Just realized my air fryer cooks chicken faster than my oven by almost half the time

I was looking up cooking times on the FDA website and saw that my air fryer gets chicken thighs to 165°F in 18 minutes while my oven takes 35. Has anyone else noticed this big of a difference with their recipes?

2 comments

2 Comments

barbara_butler15d ago

Funny you mention that. My wife and I got into a fight once because I kept adjusting the temp on our air fryer mid-cycle, trying to speed things up even more. She was convinced I was ruining the chicken, but honestly, the thighs came out just as juicy in like 22 minutes. Now I just set it and leave it alone.

jenny_carr5215d ago

Hold your horses on the air fryer hype. I've actually found that my oven gives a better crust on chicken thighs because the dry heat circulates slower, letting the skin crisp up without burning while the inside stays tender. Rushing through that 18 minute cook time can leave you with unevenly cooked meat or a weird rubbery texture if the air fryer's too aggressive. Sure it's faster, but I'd rather wait the extra 15 minutes for a consistently better result.