Enjoy crispy flavorful almond-crusted chicken breasts in just minutes with this easy air fryer recipe. Perfect for busy weeknights, this low-carb juicy almond chicken recipe is easy to make and needs only 4 ingredients! Air fry or bake.
❤️ Why you'll love this almond chicken recipe
- Fast! This chicken dish cooks in less than 10 minutes in an air fryer, 20 minutes in the oven.
- Easy: Simply spread the chicken with a mixture of Dijon mustard and mayo, sprinkle with chopped almonds and air fry or bake.
- No mess: No dipping in egg and bread crumbs necessary!
- Tender and juicy: The crispy almond coating seals in the juices, resulting in tender juicy chicken.
- Gluten-free: of course!
- Low carb, Paleo, Whole30 and Keto-compliant.
An air fryer is basically a mini-convection oven. It allows hot air to circulate around your food, sealing in the moisture while cooking it to perfection. Try these delicious recipes for the air fryer, too:
- Air Fryer Garlic Parmesan Chicken
- Air Fryer Cajun Spiced Salmon
- Crispy Air Fryer Salmon Patties with Lemon Aioli
- 6 Crispy Air Fryer Chicken Wings
🛒 Ingredients
You'll find a complete list of ingredients with amounts in the recipe card below. This is a simple recipe with a short list of ingredients.
- chicken breasts: boneless, skinless
- chopped almonds
- mayonnaise
- Dijon mustard
- salt and pepper
🔪 How to make almond-crusted chicken breasts
Here's a step-by step guide to make this recipe perfectly.
Butterfly the chicken breasts (Slice horizontally and open them up like a book.) Or simply slice them horizontally, creating two thin cutlets. Cutting them into thin pieces allows them to cook very quickly and evenly. Sprinkle with salt and pepper.
In a small bowl, combine the mayonnaise and Dijon mustard. Spread evenly over one side of each chicken slice.
Use a food processor to finely chop the almonds. Pulse no more than 10 times, as you don't want the almonds to turn to flour or almond meal.
Spoon the chopped almonds over the mayo-mustard mixture, pressing down gently so they adhere.
Preheat the air fryer to 375°F. Spray or brush the basket with oil. Lay the chicken pieces in the basket in a single layer with the almond-crusted side down. Quickly brush the other side with the remaining mayo-mustard mixture and cover it with the remaining chopped almonds.
Air fry for 9 minutes or until the chicken has reached an internal temperature of 165°F. with an instant-read meat thermometer.
Air fryers vary considerably in cooking time. I use the Ninja AF100 which has a fairly small basket. I've discovered it's best to set the timer for less time than a recipe recommends, check, and add more time if needed.
🔁 Oven-baked Almond-Crusted Chicken Breasts
You can also bake this almond-crusted chicken in the oven. Follow the same directions but place the chicken breasts in a single layer in an oiled baking dish. Bake for 20 minutes or until the chicken has reached an internal temperature of 165°F. with an instant-read meat thermometer.
The almonds won't appear as browned as they do when cooked in an air fryer, but the chicken will still be juicy and tasty!
👍🏼 Helpful Tips
Spread the mustard-mayo mix and the nuts on one side of the chicken breasts only, then place either in your air fryer or a baking dish before preparing the other side. Otherwise, the coating may stick to your cutting board!
❓Reader's Questions
Yes, this recipe works well with both boneless and skinless thighs or breasts. You can also use chicken cutlets or chicken tenders.
🍽 What to serve with almond chicken
Here are a few of my favourite sides to serve with almond chicken:
- Kale and Cara Cara Orange Salad
- Fennel Orange Roasted Beets
- Crispy Lemon Oven-Roasted Potatoes
- Roasted Carrots with Honey-Mustard Glaze
- Garlic-Parmesan Crusted Acorn Squash
Add a simple fruit crisp for dessert!
⏰ Storage Instructions
To store: Refrigerate leftover chicken in a covered container for up to 3 days.
To reheat: Reheat in the air fryer at 350°F. for 3-4 minutes. The time will depend on the thickness of your chicken pieces and the type of air fryer.
Freeze it: Tightly wrap, then freeze almond chicken in an airtight container for up to 3 months.
🗒 More healthy chicken recipes
When you make this crunchy almond chicken recipe, please leave a comment and a star ⭐️⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ rating below. I love hearing from you! Thanks in advance. Subscribe to my newsletter and receive new recipes delivered straight to your inbox once a week.
📖 Recipe
Air Fryer Almond Crusted Chicken Breasts
Equipment
Ingredients
- 2 large chicken breasts, boneless and skinless
- ¼ cup mayonnaise
- 2 tablespoons Dijon mustard
- ½ cup chopped almonds
- ¼ teaspoon sea salt
- ¼ teaspoon pepper
Instructions
- Butterfly the chicken breasts (Slice horizontally and open them up like a book.) Or simply slice them horizontally, creating two thin cutlets. Cutting them into thin pieces allows them to cook very quickly and evenly. Sprinkle with salt and pepper.
- In a small bowl, combine the mayonnaise and Dijon mustard. Spread evenly over one side of each chicken slice.
- Use a food processor to finely chop the almonds. Pulse no more than 10 times, as you don't want the almonds to turn to flour.
- Spoon the chopped almonds over the mayo-mustard mixture, pressing down gently so they adhere.
- Preheat the air fryer to 375°F. Spray or brush the basket with oil. Lay the chicken pieces in the basket with the almond-crusted side down. Quickly brush the other side with the mayo-mustard mixture and cover it with almonds.
- Air fry for 9 minutes or until the chicken registers 165°F. with an instant-read meat thermometer. Cooking times can vary widely among different models of air fryers.
Leah
Yum! My husband really liked the crunchy coating. He's not a fan of overly spicy foods, so this chicken was perfect for him. Just enough flavour from the mustard and mayonnaise to keep it interesting.
Elaine
Happy to hear this was a hit with your husband!