When you are craving for Karaage or deep-fried chicken, but you have no time or energy to make it at home, this easy air fryer chicken karaage recipe is for you! It’s also a lot healthier than the typical deep-fried Karaage. Chicken thighs are cut into small bite size pieces, seasoned well with typical pantry ingredients, and cooked in the air fryer. It’s ready in less than 30 minutes! Since the chicken is cut small, there is no need to marinade this for a long time. Smaller pieces will also shorten the cooking time and make them crispy outside just like the deep-fried karaage.
Air fryer we use is Breville Smart Oven® Air Fryer Pro, and the chicken comes out great with crunchy texture. If you are using a different air fryer, you may want to adjust the time cooked depending on the air fryer you use. If you don’t have an air fryer, you can also bake the chicken in the oven, although the result will not be quite the same.
Air fryer karaage is a great main dish you can serve on a weekday dinner or pack in bento lunch. While the chicken is in the air fryer, you can make a quick vegetable dish or a salad. In less than 30 minutes, you will have a healthy and tasty meal!
Japanese-style fried chicken (Karaage) pieces cooked in air fryer
Prep Time10 minutes
Cook Time18 minutes
Total Time28 minutes
Course: Main Course
Cuisine: Japanese
Keyword: air fryer, chicken, Karaage
Servings: 4
*Links may contain ad. #CommissionsEarned
- 1 lb chicken thighs boneless, skinless
- 1 tbsp soy sauce
- 1 tsp garlic powder
- 1 tsp ground ginger
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 1/4 tsp black pepper
- 1 tbsp all purpose flour
- 1 tbsp potato starch or corn starch
Preheat the air fryer at 400F and place the air fryer liner (parchment paper) on the air fryer basket. Or you can also grease the basket with oil.
Cut the chicken into bite size pieces and place them in a bowl. Add the soy sauce, garlic powder, granulated ginger, salt, and pepper and mix. Add the flour and starch to the bowl and coat the chicken.
Place the chicken on the air fryer basket and cook in the air fryer for 15 to 20 minutes until golden brown and crispy outside. Serve immediately.
About JapaneseCooking101
Noriko and Yuko, the authors of this site, are both from Japan but now live in California. They love cooking and eating great food, and share a similar passion for home cooking using fresh ingredients. Noriko and Yuko plan and develop recipes together for Japanese Cooking 101. They cook and shoot photos/videos at their home kitchen(s.)
English (US) · 