Air Fryer Chicken Katsu
Air fryer chicken Katsu is deliciously crisp, breaded chicken, fried to golden perfection and drizzled with irresistibly tasty Katsu sauce. It makes a perfect lunch or dinner protein, delicious served with rice or shredded cabbage!
🍗 What Makes This Recipe So Good
- Air fryer chicken Katsu is an easy and satisfying lunch or dinner! Breaded with panko breadcrumbs, then fried to crispy perfection in the air fryer. Air frying instead of deep frying makes this meal healthier than traditional chicken Katsu. The savory Katsu sauce is drizzled over the crisp slices of chicken, served with shredded green cabbage and rice. The whole family will love this delicious meal!
- This impressive chicken is quick and only requires a handful of ingredients. You probably already have most of them in your pantry! Because you’re using the air fryer, it’s ready in just 30 minutes, making it a perfect choice for busy weeknights or weekdays.
👩🏼🍳 Chef’s Tips
- If you have a smaller air fryer, work in batches to ensure the perfect crisp! The air from the air fryer needs to be able to touch all angles of the chicken breasts in order to achieve crisp, golden perfection. If you have a larger air fryer, you might not have to work in batches. Just make sure you have space between each piece of chicken!
- You can make a larger batch of sauce and keep it on hand for the next time you want to cook air fryer chicken Katsu! When stored in an airtight container, it’ll last up to a month in the fridge. Having pre-made Katsu sauce cuts down on the prep time, making it an even quicker meal to make during busy weeks!
🍗 More Chicken Recipes You’ll Love
- Chicken Almondine
- Chicken Savoy
- Jerk Chicken Alfredo
- Easy, Crispy Chicken Patties
- Chicken Fajita Casserole
- Crispy Baked Whole Chicken Wings
- Chicken Bryan (Carrabba’s Copycat)
Air Fryer Chicken Katsu
A perfect lunch or dinner protein, even more delicious with rice or shredded cabbage!
- small bowl
- small spoon
- shallow dishes
- large plate
- air fryer
- neutral cooking spray
- spatula
- internal meat thermometer
- cutting board
- sharp knife
For the Katsu Sauce
- ¼ tablespoon ketchup
- ½ tablespoon worcestershire sauce
- 1 ½ tablespoons oyster sauce (or soy sauce)
- ½ tablespoon white sugar (or brown sugar)
For the Chicken
- 1 pound thinly-sliced chicken breasts (or chicken cutlets)
- salt (to taste)
- freshly cracked black pepper (to taste)
For the Breading
- 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
- 1 large egg
- 1 cup panko breadcrumbs
Serving Suggestions (All Optional)
- shredded cabbage
- cooked rice
For the Katsu Sauce
Add [wprm-ingredient text=”¼ tablespoon ketchup” uid=”8″], [wprm-ingredient text=”½ tablespoon worcestershire sauce” uid=”9″], [wprm-ingredient text=”1 ½ tablespoons oyster sauce” uid=”10″], and [wprm-ingredient text=”½ tablespoon white sugar” uid=”11″] to small mixing bowl. Whisk ingredients together until fully incorporated.
Assess amount of prepared sauce and increase batch if needed. When satisfied with amount of sauce, place bowl in refrigerator until ready to use. Alternately, transfer katsu sauce to airtight container and refrigerate up to 1 month.
For the Chicken
Preheat air fryer to 375° Fahrenheit. Place [wprm-ingredient text=”1 pound thinly-sliced chicken breasts” uid=”0″] on cutting board. Season both sides of each chicken breast (or cutlet) liberally with [wprm-ingredient text=”salt” uid=”2″] and [wprm-ingredient text=”freshly cracked black pepper” uid=”3″] to taste. Set chicken aside.
Add [wprm-ingredient text=”2 tablespoons all-purpose flour” uid=”4″] to one shallow bowl. Set aside.
Crack [wprm-ingredient text=”1 large egg” uid=”5″] directly into second shallow bowl. Whisk egg vigorously until no longer streaky. Set aside.
Add [wprm-ingredient text=”1 cup panko breadcrumbs” uid=”6″] to third shallow bowl. Set aside.
Working one by one, dredge seasoned chicken breasts in flour, coating all sides of chicken. Shake excess flour back into bowl, then transfer chicken to bowl with beaten egg.
Place floured chicken in beaten egg, coating all sides of chicken completely. Let excess egg drip off chicken and back into bowl.
Transfer chicken into third bowl with panko breadcrumbs. Lay chicken in breadcrumbs and press gently to help breadcrumbs stick. Flip chicken breast and repeat on other side. Gently shake excess breadcrumbs back into bowl.
Place breaded chicken on large plate and set aside. Repeat with remaining chicken.
To Air Fry the Chicken
Once all chicken has been breaded, remove basket from preheated air fryer. Spray basket lightly with neutral cooking spray. Lay breaded chicken flat in bottom of air fryer basket, making sure chicken doesn't overlap and basket isn't too full. Work in batches as needed.
Lightly spray tops of chicken with neutral cooking spray, then return basket to air fryer.
Air fry chicken 8 minutes. After 8 minutes, remove basket from air fryer and flip chicken over. Lightly spray chicken with neutral cooking spray, then return basket to air fryer.
Air fry chicken 8 minutes more or until chicken reaches 160° Fahrenheit internally and breading is crisp.
Once chicken reaches target internal temperature, carefully remove air fryer basket and transfer chicken to cutting board. Set chicken aside to rest 5 minutes. Meanwhile, repeat process with any remaining pieces of chicken.
Once all chicken is fully cooked and rested, slice chicken into horizontal strips. Transfer chicken to serving plates and spoon prepared katsu sauce over top of chicken. Serve immediately with [wprm-ingredient text=”shredded cabbage” uid=”13″] and [wprm-ingredient text=”cooked rice” uid=”14″] if desired.
