Last Updated on September 18, 2023 by Harry & Johan. This post may contain affliate links, see privacy policy
Made-from-scratch flavor in minutes! Reheat leftover fried chicken to crispy, mouthwatering perfection with this easy air fryer guide.
Crispy fried chicken is one of the best parts of a meal. But like most foods fried in hot oil, leftover fried chicken tends to quickly lose its signature crunch and become soggy, especially when left to sit at room temperature or reheated in the microwave.
Rather than settling for lackluster leftovers, you can use your air fryer to reheat fried chicken the next day and achieve deliciously crispy results again in just minutes. Using the super hot air circulating in the air fryer basket is a great and easy way to make leftover fried chicken wings, tenders, thighs, drumsticks, and more taste like they just came fresh out of the deep fryer.
When reheating leftover fried chicken of any type, from Kentucky fried chicken to homemade deep-fried chicken, the air fryer method yields the best option for getting a crispy texture and juicy perfection again.
While you can reheat fried chicken in the oven, the air fryer is a faster and better way with foolproof results every time. This guide covers how to perfectly reheat leftover fried chicken of all kinds in the air fryer with simple instructions, tips, substitutions, and FAQs for the best way to make crispy, mouthwatering, reheated chicken.
Jump to:
- 🍗 Why Reheating Fried Chicken in the Air Fryer Works so Well
- 🍗 Ingredients Needed for Reheating Fried Chicken in Air Fryer
- 📖 Instructions
- 🙋🏻♂️ FAQs
- 🥣 Substitutions
- 🥘 Variations
- 🍽️ Serving Suggestions
- ⏲ Equipment
- 🍶 Storage
- 👨🏻🍳 Top tips
- 📒 Recipe Card
- How to Reheat Fried Chicken in Air Fryer
- 🍳 More Air Fryer Recipes!
🍗 Why Reheating Fried Chicken in the Air Fryer Works so Well
There are many reasons why using an air fryer is the best option and method for reheating leftover fried chicken:
- It’s Quick and Convenient: No need to wait for the oven to preheat or pull out pans. Just toss the chicken in the air fryer basket for fast, crispy results in minutes.
- Makes Chicken Ultra Crispy Again: The circulating hot air mimics deep frying for an evenly crisped exterior.
- Prevents Soggy Chicken: Air frying avoids the common pitfalls of chewy microwaved chicken or unevenly baked chicken.
- Locks in Juiciness: Chicken stays tender and moist inside with crispy outside.
- Uses Little Oil for Less Greasiness than Frying: A light oil coating gives all the crispiness.
- Evenly Cooks all Sizes of Chicken Pieces: The hot air surrounds each piece for consistent reheating results.
- Versatile for all Kinds of Chicken and Flavors: Works for all cuts, batters, sauces, spices, etc.
- Allows You to Use Leftovers: Reheat instead of frying more chicken (or buying more) when craving it again.
🍗 Ingredients Needed for Reheating Fried Chicken in Air Fryer
One of the best parts of using the air fryer for reheating fried chicken is that you need minimal ingredients. Here’s an overview of the short list of what you’ll need:
- Leftover Fried Chicken Pieces: This reheating method works for any type and cut of bone-in chicken or chicken pieces, including wings, chicken breast, chicken thighs, drumsticks or chicken tenders. Even rotisserie chicken works beautifully. If using a whole chicken, make sure to cut it into smaller pieces. KFC chicken or whatever leftover fried chicken from your favorite fast-food restaurant is a great option.
- Oil: Lightly coating the chicken pieces in a little bit of oil before air frying helps ensure the skin gets very crispy. Use just about 1-2 teaspoon of neutral oil like canola, vegetable, grapeseed or avocado oil. Olive oil can also be used but may impart a slight flavor.
- Seasonings (optional): Feel free to toss or drizzle the cold fried chicken leftovers with any extra seasonings or sauces before reheating if desired, such as cajun seasoning, lemon pepper, hot sauce, etc.
That’s truly it as far as ingredients go. The air fryer does all the work of reheating and crisping up the chicken to deliciously fried perfection again. No need for dredging in flour or eggs.
📖 Instructions
Here is a simple step-by-step walkthrough on how to perfectly reheat leftover fried chicken in the air fryer:
Allow Chicken to Cool: It's important that previously cooked fried chicken is at room temperature before being placed into the hot air fryer, otherwise, it can steam and result in soggy chicken with soft skin.
Cut Larger Pieces into Smaller Nuggets or Strips: For best and most even results cut any larger chicken pieces like breasts or thighs into smaller 1-2 inch chunks or strips before air frying. The smaller, the better for getting crispy.
Coat with Oil: Use a brush, paper towel, or your fingers to lightly coat the chicken pieces all over with a thin layer of high-heat oil. This helps achieve crispy skin when reheating.
Season (optional): Feel free to sprinkle or drizzle on any extra seasonings or sauces as desired for added flavor.
Arrange in Single Layer in Basket: Place the oiled chicken pieces in the basket of the air fryer. The pieces of fried chicken should be in a single layer without overcrowding. Work in batches for even cooking if needed.
Air fry at 365-375°F: Cook chicken for 6-8 minutes at a temperature between 365-375°F until hot throughout and crispy on the outside, flipping the pieces over halfway through cooking. Depending on the size of your chicken pieces, air fryer chicken for 4-5 minutes per side, and up to 5-6 minutes for large chicken breast or thigh pieces.
Check Internal Temperature: For food safety, use an instant-read thermometer to check that the internal temperature of the chicken reaches 165°F.
Allow to Rest: Once air-fried and hot and crispy, let chicken pieces rest for 3-4 minutes out of the air fryer before biting in for optimum juicy texture.
Repeat as Needed: Cook any remaining chicken in additional batches, reheating and enjoying throughout the week.
🙋🏻♂️ FAQs
Here are answers to some of the most frequently asked questions about reheating fried chicken in the air fryer:
Place the chicken on a baking tray lined with parchment paper or a foil-lined baking sheet, and cook in the oven for 14 minutes at 400 degrees Fahrenheit for best results. For a toaster oven, use a smaller baking sheet or wire rack to cook the chicken for the same amount of time.
Properly stored fried chicken will last 3-4 days in the refrigerator. For longer term storage, freeze fried chicken for 2-3 months.
It’s best for safety and quality to only reheat fried chicken one time. Reheating chicken leftovers multiple times increases risk of bacteria growth.
Air frying should yield crispy chicken, not soggy. Be sure chicken pieces are cooled completely before placing in the air fryer and coat with oil to help achieve crispy skin.
🥣 Substitutions
One of the best parts about using an air fryer to reheat fried chicken is that it works beautifully for all different types, cuts and sizes of chicken. So many different ways to make delicious leftover fried chicken! Feel free to swap out:
Type of Chicken: Wings, drumsticks, thighs, breasts, tenders, nuggets or strips all reheat well. Even rotisserie or baked chicken can be air fried to crispy perfection. Add a couple of minutes to the cooking time for the bigger pieces of chicken to make sure that the thickest part is also cooked through.
The Coating or Breading: This method works for reheating any breaded, battered, or flour-coated fried chicken.
Oil: Use any neutral high-heat oil for coating chicken, such as grapeseed, vegetable, avocado, or olive oil, before air frying.
Seasonings: Get creative with spices like cajun seasoning, ranch powder, lemon pepper, curry powder, etc. before or after reheating.
You can also use the air fryer to reheat any type of sauced fried chicken such as Nashville hot chicken, honey sriracha wings or sesame chicken. The possibilities are endless!
🥘 Variations
The air fryer method works for all kinds of leftover fried chicken. Get creative with sauces and spices!
- Lemon Pepper: Season with lemon pepper seasoning.
- Buffalo: Toss chicken in spicy buffalo sauce before air frying.
- Jerk Chicken: Add jerk seasoning for a kick.
- Ranch: Drizzle leftover chicken with ranch dressing.
- Honey Sriracha: For a sweet and spicy glaze.
- Fried Chicken Sandwich: Reheat chicken breast for a crispy sandwich.
- Fried Chicken Tacos: Top tortillas with shredded air fried chicken.
🍽️ Serving Suggestions
Serving up hot, freshly fried tasting chicken? Complete the meal with classic fried chicken sides that complement the crunchy, juicy reheated chicken perfectly.
- Air Fryer Crinkle Cut Fries
- Coleslaw
- Instant Pot Mac and Cheese
- Instant Pot Mashed Potatoes with Skin
- Buttermilk biscuits
- Air Fryer Corn on the Cob in Foil
- Air Fryer Corn Ribs
- Waffles
⏲ Equipment
An Air Fryer: This recipe has been tested using two air fryer models:
- Instant Vortex Plus 6-Quart Air Fryer Oven. This air fryer has a useful viewing window that allows you to monitor the food as it cooks. This model always cooks food a bit quicker than my Cosori model, so reduce the cooking time as needed.
- Cosori Max XL Large Cooker. It has a capacity of 5.8 quarts which is quite large. The basket is smaller than my Instant Pot model but has very good hot air circulation.
🍶 Storage
Serve reheated crispy fried chicken straight out of the air fryer for the perfect combination of hot, juicy and ultra crispy chicken.
If you have any chicken leftover after reheating, allow it to cool slightly and then transfer to an airtight container and refrigerate. Eat cooled fried chicken leftovers within 3-4 days. You can also freeze air-fried chicken for longer storage. Simply reheat individual pieces from frozen as needed right in the air fryer again.
The air fryer makes reheating leftover fried chicken an absolute breeze. In just minutes you can resurrect refrigerated or frozen fried chicken leftovers to be hot and crispy again. Give this foolproof method a try next time you have leftover chicken!
👨🏻🍳 Top tips
Here are some simple tips to follow to ensure perfect results when reheating leftover fried chicken in the air fryer:
- Cool Chicken: For best results, make sure the chicken is completely cooled to room temperature before placing in the hot air fryer. Cold chicken is better, as hot chicken risks steaming and getting soggy. Using cold chicken ensures that you get the crispy texture of the chicken skin.
- Cut Small: If any pieces of chicken are thick or large, cut them into smaller 1-2 inch pieces or nuggets before air frying for ideal heat circulation and crisping.
- Batch Cooking: When working in batches, do not overcrowd the air fryer basket. Chicken should reheat in a single layer with some space between pieces.
- Crispy Chicken: Let the chicken cool for a few minutes after the reheating process. This helps make the chicken skin even crisper!
- Adjust Temperature: Adjust air fryer temperature down incrementally if chicken is browning too quickly on the outside before fully heated through.
- Flip Chicken: Use tongs for easy flipping and removal of chicken pieces from the air fryer. Air fryers have "hot spots" so flipping the chicken is a great way to get delicious fried chicken from leftovers.
- Timing is Key: Keep a close eye on chicken the first time you reheat a particular type or size of chicken to get timing right. Check in 30-second intervals toward end of cooking time.
- Thermometer: Use an instant-read meat thermometer to check the internal temperature, and don’t rely solely on air fryer cooking timers for food safety. This is the best method to prevent dry chicken but not over cooking it.
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📒 Recipe Card
How to Reheat Fried Chicken in Air Fryer
Equipment
Ingredients
- Leftover fried chicken Cooled to room temperature or cold from the refrigerator
- Oil sprayer bottle
- Optional extra seasonings
Instructions
- Allow chicken to cool - It's important that previously cooked fried chicken is at room temperature before being placed into the hot air fryer, otherwise it can steam and result in soggy chicken with soft skin.
- Cut larger pieces into smaller nuggets or strips - For best and most even results, cut any larger chicken pieces like breasts or thighs into smaller 1-2 inch chunks or strips before air frying. The smaller the better for getting crispy.
- Coat with oil - Use a oil sprayer bottle, brush, paper towel or your fingers to lightly coat the chicken pieces all over with a thin layer of high heat oil. This helps achieve crispy skin when reheating.
- Season (optional) - At this point, feel free to sprinkle or drizzle on any extra seasonings or sauces as desired for added flavor.
- Arrange in single layer in basket - Place the oiled chicken pieces in the basket of the air fryer. The pieces of fried chicken should be in a single layer without overcrowding. Work in batches for even cooking if needed.
- Air fry at 365-375°F - Cook chicken for 6-8 minutes at a temperature between 365-375°F until hot throughout and crispy on the outside, flipping the pieces over halfway through cooking. Depending on the size of your chicken pieces, air fryer chicken for 4-5 minutes per side, up to 5-6 minutes per side for large chicken breast or thigh pieces.
- Check internal temperature - For food safety, use an instant read thermometer to check that the internal temperature of the chicken reaches 165°F.
- Allow to rest - Once air fried hot and crispy, let chicken pieces rest for 3-4 minutes out of the air fryer before biting in for optimum juicy texture.
- Repeat as needed - Cook any remaining chicken in additional batches.
Notes
- Ensure chicken is completely cooled to room temperature before air frying to prevent steaming and sogginess
- Cut larger pieces into smaller nuggets or strips for even crispiness
- Use cooking spray on the air fryer basket to prevent sticking
- Work in unmuddled batches and flip chicken halfway through cooking
- Adjust temperature down if browning too quickly
- Use tongs for easy flipping and removal
- Check internal temperature with a meat thermometer
- Let chicken rest 1-2 minutes after cooking for optimum juiciness
This recipe was tested with these air fryers:
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