Air Fryer Popcorn Chicken is so easy! You can air fry it right from the freezer and it gets perfectly crispy in just 10 minutes. So much better than baked! Serve this popcorn chicken with your favorite sauce or dressing.
When it’s snack time and you want something quick and easy without a lot of effort it’s hard to beat frozen popcorn chicken! It’s so simple to prepare by any method, but the air fryer is even easier and tastes much better than baked or microwaved. The breading gets nice and crispy and the chicken stays tender and juicy.
Plus, it’s ready in only about 10 minutes!
You can serve this with your favorite sauce or dressing, or make a glaze to toss the cooked chicken in! Try these tossed in the sauce from our Hot Honey Chicken Tenders, our honey mustard wing sauce, or the buffalo sauce from our air fryer frozen chicken wings!
We love easy air fryer chicken recipes and this one is about the easiest there is.
You’ll probably enjoy these air fryer frozen chicken patties too! They’re also ready in 10 minutes or less and you can make sandwiches out of them with all your favorite toppings.
Popcorn Chicken – We’re using frozen popcorn chicken from Aldi here, but this works well with any brand. Our chicken is formed breaded chicken patties that’s made with white meat. You can also use a brand that is made of chunks of chicken breast, such as Tyson.
Serving – We usually toss this air fryer popcorn chicken in some BBQ sauce or buffalo sauce but you can serve these with pretty much any kind of dip or dressing you’d like! I’ve got a whole list of suggestions below for you to check out.
We love how simple this recipe is! There is basically nothing to it. Toss some frozen popcorn chicken into the air fryer, spritz with oil, and air fry! That makes these perfect for snack time and party appetizers but you can make these into a meal too.
Step By Step Instructions:
- Prepare – Add the frozen popcorn chicken to your air fryer basket in a single layer. Spritz the chicken with some oil spray.
- Air Fry – It’ll take about 8 to 10 minutes at 400 degrees for the frozen popcorn chicken to get hot and crispy. Shake the basket gently halfway through to ensure even cooking. If you’re making extra, cook in batches so as to not overcrowd the air fryer.
- Serve – The popcorn chicken is ready for serving hot out of the air fryer. Try it with some dipping sauce or dressing! See below for serving suggestions.
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Serving Suggestions:
You can keep it simple and dip your popcorn chicken in a sauce, or you can drizzle it over the top like shown above with our buffalo sauce. This is also tasty with sriracha sauce!
You can enjoy this air fryer popcorn chicken all by itself but it’s even better with your favorite BBQ sauce or dipping sauce. Our homemade bourbon BBQ sauce is great for dipping or keep it simple with a bottled sauce.
This ranch dressing recipe is another popular choice for dipping, but blue cheese is always popular too!
These make a great appetizer, alongside our green bean fries or air fryer arancini.
Recipe FAQs:
If you’ve got leftovers you can keep them stored in an airtight container for about 2 to 3 days. Reheat either in the air fryer, the microwave, or the oven.
Add your frozen popcorn chicken directly to your air fryer and cook as instructed. There is no need to thaw it first.
Yes, unless you use a brand that specifically states that the chicken is raw. Most frozen popcorn chicken is going to be already cooked for convenience, so you don’t really need to worry about checking the temp with a meat thermometer. Just air fry until the popcorn chicken is heated through and crispy!
Popcorn chicken is usually made of white meat chicken and is sometimes made with chunks of breast meat or is formed together into chunks, much like chicken nuggets are. It’s a crispy breaded chicken that is perfect for air frying.
More Easy Air Fryer Recipes
Air Fryer Popcorn Chicken
Equipment
Ingredients
- 12 ounces frozen popcorn chicken
Instructions
- Add the popcorn chicken in a single layer in the air fryer basket. Spritz with oil spray.
- Air fry at 400 degrees for 8-10 minutes or until hot and crispy. Shake the basket gently halfway through cooking for even cooking.
- Serve hot.
Notes
Nutrition
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