This recipe for 5 ingredient air fryer buffalo chicken nuggets makes a great dinner, game day snack, appetizer or even lunch. You really can’t go wrong with these crispy bites of goodness!
When I’m making a dish that should be crispy, like these buffalo chicken nuggets, I always go for my air fryer. I can get the meal coked quicker and crispier than the oven. But keep reading if you need oven-baking instructions as well.
What ingredients do you need to make this recipe?
- Sour cream
- Blue cheese dressing, for dipping
- Buffalo sauce, divided
- Chicken breasts, cut into 1 inch cubes (you can also use chicken tenders if you prefer)
- Panko breadcrumbs
To make sure the nuggets have plenty of flavor, I have a little secret to share – sour cream! I mix my sour cream and hot sauce together. This helps ensure the hot sauce flavor is baked into the chicken versus just tossing it to coat at the end.
And the sour cream helps the breadcrumbs stick! I have found that it works so much better than a traditional egg coating before adding bread crumbs. Plus, sour cream helps keep the chicken moist and flavorful.
How to air fry buffalo chicken bites
- Preheat air fryer to 350 for 5 minutes while prepping chicken.
- Cut chicken into 1 inch cubes/pieces.
- In a bowl, add 1 cup sour cream and ¼ cup buffalo sauce. Stir to combine. In another bowl add breadcrumbs.
- Add chicken to sour cream mixture, stir to coat chicken, then dredge the coated chicken through the breadcrumbs.
- Spray air fryer basket with cooking spray. Place chicken bites in a single layer, working in batches if you air fryer isn’t big enough.
- Cook for 12 minutes, flipping halfway through, or until chicken is cooked through to 165 degrees.
- Remove from air fryer and toss in additional hot sauce.
- Serve with blue cheese dressing as a dipping sauce.
There is one additional optional step if you’d like!
- If you want extra crispy chicken, after step 7, add chicken back into air fryer for one minute. Then remove, dip and enjoy.
I love cooking in my Air fryer and wanted to share two of my favorite tips:
- Preheat air fryer while prepping food so you’re ready to cook right away
- Don’t overlap food in the basket; leave it in a single layer to ensure it cooks as crispy as you’d like
What if I don’t have an air fryer?
I always like to try to include oven directions for all of the people out there who don’t own an Air Fryer. So here you go!
- You can make these buffalo chicken nuggets in the oven at 400 degrees. Simply bake for 20-25 minutes, flipping halfway through. Timing will vary, depending on the size of your chicken cuts.
If you’re like me and want extra crispy buffalo chicken nuggets, after the final step of adding buffalo sauce, put them back in the air fryer for 1 more minute. The buffalo nuggets are already cooked at this point, so this step is completely optional!
If you have any vegetarian friends or don’t have chicken on hand, you could absolutely replace the chicken with cauliflower if you’d like – check out my recipe for 5 ingredient buffalo cauliflower nuggets here. Both options are delicious!
If you give this recipe a try, I’d love to know if you made it in the air fryer or the oven. Any recipe that allows for flexible options is my favorite!
5 Ingredient Air Fryer Buffalo Chicken Nuggets
Equipment
Ingredients
- 1 lb. chicken breasts cut into 1 inch cubes. You can also use chicken tenders.
- 1 cup sour cream
- 1 cup breadcrumbs I like using Panko
- 1/2 cup buffalo sauce divided
- Blue cheese dressing for dipping
Instructions
- Preheat air fryer to 350 for 5 minutes while prepping chicken. Cut chicken into 1 inch cubes/pieces.
- In a bowl add 1 cup sour cream and ¼ cup buffalo sauce, stir to combine. In another bowl add breadcrumbs.
- Add chicken to sour cream mixture, stir to coat chicken, then dredge the coated chicken through the breadcrumbs.
- Spray air fryer basket with cooking spray. Place chicken bites in a single layer, working in batches if you air fryer isn’t big enough.
- Cook for 12 minutes, flipping halfway through, or until chicken is cooked through to 165 degrees.
- Remove from air fryer and toss in additional hot sauce.
- This step is optional, but if you want extra crispy chicken, add it back to the air fryer for 1 minute after it’s been coated in hot sauce.
- Serve with blue cheese dressing as a dipping sauce.
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