If you're looking for more quick and easy dinner ideas, you NEED this air fryer chicken bites recipe! Made with simple ingredients and ready in less than 15 minutes, these are just like homemade chicken nuggets - hold the breading.

Dip them in your favorite sauce, or incorporate them into your favorite salads, wraps, and rice bowls. Perfect for meal prep and picky eater approved.

An air fryer basket with several pieces of cooked chicken inside.

I'm always looking for quick and easy ways to prepare proteins, and one of my favorite ways to prepare chicken breast is in the air fryer!

Air fried food uses less oil, but is soooo crispy and moist. It also happens to take about half the time of oven-baking methods, which makes the air fryer a top choice for weeknight dinners.

This easy recipe for air fryer chicken bites is adapted from my recipe for air fryer chicken tenders (without breadcrumbs) which uses a similar blend of seasonings. Both are unbreaded, which makes them a great gluten-free (and low carb) alternative to chicken nuggets (or chicken tenders).

Why You'll Love Them:

Versatile. You can serve these crispy chicken bites with your favorite dipping sauce, or you can add them to salads, rice bowls, wraps, and more! They are perfect for the whole family.
Easy. This simple recipe is made with pantry basics and takes less than 10 minutes to cook in the air fryer.
The ultimate quick dinner. Pair your 10-min chicken bites with a pre-made salad or steamed veggies and you're ready to go!
No breadcrumbs needed. It's all about juicy chicken! No breading means they are perfect for those who eat gluten-free or low-carb.

You Will Need:

An overhead view of a bowl of chicken pieces, seasonings, oil, salt, and pepper.

Chicken: Any type of boneless, skinless chicken can be used to make this recipe, but chicken breasts reign supreme in our recipe tests. Cut them into 1 ½" pieces, which are the perfect size for dipping and dunking just like you would chicken nuggets.
Oil: Avocado oil does the best job, but olive oil and vegetable oil are close runner ups. Feel free to use your favorite neutral flavored oil with a high smoke point.
Seasonings: Paprika, garlic powder (or granulated garlic), and onion powder (or granulated onion).
Salt: A good quality flaky salt (Maldon is our fav) or coarse salt (kosher) works wonders for this recipe! Because the process mimics a dry brine, coarser salts seem to yield better flavor than fine salt.
Pepper: Ground pepper or freshly cracked - the choice is yours!

Check the recipe card for a full list of ingredients and the quantities needed.

How to Make Chicken Bites in an Air Fryer

Adding seasoned chicken breast pieces to an air fryer.

Add the oil, paprika, garlic powder, onion powder, salt, and pepper to a large bowl. Stir well to combine.
Slice the chicken breasts (or chicken thighs) into 1 ½" pieces and add them to the seasoned oil mixture. Stir well to coat. (Note: If desired, allow it to rest for 10-15 minutes for a quick sort of "dry brine").
Place half of the chicken pieces in an air fryer basket that has been preheated to 400ºF (204ºC). Be sure to leave at least 1 inch of space in between each piece to help them cook evenly and get crispy edges.
Cook for 8-10 minutes, or until each piece reaches a minimum internal temperature of 165ºF (74ºC) in the thickest spot. Turn the chicken bites halfway through the cooking time if desired - but it's not required.

A plate with unbreaded chicken nuggets and a side serving of ranch dressing.

Storage Tips

Transfer leftover chicken bites to an airtight container. Store in the refrigerator for up to 3 days.
Freezing: Allow to cool completely, then transfer to a freezer-safe container or freezer bag. Freeze for up to 3 months. Thaw in the refrigerator overnight before reheating.
Reheating: Heat in the microwave or air fryer (350ºF) until heated throughout.
Meal prep: This recipe works great for meal prep as it's high in protein and super versatile! It lasts for up to 3 days in the fridge; freeze for longer storage.

Ways to Serve Chicken Bites:

With your favorite dipping sauce (we love Greek yogurt ranch, BBQ sauce, or honey mustard)
On top of a salad
In rice bowls
Wraps
Meal prep (paired with veggies and/or a carb source)
Chopped or shredded (for casseroles, chicken salad, etc)
In place of chicken nuggets (they are a great swap - and gluten-free too!)
In tacos, burritos, or fajitas (just season with your favorite taco blend)

An air fryer basket with several unbreaded chicken nuggets inside.

Expert Tips

Salt matters. I've tested this recipe with flaky salt, coarse salt, AND fine salt. Even when using a large amount of table salt, flaky salt and coarse salt (kosher) had the best flavor. While you can use table salt if you want to, a good quality coarse salt (we liked Maldon best) makes the difference.
Work in batches. Even if you add the chicken bites in a single layer, crowding the basket makes for bites that lack crispy edges. I found that working in two batches gave the best results and perfect texture.
Chicken breasts for the win. I tested both chicken breasts and chicken thighs, and breasts made for the best texture and flavor.
Internal temperature. If you don't already have a meat thermometer, I strongly recommend you invest in one. Checking the internal temperature of the chicken is the easiest (and best) way to know for sure if it's cooked through.
What size works best? I've tested this recipe with bite-sized pieces (about 1" cubes), but we found that 1.5" pieces are closer to nuggets in size, and they stay moist in the center with a few crispy edges on the outside.

A fork holding up a bite-sized piece of chicken that has been bitten into.

Flavor Variations

During recipe testing we tried lots of flavor combinations. Here are a few of our favorites:

Ranch: Use 1 package of ranch dressing mix (or 2-3 tablespoons of homemade ranch seasoning) and 1 tablespoon of oil to season the chicken.
Taco: Swap the seasonings for 1 package (or 2-3 tablespoons) of your favorite taco or fajita seasoning mix - OR 2-3 tablespoons of homemade taco seasoning.
Use your favorite seasoning blend: We tested this recipe with 1 ½ tablespoons of Kinders Buttery Steakhouse seasoning and it was delicious! It should work equally well with your favorite seasoning blend - just be sure to add salt if your blend does not include it. I think lemon pepper would be delish!
Italian: Add your favorite Italian seasoning, flaky salt, and pepper to a large bowl. Add the chicken and toss to coat. Cook as directed, then serve with marinara sauce.

The above flavor recommendations exclude the original seasoning ingredients (paprika, garlic powder, onion powder, salt, and pepper). Add salt and pepper to your taste.

Substitutions

Chicken: In testing, chicken breasts outperformed boneless, skinless chicken thighs. That being said, you can absolutely swap it if that's your preference. We did find chicken thighs were more chewy, and shrunk quite a bit during cooking. If you like a larger size, try cutting your chicken thighs into 2 inch pieces instead.

Oil: Avocado oil is one of our favorites to use for cooking chicken of all types (yes, even whole roasted chicken!). I've tested it side-by-side with other oils like olive and vegetable oil, and the flavor and crispiness is improved by using avocado oil. But if you don't have any on hand, any neutral flavored oil with a high smoke point (olive, vegetable, canola, etc) works just fine.

Seasonings: This recipe really works with just about any seasoning! As long as you keep the oil, you can swap them out for your favorite seasoning blend or herbs and spices.

Try This: Crispy Air Fryer Chicken Bites

If you want a breaded version, coat the chicken pieces in mayonnaise, then roll them in seasoned panko breadcrumbs.
Spray lightly with avocado oil cooking spray and cook until crispy (and an internal temperature of 165ºF (74ºC) is reached).

A fork dipping a small piece of chicken into ranch dressing.

More Healthy Air Fryer Recipes

If you loved this recipe for Air Fryer Chicken Bites, let me know by leaving a 5-star review in the recipe card or comment below! You can also tag me on Instagram @dashfordinner.

An air fryer basket with several unbreaded chicken bites.

Air Fryer Chicken Bites (No Breading!)

This yummy recipe for air fryer chicken bites uses simple ingredients and is ready in less than 15 minutes! The perfect easy dinner.

5 from 3 votes

Print Pin Rate

Course: Main Course, Main Dishes

Cuisine: American

Prep Time: 10

Cook Time: 8

Total Time: 18

Servings: servings

Calories: 181kcal

Author: Dorothy Bigelow

Equipment

Air Fryer

Ingredients

▢ 1 pound boneless skinless chicken breasts, cut into 1.5" pieces (about 2 breasts)
▢ 1 tbsp. Avocado oil olive oil, vegetable oil, etc
▢ ¾ teaspoon paprika
▢ ¾ teaspoon granulated garlic powder
▢ ¾ teaspoon granulated onion powder
▢ ½ teaspoon flaky salt or kosher salt, more to taste
▢ ¼ teaspoon black pepper

Instructions

Add the oil, paprika, garlic powder, onion powder, flaky salt, and black pepper to a medium-sized bowl. Stir together until well combined.
Add the chicken. Once your chicken is cut into 1.5" pieces, add it to the bowl and toss it to coat it in the seasoned oil. Set aside as you preheat the air fryer. Note: If desired, you can allow the chicken to do a quick dry brine for about 10-15 minutes. This increases the flavor, but isn't necessary.
Preheat. Set your air fryer to 400ºF (204ºC) and allow it to preheat for 3 minutes, or according to the manufacturer's instructions.
Place in the basket. Arrange half of the chicken pieces in the air fryer basket, leaving 1 inch of space (or more) between each piece. This will help them cook evenly and develop little crispy bits.
Cook. Place the basket into the air fryer and cook for 8-10 minutes, flipping the pieces halfway through cooking (if desired). The chicken bites are done when each piece reaches a minimum internal temperature of 165ºF (74ºC) at the thickest portion (or 160ºF before resting and 165ºF after a 5 minute rest).
Repeat. Remove the cooked pieces to a plate, then repeat with the remaining seasoned chicken bites.
Serve and enjoy. Serve them as-is, or with your favorite dipping sauce (we love Greek yogurt ranch dip). They also make delicious additions to wraps, rice bowls, salads, etc.

Did you try this recipe?Tag me at @dashfordinner and share your photos!

Notes

Adapted from my recipe for Air Fryer Unbreaded Chicken Tenders

Storage: Transfer leftovers to an airtight container. Store in the refrigerator for up to 3 days, or freeze for extended storage (2-3 months).

Chicken thighs: This recipe has been tested with chicken thighs, and the cooking time and temperature is about the same. Testers did find the chicken thighs a bit chewy, and had less of an “unbreaded chicken nugget” taste.

Salt: This is one recipe where flaky salt (we love Maldon) or kosher salt reigns supreme. Test rounds with fine table salt were okay - but even with an increased amount it just didn’t have the same flavor.

Meal prep: This recipe is great for meal prep! Just reheat portions as needed, or incorporate them into your favorite meal prep recipes (salads, rice bowls, etc).

One of my favorite ways to use leftovers it to make a personal buffalo chicken dip with ⅓ cup of Greek yogurt ranch, 2 tablespoons of cayenne pepper sauce (Frank's red hot sauce), ¼ cup of shredded cheese, and 3 chopped chicken bites. Microwave and serve with tortilla chips (or Quest chips) for a delicious and high protein snack/meal.

Variations

Ranch: Add 1 package of ranch dressing mix (or homemade ranch seasoning) in place of the listed seasonings.
Seasoning blends: We tried this out with 1 ½ tablespoons of Kinders Buttery Steakhouse seasoning and it was delicious! Use your favorite seasoning, but if salt is not one of the first 3-4 ingredients, be sure to add more to your taste.
Taco/fajita: Add 1 package of your favorite taco or fajita seasoning to the oil in place of the listed seasonings. Again, add salt if it is a low-sodium type. Be sure to check out my recipe for homemade taco seasoning too!

Nutrition

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Comments

5 from 3 votes (1 rating without comment)