Air-fryer buttermilk fried chicken with crunchy slaw
50 min · 55 g protein · 490 cals / serving
Big, juicy pieces of thigh and breast soaked in peppery buttermilk, then rolled in seasoned flour and crushed cornflakes until the crust is all craggy edges. The air fryer turns it deep golden and loud to bite, and a cold, tangy yogurt slaw on the side does what coleslaw has always done next to fried chicken.
Ingredients
Chicken
- 4 boneless, skinless thighs (14 oz) chicken thigh, halved
- 2 large breasts (1 lb 2 oz) chicken breast, each cut into 3 thick pieces
- 1/2 cup low-fat buttermilk
- 1 tbsp cayenne pepper hot sauce, Louisiana-style
- 1 tsp salt
- 1 tsp garlic powder
Crust
- 1/3 cup all-purpose flour
- 2 cups corn flakes, measured whole, then crushed to coarse crumbs
- 2 tsp paprika
- 1 tsp onion powder
- 1/2 tsp dried thyme
- 1 tsp black pepper
- 2 tsp canola oil, sprayed or brushed
Slaw
- 5 1/2 cups cabbage, finely shredded
- 1 large carrot, grated
- 1/2 cup nonfat Greek yogurt
- 1 tbsp light mayonnaise
- 1 tbsp apple cider vinegar
- 1 tsp honey
- a pinch salt
Steps
- Stir the buttermilk, hot sauce, salt and garlic powder together in a bowl or zip-top bag, add the chicken and turn to coat. Chill at least 30 minutes, or up to overnight.
- Mix the flour, crushed cornflakes, paprika, onion powder, thyme and pepper in a wide dish. Drizzle 2 tablespoons of the buttermilk from the chicken into the crumbs and rub it in with your fingertips so you get little shaggy clumps; they are what make the crust craggy. Lift each piece out of the buttermilk and press it firmly into the crumbs on every side, clumps and all.
- Heat the air fryer to 380°F. Lay the chicken in one layer with space around each piece, spray or brush with the oil, and cook 18–22 minutes, turning once and spraying any pale, floury patches, until deep golden and the thickest piece reads 165°F. Work in batches rather than crowding.
- While it cooks, make the slaw: whisk the yogurt, mayonnaise, vinegar, honey and salt, then toss with the cabbage and carrot. Serve the chicken hot with the cold slaw.
Good to know
Why thighs and breast together?
Thighs stay juicy even if they go a minute too long, and breast gives the big clean white-meat bite. Bone-in pieces work too: take the skin off, add 8–10 minutes, and check the temperature next to the bone.
No air fryer?
Bake on a rack set over a sheet pan at 425°F for 25–30 minutes, turning once. The rack matters: it lets the underside crisp instead of steaming.
Can I make the slaw ahead?
Up to a day. It softens a little and gets more flavourful; give it a stir and a pinch of salt before serving.
Alternative
Per
- Calories
- 131
- Protein
- (47%)
- 15 g
- Fat
- (26%)
- 4 g
- Carbohydrates
- (27%)
- 9 g
- of which sugar
- 3 g
- Fiber
- 1 g
- Sodium
- 278 mg
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Computed from the ingredients with our published formula, not yet kitchen-tested. General guidance, not medical advice. Talk to your prescriber. How
As written, 1959 kcal goes into the pot and 1821 g of ingredients comes out as about 1500 g of food: 131 kcal per 100 g. Cooking moves water and energy density is the score's biggest lever, so the dish is scored as cooked, not as an average of its parts. Every ingredient links to its food page, with the same data and score. The label's percentages are each macronutrient's share of the calories. The full formula.