Chicken breast in an air fryer

An air fryer is a small convection oven, so chicken breast cooks at 180 °C rather than 200 °C and takes 14–20 min instead of 20–30. That is roughly the usual 20 °C drop and a fifth off the time.

Side by side

The temperature that actually decides it

Times above are for planning. Whether chicken breast is done is decided by the internal temperature and nothing else — appliance wattage varies by roughly a factor of two across the category, and thickness changes the time more than any setting does. A probe thermometer in the thickest part is the only reliable answer.

What goes wrong

• Thickness decides the time far more than weight does. A 2 cm breast and a 4 cm breast differ by nearly double.
• Boneless breast dries out past 74 °C. Pull it the moment the thermometer reads 74 °C in the thickest part.
• Leave space between pieces. A crowded basket steams instead of browning, which is the single most common mistake.

Air fryer wattage and basket size vary widely, so treat the first batch as a calibration run and write down what worked. These figures are compiled guidance, not a published standard.