These Air Fryer Chicken Thighs are so crispy and juicy, seasoned with lemon pepper and paprika, and served with rice and coleslaw.
Ingredients and substitutions
- Chicken thighs – both bone-in, skin-on and boneless skinless chicken thighs will work for this recipe.
- Chili powder – use a blend of paprika, cumin, garlic powder, onion powder, cayenne and oregano.
- Paprika – double up on the chili powder if you don’t have any paprika.
- Onion powder – you can also try substituting for some onion salt. If you use onion salt, leave out the rest of the salt in the spice blend.
- Lemon pepper – if you don’t have any on hand, you can leave this out altogether.
- Salt – to taste.
Rice
- White rice – use the rice of your choice like brown rice, jasmine rice or even quinoa.
- Butter – margarine or your favourite butter substitute will help make the rice nice and moist.
- Salt – to taste.
Coleslaw
- Bag of coleslaw – you can also use a combination of Napa, green and red cabbage, but bagged coleslaw is easier if you can find it.
- Vinegar – white, champagne or rice vinegar would all work in this recipe.
- Sugar – maple syrup or honey
- Sunflower oil – or any other neutral cooking oil like olive oil or avocado oil.
- Salt & pepper – to taste.
How to make chicken thighs in the air fryer
- Mix together the spice blend.
- Season the chicken.
- Add to the basket in a single layer.
- Cook in the air fryer.
- Make the rice.
- Serve with rice and coleslaw and enjoy!
What to serve on the side
I like serving these air fryer chicken thighs with some rice and a simple coleslaw mix, but you can serve them with pretty much anything. Here are some more great side ideas:
- Sweet potato fries (which you can also make in the air fryer!)
- A nice side salad like this brussels sprouts salad
- Steamed or grilled vegetables
- Cauliflower rice for a low-carb option
- Mashed potatoes
Frequently Asked Questions
It all depends on whether you’re making bone-in or boneless chicken thighs. If you’re cooking bone-in skin-on chicken thighs, they’ll need to cook for 13 minutes skin-side down and then another 7-9 minutes on the other side. If you’re cooking boneless skinless chicken thighs, they’ll need to cook for 8 minutes per side. It all depends on how big your thighs are – just make sure they reach an internal temperature of 165° Fahrenheit.
This recipe has 586 calories per serving for the bone-in skin-on thighs served with the rice and coleslaw side dishes. For a lower calorie count, use boneless skinless thighs and go for a low-carb side dish or just the coleslaw.
The air fryer should be preheated to 375° Fahrenheit for this recipe.
Storing and reheating
These air fryer chicken thighs will last in the fridge for 3 to 4 days. For best results, make sure to store them in an airtight glass container.
I find that the best way to reheat these chicken thighs is in the air fryer. This will help avoid that dreaded leftover chicken taste. Reheat them in the air fryer at 400° Fahrenheit for 3-5 minutes depending on their size. If you’re in a pinch, you can stick them in the microwave for 1-2 minutes, just make sure to sprinkle some water over top of the chicken and rice so they don’t dry out.
Freezing this recipe
If you have lots of leftovers, you can freeze the chicken you don’t plan on eating right away. Once the chicken has cooled down to room temperature, place it in airtight glass containers or freezer-safe Ziploc bags for up to 3 months.
When you’re ready to enjoy, all you have to do is let the chicken defrost in the fridge overnight then reheat following the instructions above.
More air fryer recipes
- The Crispiest Air Fryer Chicken Wings
- Air Fryer Salmon
- Air Fryer Chicken Nuggets
- Air Fryer Baked Potato
- More Easy & Delicious Air Fryer Recipes
Meal prep tools for this recipe
- Grab some glass meal prep bowls if you plan on turning this chicken into leftovers.
- A Rice Cooker is invaluable for saving time, and it cooks other grains, too!
- I get all my free-range chicken from Butcher Box, conveniently delivered to me frozen.
- Get a meat thermometer to make sure your chicken is cooked through.
Air Fryer Chicken Thighs {Bone-In or Boneless}
Ingredients
- 4 bone-in, skin on chicken thighs or 6 boneless, skinless chicken thighs (about 1.5 lbs of either type)
- 1 tsp chili powder
- 1 tsp paprika
- 1 tsp onion powder
- 1 tsp lemon pepper optional
- Salt, to taste
Optional rice side dish
- 1 cup white rice
- 2 cups water
- 1 tsp butter
- 1 pinch salt
Optional coleslaw side dish
- 1 (16 oz) bag coleslaw
- 3 tbsp vinegar
- 2 tbsp sugar
- 1 tbsp sunflower oil
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 1/4 tsp pepper
Instructions
Bone-in, skin on chicken thighs
- Preheat air fryer to 375 F for 5 minutes. Mix together spice blend in a small bowl. Spread chicken thighs with spice blend, season with salt, then add to air fryer and cook skin-side down for 13 minutes. Remove the fryer basket, then flip thighs, cooking for another 7-9 minutes depending on the size of your thighs. The internal temperature should reach 165 F.
Boneless, skinless chicken thighs
- Preheat air fryer to 375 F for 5 minutes. Mix together spice blend in a small bowl. Spread chicken thighs with spice blend, season with salt, then add to air fryer and cook for 8 minutes. Remove the fryer basket, then flip thighs, cooking for another 8-10 minutes depending on the size of your thighs. The internal temperature should reach 165 F.
Optional side dishes
- While thighs are cooking, add rice, water, butter and salt to a rice cooker or pot on the stove. Cook until the liquid has absorbed.
- While rice and thighs are cooking, toss ingredients together under the coleslaw heading in a large bowl.
Comments & Reviews
Jackie Weddell says
I recently purchased an air fryer and this was the very first thing I made it in. The spice mix for the thighs is so flavourful, I will definitely be making this again!
Taylor Stinson says
I’m so happy you enjoyed!