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+ servings
A bowl of sesame chicken with rice and green beans.
4.79 from 37 votes

Air Fryer Honey Sesame Chicken

This saucy, delicious air fryer honey sesame chicken is ready in 30 minute and tastes deep-fried, but it's actually made in the air fryer!
Prep 15 minutes
Cook 20 minutes
Total 35 minutes
Fat 13
Carbs 56
Protein 46
Yield 4

Ingredients

Chicken

  • 3/4 cup cornstarch
  • 2 tablespoons garlic powder
  • 1.5 teaspoons salt
  • ½ teaspoon ground ginger
  • 2 tablespoons white sesame seeds separated
  • 1.5 lbs. boneless skinless chicken breasts
  • 2 large eggs

Sauce

  • 1 tablespoon sesame oil separated
  • 7 cloves garlic peeled and minced
  • ¼ cup soy sauce
  • ½ cup water
  • cup honey
  • 1 teaspoon fish sauce
  • 1 tablespoon white vinegar
  • 1 tablespoon grated white onion
  • 1 tablespoon Gochujang red chili paste works too
  • 2 green onions minced

Instructions

  • Preheat the air fryer to 400ºF.
  • Begin by adding the cornstarch to a large bowl and remove 1.5 teaspoons of the cornstarch from the bowl and set it aside for later.
  • Add the garlic powder, salt, ginger, and 1 tablespoon sesame seeds to the cornstarch mixture and whisk to combine. Set aside.
  • Add the eggs to a separate large bowl and whisk until combined.
  • Cut the chicken breast into 1-1.5-inch chunks and add the chicken to the bowl with the eggs. Toss the chicken with the egg mixture until the chicken is coated.
  • Remove the chicken pieces from the egg mixture and allow any excess egg to drip from the chicken.
  • Add the chicken pieces to the bowl with the cornstarch. Toss the chicken with the cornstarch mixture until the chicken is coated.
    chicken in cornstarch
  • Spray the air fryer with cooking spray and then add the coated chicken pieces to the air fryer in one single layer (a few overlaps are ok). Drizzle the chicken with 2 teaspoons of sesame oil.
    chicken in air fryer
  • Air fry the chicken for 10 minutes at 400ºF. When the chicken has cooked for 10 minutes, flip the chicken over and cook it for an additional 6 minutes until golden brown and crispy.
  • Meanwhile, make the garlic sesame sauce. Add the remaining sesame oil to a small saucepan. When the sesame oil is fragrant add the garlic to the pan.
  • Sauté the garlic for 2-3 minutes and then add the soy sauce, water, honey, fish sauce, white vinegar, grated onion, and Gochuchang to the pan. Whisk the ingredients together.
  • Bring the sauce to a boil over medium/high heat and then turn the heat to low and let the sauce simmer for 5 minutes.
  • Remove ¼ cup of the sauce from the pan and add the remaining 1.5 teaspoons of cornstarch to the ¼ cup of sauce. Whisk the 2 ingredients together. It will thicken. Add it back into the saucepan and whisk the sauce together. Allow the sauce to thicken.
  • When the chicken is golden brown and cooked through, add the chicken to a large bowl and add then add the sauce. Gently toss the chicken in the sauce until coated.
    adding sauce to chicken
  • Garnish the honey sesame chicken with diced green onion and sesame seeds. Serve over rice and enjoy!

Tips & Notes

  • We used a 7-qt air fryer for this recipe. We suggest using a larger air fryer.
  • You can use chicken thighs or chicken breasts for this recipe.
  • If you don’t have sriracha or Gochujang you can use garlic chili sauce.

Watch it

Nutrition Facts

Calories: 524kcal | Carbohydrates: 56g | Protein: 46g | Fat: 13g | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 26g