Perfect Basic Air Fryer Crispy Chicken Cubes
This is a basic recipe for Crispy Chicken Cubes, perfected for the air fryer. It has taken me some time to get this down to a comfortable level of ease and crispness. It is perfect by itself, but great as a base for a lot of quick chicken dishes. This can be used for chili chicken or the sesame chicken.
And of course, they are perfect with your favorite dipping sauce. Me, well I sneak a few pieces straght off the pan. Well, sometimes we need to come clean. So let us talk chicken.
My Story for Crispy Chicken Cubes
I like to air fry these, mostly because this way they get done as I am tossing up a sauce. The technique use here is a quick and light battering technique and can be done ahead and kept in the refridgerator. You can pan fry these using a non-stick skillet if desired. The air fryer saves you the time needed to watch and wait and a few tablespoons of oil.
Why this is a basic recipe?
I have created this basic recipe, mostly to be used for stir fries. The chicken cubes that result from this are crisp and flavorful. There is no super heavy coating. Just about enough to give you a nice and crispy texture. And since there is not a lot of batter action happening, you can make them ahead of them and keep in the refrigerator. Other recipe essentials from this site include a perfect pot of black beans and perfect instant pot brown rice.
One of the key things with air frying is to learn that water is not your friend. At least that is what I have found. It has been rather crazy in the house the past few weeks. And now here is Sunday! Trailing an action-packed weekend. However, I am sneaking in this recipe for a new cooking class series. This one the class has decided will be a series of Asian recipes. Right in my comfort zone.
Some tips and tricks
So, before we get down to saucing, here is my easy to make crispy chicken cubes. A few tips around this recipe.
- Parchment is your friend. It makes clean up easy.
- Get generous with the cornstarch, the chicken pieces should feel dry to touch.
- If you want to enjoy them as a snack by themselves consider drizzling with a flavored oil.
If you are a tofu kind of person, consider making my air fryer tofu recipe. Here is wishing you a great week ahead. May you get some time to stop and smell the flowers
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A great basic recipe for crispy chicken cubes. This is an air fryer version, with pan fryer modifications.
Ingredients
- 1 and 1/2 pounds boneless skinless chicken pieces (can be tenders or boneless, skinless chicken thighs)
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon ginger paste
- 1 teaspoon garlic paste
- Freshly ground black pepper
- 2 egg whites well beaten
- 3/4 cup cornstarch
- 1/4 cup rice flour
- 2 tablespoon vegetable oil
Instructions
- Dry the chicken and toss with the salt, ginger paste, garlic paste, and black pepper. You can let this rest for 25 to 30 minutes or overnight if desired.
- Toss with the egg whites.
- Spread the cornstarch and the rice flour on a large piece of parchment paper. Toss the cubes to coat uniformly with the mixture.
- Chill for 20 minutes or longer to allow the cornstarch to better cling to the chicken.
- To cook the chicken, heat the the air fryer to 400 degrees. Drizzle the chicken with the oil and cook for about 8 minutes, turn and shake well. Drizzle with a little more oil and cook for another 4 to 6 minutes. The outer coating should be crisp and pale golden. It does not have to be very uniform.
- Use in cooking or serve with your favorite sauce.
Notes
Note:This can be pre-prepped in 2 stages.You can toss with the ginger and garlic and leave overnight. Alternately, you can coat with the cornstarch and leave for a few hours or overnight. You might needs to toss lightly again in the constarch again.
Pan Frying Instructions
In a large skillet (preferably non-stick) heat the skillet until very hot. Add a little oil about 1/3 cup and place the chicken pieces in a single layer for about 4 minutes. Turn and cook for another 4 minutes.