What Can You Cook in an Air Fryer? (Easy Checklist)

Air fryers are convenient kitchen appliances that can make your cooking easy. Generally, air fryers cook or bake food without dipping in the oil. They use hot air circulation to make food crispy. That doesn’t mean that you can cook all food in the air fryer.

Well, you can cook many foods that are related to grilling, frying, baking, or roasting. Contrarily, you can’t cook many foods in the air fryer. So, let’s find out what you can cook in an air fryer.

What are the best foods to cook in an air fryer? – 5 Best Foods

Air fryers can cook delicious and crispy food without excess oil. You might be thinking about the best foods to cook in an air fryer. So, here are the 5 best foods that you can cook in an air fryer.

Chicken:

Chicken is the most common and easy food that you can cook in the air fryer. You can cook chicken fry, chicken wings, and other chicken recipes. Air fryers can make the chicken crispy and juicy. Air fryers don’t require too much oil.

So, you can cook chicken in a healthy way with less amount of oil.

Baked foods:

You can bake foods in an air fryer. You can cook cakes and cookies in an easy way. The air fryer will bake food without burning them if you follow the proper recipe and timing.

Homemade chips:

You can make homemade chips in an air fryer. You can make chips from different vegetables. Moreover, you can make chips without excess oil. But the flavor will be great and the chips will be crispy.

Ravioli:

You can make crispy and delicious ravioli in the air fryer. The coating of the ravioli remains pretty crispy while cooking in the air fryer. So, you can cook great ravioli in an air fryer.

French fry:

Air fryers are the best appliance for French fries. You can also cook frozen French fries in an air fryer. French fries will come out crispy and flavorous from the air fryer.

What food can you cook in an air fryer?

You can cook different foods in an air fryer. But you need to know the names of the foods and how you can cook them. So, let’s see what food you can cook in an air fryer.

Bacon:

You can cook bacon in an air fryer. But you need to keep the temperature and timing proper. Moreover, you have to stop the air fryer halfway and rearrange the slices.

Frozen chicken:

Yes, you can cook frozen chicken in an air fryer. Chicken is one of the most common food that can be cooked in the air fryer. The air fryer can make the frozen chicken juicy and soft again.

Steak:

Steak can be cooked in an air fryer. But you have to flip the steak after 7-9 minutes so that the heat can spread equally. Otherwise, you can cook steak in an air fryer with a little amount of oil and in less time.

Egg rolls:

You can cook egg rolls in an air fryer. Egg rolls don’t require too much heat and time. So, you can cook them in the air fryer quickly and crispy.

Hot dogs:

You can cook hot dogs in an air fryer. But make sure not to put extra cheese because the cheese will melt and make the air fryer messy.

Marinated chicken:

Marinated chicken can be cooked in an air fryer. But you have to marinate the chicken for sufficient time and put the chicken in the air fryer’s tray. You can brush on some marinade but don’t put an excessive amount of marinade or oil.

Shrimp:

You can cook and fry shrimp in the air fryer also. The air fryer will make the shrimp crispy from the outside and juicy from the inside.

Roast:

Air fryers are one of the best gadgets for roasting. You can make roast easily in an air fryer. The process is pretty the same as frying. So, you can roast in an air fryer.

Potatoes:

Potatoes are the best to cook and roast in the air fryer. Potatoes can be easy to time-effective to cook in the air fryer. So, you can cook, fry, or roast potatoes in an air fryer.

Pork loin:

You can cook pork loin in an air fryer. You will need less time to cook pork loin in the air fryer. The pork loin will be crispy and juicy in just 10-12 minutes.

Cookies:

Air fryers are good for baking foods. Cookies are convenient to make in the air fryer. Air fryers are the best for making chocolate chip cookies.

Frozen drumsticks:

You can cook frozen drumsticks in an air fryer. Reheating frozen foods is easy in the air fryer. Moreover, you don’t need to put in excess oil and seasonings.

Crab legs:

Crab legs are easy to cook in the air fryer. You have to check them after 5 minutes whether the crab legs are changing colors or not. When the crab legs are orange or red, they are ready to serve.

Meatloaf:

You can cook meatloaf in the air fryer. But don’t put excess sauce on the meatloaf. Otherwise, the air fryer can be a mess.

Frozen veggies:

You can cook frozen veggies in an air fryer but not all veggies. You have to avoid some veggies like broccoli to cook in an air fryer.

Lumpia:

You can cook lumpia in the air fryer. You need to cook one side of the lumpia for 10 minutes in a single layer and change the side for another 10 minutes.

Wontons:

You can fry wontons in an air fryer. Moreover, you can fry or reheat frozen wontons. Air fryers can make wontons crispy.

Ham:

Ham can be cooked in an air fryer. Air fryers can cook hams in a short time. Moreover, you can also reheat precooked ham in the air fryer.

Zucchini:

You can fry zucchini in an air fryer. You can fry them crispy in a short time in the air fryer. Moreover, you don’t have to dip zucchini in the oil.

Tofu:

You can make crispy tofu in the air fryer. The healthiest way to eat tofu is to grill or fry them in the air fryer. So, you can cook tofu in an air fryer.

Sausages:

You can make any kind of sausages in an air fryer. But while frying or cooking, put the sausages in a single layer and flip them after halftime.

What food can’t you cook in an air fryer?

You can’t cook some foods in an air fryer. Either the foods can be spoilt in the air fryer or the air fryer can’t cook the foods well. So, let’s see what food you can’t cook in an air fryer.

Hamburgers:

You can’t cook hamburgers also in an air fryer. Hamburgers contain sauce and cheese. All types of cheeses are not suitable in the air fryer. They will melt and make the air fryer messy without cooking well.

Salmon:

You can’t cook salmon in an air fryer. Air fryers can overcook the salmon and spoil its taste.

Pasta:

Pasta contains a lot of sauces and cheeses. If you cook pasta in the air fryer, the fryer will become a mess. But you can fry pasta in the air fryer without sauce and cheese.

Burgers:

You should not cook or reheat burgers in the air fryer. Burgers also have cheese and sauce that can make the air fryer messy. Moreover, they can block the vents of an air fryer.

Turkey:

You can’t cook the whole turkey in an air fryer. Air fryers can’t work well when it is overloaded. So, you have to cut the turkey if you want to cook it in an air fryer.

Rice:

You can’t cook rice in the air fryer. Rice has to be submerged in the boiling water to be cooked. But you can’t put water in the air fryers.

Foods that can or cannot be cooked in an air fryer:

Food	Can it be cooked in an air fryer?
Asparagus	Yes
Bacon	Yes
Battered Fish	No
Beef	Yes
Beef Jerky	Yes
Beignets	Yes
Biscuits	Yes
Brats	Yes
Bread	Yes
Breaded Chicken	Yes
Broccoli	No
Brownies	Yes
Burgers	No
Chicken	Yes
Chicken Katsu	Yes
Chicken Legs	Yes
Chicken Livers	Yes
Chicken Wings	Yes
Chips	Yes
Cinnamon Rolls	Yes
Cookies	Yes
Corn Dogs	No
Corn In The Cob	Yes
Crab Legs	Yes
Dim Sims	Yes
Donuts	Yes
Dough	Yes
Drumsticks	Yes
Duck	Yes
Dumplings	Yes
Egg Rolls	Yes
Eggplant	Yes
Eggs	Yes
Empanadas	Yes
Enchiladas	Yes
Fish	No
Frozen Chips	Yes
Frozen Food	Yes
Frozen Hash Browns	Yes
Gammon	Yes
Garlic	Yes
Garlic Bread	Yes
Garlic Knots	Yes
Gizzards	Yes
Gnocchi	Yes
Goetta	Yes
Greens	Yes
Grits	Yes
Ground Beef	Yes
Gyoza	Yes
Ham	Yes
Hamburgers	No
Hog Jowl	Yes
Homemade Chips	Yes
Hot Dogs	Yes
Italian Sausage	Yes
Jalapeno Poppers	Yes
Jambons	Yes
Jerky	Yes
Jicama	Yes
Jiffy Cornbread	Yes
Kabobs	Yes
Kale	Yes
Kebabs	Yes
Kielbasa	Yes
Kievs	Yes
Lamb Chops	Yes
Lasagna	Yes
Liver	Yes
Lobster	Yes
Lumpia	Yes
Macaroni	Yes
Meatballs	Yes
Meatloaf	Yes
Mince	Yes
Morels	Yes
Muffins	Yes
Mushrooms	Yes
Mussels	Yes
Naan Bread	Yes
Nachos	Yes
Neck Bones	Yes
Noodles	Yes
Nuggets	Yes
Oysters Kilpatrick	Yes
Pancakes	No
Pasta	No
Pastry	Yes
Pierogies	Yes
Pies	Yes
Pizza	Yes
Popcorn	Yes
Pork Chops	Yes
Potstickers	Yes
Quail	Yes
Quesadillas	Yes
Quiche	Yes
Quinoa	Yes
Quorn	Yes
Ramen	No
Rashers	Yes
Ravioli	Yes
Ribs	Yes
Rice	No
Roast	Yes
Roast Vegetables	Yes
Rolls	Yes
Salmon	No
Samosas	Yes
Scallops	Yes
Scones	Yes
Scotch Eggs	Yes
Scrambled Eggs	Yes
Scrapple	Yes
Shrimp	Yes
Squash	Yes
Steak	Yes
Tater Tots	Yes
Tempura Vegetables	No
Tofu	Yes
Turkey	No
Veal	Yes
Vegetables	Yes
Veggie Burgers	Yes
Venison	Yes
Wontons	Yes
Yorkshire Puddings	Yes
Zoodles	Yes
Zucchini	Yes

Can you cook in an air fryer without the basket?

Yes, you can cook in an air fryer without the basket. Generally, air fryers have cooking baskets that you have to put in the air fryer.

But if you need to cook without the basket, you can cook. While cooking without the basket, you have to make sure not to block the vents. Otherwise, the hot air will not circulate and the air fryer will not work properly.

Can you cook in an air fryer without oil?

You should not cook without oil in an air fryer. Though air fryers don’t require dipping foods in the oil, you can’t cook without oil.

You can season oil on the food if you want to avoid excess oil. Moreover, air fryers use hot air circulation to cook food. So, too much oil will be unnecessary. But you have to put in the necessary amount of oil.

Can you slow cook in an air fryer?

No, you can’t slow cook in an air fryer. Air fryers are fast cookers that make foods crispy. So, you can’t control their cooking speed.

If you set the timer for a long time, the food might get burnt. So, you can’t cook slowly in an air fryer.

Final Thoughts:

Air fryers can cook hundreds of foods in different ways. But you can’t cook all food in the air fryer. Generally, foods containing cheese, sauce, oil, water, etc., are not suitable to cook in the air fryer. So, you can cook foods that are related to frying and roasting. 

Frequently Asked Questions:

Can Air Fryer Replace Toaster Oven?

How Full Can You Fill an Air Fryer Basket?

Do Air Fryers Smoke?

Can Air Fryers Catch Fire?

Why Won’t My Air Fryer Turn On?

How Long Will an Air Fryer Last?