How to Reheat Chicken Thighs in an Air Fryer

Leftover chicken thighs in an air fryer.

5 from 2 votes

How to Reheat Chicken Thighs in an Air Fryer

Learn how to reheat chicken thighs in an air fryer for the juiciest leftovers with perfectly crispy chicken skin in less than 10 minutes. Great for a quick dinner lunch at home, just add a side or two of vegetables to make it a meal!

Prep Time2

Cook Time8

Total Time8

Course: Air Fryer

Cuisine: American

Keyword: convection oven, easy, halogen oven, healthy, keto, low carb, meal prep, paleo, quick, reheat chicken, reheat thighs, whole30

Servings: -6 chicken thighs

Calories: 278kcal

Author: Bethany Galloway

Ingredients

4-6 leftover chicken thighs boneless-skinless, bone-in-skin-on, or fried chicken
Parsley to garnish optional

Instructions

Begin by preheating the air fryer to 180 degrees c/ 356 degrees f.
When the air fryer is ready, place the leftover chicken pieces in the air fryer basket in a single layer, skin side up. Reheat the chicken for 8 minutes. The cooking time can take a little longer depending on the thickness and size of the chicken, and whether it's breaded, boneless and skinless (less time), or bone-in and skin-on.
Check the internal temperature of the chicken with a meat thermometer. When the temperature reaches 74°C/165°F, it's ready. If it needs quite a bit of extra cooking time (for larger chicken thighs) add on 3-5 minutes and check again. If it needs just a little more time, heat the thighs in 30-second intervals.
Let the chicken cool for 5 minutes before serving. I love serving my crispy chicken thighs with BBQ sauce to dip, and a side of air fryer french fries.

Notes

Take it out of the fridge early: If you remove the chicken leftovers from the fridge and sit them at room temperature for an hour or so before reheating, they'll reheat even quicker.

Cook time: The cooking time will vary between the size of the chicken, plus whether it has breading or bones. Smaller pieces will take a shorter time to cook, and larger pieces take a little longer. Always check that the chicken is heated all the way through before eating it. An easy way to do this is with an instant-read thermometer, but you can also slice the thickest part of the chicken to check the temperature.

Air fryer model: Different air fryer models give different results so I recommend checking your chicken after about 5 minutes to see how it's doing and get a gauge on how much longer you'll need to reheat it. For reference, I'm using a 4.3l Tower Air Fryer.

Single layer: Don't over-crowd the air fryer basket by piling the chicken legs up. This takes the chicken longer to reheat and may result in the thighs sticking together. Your best bet is to place them in a single layer. I can usually fit 4-6 chicken thighs in my air fryer at the same time.

Nutrition