I made lemon-pepper chicken in the air fryer, and the easy recipe needs 3 ingredients and less than 20 minutes

• I made a three-ingredient air-fryer chicken recipe, and it was surprisingly juicy and delicious.
• It was extremely easy to make, and the whole recipe took less than 18 minutes.

I wasn't sure 3 ingredients could actually make a flavorful meal

I found a lemon-pepper chicken recipe by blogger Fork to Spoon that surprisingly only called for three ingredients: chicken, panko (Japanese-style breadcrumbs), and store-bought lemon-pepper marinade.

It couldn't have been more straightforward, and it literally took two minutes to prep everything.

There were only 2 steps for prepping the chicken for the air fryer

I used chicken tenders instead of cutting the whole chicken breasts in half, which saved time and made each piece the perfect size for the air fryer.

I started by coating the tenders in the lemon-pepper marinade, letting any excess drip off.

Then I covered the tenders in panko, patting them down to make sure each piece was completely coated.

Without a good coating, the chicken won't come out crunchy.

I air-fried the chicken for 15 minutes, flipping it halfway through

I let my air fryer preheat to 350 degrees Fahrenheit for two or three minutes before spraying the basket and the chicken with a little oil.

I cooked the tenders for eight minutes, then flipped them over, spraying the chicken with more oil.

The chicken cooked for another six or so minutes, until it was golden brown and totally crunchy.

I'll definitely be making this easy chicken recipe again

The chicken itself was super juicy and the outside was perfectly crispy thanks to the panko. The texture was like a heartier version of tempura-battered shrimp.

The lemon-pepper marinade offered just the right amount of flavor. Each tender was zesty and buttery.

I would definitely make this again.

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• Best overall: Philips Premium Digital Airfryer, $249.95 on Amazon
• Best on a budget: Dash Compact Air Fryer, $49.99 on Target
• Best for multitasking: Instant Pot Duo Crisp + Air Fryer, $189.99 on Walmart
• Best large capacity: Ninja Foodi Two-Basket Air Fryer, $159.99 on Amazon