Air Fryer BBQ Chicken Bites
Air Fryer BBQ Chicken Bites are juicy and light since they don’t have breading. They have less than 5 ingredients and are perfect for adding to a salad or pairing with simple side dishes to make a meal.
Servings: 4
Calories: 246kcal
Equipment
Ingredients
- 1.25 lbs Chicken Breasts boneless and skinless, cut into cut into 1–1½ inch pieces
- 3 tbsp BBQ Seasoning click for my homemade seasoning recipe
- 2 tbsp Avocado oil or olive oil
- ½ cup BBQ Sauce I use hickory or Kansas City style
Instructions
- Preheat the air fryer: Preheat the air fryer to 400°F and lightly grease the basket.
- Pat chicken pieces dry and place in a bowl. Drizzle with avocado oil, then top with BBQ seasoning.
- Toss until evenly coated.
- Arrange the chicken in a single layer in the air fryer basket, leaving space between pieces. Air fry for 5 minutes
- Flip the chicken bites & brush on some of the bbq sauce
- Air fry: for 4-5 minutes more until cooked through & to caramelize the bbq sauce
- Brush with more sauce before serving
- Optional: top with parsley or cilantro as a garnish
Notes
- Give the chicken space: Arrange the pieces in a single layer so they brown instead of steaming. Cook in batches if needed.
- Add the sauce halfway through: Brushing on the BBQ sauce during the last 5 minutes of cooking prevents the sauce from burning and helps it caramelize.
- Flip once and let it cook: One quick flip is enough. Too much turning can slow browning and knock off seasoning.
- Finish with a light sauce brush: A final quick coat right before serving adds shine and extra flavor without overpowering the chicken.
- Low-carb option: The BBQ dry rub works with regular sugar or a sugar substitute, and you can pair it with my sugar-free BBQ sauce for a fully low-carb version.
- Honey BBQ twist: Stir a little honey or hot honey into your BBQ sauce before brushing it on for a sticky honey BBQ finish.
Nutrition
Calories: 246kcal | Carbohydrates: 5g | Protein: 31g | Fat: 12g | Saturated Fat: 2g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 2g | Monounsaturated Fat: 7g | Trans Fat: 0.02g | Cholesterol: 91mg | Sodium: 906mg | Potassium: 524mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 1g | Vitamin A: 43IU | Vitamin C: 2mg | Calcium: 7mg | Iron: 1mg
