Instant Pot Air Fryer Chicken Nuggets (From Frozen)
Cooking frozen chicken nuggets in the Instant Pot air fryer is quick, easy and delivers perfectly crispy nuggets with tender insides in just 10-12 minutes! This recipe is for Instant Pot Duo Crisp + Air Fryer or the regular Instant Pot model with the accessory air fryer lid. Served with a delicious honey mustard sauce, these air fried chicken nuggets are great for a fuss-free dinner, lunch, game night or finger food when guests come over.
Course Main
Cuisine American
Keyword Air Fryer Recipes, Chicken Recipes, Instant Pot Duo Crisp, Nuggets
Prep Time 5 minutesminutes
Cook Time 15 minutesminutes
Total Time 20 minutesminutes
Servings 4servings
Calories 459kcal
Ingredients
24frozen chicken nuggets6 pieces per serve
For honey mustard sauce
⅓cupmayonnaise
1tablespoonhoney
1tablespoonwholegrain mustard
1-2teaspoonshot sauce or Sriracha
Instructions
Insert the air fryer basket inside the Instant Pot. Arrange frozen chicken nuggets on the bottom of the basket in one layer (no extra oil is necessary) and if you have extra nuggets, gently overlap them on top as a second layer (see photo below).
Place and secure the air fryer lid on top. Select Air Fryer function (this will be on top of the lid if it's an accessory Instant Pot air fryer lid, or on the front of the Instant Pot Duo Crisp). Set the temperature to maximum, which is 204 C / 399 F and adjust the time to 10 minutes for smaller nuggets and 12 minutes for thicker, larger nuggets (or somewhere in between, you can always increase the time or stop cooking earlier).
At around 7 minute mark, open the lid and place it on a safety mat. Use tongs to flip the nuggets or move them around the air fryer basket. Place the lid on top to continue air frying for the remaining time. Check again at the end and feel free to add 1-2 extra minutes if you like them extra crispy.
Repeat with the second batch of nuggets, you will find that this will be quicker as the pot and the air fryer lid are already hot. If there are any burnt bits of chicken in the basket, shake it out. If BURN FOOD error comes up, reduce the heat from 204 to 200 and it should disappear.
Make the sauce. Combine the sauce ingredients and whisk through until smooth. Taste to see if you like more heat, more kick from mustard or more honey. You can use some hot mustard in place of hot sauce or add a little ketchup for color. Toss potato wedges with rosemary, seasonings and olive oil. Use your hands to coat everything evenly. This sauce will keep in the fridge for 4-5 days in an airtight container.
Notes
Cooking time will vary depending on the size and thickness of the nuggets. Start with 10 minutes at 204 C / 399 F and add a few extra minutes if needed. The Instant Pot Air Fryer lid takes about 3 minutes to heat up.