The BEST Crispy Air Fryer Chicken Thighs Recipe - So Juicy!

Use the air fryer to make our super juicy, crispy skinned air fryer chicken thighs. Such an easy, budget friendly weeknight meal.

Why You'll LOVE Our BEST Air Fryer Chicken Thighs Recipe

Healthier Option - theres no added oil or fat in this recipe - so it's a healthier way to eat 'fried' chicken thighs. And it's one of our favourite easy air fryer recipes!

Quick and convenient - cooking chicken thighs in the air fryer is quicker than a traditional oven, plus there's less cleaning up to do too! (especially if you remember to line the air fryer basket first) so there's easily time to cook these even on busy weeknights.

Flavourful (plus you can swap the herbs and spices) air frying chicken gives you really juicy chicken that's full of flavor. Plus you can swap and change the ingredients you add to the spice mix and really create the perfect chicken for you!

Air Fryer Chicken Thighs Recipe 

Makes – 6 

Prep Time – 5 minutes 

Cook Time – approx 25 minutes

Total Time – approx 30 minutes 

Our Most Popular Alternative – Air Fryer Chicken Breast

Equipment Needed 

• Air Fryer – we now use a Ninja Foodi Max Dual Zone Air Fryer – the 9.5 litre two drawer cooking space is BRILLIANT when you’re cooking for a family or cook larger portions. Or just like to cook two different things on different settings at the same time!  

• Tongs – just makes it easier to lift the chicken from the air fryer basket. I’d 100% recommend you get yourself a set of silicone tongs if you do a lot of air fry cooking. They just make it so much easier to flip and remove food. Plus they don’t scratch the air fryer non-stick coating.

• Food thermometer – I totally recommend getting yourself a food thermometer, especially for air frying, it really gives me peace of mind when cooking. I like to know that food is cooked to the right temperature.

• Large Bowl

• Teaspoon

Ingredients For Air Fryer Chicken Thighs

You'll just need chicken thighs and a quick homemade spice mix to make this tasty air fryer chicken recipe!

• 1kg bone-in chicken thighs - bone in and skin on 

• 1 teaspoon smoked paprika 

• 1 teaspoon dried oregano 

• 1 teaspoon onion granules 

• ½ teaspoon garlic powder

• Pinch salt 

• Pinch black pepper

How To Make The BEST Juicy Air Fryer Chicken Thighs

Our air fryer chicken recipe is super easy, so it's doable even on weeknights!

Step One - season the chicken thighs

• Mix the herbs and spices together and add a pinch of salt and black pepper.

• Sprinkle the seasoning mixture over the skin-on chicken thighs and rub in with the back of a spoon to coat the skins with flavour. Rub half onto the skin sides, then once you put them into the air fryer basket - skin side down - sprinkle the rest on the underside of the chicken thigh meat.

Step Two - air fry the chicken thighs

• Air fry skin side down at 200C for 10 minutes.

• Then flip the chicken thighs over and continue to cook for a further 15-20 minutes or until the chicken thighs are cooked through properly. (larger thighs will take longer to cook than smaller ones)

Cooks Note - always use a meat thermometer to check that the chicken is cooked through properly and to a high enough temperature before serving.

Step Three - serve

• Once the chicken is cooked through, remove from the air fryer straight away (this helps keeps the skins crispy) then serve with your favourite fried chicken side dishes.

What To Serve With Air Fryer Chicken Thighs 

Our crispy air fryer chicken thighs are great served with any of your favourite fried chicken side dishes and sauces, we've popped a few of our favourites below!

• Italian Potato Wedges

• Roasted Fall Vegetables

• Carrot Fries

• Air Fryer Homemade Chips

• Ranch Coleslaw

• Homemade Cornbread

More Ways To Season Air Fryer Chicken Thighs 

Five more ways to season your air fryer chicken thighs!

Italian Chicken Thighs - make a spice mix up using dried oregano, dried parsley, dried rosemary and a pinch of garlic powder.

Curried Chicken Thighs - spice up those chicken thighs with a good pinch of curry powder, some ground cumin and a pinch of ground turmeric.

Mexican style - sprinkle on some smoked paprika, chilli powder, pinch of cayenne pepper, dried oregano and lime zest.

Chinese style chicken thighs - grab a bottle of Chinese five spice seasoning from the supermarket and use this to create super tasty chicken thighs in the air fryer!

Buffalo chicken - you can pick up jars of Buffalo seasoning mix in the supermarket, buffalo crispy chicken thighs with wedges and slaw are really great for weeknight dinner.

Love Your Leftovers 

How to store leftover cooked chicken thighs

Leftover cooked chicken thighs can be stored in an airtight container in the refrigerator and used the next day (and before any use-by date on the chicken packaging)

Shred the chicken thigh meat and use in salads, wraps, top baked potatoes, pop in sandwiches or quesadillas. Air fryer crispy chicken thighs are great as a meal prep protein option!

Need Some New Family Meal Ideas? 

Check out our meal planning here – it’s filled with recipes, meal planning tips and pre-filled printable meal plans weekly or seasonally. We’ve got hundreds of the BEST family recipes and Meal Ideas  your whole family will LOVE!

More Easy Air Fryer Chicken Recipes To Try 

• Air Fryer Chicken Wings
• Air Fryer Chicken Flatbread Recipe
• Air Fryer Nando's Chicken
• Air Fryer BBQ Chicken Breasts
• Cajun Marinated Chicken