8 Easy Air Fryer Dinner Recipes for Busy Weeknights
Looking for easy air fryer dinner ideas for those nights when you just don’t know what to cook?
I’ve pulled together 8 of my favourite easy air fryer dinners, from crispy chicken and homemade chicken nuggets to cheesy pasta bakes and quick enchiladas.
They’re simple, tasty and perfect for adding to your midweek dinner rotation. There are quick dinners for when time is tight, family favourites and a few proper comfort-food options too.
📌 Save this page for the next time you’re stuck for dinner inspiration!
Homemade Air Fryer Chicken Nuggets
You can’t beat homemade chicken nuggets! These have a crispy golden breadcrumb coating with lovely tender chicken inside. They’re also a great one to get the kids involved with. Just make sure everyone gives their hands a good wash afterwards!
Serves: 1
Prep time: 10 minutes
Cook time: 12 minutes
Ingredients
1 chicken breast
1 tsp peri peri seasoning
2 tbsp plain flour
1 egg
4 tbsp breadcrumbs
Air fryer-friendly oil spray
Salt & Pepper
Method
Cut the chicken breast into 3cm chunks and add to a bowl. Spray with a little oil and mix in the peri peri seasoning.
You’ll need three bowls for the next part.
In the first bowl, add the plain flour and season with salt and pepper.
In the second bowl, crack and beat the egg.
Add the breadcrumbs to the third bowl.
Coat the chicken pieces in the flour, followed by the egg, then finish with an even layer of breadcrumbs.
Place the chicken nuggets in a single layer in the air fryer drawer and spray with oil.
Air fry for 12 minutes at 180°C, flipping halfway through and spraying again, or until the chicken is cooked through.
Air fryer models differ, so check the largest nugget before serving to make sure the chicken is completely cooked through.
Air Fryer Sausage Meatball Pasta Bake
I love a pasta bake, and this easy sausage meatball version is great for a midweek dinner. It’s also brilliant for leftovers, so make extra and you’ve got lunch sorted for the next day!
Serves: 2
Prep time: 10 minutes
Cook time: 20 minutes
Ingredients
4 sausages
1 bowl frozen petit pois peas
2 portions rigatoni pasta, or similar
1 jar pasta sauce
1 handful grated cheese
Method
Add the pasta to a pan of boiling water and cook according to the packet instructions. Drain and set aside once done.
While the pasta is cooking, remove the skin from each sausage and separate each one into four meatballs. I find the easiest way is to hold the sausage in both hands and twist each end in opposite directions to help release the meat from the skin.
Place the sausage meatballs in the air fryer and cook for 10 minutes at 190°C, giving them a shake halfway through.
While the sausages are cooking, pour boiling water over the peas. Leave for 5 minutes, then drain and set aside.
Once everything is prepped, tip it into an air fryer-friendly dish. Silicone dishes work well for this. Mix through the pasta sauce and top with a generous sprinkle of cheese.
Air fry for another 8–10 minutes at 190°C until beautifully golden and crispy on top.
Easy Air Fryer Enchiladas
This is such a good way to turn leftover bolognese into a completely different dinner. Cheesy, spicy and seriously satisfying, these easy air fryer enchiladas take just 10 minutes to cook.
Serves: 1
Prep time: 5 minutes
Cook time: 10 minutes
Ingredients
Leftover bolognese
Taco seasoning
Tinned sweetcorn
Grated mature Cheddar
Passata
Tortilla wraps
Sliced jalapeños
Method
Lightly reheat the leftover bolognese in a pan, then stir in taco seasoning and a little sweetcorn.
Lay out a tortilla wrap and sprinkle over some cheese. Add a heaped tablespoon of the bolognese mixture, roll it up and place seam-side down in your air fryer drawer.
Repeat with the remaining wraps, then spoon passata over the top. Finish with more cheese and a few jalapeño slices.
Air fry at 180°C for 10 minutes until the tops are golden and bubbling.
Serve hot and melty. They’re also delicious cold the next day!
Air Fryer Boursin Mac & Cheese
Rich, creamy and extra cheesy, this is comfort food on another level! The Boursin melts into the sauce as everything cooks, giving the macaroni a lovely garlicky richness, while the panko and Parmesan topping adds a golden crunch. The Method is based on using a Ninja Dual Air Fryer, but if you don’t have one of those, you can just use a large air fryer dish 😊
Serves: 4
Prep time: 5 minutes
Cook time: 45 minutes
Ingredients
250g dried macaroni
350g mature Cheddar, grated
650ml whole milk
2 tsp garlic purée
2 tsp English mustard
2 tsp dried oregano
1 pack Boursin
2 spring onions, sliced
Salt & Pepper
For the topping:
1 tbsp panko breadcrumbs
1 tbsp Parmesan, grated
Method
Remove the crisper trays from your Ninja Dual drawers, or use one large air fryer-safe pot if that’s easier.
Divide the macaroni, cheese, milk, spring onions, garlic purée, oregano, mustard, salt and pepper evenly between the drawers. Stir to combine.
Add half a pack of Boursin to each drawer. It will melt into the sauce as it cooks.
Air fry at 180°C for 45 minutes, stirring every 5–10 minutes to keep the pasta smooth and creamy.
Mix together the panko breadcrumbs and Parmesan for the topping.
With 5 minutes remaining, stir the macaroni once more, then sprinkle the topping evenly over the top.
Once ready, it should be thick, golden, cheesy and packed with flavour.
Serve straight from the pot or portion it up to enjoy throughout the week.
Air Fryer Sweet Chilli Chicken
This is DELICIOUS! Crispy cornflake-coated chicken covered in a sticky homemade sweet chilli, honey and soy sauce. It has that lovely combination of sweet and crunchy and makes a great easy air fryer dinner.
Serves: 2
Prep time: 10 minutes
Cook time: 14 minutes
Ingredients
2 chicken breasts
1 bowl cornflakes
2 tsp garlic granules
2 tsp smoked paprika
1 medium egg
2 tbsp plain flour
2 spring onions, sliced
1 red chilli, sliced
Air fryer-friendly oil spray
Salt
Pepper
For the sauce:
1 tbsp honey
1 tbsp sweet chilli sauce
1 tbsp soy sauce
1 tsp ginger and garlic paste
Method
Slice the chicken breasts into 2cm-thick strips and set aside.
Tip the cornflakes into a ziplock bag and crush them into crumbs using a rolling pin. Tip into a bowl.
Add 1 tsp garlic granules and 1 tsp smoked paprika to the cornflakes and mix.
In a second bowl, crack and beat the egg.
In a third bowl, add the flour, remaining garlic granules and smoked paprika, then season with salt and pepper.
Coat the chicken pieces in the flour, followed by the egg, then finish with an even layer of cornflakes.
Transfer the chicken to the air fryer, spray with a little oil and air fry for 14 minutes at 180°C, flipping and spraying again halfway through.
Meanwhile, combine all of the sauce ingredients in a saucepan and simmer for a few minutes.
Once everything is ready, place the chicken on a serving plate, pour over the sauce and finish with the spring onion and red chilli.
Homemade Air Fryer Chicken Kyiv
So much better than shop-bought! These homemade chicken Kyivs have a crispy panko coating with garlic butter hidden inside the chicken. Cooking them in the air fryer gets the outside beautifully golden while keeping the chicken juicy.
Serves: 2
Prep time: 10 minutes
Cook time: 20 minutes
Ingredients
2 chicken breasts
Garlic butter
3 tbsp plain flour
1 medium egg
4 tbsp panko breadcrumbs
Salt
Pepper
Air fryer-friendly oil spray
Method
Carefully cut a pocket into the thickest part of each chicken breast, taking care not to cut all the way through as the butter will seep out.
Add a couple of slices of garlic butter into each pocket and seal as much as possible.
Prepare three bowls. Add the flour to one and season with salt and pepper. Crack and beat the egg in the second and add the panko breadcrumbs to the third.
Coat each chicken breast in flour, followed by egg, then finish with an even layer of breadcrumbs.
Use a couple of toothpicks to secure each pocket.
Transfer the chicken to the air fryer, spray with a little oil and air fry for 20 minutes at 200°C, or until completely cooked through.
Remove the toothpicks before serving and pour over any garlic butter from the bottom of the air fryer drawer.
Cheesy Bacon-Wrapped Chicken Parcels with Herby Traybake Veg
A proper throw-it-all-in air fryer dinner! Juicy chicken thighs are stuffed with creamy garlic and herb cheese and sun-dried tomatoes, wrapped in crispy streaky bacon and cooked over herby vegetables, so everything soaks up all those lovely flavours.
Serves: 2
Prep time: 15 minutes
Cook time: 25 minutes
Ingredients
For the chicken:
2 skinless, boneless chicken thighs
6 rashers streaky bacon
Boursin or creamy garlic and herb cheese roulade
6 sun-dried or sun-blushed tomatoes
Oil spray
For the vegetables:
1 tin peeled new potatoes in water, drained
1 courgette, cut into 2cm pieces
1 red pepper, cut into 2cm pieces
1 red onion, cut into quarters
1 tsp mixed herbs
Salt & Pepper
Oil spray
Method
Lay out two sets of three rashers of streaky bacon on a chopping board, slightly overlapping.
Open the chicken thighs and place one in the centre of each bacon layer, facing upwards.
Add a large teaspoon of Boursin, or a couple of slices of garlic and herb cheese roulade, to the centre of each thigh. Top with the sun-dried or sun-blushed tomatoes.
Wrap the chicken around the filling, then tightly wrap the bacon around the chicken to form neat parcels.
Add the drained new potatoes, courgette, red pepper and red onion to a bowl, keeping everything roughly the same size so it cooks evenly.
Spray with oil, add the mixed herbs, season with salt and pepper and mix well.
Tip the vegetables into the air fryer drawer and place the chicken parcels on top.
Spray the chicken lightly with oil.
Air fry at 190°C for 25 minutes, turning the chicken halfway through and giving the vegetables a good stir.
Divide the vegetables between two plates, top with the chicken parcels and spoon over any juices from the air fryer.
Tip: If you don’t have Boursin or creamy garlic and herb cheese roulade, pesto works brilliantly instead and adds a lovely punch of flavour.
Air Fryer Crispy Sesame Chicken
Crispy, sticky and packed with flavour, this one's a keeper! The panko-coated chicken gets beautifully crispy in the air fryer before being tossed in a sticky honey, soy and sesame sauce. Serve with steamed rice and vegetables for an easy dinner. Leftovers are also great sliced into a wrap with a bit of salad the next day.
Serves: 3
Prep time: 10 minutes
Cook time: 17 minutes
Ingredients
300g chicken breast, cut into cubes
3 tbsp flour
1 egg, beaten
100g panko breadcrumbs
Spring onions, sliced, for topping
Sesame seeds, for serving
For the sauce:
1 tsp sesame oil
2 tbsp soy sauce
3 tbsp honey
2 tbsp sweet chilli sauce
1 tsp rice wine
½ tsp Chinese five spice
To serve: steamed rice and vegetables
Method
Coat the chicken in flour, dip into the beaten egg and then coat in the panko breadcrumbs.
Lay the coated chicken cubes in a single layer in your air fryer drawer. Spray lightly with oil and air fry at 200°C for 14 minutes, flipping halfway through.
While the chicken cooks, mix together all the sauce ingredients and set aside.
Once the chicken is cooked, remove the crisper tray, pour over the sauce and toss to coat.
Return to the air fryer for another 3 minutes at 200°C until glossy and sticky.
Serve topped with sliced spring onions and a generous sprinkle of sesame seeds. Add rice or vegetables on the side to make it a full meal.
Looking for More Easy Air Fryer Recipes?
I’m always sharing easy air fryer recipes, cooking times and tips to help you get more from your air fryer on my Instagram, TikTok and Facebook so make sure you give me a follow 😊
Have a look through my Air Fryer Guides for more inspiration, or check out my Air Fryer Cooking Times when you just need to know what temperature and how long to cook something.
And if you’re looking for even more recipes, you’ll find plenty more in my cookbook, Quick and Easy Air Fryer, available here.
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