Looking for an easy budget friendly meal? Give these crispy air fryer chicken thighs a try! You will be shocked at how juicy and easy these are to make.

If you are looking for ways to trim the budget don’t pass on the bone in chicken thighs at the store. I know many people don’t like bone-in chicken, but you can save so much money on chicken thighs that taste delicious by removing the bone yourself!

If you need budget friendly meals, there can be a large savings between purchasing bone in chicken thighs over boneless chicken thighs. For instance, at my local grocery store (H-E-B), they have boneless chicken thighs for $3.69 lb. With the bone in chicken thighs being $1.99 lb. The same (approximately) 2 lb package price difference is about a $3 savings on protein.

I would rather save $3 and remove the bone myself (if I wanted to) versus paying nearly $4 a pound for protein. The bonus is there are only 2 of us most of the time so we can easily get 3-4 meals per package of chicken, making the cost of protein for 2 people $1.50-$2 a meal.

Even for a family of 4, you can pick up a pack of bone in chicken thighs for about $6 and get 2 meals out of it. That’s $3 a meal for protein for a family of 4. Plus, they run chicken thighs and drumsticks on sale sometimes for $0.99 lb. That can be a HUGE savings for a family!

I personally don’t mind bone in chicken, but my family doesn’t care for them. With that said…they love these juicy on the inside, crispy on the outside air fryer chicken thighs. In about 25 minutes, you can easily make these crispy air fryer chicken thighs for your family to enjoy too.

How to Remove Bone from Chicken Thighs

If you want to remove the bone, simply cut along the edge of the bone and remove it. Leave the skin on because that is what makes these chicken thighs crispy on the outside. It tastes like you took the extra time to deep fry chicken without the effort, plus its healthier for you than deep fried chicken!

So lets get to the recipe now!

3 Ingredient Crispy Air Fryer Chicken Thighs

Ingredients You’ll Need

4 bone-in chicken thighs
1-2 tablespoons olive oil
cajun seasoning blend (my personal favorite is Slap Ya Mama)

How to Make Air Fryer Chicken Thighs

Place the chicken thighs in a bowl with the olive oil and seasoning. Make sure you get the olive oil and seasoning under the skin.
Remove from the bowl and place them in the air fryer skin side down. Cook them in the air fryer for 10-12 minutes.
After the timer is complete, flip the chicken thighs over and cook for an additional 10-15 minutes.

Note: Using a meat thermometer, make sure the internal temperature is 165 degrees in the thickest part of the meat.

What to Serve with Crispy Air Fryer Chicken Thighs

Be sure to print this budget-friendly meal below and pin it for later!

3 Ingredient Crispy Air Fryer Chicken Thighs

Looking for an easy budget friendly meal? Give these crispy air fryer chicken thighs a try! You will be shocked at how juicy and easy these are to make.

Print Pin For Later

Course Dinner Ideas

Cuisine American

Servings 4 servings

Ingredients

4 bone in chicken thighs
1-2 tablespoons olive oil
cajun seasoning blend my personal favorite is Slap Ya Mama

Instructions

Place the chicken thighs in a bowl with the olive oil and seasoning. Make sure you get the olive oil and seasoning under the skin.
Remove from the bowl and place them in the air fryer skin side down. Cook them in the air fryer for 10-12 minutes.
After the timer is complete, flip the chicken thighs over and cook for an additional 10-15 minutes.

Notes

Using a meat thermometer, make sure the internal temperature is 165 degrees in the thickest part of the meat.

Budget Friendly Meals: Crispy Air Fryer Chicken Thighs

How to Remove Bone from Chicken Thighs