Quick Summary
Air frying and grilling are two popular methods for cooking chicken. Both have their pros and cons.
Air frying chicken produces a crispy, crunchy exterior while keeping the inside moist and juicy. It cooks quickly and evenly using hot air circulation and requires little to no oil. Air frying is convenient, easy to clean up, and suitable for small pieces of chicken. However, air frying doesn’t impart much flavor on its own.
Grilling chicken over direct high heat also creates a nice charred exterior. It brings out delicious smoky, charred flavors that air frying cannot replicate. Grilling lends itself better to larger cuts of chicken and achieves better browning compared to air frying. But it requires more time, effort, and cleanup. There is also a higher risk of uneven cooking or burning with grilling.
For convenience, air frying excels for quick weeknight meals. But grilling makes better use of chicken parts with bones and is ideal for getting maximum flavor out of the meat. Combining the two methods can provide the benefits of both crispy air fried skin and intense grilled flavor.
Air Fryer vs Grill Comparison
| Factor | Air Fryer | Grill |
|---|---|---|
| Cooking Time | Very fast, cooks in 15-30 mins | Slower, can take 30+ mins |
| Preparation Time | Minimal, just season and put in basket | More hands on, must brush oil and flip |
| Cleanup | Easy, basket goes in dishwasher | More work scrubbing grate |
| Flavor | Minimal added flavor | Gets charred, smoky flavor |
| Skin Crispiness | Very crispy | Can get crispy but risks burning |
| Moistness | Keeps meat moist if not overcooked | Risks drying out meat |
| Safety | No open flame risk | Open flame is less safe |
| Best For | Boneless cuts, smaller pieces | Large cuts, bone-in pieces |
| Capacity | Smaller batches, 2-4 servings | Can grill larger quantities |
Benefits of Air Frying Chicken
Air frying has gained popularity for cooking crispy chicken at home with minimal oil. Here are some of its advantages:
Cooks Quickly
Air fryers can cook chicken pieces fully in as little as 15-30 minutes, depending on thickness. The hot air rapidly crisps up the skin and meat while heating all sides at once. This is much faster than oven baking. Air frying boneless chicken tenders or nuggets takes only 12-15 minutes.
Requires Little Oil
While deep frying chicken is delicious, it requires submerging food in a few inches of hot oil. Air fryers use significantly less oil since the food isn’t completely immersed. A light coating of oil is still needed to crisp up the exterior, but a couple teaspoons is enough for a whole batch.
Gets Skin Very Crispy
The powerful heat from an air fryer circulates around food at high velocity, creating a similar effect to deep frying. Chicken skin cooked in an air fryer becomes very crispy and crunchy, especially food with a large surface area like wings or tenders.
Retains Moisture
As air fryers cook food so quickly, there is less time for moisture to evaporate from the chicken. The chicken comes out tender and juicy on the inside even after the skin crisps up. Brining chicken before air frying retains even more moisture.
Versatile
An air fryer works well for all kinds of chicken pieces. Cook boneless tenders, thighs, drumsticks, or wings plain or breaded. Air fry while frozen too. The circulating air cooks odd shaped pieces evenly.
Easy to Use
Using an air fryer takes minimal prep work. Just lightly oil the chicken, season it, and put it in the fryer basket. The settings are easy to adjust, with digital controls or manual dials depending on the model.
Simple Cleanup
With no oil vat to drain and filter, air fryers are much easier to clean up after cooking chicken. The removable basket and any accessories can go right in the dishwasher.
Safer Frying
Air fryers avoid the risks associated with deep frying at extremely high temperatures. There is no chance of getting burned by hot oil splatter. It is a kid-friendly way to enjoy “fried” flavors.
Downsides of Air Frying Chicken
While air fryers provide a healthier cooking method compared to deep frying, there are some drawbacks:
Breading Can Fall Off
Since air frying doesn’t submerge food, any wet batters or loose breadings might peel off or blow around instead of getting crispy. Using a binder like egg or flour helps adherence. Breadings like panko also hold better.
Minimal Flavor Added
The rapid air frying process doesn’t allow flavors to permeate the chicken. Marinades and dry seasonings can add flavor, but air frying won’t impart smoky or charred notes like grilling.
Not Ideal For Larger Cuts
Air fryers work best for smaller pieces of chicken that cook quickly and evenly. Whole chickens or roasts, bone-in split breasts, or thick cuts won’t cook as effectively.
Lower Capacity
Most air fryers only hold 2-4 servings of food at once. While the cooking time is fast, you may need to fry chicken in multiple batches for larger groups. Newer models have greater capacity.
Easy to Overcook
The high heat of an air fryer can quickly overcook chicken if you aren’t paying attention. Thinner parts may dry out before thicker areas are cooked through.
Benefits of Grilling Chicken
Here are some benefits that grilling provides over air frying:
Gets Great Charred Flavor
Exposing chicken directly to an open flame while grilling caramelizes sugars on the outside, forming a delicious browned crust. This adds incredible depth of flavor that can’t be replicated by air frying.
Works Well For Larger Cuts
A grill has ample cooking surface to handle larger chicken pieces. You can grill a whole cut-up chicken, bone-in breasts or legs, kebabs, butterflied birds, and more.
Higher Capacity
A full-sized grill has enough room to cook chicken for a crowd. The entire grill surface gets hot, so you can grill a couple chickens or a mix of veggies alongside.
Better Browning
The intense direct heat of a grill sears and chars the chicken skin better than an air fryer. Basting the skin with oil or sauce enhances browning too.
Infuses Smoky Flavor
Cooking over an open fire, especially with wood chips or charcoal, imparts a wonderful smoky flavor into grilled chicken. The smoke adheres to the skin and permeates the meat.
Can Use BBQ Sauces & Marinades
A grill allows sauces and marinades to caramelize onto the chicken, developing even more flavor. Charred bits that stick to the meat add taste.
Downsides of Grilling Chicken
Here are some of the disadvantages of grilling compared to air frying:
Requires More Time
Grilling takes longer, especially for bone-in chicken pieces. The meat has to cook through to the center without burning the exterior. Flipping and rotating pieces extends the cooking time.
Less Convenient
Grilling involves more preparation and hands-on effort. You must light the grill, regularly flip and check chicken, brush with sauce, etc. It also requires cleaning the grill after use.
Higher Risk of Uneven Cooking
The intense direct heat can overcook thinner parts before thicker areas are cooked through. Keeping the grill at a steady heat and moving pieces around helps.
Can Dry Out Meat
High heat and extended grill time make it easier for chicken to dry out, especially lean breast meat. Basting and monitoring helps keep it moist.
Open Flame Safety
Grilling has more safety concerns compared to air frying. The open fire is dangerous around kids. Flare-ups from drippings can also char chicken.
Harder to Cook Large Batches
While a grill has higher total capacity, air fryers make it simpler to cook a large quantity of chicken wings, tenders, etc. Grilling individual pieces takes more effort.
Weather Dependence
Grilling requires cooperative weather – you can’t grill in the rain! Grilling year-round is limited based on temperatures where you live.
Combining Air Frying and Grilling
While both cooking methods have pros and cons, you can get the best of both worlds by combining air frying and grilling. Here are some techniques to try:
Grill First, Then Air Fry
Get great charred grill flavor by searing chicken over direct heat on a hot grill first. Then transfer the partially cooked chicken to an air fryer to finish cooking until crispy.
Air Fry First, Then Grill
For thicker bone-in chicken, par-cook in the air fryer until nearly done. Then grill briefly to add charred flavor and finish cooking.
Grill Veggies, Air Fry Chicken
Make a full meal by grilling veggies, corn, or other sides over the fire while separately air frying chicken wings, tenders, etc. for crispy fried texture.
Use Grill Flavors When Air Frying
Add a smoky essence when air frying by using mesquite or chipotle seasoning or wood smoke powder. Or put barbecue sauce on chicken before air frying.
Make Kebabs With Mixed Pieces
Skewer larger grill-friendly cuts along with smaller air-fry-friendly items like sliced onion or diced breast meat before grilling.
Conclusion
Air frying and grilling chicken both have their advantages. Air frying is fast, convenient, and gives chicken a crispy texture using little to no oil. But grilling imparts unbeatable smoky charred flavor. While grilling does take more time and effort, the flavor payoff is often worth it.
The optimal method depends on your specific needs. Air frying excels at cooking up a weekday dinner using boneless cuts like tenders or thighs. Save the grill for weekends when you have time to cook bone-in chicken and larger portions.
Combining aspects of both cooking techniques can let you get the benefits of quick and crispy air fried chicken along with the intense flavor only a grill provides. Vary the cooking method to suit the meal. Air fried, grilled or mixed, chicken cooked either way is delicious.