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Crunchy on the outside and juicy within, these Air Fryer Chicken Cutlets are the best dang chicken cutlets you’ll ever bite into! You get to dodge the greasy mess yet still come through with a beautiful golden crust. Best of all, they’re incredibly easy to make.

Wooden serving board with crispy chicken cutlets with honey mustard sauce on the side.

Table of Contents

No frying in a skillet, no messy grease splatters, and no lingering smells. Just a beautiful golden crunch that you can’t achieve with oven baked chicken! I know it sounds too good to be true, but these air fryer chicken cutlets deliver. This recipe gives off a Southern fried chicken meets mom’s chicken cutlets vibe. With a buttermilk bath and some generously seasoned breading, you get super tender, super flavorful chicken for dinner. Even on a weeknight.

If you’re looking for more incredible air fryer recipes to jazz up your chicken recipes, you have to try my air fryer Buffalo wings! I’ve also got some really tasty air fryer chicken nuggets and air fryer chicken tenders.

Why You’ll Love This Recipe

  • It’s healthier—The grease that comes from pan frying or, worse yet, deep frying, is fine in moderation. But we like to avoid pan-fried when we can. These chicken cutlets are a great alternative and yield a result you won’t get with a bake.
  • It’s easy—Once your cutlets have marinated and are breaded, you’re good to go. Just pop them into your air fryer—no worry about flipping, burning, or splashing oil.
  • They’re DELICIOUS—Between the crispy coating and the juicy tender meat, this breaded chicken will be a regular request in your home.

Air Fryer Chicken Cutlet Ingredients

A full ingredient list with exact measurements can be found in the recipe card below.

  • Chicken—You can buy ready-to-go cutlets, or you can simply butterfly boneless skinless chicken breasts, then pound them down with a meat mallet. Check out my tutorial on how to make chicken cutlets from a chicken breast.
  • Buttermilk & Franks Red Hot®—These are optional, but whisked together, they form a fantastic marinade. The acidity in the buttermilk breaks down the muscle fiber and collagen in the chicken, which gives us tender juicy meat.
  • Spices—I use a variety of seasonings in my bread crumbs for extra flavor. You can omit them or play around with them as you see fit, and even make it a bit spicy!

Cooking Tip

Buttermilk can be bought at the store, but you can also easily make it at home by mixing 1 tablespoon of distilled white vinegar plus enough full fat milk to measure 1 cup on top of the vinegar. Or instead of using vinegar, you can use lemon juice. Then gently stir the mixture and let it sit for 5 minutes.

Recipe Variations & Modifications

  • Chicken—I’ve only made this recipe with skinless boneless chicken breasts. If you want to try this with thighs, let me know how it goes! Though timing will vary and results aren’t guaranteed.
  • Marinade—You could use a regular brine in place of the buttermilk and hot sauce suggested about. Check out my post on how to brine chicken breasts.
  • Sauce—I’ve included my yummy honey mustard sauce in the recipe card below, which I highly recommend! But you can use any sauce for dipping or drizzling.
  • Parmesan Cheese—Two tablespoons of Parmesan adds a nice cheesiness to the golden brown crust.

How to Make Air Fryer Chicken Cutlets

Bowl of buttermilk marinade with chicken cutlets.
  1. Whisk the ingredients for the buttermilk marinade together in a large bowl and place the chicken cutlets into the bowl, submerging them completely. Refrigerate to marinate for at least an hour.
  2. Mix all of the panko, onion powder, garlic powder, Italian seasoning, white pepper, and cayenne pepper in a shallow bowl or pie plate.
  3. If you’re making the honey mustard sauce, simply mix all of the ingredients in a small bowl. Cover it and pop it in the fridge until dinner time.
  4. When it’s go time, preheat the air fryer to 390º F. Give the bottom of the basket a quick misting of cooking spray or olive oil.
  5. Create an assembly line with a shallow bowl of flour, egg wash, and the breading mixture.
  6. Remove the cutlets from the buttermilk mixture and shake off any excess buttermilk. Set the cutlets onto a covered baking sheet, plate, or cutting board. Gently pat the cutlets dry with paper towels (wet cutlets will give you soggy breading).
  7. One by one, evenly dredge the chicken cutlets into the three in that order (flour, eggs, crumbs), then place it into the air fryer basket once done preheating.
  8. Cook the cutlets for 5 minutes, then flip them over, give the basket and cutlets a mist with the cooking spray, and cook for another 5 or until the meat registers at 160º F with a meat thermometer. You’ll likely have to do this in two batches.
  9. Garnish with chopped parsley and serve them with the honey mustard sauce to dip or drizzle (instructions for the sauce in the recipe card below).
Wooden serving board with crispy chicken cutlets with honey mustard sauce on the side.

How to Serve Them

These crusted chicken cutlets are fantastic with a side of oven roasted mini potatoes or creamy mashed potatoes. You could also serve them over my Instant Pot rice pilaf. For veggies, grilled asparagus, oven-roasted broccoli, or hot honey roasted carrots. Another great idea is to slather them with homemade marinara sauce, top with grated mozzarella, and call it chicken parmesan!

Storage, Freezing & Reheating

  1. Leftovers can be store in an airtight container in the fridge for 3-4 days.
  2. You can freeze these cutlets once they are cooked. Let the cutlets cool, then wrap them individually in plastic wrap and pop them into a freezer-friendly bag.
  3. To reheat from the fridge, preheat the air fryer to 375º F. Pop a cutlet or two into the air fryer basket and heat for about 5 minutes or until heated through. From the freezer, preheat the air fryer the same way, but reheat the cutlets 4-5 minute per side or until heated through.

Frequently Asked Questions

How long does it take to air fry chicken cutlets?

In general, chicken cutlets cook for about 5 minutes per side in the air fryer. But time will vary based on the thickness of your cutlets and the model of your fryer.

How many degrees to cook chicken in air fryer?

For this recipe, because we want the breading to get nice and crispy, we’re going for 390º F. You can take it up to 400º F is you wish. High heat is key.

Why aren’t my chicken cutlets crispy?

If your cutlets don’t come out with a crisp golden crust, a few things could have happened: the air fryer wasn’t preheated; the air fryer basket was overcrowded, which effects proper airflow; cutlets weren’t marinated prior to cooking (buttermilk = crispy chicken!)

Crispy chicken cutlet on a bed of red rice and asparagus.

More Air Fryer Recipes You’ll Want to Make…

If you try these crispy air fryer chicken cutlets, please pop back in and leave a 🌟 star rating and let us know how it went in the 📝 comments below.

Wooden serving board with crispy chicken cutlets with honey mustard sauce on the side.
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5 from 122 votes

Best Crispy Air Fryer Chicken Cutlets

By: Dana Sandonato
Crunchy on the outside and juicy within, these Air Fryer Chicken Cutlets are the best dang chicken cutlets you'll ever bite into! You get to dodge the greasy mess yet still come through with a beautiful golden crust. Best of all, they're incredibly easy to make.
Prep Time: 15 minutes
Cook Time: 10 minutes
Marinating time:: 1 hour
Total Time: 25 minutes
Servings: 4 servings
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Equipment

Ingredients 

  • 4 chicken cutlets

Buttermilk Marinade

  • 2 cups buttermilk
  • 1/2 cup Frank's Red Hot Sauce
  • 1 tsp sea salt
  • 1/2 tsp cracked black pepper

Breading

  • 1 cup all-purpose flour
  • 2 eggs beaten
  • 1.5 cups panko breadcrumbs
  • 2 tsp paprika
  • 2 tsp Italian seasoning
  • 1 tsp onion powder
  • 1 tsp garlic powder
  • 1 tsp White pepper
  • 1/4 tsp Cayenne pepper, 1/2 tsp if you'd like more of a kick

Honey Mustard Sauce (Optional)

  • 2 TBSP mayonnaise
  • 1/4 cup raw liquid honey
  • 1/4 cup Dijon mustard
  • 1 tsp apple cider vinegar
  • 1/4 tsp paprika

Instructions 

  • In a large mixing bowl, whisk the ingredients for the buttermilk marinade together and place the chicken cutlets into the bowl, submerging them completely. Put them in the fridge for at least an hour, up to overnight.
  • In a shallow bowl or pie plate, mix together the panko breadcrumbs, onion powder, garlic powder, Italian seasoning, white pepper, and cayenne pepper; set aside.
  • Make the honey mustard sauce! Mix all of the ingredients in a small bowl. Cover, and place it in the fridge until dinner time.
  • When you're ready to cook the chicken, preheat the air fryer to 390º F. Spray the bottom of the air fryer basket with some cooking spray. 
  • Create an assembly line with a shallow bowl of flour, egg wash, and breading mixture.
  • Remove the cutlets from the buttermilk mixture and shake off any excess buttermilk. Gently pat the cutlets dry with paper towels (wet cutlets will give you soggy breading).
  • One at a time, take a chicken cutlet from the buttermilk bath and gently shake off any excess buttermilk. Dredge the chicken cutlets into the flour, then the eggs, and finally the crumbs. Place the breaded cutlets into the air fryer basket once it's done preheating. You will probably have to do this in two batches, depending on how many cutlets you can fit into the air fryer.
  • Cook the cutlets for 5 minutes. When 5 minutes is up, carefully flip them over and give the basket and the cutlets a mist with the cooking spray. Cook for another 5 minutes.
  • When done, serve with honey mustard sauce or your choice of sauce.

Notes

You can typically purchase buttermilk at the store, but in a pinch you can easily make it at home by mixing 1 tablespoon of distilled white vinegar and enough full fat milk to measure 1 cup (on top of the vinegar). Or, instead of using vinegar, you can use lemon juice. Gently stir the mixture and let it sit for 5 minutes.

Nutrition

Serving: 1cutlet | Calories: 456kcal | Carbohydrates: 41g | Protein: 57g | Fat: 5g
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5 from 122 votes (4 ratings without comment)

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242 Comments

  1. 5 stars
    This is such a great recipe! I haven’t had fried chicken in years because it’s so unhealthy. This version really scratched that itch!

    Reply

  2. 5 stars
    This chicken cutlets looks so delicious! I haven’t tried making them in the air fryer before but it looks so much easier!

    Reply

  3. 5 stars
    Yep! These really are the best chicken cutlets. Air fried or otherwise. Thanks for such an awesome weeknight option!

    Reply

  10. 5 stars
    These cutlets ended up perfectly cooked in the air fryer! Crispy and crunchy on the outside, tender on the inside. Yum!

    Reply