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Add some variety to your air fryer chicken thighs with this three ingredient Air Fryer Cajun Chicken Thighs recipe. It uses my homemade Cajun spice mix and comes together in less than 30 minutes. For a quick and easy meal, enjoy this main protein with my air fryer eggplant, roasted air fryer broccoli, or air fryer green beans.
Why Make This
- DIY spice mix: Cajun seasoning from the store can be salty without a lot of added flavor. By making these chicken thighs with my homemade spice mix, you get to control the salt and have the same delicious southern flavor that is found in my keto shrimp and grits, Cajun chicken wings, Cajun shrimp alfredo, and air fryer Cajun shrimp.
- Three ingredients & less than 30 minutes: this recipe comes together with three ingredients and takes less than 30 minutes from start to finish.
Ingredients Needed
- Chicken Thighs: I’m using skin-on and bone-in raw chicken thighs. They are fresh and not frozen.
- Cajun Seasoning: this is a homemade spice mix. You can get the recipe by clicking its name.
- Avocado Oil: this helps with the cooking process to brown the meat. It also helps the spices stick to the meat.
How to Make Cajun Chicken Thighs in the Air Fryer
- Add the chicken thighs, oil and Cajun seasoning to a bowl and toss to evenly coat the meat
- Put the seasoned meat in the air fryer cooking pot.
- Air Crisp the meat for 11-12 minutes
- Flip the meat and continue cooking for 11-12 more minutes, or until it reaches an internal temperature of 165.
Top Cooking Tips & FAQs
- Allow the meat to have space in the cooking pot: this allows the air to circulate and helps the meat have a crispy, even and juicy finish
- Add Cajun seasoning to taste: you can always add seasoning after cooking this chicken. So, feel free to save some of the recommended Cajun seasoning as a finisher.
- Adjust cook time for boneless cajun chicken thighs: the process for making boneless cajun chicken thighs is similar to bone-in cajun chicken thighs. You do need to adjust the cook time since boneless chicken cooks quicker. After flipping the meat, you’ll likely need 8-10 minutes for the second side.
Recipes to Enjoy this with
- Keto Creamed Spinach
- Air Fryer Eggplant
- Keto Green Bean Casserole
- Air Fryer Green Beans
- Air Fryer Squash
If you try this recipe, please stop back and leave it a star rating and/or a review in the comments. Stay connected & share photos of your creations with me & others on Instagram, Facebook, and Pinterest!
Air Fryer Cajun Chicken Thighs
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Recommended Equipment
Ingredients
- 1 lb Chicken Thighs, bone-in and skin-on
- 1 tbsp Cajun seasoning, click for recipe
- 2 tbsp Avocado oil, or olive oil
Instructions
- Pat the chicken dry with a paper towel
- Add the chicken, cajun seasoning, and oil to a large bowl or ziploc bag. Then, evenly coat the chicken with the seasoning and oil
- Add the chicken to the air fryer cooking basket skin side down.
- Air Crisp the chicken thighs at 400 degrees for 11-12 minutes per side.
Nutrition Details
The nutrition facts come from entering the recipe ingredients into Spoonacular API, a database of food ingredients. They may vary for any recipe based on the exact product used. The keto sweeteners I use have 0g net carbs & are not included because sugar alcohols do not impact most people. This is provided as a courtesy, but you can do your own calculations if you wish!
Holly says
These turned out incredible and were so simple to make! The skin was crispy and the Cajun flavoring was delicious! We will definitely be adding this recipe to the dinner rotation!
Dr. Davinah's Eats Team says
We’re so happy that you enjoyed this recipe. 🙂