Air fryers are famously easy to use – but do you know how to unlock your favourite kitchen gadget’s full potential? To help you air-fry your way to the tastiest, crispiest, best-looking food around, we’ve compiled a list of the most common air fryer mistakes, with tips and tricks on how to prevent them (and what to do instead). How much should you fill your air fryer? What needs oiling, and what doesn't? What are the best air fryer recipes? We've covered every angle, so read on and you’ll be an expert in no time.
This is the easiest mistake to make! It's all too tempting to cram as much food into your air fryer as you can. However, over-filling will not only increase the overall cooking time, but it also means that your food won't cook evenly. It could create steam, too – so you can say goodbye to those beautifully crisp roast vegetables. Cook your food in a single layer and, depending on what you're cooking, be sure to shake or turn occasionally.
Bits of food, oil, sauce and crumbs can build up in your air fryer, and this can taint food and cause unpleasant smells (or even smoke). Fortunately, cleaning your air fryer is a quick, easy job – just allow it to cool down, then pull out the drawer and basket. Some drawers and baskets are dishwasher-proof. If yours aren't, simply clean them with hot, soapy water and leave them to dry. Remember to clean the interior and exterior of your air fryer with a damp cloth too.
Air fryers get very hot when they're in use. To cool them down, they're equipped with a powerful fan at the back – so, to give your air fryer space to function properly, be sure not to position it right against your kitchen wall, where it could cause mess, and even damage. Allow plenty of space around your air fryer on all sides, so air can circulate evenly. If you don't like the smell of frying in the kitchen, place your air fryer close to your extractor fan.
Air fryers vary significantly in size. Deciding on which capacity will work for you will depend on how much space you have, how much you plan on using your air fryer, and how many people are in your household. As a general rule, a capacity of up to five litres (5 quart) will work for one or two people, while a five-10 litre (5-10 quart) capacity air fryer will suit a family.
If you put food in the basket before your air fryer has reached the required temperature, it may stick and cook unevenly. Given that most air fryers reach the correct temperature in under five minutes, this one's not a step worth skipping!
Air fryers are, of course, much smaller than a conventional oven, with a powerful fan. Foods tend to cook more quickly in an air fryer, but bear in mind that there's less space for air to circulate – so, although your food may appear to be cooked on the outside, it could be raw in the centre. You can't take cooking instructions meant for a conventional oven and use them in the same way for an air fryer; use pre-sets and recipes developed specifically for air fryers instead.
New to air-frying? It's a good idea to keep an eye on your food as it cooks by pulling the drawer out slightly every now and again (don't worry – the temperature will quickly get back to its setting). Air fryers vary from brand to brand, so bear in mind that cooking times might be different too. It's a case of getting to know how your air fryer works, just as you would with a conventional oven.
Sure, air fryers give you that deep-fried food effect without all the oil – but you do need to add some oil to help your food crisp up, and ensure that any seasonings, such as dry rubs, stick to your food nicely. Before air-frying, toss your food in a bowl with a little oil (1-2 tbsp should be enough), or use an olive oil spray. Be sparing, though; too much oil will make a mess and result in soggy, greasy food.
Most air fryers come with around six settings, with options for roasting, dehydrating, baking, cooking frozen foods, and homemade fries. The temperatures are pre-set, as are the timings. The manufacturer has done the hard work for you, so ensure you use the correct setting – otherwise, you risk undercooking (or overcooking) your food.
Much as we all love to save on the washing up, lining your entire air fryer basket with foil or parchment paper is an absolute no-no. Not only will it prevent air from circulating effectively, but the lining will also be too close to the heating coil, which could pose a fire hazard. To keep your air fryer functioning as it should, only line your basket halfway up the sides.
Liners help prevent food from sticking to your air fryer basket – and they're especially beneficial if the food you plan to cook is a little wet (from a marinade, for example). You can buy perforated silicone or parchment liners, or solid ones, as pictured. The solid ones are great for putting under the basket in the drawer, so any spills or drips are caught. However, liners do interrupt the flow of air in your air fryer, so don't use them for breaded goods or fries.
There are a few reasons why your food might be sticking to your air fryer basket. It could be that your air fryer hasn't preheated to the correct temperature, or perhaps you've forgotten to oil your food. You could add a spray of oil to the basket while your air fryer heats up, or just make sure the food has a light coating of oil before adding it in.
Air fryers make the best homemade chips and fries ever. There are two simple steps to the crispiest fries: first, soak your cut potatoes in very cold water for 15 minutes; this draws out the starch. Then, dry them thoroughly with a clean tea towel before lightly tossing them in oil and sea salt. Now they're ready for the air fryer.
No matter what anyone else may tell you, it's not worth using an air fryer to cook toast! Slices of bread are too light to air-fry; if you add them to your basket, the power of the fan will send them flying around. By the time you've heated up the air fryer, the toaster would have already done the job.
Many air fryer recipes will benefit from a quick drawer shake halfway through cooking. This won't work for delicate foods such as fish, but things like vegetables, fries and roasted chickpeas should all be shaken if you want them to brown and cook evenly. Shaking will also help to prevent food from sticking to the basket.
This particularly applies to kebabs, breaded chicken, falafel, burgers, and fish cakes and fish fingers. Flipping these foods halfway through cooking will ensure they cook evenly, and that they brown on both sides. It's the heat from the coil or element that makes the food turn brown, hence the need to flip.
An air fryer is not the same as a deep fat fryer, so trying to cook battered fish will just make a mess – the batter will drip right through the basket. The hot oil in a deep fat fryer seals the batter as it's submerged, but an air fryer just can't replicate that. The good news for battered fish lovers is that frozen fish will work a treat, as long as you cook it straight from the freezer.
When air frying, there are a couple of reasons why breaded or crumbed food might turn out soggy. Firstly, is your air fryer at the correct temperature? It will need to be pretty hot – usually around 180°C (350°F). To achieve a crispy crumb, you must add a spritz of oil, giving your breaded goods a nice light coating. This will help them to firm up and brown.
Burger cheese is too light for an air fryer; the powerful fan will just blow it off. However, if you still want that melty cheese fix, we have a top tip: once the cooking time is over and the burger is ready, put the cheese on top and close the lid again for a minute or so before serving. The air fryer will still be hot enough to melt the cheese, but with no fan, it will stay in place on top of your patty. No more mess to clean up!
Popcorn is another of those ultra-lightweight foods that are best left to your microwave or hob. Your air fryer's powerful fan will just blow the kernels around, and they could stick to the heating coil, causing a hazard. Also, most air fryers also cannot reach the high temperature needed to pop corn perfectly.
If your forearms bear the burn scars of trying to lift a cake tin into a pre-heated air fryer, you’ll understand this one. In air fryers, deep cakes tend to cook on the outside, but they’ll still be raw in the centre – and they can burn or catch easily too. Small cakes like muffins or cupcakes are fine, but leave larger cakes to a conventional oven.
Although most baking projects are best left to a conventional oven, muffins bake very well in an air fryer – in fact, it's quicker to cook them in an air fryer than in an oven. Air fryers are especially handy if you're baking a small batch of four to six muffins. You'll need quite sturdy muffin cases, or individual silicone ones. They'll take around 12 minutes at 160°C (300°F).
Make a batch of cookie dough for the freezer, then bake a few cookies when you fancy something sweet. Air fryer cookies are quick to bake (they take around five minutes at 160°C/300°F) – but given the size of the basket, you'll need to do it in batches so they have space to spread out. Allow your cookies to cool in the basket for a few minutes before removing them and placing them on a wire rack.
We're back to that powerful fan again! Lightweight greens such as spinach, chard and kale just fly around the basket when air-fried – and they could cause a fire hazard if they hit the heating element. They’ll burn at the edges too, so leave them to a steamer or microwave instead.
If your air fryer doesn't come with a built-in meat thermometer, it's worth investing in one – and you can always use it with your conventional oven too. Sometimes, with air fryers, meat may appear to be cooked, but it could still be raw in the centre. On the other hand, overcooking your meat will just make it dry out. Try using your air fryer’s roasting pre-set, if it has one.
Whereas some fresh vegetables, such as broccoli, dry out too much when air-fried, frozen broccoli works a treat. Just add a spritz of oil and some seasoning to your air fryer basket, pop in a single layer of frozen vegetables, and you'll have crisp, perfectly cooked veggies in no time. There's no need to thaw them out first, either.
Air fryers really come into their own when you need to reheat a slice of pizza of quiche. Sure, you could warm it up in the microwave, but you wouldn't get the same crispy texture – plus, the air fryer will do the job in minutes.
An air fryer will take frozen snacks to the next level: speedy and crispy, with no need to thaw them out beforehand. We're thinking sausage rolls, pot sticker dumplings, spring rolls, samosas and onion rings. If you want to make and freeze your own sausage rolls, open freeze them on a tray, then bag them up and label them. Our recipe with Parma Ham is a winner.
Not only do air fryers produce pork belly with delicious crackling, but there's an awful lot less oven to clean afterwards too. Depending on the size of your air fryer, a 1-1.5kg (2.2-3lb) joint should fit inside with space for the air to circulate. Leave the meat uncovered in the fridge overnight – this way it’ll dry out, resulting in crunchy crackling.
Air-fried wings crisp up perfectly, with tender meat that doesn't dry out. Our tips for crispy, sticky wings? Spray your air fryer basket with oil, heat to 200°C (400°F), give the wings another light spritz of oil, then cook for 10 minutes, turning halfway through. Brush with sauce (click the link below for our recipe), then cook for a further five minutes. Perfection!