Air Fryer Honey Garlic Chicken with Macadamia Nut Salad

Name: Air Fryer Honey Garlic Chicken with Macadamia Nut Salad
Prep time: 10 min
Cook time: 20 min
Yield: Serves 4
Ingredients: 4 chicken breasts, trimmed and skinless; 1 tablespoon olive oil; 1/4 cup local honey; 3 teaspoons minced garlic; 2 tablespoons white wine vinegar; 1/4 cup soy sauce; 1/4 cup Ketsip Manis (sweet soy sauce); Kosher salt and black pepper, to taste; 1/2 cup macadamia nuts, roughly chopped; 2-3 cups rocket/spinach leaves; 1 medium carrot, sliced into discs; 1-2 Lebanese cucumbers, cut into cubes; 3-4 oz Greek feta cheese, cut into cubes; 3 oz pitted Kalamata olives, halved; 3 oz cherry tomatoes, halved; Kosher salt and black pepper, to taste

Juicy chicken breasts in a deliciously sticky marinade served with a yummy summer salad.

Jono Elderton

Air Fried Honey Garlic Chicken Fillets — Image: Jono Elderton for 12 Tomatoes

As a lover of sauce and marinades, the delectable pairing of honey and garlic is an important option to always have on hand. As the days warm up and your dance card fills, being able to create this beautiful meal in just half an hour (after a couple of hours of marinating) means you can enjoy a simple summer dinner with visual pop and taste to match, without having to sacrifice time you could spend relaxing.

Air fryer honey garlic chicken is quick to put together and marinate, and takes less than 20 minutes of cooking time to achieve perfectly juicy chicken filets chock full of sweet and salty flavors. It’s a simple, sure-fire way to craft a quick and delicious meal!

Combine Chicken with Marinade 1 — Image: Jono Elderton for 12 Tomatoes

Air frying is a stress free method of preparation, and is becoming my go-to option for creating juicy chicken filets (I use it for most other chicken cuts too). The cooking temperature is reliable and there is minimal mess to clean up. The air fryer creates an ideal environment for contrasting honey and garlic, while allowing other subtle flavors to lock into the bird. Using this method cooks the meat without drying it out or boiling away liquid through evaporative heat and oil.

Air Fried Chicken Fillets 1 — Image: Jono Elderton for 12 Tomatoes

With the air fryer whirring away in the background, you can go about creating the rest of your meal without needing to watch over the chicken in a pan. I opted to pair this air fryer chicken with a healthy, brightly sensible salad that combines well with lashings of the reserved marinade.

Macadamia nuts create a terrific element of crunch and character without dominating the simple salad. The macadamia nut’s sweet but slightly oily texture fits well with the sharper, more salty Mediterranean style ingredients like feta cheese and Kalamata olives.

This riff on the everyday Greek salad allows the chicken’s flavor to be at the forefront of the dish, yet retains a heft and necessary balance that complements the richness of garlic and honey. It’s an irresistible pairing that is light and subtle, but still fills the belly with warmth.

There’s so many options to accompany your honey garlic air fryer chicken, that it will likely take more time to narrow down your side than to cook the filets. Whatever you decide on makes for a quick dinner certain to impress everybody at the table!