Air Fryer Nashville Hot Chicken

A healthier version of Nashville Hot Chicken, made in the air fryer using less oil, Air Fryer Nashville Hot Chicken has all the flavour and all the heat.

How Spicy Is Nashville Hot Chicken

Nashville Hot Chicken is meant to be spicy. It is made with cayenne pepper which is what gives this chicken its flavour and spiciness.

The amount of cayenne pepper added is what makes this chicken mild, medium, or hot. You can adjust the amount to make this dish as mild or hot as you like.

Disclosure: Some of the links in this post are affiliate links. If you click these links and make a purchase we may earn a commission. Keep in mind that we link these companies and their products because of their quality, not because of the commission we may receive from purchases.

What Chicken To Use To Make Air Fryer Nashville Hot Chicken

This recipe uses boneless, skinless chicken breasts. We have also used boneless, skinless chicken thighs.

Bone-in chicken can also be used, but the cooking times will vary.

Are All Air Fryers the Same?

The answer is simple. No.

Our first air fryer was a T-Fal Actifry. It had a rotating paddle in the basket that moved the food around while it cooked, but we found that type of air fryer didn’t work for how we wanted to use it.

The air fryer we have is an air fryer oven. It has two trays for cooking as opposed to a basket. It can also rotisserie a chicken. We have a large family so this option was best for us.

There is also the basket-type air fryer which is the most popular.

For this recipe, we recommend either the basket-type or oven-type air fryers.

How To Serve Nashville Hot Chicken

We serve Nashville Hot Chicken on fresh bread with homemade pickles. The bread we use is a French loaf from the bakery at our local grocery store. We get it thinly sliced and place the chicken on top before adding more sauce, then top it with pickle slices.

As for side dishes, a green salad makes a great side. Macaroni salad is also a good choice.

Another option is coleslaw. We like to serve Honey Dijon Coleslaw with this chicken. This coleslaw can be served as a topping for this chicken when serving it on a bun.

Anything that is refreshing to balance out the heat of the chicken is good a good choice.

How To Store Leftovers

The best way to store leftovers is in a single layer in an airtight container. Make sure the chicken is completely cooled before storing, or condensation can build up and cause the breading to become soggy. Store in the fridge for up to 2 days.

The sauce can be stored separately in a mason jar in the fridge.

Reheating Leftovers

To reheat, place chicken back in the air fryer for 4-6 minutes or until heated through.

The sauce can be heated in the microwave before adding it to reheated chicken or poured on the chicken before reheating.

Air Fryer Nashville Hot Chicken

Stacy

5 from 6 votes

Print Recipe Pin Recipe

Prep Time 30 minutes mins

Cook Time 15 minutes mins

Total Time 45 minutes mins

Course Main Course

Cuisine American

Equipment

• Air Fryer

Ingredients

  

• 1 egg
• 1½ cups buttermilk
• 1½ cups all purpose flour
• 1 tsp kosher salt
• 1 tsp cayenne pepper
• ½ tsp white pepper
• 2 pounds boneless, skinless chicken breasts, sliced into strips
• Non-stick cooking spray

Sauce

• ½ cup vegetable oil
• ½ cup dark brown sugar, lightly packed
• 1-2 tsp cayenne pepper, more if you want it really hot
• 1 Tbsp cayenne pepper sauce
• 2 tsp paprika
• 2 tsp chili powder
• 1½ tsp garlic powder

Instructions

 

• In a large shallow dish, whisk together the egg and buttermilk.
• In a separate shallow dish, whisk together flour, kosher salt, white pepper and cayenne pepper
• Line a large sheet pan with parchment paper.
• Dip each chicken strip in flour, then coat with buttermilk, then back in flour. Place on parchment lined pan.
• Allow to rest 10 minutes
• Add all sauce ingredients to a bowl and whisk together.
• Preheat air fryer to 400°F
• Spray air fryer rack or basket with non stick spray
• Working in batches, place chicken breasts on rack or basket, keeping ½" space between pieces to allow air flow.
• Spoon ½ tablespoon of sauce over each piece of chicken
• Spray chicken lightly with cooking spray
• Place in air fryer and cook 6-8 minutes, turning after 5 minutes and adding more sauce to each piece.
• Internal temperature of chicken should be 165°F internally.
• Continue until all chicken is cooked.
• Serve hot on white bread with pickle slices and additional sauce.

Keyword Chicken

Share on Facebook

Tweet

Save