A question for you: what’s the best thing about fried chicken? — Yes, that’s right, the crust on the outside and tenderness inside. That’s why we order chicken again and again in restaurants and cook it at home without getting bored. It’s just delicious. But sometimes we have leftover chicken. How do we make sure that the reheated chicken sustains its best qualities? We’ll share our secrets.
There are so many ways to cook chicken. We are now in the process of exploring all the ways you can cook chicken in an air fryer.
We love this appliance. An air fryer is efficient, healthy, and makes fantastic dishes. We already experimented with so many air fryer recipes, and every time it’s a blast.
But today, we are talking about a very specific use of air fryers.
Fried chicken is not hard to cook. Of course, you can undercook or overcook it, but generally, if you have good quality meat and oil and don’t get distracted, you’ll end up with delicious crusty goodness. But can you keep your fried chicken that way if you need to reheat leftover chicken?
Reheating fried chicken: the major challenge
This is the biggest challenge. We need to keep the crust and the juicy meat. How can we do that?
There are several ways you can reheat fried chicken. The most conventional way is the oven. It’s a decent way, of course. But there are a couple of issues here.
First, it will take you no less than 20-25 minutes. It can be fine, but sometimes time can be an issue.
You must reheat fried chicken as quickly as possible.
Second, you have to be very careful as there is a big chance you’ll get dry reheated chicken without all those tasty juices inside. That’s the problem with the oven. It will suck the moisture out of fried chicken.
You can also use a microwave, but unfortunately, it’s a bad idea. There will be no tasty crust for you after you reheat the chicken. Instead, it will be sodden and mushy, and that’s what we don’t need.
So, the alternative solution is reheating fried chicken in air fryer, which will help preserve the delectable skin and won’t let the meat dry out.
The wisest solution: reheat fried chicken in air fryer
We experimented a lot with leftover chicken trying to find a way to avoid overdried or soggy chicken as a result. Air fry was a win. Chicken wings had a crunchy crust, a whole rotisserie chicken was evenly heated, and chicken strips haven’t lost their tender texture. Crispy, juicy, and mouthwatering each time we put the air fryer to work.
If we haven’t convinced you yet, let us give you some more benefits of the air fryer reheated fried chicken. So apart from the taste which is as good as the one of freshly fried chicken, we are saving time because the whole procedure won’t take more than 8 minutes. The air fryer is that efficient.
Oil is not required to reheat fried chicken. The oil currently covering the chicken will be enough. When you cook using hot air, which is the principle the air fryer operation is based upon, you don’t need oil.
As a result, the dishes coming out of the air fryer have much less fat, thus being much healthier.
And last but not least, reheating leftover fried chicken in air fryer means that you are not wasting food and doing something good for the environment.
Rescue your fried chicken in air fryer: a practical technique
Preparation
The most critical player in the game is the bird. Also, we suggest using some water or bouillon. The liquid is not really necessary.
However, if you reheat fried chicken breasts, it may be a good idea to mist them with some additional moisture.
Chicken breasts are the driest part of the chicken and have little moisture per se, so after you reheat chicken in air fryer, the breasts can get a little dry due to exposure to the hot air. With other chicken pieces, you may skip the water or bouillon.
If among your kitchen appliances, you happen to have a meat thermometer, it will be perfect. But it’s not a big deal if you don’t.
Temperature
If you are going to reheat fried chicken in the air fryer, we recommend setting the temperature in the range of 360-370 °F. It is not too high, not too low. How do you make sure that the chicken in air fryer is reheated well enough? Use the aforementioned meat thermometer. When it shows 160 °F, the chicken is ready to be taken out and served.
Time
This part is a bit tricky because the cooking time will depend on the kind of chicken pieces you have. If you want to reheat chicken strips or wings, it will only take 2 minutes on each side (for even heating), but to reheat chicken breast or chicken tenders, which are considerably larger, it will take a total of 8 minutes and a half-time turn.
Anything else?
Important: when loading chicken into the air fryer basket, don’t pack the chicken pieces tight. For perfectly crispy skin, load only one tier of fried chicken in the air fryer basket and ensure a little space for chicken pieces.
Potential issues
Although there shouldn’t be any issue if you reheat fried chicken in air fryer, some problems can happen and that will lead to a lower-quality dish.
From the fridge — directly into the air fryer
If you don’t give the fried chicken to rest and warm after it was refrigerated, your air fryer reheat can be a failure, because the chicken will be air fried unevenly.
Wait for half an hour and let the chicken pieces reach ambient temperature.
Only then you can load the air fryer.
Crowded air fryer
Our solution to reheat fried chicken in air fryer is prompted by the intention to preserve its crust. So, if your chicken tenders or wings are crowding in the air fryer basket covering each other, the only thing you’ll get out of it is a mess. Be patient and make several loads. You’ll be appropriately rewarded with succulent and crunchy chicken.
Can we do that again?
Better not. We don’t advise going through the same procedure of reheating chicken in air fryer. If you absolutely need to heat up the chicken again, be aware of potential dangers.
Apart from turning the chicken into jerky, you’ll give a chance to disease-causing bacteria. They are more likely to develop in your fried chicken if you repeat the reheating process.
We recommend planning the amount of chicken you are going to consume and reheat fried chicken in air fryer accordingly.
Keep the bird safe
A few words about safety. Leftover fried chicken must be kept in the refrigerator. Nobody wants food poisoning, hence let’s follow the rules, which are not complex at all.
Keep your crunchy fried chicken refrigerated.
The maximum period for the leftover fried chicken to stay edible and safe is 3 days, but we recommend using it up even sooner. Put the fried chicken into the airtight container, and it will last 3 days before it expires. The airtight container is really the best possible option for securing the leftover fried chicken.
And finally…
We are living in times when people are becoming conscious about reasonable consumption of food and avoiding its waste. A conscious attitude is reheating your leftover fried chicken. It will be mouthwatering.
Our recommendation — reheat fried chicken in air fryer. It’s a great way to preserve the delectable taste of fried chicken and use a healthier cooking method, namely an air fryer.
Reheat fried chicken in air fryer following our simple guidelines, and you’ll enjoy a flavorful dish for the second time.
We’d also like to encourage you to take advantage of the air fryer. There are wonderful chicken recipes for air fryer published in this blog. Air frying is a cooking method that will help you make great food, which will be healthy as well. It is a win-win situation.
Frequently asked questions
How do you reheat fried chicken so it’s crispy?
To ensure your fried chicken crunchy and succulent texture, we recommend using an air fryer.
While you reheat fried chicken in air fryer, load the air fryer basket and beware that the pieces of chicken must be separated from each other, so there’s no contact between them. And don’t put them on top of each other either.
Should I reheat fried chicken in oven or air fryer?
You can do it both ways. The oven can be used as well as the air fryer. The period is of importance here. If you decided to reheat fried chicken using your kitchen oven, it will take about 25 minutes. And you have to be careful not to make the bird too dry. Especially if you reheat chicken strips or other small parts.
We suggest reheating fried chicken in air fryer. This way, the bird prepared in the air fryer will retain its crunchy texture and will be succulent. Fair warning: don’t reheat chicken multiple times. It can be unsafe.
Can you reheat KFC in air fryer?
You can air fry KFC, and it will be delicious. But ensure that you put just enough pieces of chicken in the air fryer basket that you’ll be able to eat. This way, they will retain their crust. You can set the temperature to 320 °F.
The time can vary, but you can easily check if the chicken is ready by measuring the internal temperature of your poultry. The indicator that the meat is well-prepared is 160-165 °F of its internal temperature.
How long do you reheat chicken in the air fryer?
Chicken in the air fryer will take varying cooking periods to heat up because different parts of the bird take different time to heat up. With smaller parts, like wings, the time required for them to heat up is very short — 4-5 minutes. In case, there is a bone in chicken pieces like in a thigh, it will take a little longer — about 8 minutes.
And don’t forget to cook evenly — turn the pieces so the other side can reheat properly, too.
If you are not sure, gauge the internal temperature of the bird. It should be at least 160 °F on the thermometer.
How do I cook chicken in air fryer?
We have found this gem — a recipe of the whole chicken in the air fryer, which is so easy that it’s almost unbelievable. And we adore the delicious crispy skin of the chicken that you get in the result.
For this recipe, you’ll need a whole chicken (without giblets):
- Herbs (dried): oregano, basil, thyme — 0.5 tsp each. You can improvise and use herbs of your choice, of course
- Salt — 1 Tbs
- Pepper — 1 tsp
- Garlic powder — 1 tsp
- 2 Tbs of vegetable oil of your choice
Combine all the herbs and condiments and add oil. Scrub your chicken with the aromatic paste thoroughly.
Now it’s time for an air fryer. Set 360 °F and cook for 50 min., then turn the bird for an overall golden color and fry for 10 more min. Your chicken is ready.
