Air fryer Nashville hot chicken is a healthier version of the classic spicy fried chicken! Crispy buttermilk-soaked chicken thighs are fried until perfectly crispy and brushed in a spicy cayenne sauce.
The air fryer hype is 100% real, you guys! We took our new air fryer on its maiden voyage with this Nashville chicken and never looked back.
We made Nashville hot chicken for the Super Bowl last month and while it was incredible in every way, it was made using the traditional deep-frying method which is a) not the best for ya b) definitely a pain to make.
When our air fryer came in the mail a few weeks later, the first thing on the agenda was making an air fryer version of Nashville hot chicken and it came out even BETTER than the first round!’
And sealed our fate on using the air fryer for literally everything. It’s honestly an addiction at this point and I’ve got tons of new air fryer recipes coming your way in the next few months!
First things first though, let’s talk about the insanely good chicken Nashville (one of my top 5 favorite cities) is famous for and how we’re going to make a healthier version of it.
This Air Fryer Nashville Hot Chicken features…
- Incredibly juicy and flavorful chicken thighs (thanks to the almighty buttermilk marinade!)
- A perfectly crispy flour/cornstarch coating
- A sweet + spicy brown sugar cayenne sauce
Making the Air Fryer Nashville Hot Chicken
(scroll to the bottom of the post for the full recipe!)
Ingredients You’ll Need
- Chicken Thighs – I recommend boneless skinless chicken thighs for this recipe because the dark meat is more forgiving when frying. You can also use bone-in chicken thighs/legs, but be aware you may need to increase the cooking time due to the bones.
- Buttermilk – an essential building block to making the chicken juicy! I recommend letting the chicken soak in the buttermilk overnight if you can.
- Hot Sauce – a few shakes of hot sauce in the buttermilk marinade helps flavor the chicken.
- Frying Essentials – flour, salt, pepper, cornstarch, and an egg
- Pan Spray – this is your best friend when air frying!
- Spices – cayenne pepper, garlic powder, and paprika. These are the main spices flavoring the sauce.
- Brown Sugar – helps bring a little sweet with heat action to the sauce!
- Vegetable Oil – a few tablespoons of oil makes the sauce into a brushable consistency
Adjusting the Heat Level
This hot chicken packs quite the punch of heat! You can absolutely dial the heat up or down, but regardless of that fact I do not recommend this recipe for anyone that is sensitive to spice.
However, if you are sensitive to spice, but still really want to try this recipe, I would recommend leaving the sauce off entirely and serving the chicken as-is out of the air fryer.
For my spicy-food lovers, here’s how to adjust the heat level of this chicken. First, pick your level of spice tolerance –>
- Lower level (definitely noticeable heat, but tolerable) = start with 2 teaspoons cayenne pepper and work your way up to taste.
- Medium level (think mouth definitely a little firey) = start with 2 tablespoons cayenne pepper and work your way up to taste.
- High as you can get it (super high spice tolerances like this one) = start with 3 tablespoons cayenne pepper and work your way up to taste.
Tips for Air Fryer Nashville Hot Chicken
First and foremost, do not crowd the fryer basket! I typically cook 2 thighs at a time in our 4-qt air fryer so the chicken has plenty of room to crisp up.
I also recommend preheating the air fryer for 3 minutes prior to frying so the air fryer is already hot when you go to add the chicken.
Spray both your air fryer grate AND the chicken itself with pan spray. Since we’re relying on convection from the air fryer to fry the chicken, this added bit of fat is necessary to get an even browning on the chicken.
Flip your chicken halfway through cooking. This helps ensure both sides get evenly cooked and helps the coating crisp up better.
How To Oven Fry Chicken
If you do not own an air fryer, you can still make this recipe! The chicken will not be as crispy but it will still be delicious.
To oven fry chicken, follow all the recipe instructions for marinating chicken, coating chicken, and preparing sauce.
Preheat oven to 400F and spread 1 tablespoon melted butter or vegetable oil on a large baking sheet. Lay coated chicken in a single layer at least 2 inches apart on baking sheet.
Bake chicken 10 minutes, then flip to opposite side and bake an additional 10-12 minutes until chicken registers 165F. Brush chicken with cayenne sauce while hot as recipe directs.
Fellow heat-lovers, you’re definitely in for a wild ride with this chicken! The chicken is perfectly juicy on the inside, crispy on the outside, and just exploding with firey levels of heat.
I highly recommend serving this Nashville hot chicken the traditional Nashville way with dill pickle spears! The acidity from the pickles pairs so well with the heat from the chicken.
Ready for your face to be on fire? Trust me, it’s WORTH!
A few more hot and spicy dinner items I think you’ll love!
- Spicy Ginger Mango Salmon Poke Bowls
- Caramelized Onion Shiitake Mushroom Miso Ramen
- Sticky Honey Chipotle Chicken Thighs
Watch this chicken made step-by-step on Google Web Stories!
Air Fryer Nashville Hot Chicken
Ingredients
Fried Chicken
- 1-1/2 lbs boneless skinless chicken thighs
- 1-1/2 cups buttermilk
- Kosher salt and pepper
- 1 tablespoon hot sauce
- 1 large egg, lightly beaten
- 1-1/2 cups all-purpose flour (or whole wheat)
- 1/2 cup cornstarch
- Canola or vegetable oil spray
Sauce
- 2 tablespoons cayenne pepper (or more depending on your spice tolerance)
- 1 tablespoon light brown sugar (or coconut sugar)
- 1 teaspoon garlic powder
- 1/2 teaspoon paprika
- 4 tablespoons vegetable oil
- Dill pickles for serving
Instructions
Fried Chicken
- In a large bowl, whisk buttermilk, hot sauce, 1 tablespoon salt, and several shakes of pepper. Add chicken to buttermilk mixture, making sure chicken is fully submerged. Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate chicken at least 1 hour or up to 8.
- Remove chicken from fridge and mix beaten egg into mixture until combined. Set aside for a moment.
- In a large shallow bowl or pie plate, combine flour, cornstarch, 1 tablespoon salt, and 1 teaspoon pepper. Drizzle 2 tablespoons buttermilk marinade over top and toss to combine.
- Add the chicken to the flour mixture, turning and tossing in flour mixture until evenly coated. Allow chicken to sit in flour mixture 10 minutes. Meanwhile, spray the grate on a 4-qt air fryer and preheat 3 minutes at 400F.
- Working in two batches, spray both sides of two breaded chicken thighs well with pan spray. Place in a single layer in air fryer and fry at 400F 10 minutes until chicken registers 165F, flipping thighs halfway through cooking. Repeat frying process with remaining breaded chicken.
Sauce
- In a small bowl, whisk all sauce ingredients until smooth and season with salt and pepper to taste. Brush sauce evenly over hot fried chicken and serve hot with pickles. Enjoy!
Susana Williams says
This chicken is delicious! Crispy and moist. I did have to add about 10 minutes to the cooking time because I wanted it extra crispy. The sauce is awesome. Will most definitely make this again
Susana Williams says
Oh my goodness y’all. This recipe is divine. Spices were on point. I added chili pepper flakes because I really like heat and had to increase the cooking time by 15 minutes because I wanted the chicken super crispy. Will most definitely be making this again.
Sarah says
Thanks for the notes, Susana! So glad to hear this recipe was a hit. 🙂
Philip says
2 Tablespoons of cayenne pepper made this inedible. My tolerance for spice is pretty high but all we could think about while eating this was how painful it was (and will be). Besides the sauce, everything was spot on.
Sarah says
Hi Philip – sorry to hear this didn’t hit the mark for you! We have tested this recipe ourselves many times with 2 tablespoons, as well as many readers and no one has thought the sauce was inedible due to spice. Were you perhaps using a spicier brand of cayenne pepper? As noted in the blog post, you can adjust the sauce to suit your spice preference.
Ea tmyass says
Wayyyyyyy too much cayenne pepper like wtf lol
Sarah says
Traditional Nashville hot chicken is made with at least this much cayenne pepper. As noted in the post, you can decrease the amount to suit your spice preference. 🙂
Jason says
Try it out with two teaspoons! I made this with three tablespoons personally and think it could have used more but the recipe allows for one to adjust it to their own spice tolerance
Braden E says
Not sure what went wrong for me but my chicken did not brown much in the air frier I must of not sprayed it enough with oil I think but it was still white after ten minutes in the frier
Sarah says
Hi Braden – I’m sorry this happened to you! It sounds to me like something may have been off with the temperature of your air fryer and maybe not using enough pan spray.
RJW says
We had the same problem, unfortunately! We gave up with the Pam spray and attempted to use olive oil, and it still didn’t crisp up properly. We eventually resorted to using a cast-iron skillet and an inch of oil. I think for us it is because we have a different kind of air fryer though.
Sarah says
Hi there! I’m so sorry to hear you had issues with this recipe – different air fryers can have different levels of how hot they run, so perhaps next time try bumping up the heat to 425F instead?
aaa says
Lee says
So there are a lot of good things going for this recipe, however there are some unfortunate things too.
1. The batter needs baking powder to properly crisp, the flour to cornstarch ratio was too high ( too much flour) so the breading did not crisp in the air fryer until I took it out and just pan fried it. Additionally the cooking time needs bumped up, so overall, air frying this was time lost not time saved :/
2. The sauce is awesome. If you need it less spicy just add less cayenne. HOWEVER- DO NOT HEAT THE SAUCE. YOU WILL CREATE A SPICY GAS/ AIR explosion and no one will be able to breathe. When I had to re-fry the chicken I had already spiced it, and I just put it in the pan not thinking about this as an issue- so do not do that, it should come with a warning…
Other than that a good recipe:)
Sarah says
Thanks for your notes, Lee! I appreciate the feedback and I will take your recommendations into consideration to adjust this recipe.