Easy Air Fryer Chicken Breasts and broccoli are a silly simple dinner recipe that fuels you in all the right ways. Lean protein, fiber, vitamins…this dinner recipe checks all the boxes.
Hypothetical situation:
You’ve had a long, busy day, you’re super hungry and want to keep it healthy but you want to spend -30 minutes cooking.
Enter: Air Fryer Chicken Breast and Broccoli.
Okay, the broccoli is optional of course. We’re mostly here for the chicken.
But you know what they say…chicken and broccoli is the body builder’s diet, so eat this and you’ll get JACKED.
Kidding, kinda.
Look, I’m going to give it to you straight. Is this the best chicken I’ve ever had in my life? No.
But I’m biased because I’m more into the fattier cuts of meat or chicken breasts doused in sauce. For instance, my Baked Teriyaki Chicken Thighs, Chicken Marsala, Mushroom and Spinach Stuffed Chicken Breast and 30-Minute Creamy Lemon Garlic Chicken are more my speed.
For those who are accustomed to eating chicken breasts, it will come as no surprise that there is nothing remarkably fascinating about these air fryer chicken breasts.
It may sound unromantic, but utility, functionality, and practicality have their place in cooking and lifestyle.
In fact, the majority of my meals are incredibly boring and very much solely for the purpose of fueling me with clean energy.
However, do I think this is a great option for folks who are looking to get in some lean protein after a long day of work and just want to whip up something healthy quickly?
Or for those who just want to cook chicken quickly to add it to something else like a salad? YES.
If you aren’t in a rush for food and you have more time on your hands, you an marinate the chicken for 3+ hours ahead of time in whatever marinade you love. I personally would go with a lemon garlic marinade or a teriyaki marinade.
This will result in a more tender and flavorful chicken breast.
If you’re like me and you like your meat to be seeping in flavor, or if you prefer chicken thighs over chicken breasts, check out my Air Fryer Crispy Chicken Thighs recipe!
Let’s chat about the ingredients for this easy chicken breast recipe.
Ingredients for Air Fryer Chicken Breasts:
At a minimum, you need boneless skinless chicken breasts, avocado oil, sea salt, paprika, and garlic powder. These simple ingredients will bring life to the otherwise plain tasting breast.
For extra credit, also use stone ground mustard and dried parsley. These two ingredients are optional but definitely help level up the flavor of the chicken! I’m partial to the addition of mustard.
How to Make Air Fryer Chicken Breasts:
Preheat the air fryer for 5 minutes at 350 degrees F. I use the Ninja AF161 Max XL Air Fryer.
Stir the avocado oil and mustard together in a small bowl. Stir together the sea salt, garlic powder, paprika, and dried parsley in a separate bowl.
Coat the chicken breasts with avocado oil mustard mixture then sprinkle with the seasoning mixture.
Place the chicken breasts in the air fryer and air fry for 10 minutes at 350.
Flip the chicken and air fry for another 10 minutes, or until the internal temperature of the chicken reaches 165 degrees Fahrenheit.
The best way to ensure the chicken is fully cooked is to use a meat thermometer.
Allow the chicken to rest for 10 minutes before serving. This allows the juices to distribute throughout the meat, leaving you with a juicy, tender texture.
If you’re air frying up some broccoli, you can do so after the chicken is finished cooking, while it’s resting.
Instructions for Air Fryer Broccoli:
Chop the broccoli into florets and place them in a large bowl. Drizzle with avocado oil and sprinkle with sea salt. Use your hands to toss everything together until it’s well-coated.
Transfer the broccoli to the air fryer and Air Fry at 400 for 5 minutes.
Check on the broccoli and air fry for another 1 to 2 minutes if needed.
That’s it!
Lightning quick clean energy for those times you need to get fed immediately!
Air fry it up!
If you make this recipe, please feel free to share a photo on Instagram and tag @The.Roasted.Root!
Ingredients
- 2 large chicken breasts
- 1 Tbsp avocado oil
- 1 Tbsp stone ground mustard, optional
- 1 1/2 tsp garlic powder*
- 1 tsp paprika
- 1 tsp dried parsley
- 1/2 tsp sea salt
For the Broccoli:
- 1 bunch broccoli, chopped into florets
- 1 Tbsp avocado oil
- 1/2 tsp sea salt, to taste
Instructions
- Preheat the air fryer for 5 minutes at 350 degrees F.
- Stir the avocado oil and mustard together in a small bowl. Stir together the sea salt, garlic powder, paprika, and dried parsley in a separate bowl.
- Coat the chicken breasts with avocado oil mustard mixture then sprinkle with the seasoning mixture.
- Place the chicken breasts in the air fryer and air fry for 9 minutes at 350. Flip the chicken and air fry for another 9 minutes, or until the internal temperature of the chicken reaches 165 degrees Fahrenheit. The best way to ensure the chicken is fully cooked is to use a meat thermometer.
- Allow the chicken to rest for 10 minutes before serving. This allows the juices to distribute throughout the meat, leaving you with a juicy, tender texture.
- If you’re air frying up some broccoli, you can do so after the chicken is finished cooking, while it’s resting.
For the Broccoli:
- Chop the broccoli into florets and place them in a large bowl. Drizzle with avocado oil and sprinkle with sea salt. Use your hands to toss everything together until it’s well-coated.
- Transfer the broccoli to the air fryer and Air Fry at 400 for 5 minutes.
- Check on the broccoli and air fry for another 1 to 2 minutes if needed.
Notes
Nutrition
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Shan
Sunday 15th of January 2023
My mom and I are allergic to avocado. What other type of oil would you suggest,that is still clean an healthy? I use coconut oil quite often but it's because I'm familiar with it lol I'm open to trying others. Thank you!
Julia
Tuesday 17th of January 2023
Hi Shan! Olive oil works great! There was talk for a long time about not using olive oil for cooking because it has a low smoke point, but there's new research that shows only a small percentage of what makes up the oil burns at a high temperature and the oleic acid in the oil is protective against oxidative stress. I've also used algae oil in the past, which is my top recommendation but it is very expensive and can be difficult to find. Hope this helps!