes and check
- always ensure internal temperature of chicken is 165 degrees to be safe
Allow to rest for 5 minutes before slicing to maintain juiciness and enjoy!
Tyson Frozen Chicken Breast in Air Fryer
Looking for other Ninja Foodi recipes (or any other air fryer brand you own)
- Try our air fryer stuffed chicken breast tonight!
- Meatballs in an air fryer are easy and another keto low carb meal
If you’re wondering how to cook other frozen foods, follow and print out our air fryer cooking times chart (linked above). That’s how we knew how long to cook our frozen Ninja Foodi sausages and more.
What goes well with chicken?
I mean a vegetable is usually what we pair with every meal and many times some sort of carb. Rice is an easy one that is cheap and everyone loves it. Since you have the protein covered think outside of the box and grab produce that is on sale at the time.
- As well as our air fryer cauliflower
- Or these fluffy air fryer baked potatoes
If you haven’t tried our air fryer wings recipe yet, it gets RAVING reviews with it’s dry rub and crispy skin.
Can you cook frozen meat in an air fryer?
Yes!! It comes out tender and juicy too if you follow the instructions below. Keep a close eye at the end so it doesn’t dry out. All pieces are varying thicknesses so timing will vary a bit.
- Air fryer frozen shrimp is one of our favorite meals too
- Here are more air fryer chicken breast recipes.
If your kids are a bit pickier, then throw in some air fryer frozen chicken nuggets for them and enjoy a meal together y’all! Our air fryer whole chicken recipe are wonderful too.
Ninja Foodi Frozen Chicken
You can make this with the directions below, OR follow this pressure cooker frozen chicken breast with sauce recipe.
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Frozen Chicken Breast in Air Fryer
Equipment
Ingredients
- 2 large frozen chicken breasts frozen, boneless skinless is what was used
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 1/4 tsp pepper
- 1/4 tsp garlic powder
- 1/4 tsp parsley flakes
Instructions
- Put frozen chicken breasts in your air fryer basket. Sprinkle ingredients on top evenly between the two of them.
- Close and cook at 360 degrees for 15 minutes. Remove and check to ensure they are done (some are thicker than others so may need additional time). Allow to sit for 5 minutes to maintain juices before slicing them.
Video
Christy
Saturday 26th of June 2021
I recently purchased a Cuisinart Air Fryer/ Toaster Oven TOA-60. The first thing that I made was over-cooked and dry (not your recipe). I found your blog and placed one smaller-sized frozen chicken breast sprinkled with tumeric, cumin, oregano, salt, and pepper and lightly brushed with avocado oil in the basket and air fried for 11 minutes; it was beautifully browned but not quite up to temperature, so I turned it over and cooked it for another 3 minutes. It was absolutely perfect—good enough for company! THANK YOU for all of the time it takes for you to test and share!
The Typical Mom
Tuesday 29th of June 2021
You're welcome, glad it was a hit
Katie
Tuesday 16th of March 2021
This is such a great tip to know, especially when you just want an easy meal!
The Typical Mom
Tuesday 16th of March 2021
Yay!
Jill Baird
Tuesday 16th of March 2021
Ok, why haven't I thought of doing this before!?! Thanks for all your air fryer recipes! This one is another winner!
Vanessa
Thursday 19th of November 2020
Are you cooking this on air fry or on roast setting?
The Typical Mom
Thursday 19th of November 2020
In an air fryer basket or in Foodi using air crisp
Lorraine
Thursday 27th of August 2020
I have frozen chicken cutlets. Does anyone have a recipe I could use. I just got the pressure cooker air fryer. Never used it before. Does anyone have any advice