Air Fryer Chicken Cutlets are seasoned and lightly breaded, then crisped up in the air fryer in a matter of minutes! The messy, time-consuming process of pan-frying can be a thing of the past when you have an air fryer!
Air fryer chicken cutlets are cooked incredibly fast, they are SO CRISPY, the coating sticks to the chicken perfectly and there is way less mess!
Pan-frying and deep frying inevitably produce oil splatter while cooking. Air frying completely eliminates that messy oil frying process. I don't think I'll cook panko chicken cutlets any other way!
If you're a huge fan of panko bread crumbs (like me), then you also have to try my Baked Panko Chicken, Panko Cod, and Panko Crusted Pesto Salmon.
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Why you'll love this recipe
- Air fried chicken cutlets cook up so quickly in the air fryer! The air fryer itself can speed up cooking times, but when you pair that with a thin cut of meat, you'll have dinner cooked in under 15 minutes!
- Air fryers circulate air 360° around the food that is in them. This makes these breaded chicken cutlets so crispy and crunchy!
- A deep fryer chicken recipe or a pan-fried chicken recipe produces a ton of oil and mess. The air fryer totally eliminates any oil splatter mess.
- Air fryer chicken is so much healthier than deep-fried chicken! You get crispy chicken cutlets without high-fat oil.
Ingredients
- Chicken cutlets - Chicken cutlets are thinly sliced pieces of chicken breast. Sometimes you can find sliced chicken cutlets available to purchase at the grocery store. When you can't find a pre-sliced cutlet, you can easily slice your own. Simply purchase regular chicken breast and slice the chicken in half length-wise, creating two pieces of evenly sized chicken.
- Flour - Any type of all-purpose flour will work for this recipe. I used white, all-purpose baking flour.
- Eggs - The eggs are used to coat the chicken breast before pressing it into the panko bread crumbs.
- Panko bread crumbs - Panko bread crumbs are Japanese-style bread crumbs that are thicker and more coarse than regular bread crumbs. They provide a wonderfully delicious crunch when used as a coating for fried foods. They are incredibly common and can be found in the pasta and sauce aisle or the condiment aisle of most grocery stores.
- Seasonings - I used a combination of salt, pepper, garlic powder, onion powder, and paprika for this recipe.
- Cooking spray - This will be used to spray both sides of the breaded cutlets before they go into the air fryer. I use an olive oil spray.
*See the recipe card for exact quantities.
Equipment needed
- Air fryer - Here is the air fryer that I currently use. So far I love it! It's 6 quarts and fits my needs well!
- Medium mixing bowl - This will be used for the eggs.
- Extra small bowl - You will need to blend your seasonings in a small bowl.
- A few plates - Plates will be used for the flour and the bread crumbs.
- Measuring cups and spoons
How to make Air Fryer Chicken Cutlets
Mix the salt, pepper, garlic powder, onion powder, and paprika in a small bowl.
Crack the eggs into a medium-sized bowl and whisk them together. Measure the flour onto a small plate. Pour the panko bread crumbs onto a separate small plate.
Season both sides of the chicken cutlets with the seasoning blend.
Coat both sides of the chicken cutlets with the all-purpose flour.
Dip the chicken into the egg wash.
Firmly press both sides of the cutlets into the panko bread crumbs.
So the order that you'll bread the air fryer chicken cutlets in is flour, eggs, then bread crumbs!
After you have breaded all pieces of chicken, spray both sides of the panko-coated chicken with cooking spray.
Place the chicken into the air fryer basket in an even layer, spaced apart. You may need to cook your cutlets in a few batches. Cook the cutlets at 390°F for 5 minutes. Flip the chicken over and continue cooking for 5-6 more minutes.
Serve and enjoy!
Expert tips
- My chicken cutlets were about ½ inch thick. If you have thicker chicken, you may need to cook it longer. If your cutlets are less than ½ inch thick, then you may want to check them at 4 minutes after you have flipped them.
- Chicken should have an internal temperature of at least 165°F.
- Some air fryers require preheating. Make sure you preheat your air fryer for 3 minutes prior to cooking, if necessary.
- If you can't find chicken cutlets at the grocery store, you can use sliced chicken breasts instead. Using a sharp knife, slice the chicken breast horizontally through the middle.
- If you don't want to slice chicken breast into cutlets, you can use a meat mallet to pound your chicken breast into thin slices. This will also produce a chicken cutlet!
Substitutions
- Gluten-free - To make this recipe gluten-free, you will need to use gluten-free flour and gluten-free panko bread crumbs.
- Seasonings - The seasoning blend used in this recipe is a blend of common, mild spices. You can definitely play around with your own blend or use your favorite bottled seasoning blend.
- Chicken - If you can't find chicken cutlets at the grocery store, purchase chicken breast instead. Pound the chicken breast thin using a meat mallet or a rolling pin.
Serving suggestions
These Air Fryer Panko Chicken Cutlets are so easy to serve with just about any side dish! I love to serve them with my Vegan Garlic Bread, Garlic Basmati Rice, Pesto Pasta Salad with Sundried Tomatoes, and Sautéed Zucchini and Onions with Sweet Corn.
They're also delicious with Sauteed Kale and Mushrooms and Brown Sugar Honey Glazed Carrots.
Storage and reheating
How to store: Air Fryer Chicken Cutlets will keep in the refrigerator for 3-4 days in a sealed, air-tight container. They lose their crispiness after they have cooled down in the fridge.
How to reheat: When reheating Air Fryer Chicken Cutlets, I recommend heating them in a small frying pan, over low heat, with a little bit of oil. That will crisp the coating back up. You can microwave them too, but this will simply warm them through. They will not get crispy again.
Frequently Asked Questions
I found the best temperature to air fry chicken cutlets is 390°F.
Rubbery chicken is usually due to overcooking.
Yes, air fryers are a great choice for cooking raw chicken. Raw chicken will cook up in an air fryer just like an oven will cook raw chicken.
More air fryer recipes you'll love
📖 Recipe
Air Fryer Chicken Cutlets
Air Fryer Chicken Cutlets are seasoned and lightly breaded, then crisped up in the air fryer in a matter of minutes! The messy, time consuming process of pan-frying can be a thing of the past when you have an air fryer!
- Total Time: 25 minutes
- Yield: 4-6 servings 1x
Ingredients
- 2 pounds chicken breast cutlets
- ¾ cup all purpose flour
- 2 eggs
- 1 ¼ cups panko bread crumbs
- 1 teaspoon salt
- ¼ teaspoon pepper
- ½ teaspoon garlic powder
- ½ teaspoon onion powder
- ½ teaspoon paprika
- Cooking spray
Instructions
- Mix the salt, pepper, garlic powder, onion powder and paprika together in a small bowl.
- Crack the eggs into a medium-sized bowl and whisk them together. Measure the flour out onto a large plate. Pour the panko bread crumbs onto a separate large plate.
- Begin breading the chicken cutlets. You will start by seasoning both sides of the cutlets with the seasoning blend. Next, coat each side of the cutlets in flour. Then dip them into the whisked eggs. Lastly, you will press both sides of the cutlets into the panko bread crumbs. I find that the best way to do this is to season all of the cutlets at the same time. Then one-by-one, flour, egg and bread crumb them. See the photos in the post above for visual instructions.
- After all of the cutlets have been breaded, spray both sides of each cutlet with cooking spray.
- Preheat your air fryer for 3 minutes if your air fryer requires it. Place the cutlets in a single layer, slightly spaced apart in the air fryer. You may need to cook them in a few batches. Cook the chicken cutlets at 390°F for 5 minutes. Pull the basket out of the air fryer, flip the chicken over and continue cooking for 5 more minutes. Thicker cutlets may need an additional 1-2 minutes. Thinner cutlets may be ready after 9 minutes of total cook time. Chicken is fully cooked when it's internal temperature is 165°F or higher.
- Serve Air Fryer Chicken Cutlets with your favorite dipping sauce and enjoy!
Notes
- Cutlets will keep in the refrigerator for 3-4 days in a sealed, air-tight container.
- Chicken must be cooked to an internal temperature of at least 165°F.
- The nutrition information shown below is an estimate provided by an online nutrition calculator. It should not be considered a substitute for professional medical advice.
- Prep Time: 15 minutes
- Cook Time: 10 minutes
- Category: lunch, dinner
- Method: air frying
- Cuisine: American
Keywords: air fryer chicken cutlets
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