Air Fryer Chicken Livers – 10 Minute Appetizer

These Air Fryer Chicken Livers are take only ten minutes to cook! They are easy and so delicious! There is a little bit of a coating that makes you feel like you were deep in the south and your grandma fried them up in a skillet on the stove. But, this recipe is a modern twist on a classic recipe that is a LOT healthier!

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Most of us fall into two camps: either we are super fans of chicken livers or we would rather not have them at all! There aren’t too many folks in the middle. Don’t worry, though. These delicious morsels will convert you into a fan! The flour coating on the outside is just a little bit crispy and crunchy. The center is nice and rich. The best part is you can change the seasonings in the flour to mix it up. My mom used to use seasoning salt on her fried chicken livers. If you haven’t tried that, give it a try! So delish! 

🍽️ How To Prep

Chicken livers are organs from chickens that are sold by butchers in small tubs. You’ll find them in the chicken area of the meat department at the grocery store. I usually find them in white containers on the top shelf. 

When you get them home, put them in a colander to drain, rinse them off and pat them dry with a paper towel. 

TIP: Make sure you fully clean your sink once you rinse the chicken livers. Treat it just as you would other raw chicken. I like to use hot water and a little bit of bleach to clean up the sink anytime I use raw meat. 

🐓 Ingredients

If you grew up chicken livers, you are going to want to keep this recipe nearby. It’s so delicious and is full of traditional flavors. Let’s examine some of the ingredients a little closer:

Chicken Livers – The most important ingredient is obviously the chicken livers. You may not realize it, but they are actually very good for you. Each bite is going to give you a great amount of iron, protein, folate, and B vitamins. In addition to being good for you, they taste amazing too.

Flour & Corn Starch – The combination of the two allows the chicken livers to have a beautiful and crispy exterior. The interior is juicy and tasty too. It’s essential to use both, so you get the proper crunch. You can use wheat or all-purpose flour.

Seasonings – We season the breading with onion and garlic powder. Just a sprinkle or two gives you the right yummy flavor. You can also add in some salt and pepper if you wanted to.

Milk & Egg – Using a combination of milk and egg will give the flour and cornstarch something to stick to. They are the key to giving you a crispy breading. You can use a milk alternative such as almond milk, heavy cream, or half and half.

🍴Instructions

These are pretty simple to make. It is a quick and easy protein for dinner or a great appetizer! 

Step One: Mix together ¼ cup flour with two tbsp of cornstarch. Sprinkle in onion powder, garlic powder, and salt and pepper, as desired. Stir it all together. 

Step Two: In a separate bowl, combine ½ cup of milk and one egg. Whisk well. 

Step Three: Preheat Air Fryer to 390 degrees. 

Step Four: After the chicken livers are drained, rinsed and patted dry, dip them in the egg/milk mixture and then dredge it in the flour mixture. Place them in the air fryer basket or on the Air Fryer tray. Spray both sides with olive oil spray to help them become crispy. 

Step Five: Cook in the Air Fryer for 10-12 minutes, flipping them over half way through. I have noticed that each Air Fryer is different, especially if you are using a basket or a tray style.  So, check the livers at the ten minute mark. They should be a nice golden brown. 

TIP: Don’t crowd the chicken livers in the basket or on the tray. You need air flow to go around the food to make them fully cooked and crispy. 

TIP: After flipping the livers at the half-way point, spray a bit more olive oil on top of them to keep them moist and crispy. 

TIP: If you are using a tray version and using two trays at a time, rotate the trays midway through the cooking process as they may cook at different rates. My top rack cooks a bit faster than the bottom rack, for instance. 

‼️Using Flour to Coat the Livers

One word of warning. I tried to cook this recipe without spraying the livers with a dash of olive oil and they turned out like the photo. There was excess flour that didn’t blend with the juices. While it still tasted delicious, it wasn’t as pretty.

A little bit of spray oil worked great to solve that problem. You don’t need much, and you’ll use a TON less than if you were frying these in a skillet. I’ll call that a win!

⚠️ Can I Use Regular Olive Oil 

Yes, you can. If you choose to go this route, I suggest that you pull out your Olive Oil Mister like the one here:

If you haven’t used one before, they are incredibly easy to use. Simply fill it with olive oil from the jar and pump it to mist out a gentle spray that you can use for Air Frying or to coat a pan to make it non-stick to replace a can of Pam. 

If you want to use spray olive oil, you will find it in the grocery store by the olive oils and Pam Cooking Spray. Pam and Bertolli have ones at my local grocery store.

🥄 Looking for more Air Fryer inspiration? 

Air Fryer Cornish Hen – This whole cornish hen whips up so fast that it is perfect for a weeknight meal. We used this recipe and added herbs and lemon in the cavity! So delish! 

Air Fryer Sweet Asian Wings – Oh my gosh! Stop what you are doing right now and make these. Holy smokes are incredible! We’ve made them without the batter as well by just cooking plain wings in the Air Fryer and adding the sauce after they were cooked – just as delish, I pinky swear!!! I keep a bottle of the Sweet Chili Sauce now in the pantry just for these. 

Air Fryer Roasted Broccoli – This is so yummy and takes a fraction of the time of roasting in the oven so it won me over in a skinny minute! Anything that can shave time on a weeknight is a favorite.

Cheesy Roasted AirFryer Asparagus – This was a spin off from our favorite way to serve asparagus which is to roast and sprinkle with Parmesan cheese…it works perfectly in the Air Fryer!!