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Home » Recipe Index » Air Fryer

Published: Feb 7, 2019 · Modified: Sep 27, 2021 by Tanya · This post may contain affiliate links · 144 Comments

Lemon Pepper Air Fryer Chicken Thighs

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These Lemon Pepper Air Fryer Chicken Thighs are quick, easy, and on your dinner table in less than 20 minutes. Juicy moist chicken made right in your Air Fryer.

air fryer chicken thighs on air fryer grill tray

This post may contain affiliate links, please read my full disclosure here.

Full Recipe/Instructions are available in the 
recipe card at the bottom of the post. 
You can find important tips/tricks in the
blog post.

Quick and easy weeknight options are a must in our house, especially these days. We’ve moved outside the city (yay) which means a longer commute after work (nay). Most evenings, I come in the house exhausted, ready to order “la pizza.”

But with this Air Fryer Lemon Pepper Chicken Thigh Recipe, pizza gets pushed on the back burner and this gets made in a jiffy. It’s full of flavor and I don’t have to wait for my chicken to marinate, woo hoo! My chicken thighs still come out juicy and moist and full of flavor.

air fryer lemon pepper chicken thighs on a white plate

Chicken thighs are one of my favorite pieces of chicken to cook in an Air Fryer. They don’t dry out, they're full of flavor, and they’re pretty much hands off.

How do you cook chicken thighs in an Air Fryer?

For this recipe, I start by washing and drying my chicken thighs. Yes, I know the big debate..do as you wish when it comes to washing your chicken. But...make sure they are dry when adding the seasonings.

I then season my chicken thighs with my seasonings. For this recipe, I use lemon pepper seasoning, fresh lemon juice, black pepper, paprika, italian seasoning, and garlic powder. Most lemon pepper seasoning by itself just doesn’t move me, so I add to it.

seasoned air fryer chicken thighs before placing in air fryer

I then place my chicken thighs in my Air Fryer...it's ok if they touch a little.

seasones air fryer chicken thighs before cooking

I follow the following cooktimes:

  • Boneless chicken thighs: 360 degrees Fahrenheit for 15-17 minutes, flipping halfway through
  • Bone in chicken thighs: 360 degrees Fahrenheit for 22-25, flipping halfway through. Then crank up to 390 degrees for 5 minutes if you want crispy skin.

Then serve and enjoy your delicious moist Lemon Pepper Chicken.

Do I need to spray these chicken thighs with oil?

Not this time! I find that some foods need oil while others don’t. Since there is no breading on this and chicken thighs have their own natural fat, you don’t need oil. I talk about this and more in my 10 Air Fryer Tips every Air Fryer Owner Should Know.

Will these chicken thighs get crispy?

Not if they are skinless, because there isn’t really much to crisp. If you want crispy chicken thighs, skin on would work best.

I hope you enjoy these lemon pepper chicken thighs as much as we do.

Looking for more Air Fryer Chicken Recipes? Try my

Air Fryer Chicken Wings (Fresh or Frozen)

Crispy Korean Air Fryer Chicken Wings

BBQ Air Fryer Chicken Breast

Air Fryer Whole Rotisserie Chicken

Air Fryer Roasted Turkey Legs

Pin Lemon Pepper Air Fryer Chicken Thighs for Later

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Watch this video tutorial and see how I make these air fryer chicken thighs from start to finish.

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4.79 from 69 votes

Lemon Pepper Air Fryer Chicken Thighs

Easy and delicious Lemon Pepper Chicken Thighs that are made in your Air Fryer. 
Course Main Course
Cuisine American
Keyword air fryer chicken thighs
Prep Time 10 minutes minutes
Cook Time 15 minutes minutes
Total Time 25 minutes minutes
Servings 6 people
Calories 251kcal
Author Tanya
Prevent your screen from going dark

Ingredients

  • 6 boneless skinless chicken thighs
  • 1 ½ Tablespoon fresh lemon juice
  • ½ Tablespoon Lemon Pepper Seasoning
  • ½ teaspoon Paprika
  • ½ teaspoon Italian Seasoning
  • ½ teaspoon Garlic Powder
  • ¼ teaspoon Black Pepper

Instructions

  • Wash and dry chicken thighs. Rub remaining ingredients over chicken thighs.
  • Place in Air fryer and cook on 360 degrees Fahrenheit for 15 minutes, turning halfway through until the chicken has reached a temperature of 165 degrees Fahrenheit. 

For Skin On Bone in Chicken Thighs

  • For bone in thighs with skin, increase cook time for 22-25 minutes at 360 degrees. Then cook on 390 degrees Fahrenheit for 5 minutes more.

Video

Notes

Suggested Tools for Lemon Pepper Air Fryer Chicken Thighs

  • Air Fryer
  • Meat Thermometer 
 

Nutrition

Calories: 251kcal | Carbohydrates: 1g | Protein: 18g | Fat: 18g | Saturated Fat: 5g | Cholesterol: 110mg | Sodium: 87mg | Potassium: 238mg | Vitamin A: 185IU | Vitamin C: 2mg | Calcium: 14mg | Iron: 0.9mg
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Spread the Flavor and Share

Comments

    4.79 from 69 votes (15 ratings without comment)

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    Recipe Rating




  1. Rachel Draper says

    August 27, 2019 at 8:18 pm

    Lots of flavor! Thank you

    Reply
  2. Dianna says

    August 15, 2019 at 10:47 pm

    Any suggestions on what to add if you don’t have lemon pepper seasoning on hand.

    Reply
    • Tanya says

      August 17, 2019 at 8:26 am

      Hi Dianna, Any seasonings will be fine. The air fryer will keep the thighs nice and juicy. I've done as simple as a little salt, pepper, and garlic powder.

      Reply
  3. Peter N says

    August 08, 2019 at 3:30 pm

    Very nice recipe and worked well in my new Instantpotvortex.
    I cut the recipe in half as there are two of us and the full recipe was more than we would eat.
    The cook time and temp for the skin on bone in worked fine @ 360 for 25 min without using the extra 5min @ 390 which is only because of the difference in design of the air fryer.
    Thanks

    Reply
  4. Mark C says

    July 31, 2019 at 5:24 pm

    What a great recipe. It's so simple and delicious. People may be reading this article for years to come, so might I suggest one minor edit counselor?

    "WILL THESE CHICKEN THIGHS GET CRISPY?
    Not if their skinless, because there isn’t really much to crisp. If you want crispy chicken thighs, skin on would work best."

    Change "their" to "they're". I know this was just a typo.

    Thanks for your great work!

    Reply
    • Tanya says

      July 31, 2019 at 5:57 pm

      Thank you! I can't believe I missed that, lol. I just fixed it. I appreciate the feedback and I'm glad you enjoyed the recipe 🙂

      Reply
  5. Cindy says

    July 28, 2019 at 10:48 pm

    YUM!!!! Made this as listed except forgot the Italian seasoning. It was so good - juicy and so much flavor!. Will definitely be making this again and again. Thanks for sharing!

    Reply
    • Tanya says

      July 31, 2019 at 10:07 am

      Yay! So glad you liked them 🙂

      Reply
  6. Johanna Belleman says

    July 14, 2019 at 10:51 am

    I have a fabulous chicken/beef fajita marinade (Thank you Ree Drummond) that I use all the time for the skirt steak. I decided to put the chicken thighs in the marinade and I now have the thighs in the air fryer. I will let you know how they turn out. The chicken thighs were skinless/boneless by the way.

    Reply
    • Johanna Belleman says

      July 14, 2019 at 10:59 am

      By the way, they were DELICIUS! Tender and juicy!!!

      Reply
    • Dianna says

      August 26, 2019 at 3:36 pm

      Care to share the recipe? I'm always looking for ways to cook chicken in the airfryer.

      Reply
  7. Steve says

    July 12, 2019 at 11:03 pm

    Had defrosted some chicken thighs for my brother and I with the intent of air-frying them, but I had no recipe. A quick Google search and bam! – your recipe popped-up, top of the heap…..and thank God it did!! These were sooooo delicious – tender, loaded with flavor (I think the combination of lemon-pepper seasoning and Italian seasoning is pure genius!) and absolutely the fastest/easiest/tastiest thing I’ve made in the air fryer so far…..my brother’s STILL talking about them!! Thank you Tanya – what started as a quick-fix is now a staple in my air fryer recipe repertoire; please keep up the great recipe mill (Korean wings are next on my radar!!).

    Reply
    • Tanya says

      July 13, 2019 at 5:41 pm

      Yay! So glad you liked them 🙂

      Reply
  8. Sue says

    July 09, 2019 at 6:30 pm

    They were delicious. Love love your recipy

    Reply
    • Sue says

      July 09, 2019 at 6:31 pm

      Recipe

      Reply
  9. Jojo says

    July 07, 2019 at 12:45 pm

    I’m going to try this recipe tonight for dinner it sounds so good. I’ll keep u posted

    Reply
  10. Susann says

    March 23, 2019 at 3:55 pm

    The first recipe that I tried in my new air fryer it turned out delicious. And this is the first time I've ever used airfryer in my life. I highly recommend it for the novice cook like me. Thanks for the great recipe looking forward to your newsletter

    Reply
    • Tanya says

      March 26, 2019 at 6:18 am

      That's awesome! So glad you liked it 🙂

      Reply
  11. Zainab says

    February 11, 2019 at 8:35 am

    This recipe is so easy and SO flavorful! IT sure was a crowd pleaser!

    Reply
    • Tanya says

      February 11, 2019 at 6:18 pm

      Awesome! So glad you liked it.

      Reply
  12. Natalie says

    February 11, 2019 at 8:18 am

    Looks so delicious! I love lemon and pepper combined - such a great dish for midweek dinners!

    Reply
  13. Demeter says

    February 11, 2019 at 8:11 am

    I keep hearing such great things about the air fryer. Might be time for me to break down and get one. This looks so easy!

    Reply
    • Peter says

      May 06, 2021 at 8:12 pm

      @Demeter, time to stop procrastinating and get a Air Fryer. You won't regret it and this recipe is a great kicking off one to appreciate it how quick and tasty it is..
      Good luck and enjoy this useful kitchen gadget and Tanya's recipes.

      Reply
  14. Jessica Formicola says

    February 11, 2019 at 8:07 am

    I love the flavor of this chicken! My whole family loved it and is already requesting it again!

    Reply
  15. Danielle Wolter says

    February 11, 2019 at 8:06 am

    these sound just incredible!! love how easy they are to make, and great flavor, I def need an air fryer.

    Reply
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Welcome to My Forking Life! Hi, I'm Tanya, attorney, busy wife and mom, and lover of quick, easy, and delicious meals.

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