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Warning: My air fryer chicken came out dry after I skipped a step
I made chicken breasts last night at 375°F for 15 minutes and they turned out super dry. Turns out I forgot to spray the basket with oil before cooking. Has anyone else had this issue?
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lilychen1mo ago
Julia's spot on about the temperature issue. I actually saw a cooking science article that said chicken breast muscle fibers squeeze out moisture around 165 degrees, so pulling them earlier really does make a difference.
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seth_carr1mo ago
Yeah, Julia's right about the meat thermometer thing. That's a solid point. But what you're describing reminds me of this bigger pattern I've noticed. People skip the simple little prep steps all the time, like oiling a pan or preheating the oven, and they think that's the one thing that ruined everything. But usually it's a combination of things going wrong at once, not just one missed detail.
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juliawalker1mo ago
The oil spray is usually more about getting a crispy outside than keeping the inside moist, honestly. Your chicken dried out because 15 minutes at 375 is way too long for a standard chicken breast. Try more like 12 minutes max and always use a meat thermometer to pull them at 155-160 internal temp, then let them rest. The carryover cooking will bring them to a safe temp without turning them into sawdust, you know? Skipping the oil makes them pale and a little tough on the outside, but dry meat is a time and temperature problem first and foremost.
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