Air Fryer Chicken Parmesan is a healthier spin on the classic recipe you know and love. You will love how quickly this recipe cooks up.
Air fryer recipes are a great way to get crisp recipes that taste like they’ve been fried without hitting any oil. They also cook up recipes fast and you don’t have to heat up your oven like in my Baked Chicken Parmesan recipe.
This Air Fryer Chicken Parmesan is only 280 calories per serving and is done in just 25 minutes. The result is moist chicken on the inside with the perfect crispy exterior. Your family will love this fantastic chicken dinner recipe.
Baked Chicken Parmesan
How to Make Chicken Parmesan in the Air Fryer
This air fryer Parmesan crusted chicken is such a simple and delicious recipe that comes together without pan frying or heating up your oven. Here is an overview of how to cook chicken Parmesan in the air fryer. For the full recipe steps and the measurements for the ingredients, see the recipe card at the bottom of the page.
- Prepare the chicken. While the air fryer is preheating, butterfly the chicken breasts and season them with salt and pepper. See more on this below.
- Prepare the breading. Put flour on a plate. Lightly whisk the eggs and milk in a shallow bowl. Combine the bread crumbs, Parmesan, and seasonings in a bowl.
- Bread the chicken. Dip each of the chicken breasts in flour, then in the whisked eggs, and finally in the seasoned bread crumbs.
- Cook the chicken. Lower the temperature of the air fryer to 350 degrees Fahrenheit and spray the breaded chicken with nonstick cooking spray. Add the chicken to the basket of the air fryer and cook the chicken for five to six minutes, or until the internal temperature of the chicken reaches 165 degrees Fahrenheit. You will likely have to cook the chicken in batches so the breasts do not overlap in the air fryer basket.
- Top the chicken with sauce and cheese. Cook for another two minutes to melt the mozzarella cheese. Enjoy!
Air Fryer
How to Cut Chicken into Cutlets
For this air fryer chicken Parmesan recipe to cook evenly, we want to cut the chicken breasts into thinner pieces, also called cutlets. You can request a pound of chicken cutlets from your meat counter, or follow my simple steps to cut them as shown. If there are parts of your chicken breasts that are still thicker than 1/2 inch, pound them thin.
- Put your chicken breasts flat on a clean cutting board. With your hand on top of the breast, use a sharp knife to cut the chicken breast in half horizontally at the thickest part.
- Butterfly the chicken breast open and then continue cutting until you have two separate pieces.
Recipe tip!
It is absolutely necessary that you bread the chicken in the order listed in the recipe card: flour, eggs, breadcrumb mixture. The flour will stick to the raw chicken and help the egg wash stick next, which is what will keep the breadcrumbs on.
Seasoning Bread Crumbs
While you can buy Italian seasoned bread crumbs to use for this recipe, I am seasoning my own bread crumbs with the spices I have in my pantry. I prefer to add my own Italian seasoning because I always have it on hand, it doesn’t add very much time, and in doing so I have full control over the flavor.
That said, if you’re in a pinch, go ahead and buy Italian seasoned bread crumbs and add the Parmesan cheese directly to those for the breading.
How to Make Breadcrumbs
How to Serve
Serve your air fryer chicken Parmesan immediately while it is warm and fresh. Since you will probably have to cook it in batches, tent the cooked chicken with foil while you cook the rest of the pieces. Serve with cooked pasta, like spaghetti, and spaghetti sauce. See some of my suggestions below for sides to serve with this delicious entree.
Homemade Spaghetti Sauce Recipe
Storing Leftover Air Fryer Parmesan Chicken
Store leftovers from this chicken Parmesan air fryer recipe in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to four days. I recommend storing the chicken in its own container and serving it with fresh or reheated pasta. Reheat leftovers in the air fryer at 350 degrees for 3-5 minutes. Always use your best discretion with leftovers.
What to Serve with Chicken Parmesan
If you try this air fryer Parmesan crusted chicken recipe, let me know in the comments. I love hearing from you!
Air Fryer Chicken Parmesan
Ingredients
- 1 pound boneless skinless chicken breasts cut in half (butterfly style), and pounded 1/2 inch thick if necessary
- 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
- dash black pepper
- 1/2 cup all purpose flour
- 3 large eggs
- 1 tablespoon milk
- 1/2 cup bread crumbs
- 1/4 cup grated parmesan cheese
- 1/2 tablespoon dried basil
- 1/2 tablespoon dried oregano
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- cooking spray
- 1/3 cup spaghetti sauce (store bought or homemade)
- 1/2 cup shredded mozzarella
Instructions
- Preheat your air fryer to 400 degrees Fahrenheit.
- Slice the chicken breasts in half, butterfly style (see photos in the post for more details). If any part of the chicken is still more than half an inch thick, pound them thin by placing the chicken between plastic wrap and using a rolling pin or meat mallet. Pound to 1/2 inch thickness.1 pound boneless skinless chicken breasts
- Lightly salt and pepper the chicken breasts on both sides.1/2 teaspoon kosher salt, dash black pepper
- Add the flour to a plate. Whisk the eggs and milk in a shallow dish. Add the breadcrumbs to a shallow dish and stir in the parmesan cheese, basil, garlic powder, and oregano.1/2 cup all purpose flour, 3 large eggs, 1 tablespoon milk, 1/2 cup bread crumbs, 1/4 cup grated parmesan cheese, 1/2 tablespoon dried basil, 1/2 tablespoon dried oregano, 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- Dip the chicken breasts in the flour, then the eggs, and then the seasoned bread crumbs. Repeat with all of the chicken.
- Lightly spray the chicken with cooking spray and set it in the pre-heated basket of the air fryer. Set the air fryer to 350 degrees Fahrenheit. Cook for 5 to 6 minutes or until the chicken registers 165 degrees with an instant read thermometer. You will likely need to cook the chicken in batches. Tent the first batch with foil while the second batch cooks.cooking spray
- Remove the chicken, add a small amount of spaghetti sauce (about a tablespoon and a half) to the top of each piece of chicken, top with shredded mozzarella, and place back in the air fryer for about 2 minutes or until the cheese is melted.1/3 cup spaghetti sauce, 1/2 cup shredded mozzarella
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