How Long Should You Air Fry Chicken Thighs For The Perfect Bite?

The air fryer is a great tool for cooking chicken thighs because it takes less time than a traditional oven and less oil than a stove-top skillet. Plus, it's easy and more hands-off. If you've ever had oven-cooked chicken thighs, you know that the thigh is a thick and juicy cut of meat. When compared to chicken wings, thighs are more substantial and can even be more flavorful and tender. However, thighs still run into the same general cooking problem as wings — if overcooked, they can quickly become dry. So, how long should you cook thighs to get a deliciously tender and flavorful piece of meat?

To get the perfect bite of chicken thigh from an air fryer, the golden number is 18 minutes at 400 degrees Fahrenheit for boneless thighs. For bone-in, 7-12 minutes on each side at 400 degrees Fahrenheit should do the trick. If you want a juicier piece of meat, bone-in and skin-on is the way to go because the bone adds both flavor and moisture while the skin seals it all inside.

Because chicken thighs come in different sizes and some air fryers are more powerful than others, cooking times may vary. Therefore, you should check the internal temperature of chicken thighs with a meat thermometer a few minutes before they should be done, and then check them again before serving to make sure they are cooked all the way through. You know the chicken is done when the thermometer (inserted into the thickest part of the meat) reads 165 degrees Fahrenheit. If your chicken isn't to temperature, add a few more minutes to the cooking time.

For deliciously crispy skin, you can flip the thighs a little over halfway through their cooking time. To get the most crispy chicken thighs, remove excess liquid by patting the chicken thighs with a paper towel before putting them in the air fryer or coating them in seasoning.

Although perfectly cooked, minimally seasoned chicken thighs can be a great meal, if you want to change things up there are plenty of delicious spice and marinade combinations that can add delicious pizazz to chicken thighs. Try coating the chicken thighs in olive oil and then rolling them in a combination of paprika and Italian seasoning plus some onion powder, garlic powder, salt, and pepper. Using a dry rub to add flavors that complement the chicken thighs is easy and fast because they don't require time to marinate.

If you do want to marinate your chicken, options range from buttermilk to tahini. To add some zing, you can marinate the chicken thighs in sour cream, dijon mustard, and rice vinegar. Another option is a mixture of mayonnaise (you can replace it with sour cream or Greek yogurt if you aren't a mayo fan), cajun seasoning, fresh parsley, onion powder, garlic powder, thyme, and rosemary for a flavorful and juicy piece of chicken. If you are wondering how long you should marinate the chicken, 15 to 30 minutes is usually plenty of time — although thighs typically take longer than breasts and other light-meat cuts.