This is how to cook boneless frozen chicken breast in air fryer! A great hack if you forget to defrost dinner. Like air fryer frozen chicken wings but to feed hungry kids you’ll want more than that. Works great in a Ninja Foodi too.
Jump To
- Ninja Foodi Frozen Chicken Breasts
- How Long to Cook Frozen Chicken Breasts in Air Fryer
- How to Season Frozen Chicken
- How to Cook Breaded Frozen Chicken Breasts in Air Fryer
- Tips
- How do I know when frozen chicken breasts are done?
- FAQ
- Air Fryer Frozen Chicken Breast Recipe
- What other frozen meat can you cook in an air fryer?
Want to make air fryer recipe with chicken breast no breading but forgot to defrost it?? We’ll show you how to cook them right out of the freezer to moist and tender so dinner isn’t ruined tonight!
Ninja Foodi Frozen Chicken Breasts
With Ninja Foodi recipes you are going to use the lid that is attached to make this. That way you will get a crispy exterior but tender inside. You can also use directions for our frozen chicken in the Instant Pot too with the other lid though because this has the high pressure function.
When using the air crisp feature in the basket provided this machine has the same timing! 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.
How Long to Cook Frozen Chicken Breasts in Air Fryer
You’ll need about 15 minutes start to finish! 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. 😉
You will start with a bag of boneless frozen chicken breasts – 2 at a time fit comfortably typically so if you need to air fry more of this you will need to do so a few at a time and rotate.
How to Season Frozen Chicken
You will want to add at least some salt and pepper, but those are your basic seasonings. Garlic powder and parsley work well too with this. When they are rock hard you will need a brush of olive oil to get them to stick, OR sprinkle on halfway when they have thawed a bit and wet.
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 fryer fried chicken but with a coating follow this recipe, or the one for homemade Ninja Foodi chicken tenders.
We’re using medium to large pieces 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. If you have a Foodi you can make pressure cooker frozen chicken breast with sauce using the other lid too.
How to Cook Breaded Frozen Chicken Breasts in Air Fryer
The brand doesn’t matter. One thing that would make a difference would be if it was a processed breast that was breaded. In that case you would want to follow our Frozen Chicken Patties in Air Fryer instructions, still great but just not the same.
Tips
You’ll want to sprinkle with seasonings like garlic powder and anything else you’d normally use. This is what we sprinkled on before we began to cook the chicken. Add any other dry seasonings you’d like as well.
I highly suggest you preheat the air fryer or the cook time will not be right. Now place your Tyson frozen chicken into your basket, we’re talking about previously fresh, no breading
How do I know when frozen chicken breasts are done?
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. Allow to rest for 5 minutes before slicing to maintain juiciness and enjoy!
FAQ
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.
Air Fryer Frozen Chicken Breast Recipe
Equipment
- 1 air fryer
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
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
What other frozen meat can you cook in an air fryer?
Air fryer frozen shrimp is one of our favorite meals too 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.
Other Ninja Foodi air fryer recipes you’ll love
Try our air fryer stuffed chicken breast tonight! Meatballs in air fryer are easy and another keto low carb meal If you haven’t tried our air fryer wings recipe yet, it gets RAVING reviews with it’s dry rub and crispy skin. That’s how we knew how long to cook our frozen Ninja Foodi sausages and more.
Side dishes that go well
- As well as our air fryer cauliflower
- Or these fluffy air fryer baked potatoes
Are you cooking this on air fry or on roast setting?
In an air fryer basket or in Foodi using air crisp
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
I cook for myself most of the time so I’m wondering if there are any changes to the frozen chicken breast recipe that I would need to make if I only cook one breast at a time. I’ve tried reheating cooked breasts in the microwave before and they come out tough.
Shouldn’t vary too much whether you make 1 or 3
This makes dinner so much easier! I like to make a big batch so that I have it on hand during the week!
You’re the queen of all things air fryer! Thanks for the easy instructions on how to cook frozen chicken breasts in the IP!
My 2 chix breast were definitely still frozen after 15 min at 360 in my ninja foodi…. 🙁
If they are very thick I’d suggest slicing them in half so they cook more evenly. I always recommend medium size breasts
I’m having a hard time believing 3 oz of plain chicken breast is 270 calories. Is that right?
I don’t calculate it, the recipe card does so I don’t know how accurate it is.
If you look at the package of skin free, bone free 4 oz chicken breasts, you will find that they only have 55 mg sodium, and the calories are 110 for each 4 oz breast. I have kidney disease, so I hae to watch the values on all meat
What model air fryer do you use and have success with? I’ve heard varying critique. Thanks.
I have a 360 Emeril Lagasse oven style I going put up a knots like you Dominga pizza and bake 15 minutes
Thank you for sharing this recipe. I am a newbie to Air Frying. I do a couple simple things from time to time. Mostly I cook for myself so I purchased a rather small Air Frying for 2. I was just at Barnes & Noble to purchase cook books for Keto and Air Frying. I added your receipt to the Note page of my book.
Have a blessed day. Ms Mary (retired PreK K bilingual teacher)
I printed off your pressure cooker frozen chicken wings. Instead of bbq sauce could I use a bottled wing sauce?
Thank you
Vickie