Preparing to air-fry
- Find the right place for your air fryer in your kitchen. Always keep your air fryer on a level, heat-resistant countertop and make sure there are at least five inches of space behind the air fryer where the exhaust vent is located.
- Pre-heat your air fryer before adding your food. This is easy – just turn the air fryer on to the temperature that you need and set the timer for 2 or 3 minutes. When the timer goes off, the air fryer has pre-heated and is ready for food.
- Get the right accessories. Once you start air frying, you may want to invest in some accessories for your new favorite appliance. Truth is, you may already have some! Any baking dishes or cake pans that are oven-safe should be air fryer-safe as well, as long as they don’t come in contact with the heating element. The only stipulation, of course, is that the accessory pan has to be able to fit inside the air fryer basket.
- Invest in a kitchen spray bottle. Spraying oil on the food is easier than drizzling or brushing, and allows you to use less oil overall. While you can buy oil sprays in cans, sometimes there are aerosol agents in those cans that can break down the non-stick surface on your air fryer basket. So, if you want to spray foods directly in the basket, invest in a hand-pumped kitchen spray bottle. It will be worth it!
- Use an aluminum foil sling. Getting accessory pieces into and out of the air fryer basket can be tricky. To make it easier, fold a piece of aluminum foil into a strip about 2-inches wide by 24-inches long. Place the cake pan or baking dish on the foil and by holding the ends of the foil, you’ll be able to lift the pan or dish and lower it into the air fryer basket. Fold or tuck the ends of the aluminum foil into the air fryer basket, and then return the basket to the air fryer. When you’re ready to remove the pan, unfold and hold onto the ends of the aluminum foil to lift the pan out of the air fryer basket.
- Use the proper breading technique. Breading is an important step in many air fryer recipes. Don’t skip a step! It is important to coat foods with flour first, then egg and then the breadcrumbs. Be diligent about the breadcrumbs and press them onto the food with your hands. Because the air fryer has a powerful fan as part of its mechanism, breading can sometimes blow off the food. Pressing those crumbs on firmly will help the breading adhere. You can learn all about the proper dredging and breading technique here.
While you are air-frying
- Add water to the air fryer drawer when cooking fatty foods. Adding water to the drawer underneath the basket helps prevent grease from getting too hot and smoking. Do this when cooking bacon, sausage, even burgers if they are particularly fatty.
- Don’t overcrowd the basket. I can’t stress this enough. It’s tempting to try to cook more at one time, but over-crowding the basket will prevent foods from crisping and browning evenly and take more time over all.
- Flip foods over halfway through the cooking time. Just as you would if you were cooking on a grill or in a skillet, you need to turn foods over so that they brown evenly.
- Open the air fryer as often as you like to check for doneness. This is one of the best parts of air fryers – you can open that drawer as often as you like (within reason) to check to see how the cooking process is coming along. This will not interrupt the timing of most air fryers – the fryer will either continue heating and timing as you pull the basket out, or pick up where it left off when you return the basket to the fryer.
- Use toothpicks to hold foods down. Every once in a while, the fan from the air fryer will pick up light foods and blow them around. So, secure foods (like the top slice of bread on a sandwich) with toothpicks.
- Shake the basket. Shaking the basket a couple of times during the cooking process will re-distribute the ingredients and help them to brown and crisp more evenly.
- Spray with oil part way through. If you are trying to get the food to brown and crisp more, try spritzing it with oil part way through the cooking process. This will also help the food to brown more evenly.
After you air-fry
- Remove the air fryer basket from the drawer before turning out foods. This is very important and it’s a mistake you’ll only make once. If you invert the basket while it is still locked into the air fryer drawer, you will end up dumping all the rendered fat or excess grease onto your plate along with the food you just air-fried.
- Don’t pour away the juices from the drawer too soon. The drawer below the air fryer basket collects a lot of juices from the cooked foods above and catches any marinades that you pour over the food. If the drippings are not too greasy, you can use this flavorful liquid as a sauce to pour over the food. You can also de-grease this liquid and reduce it in a small saucepan on the stovetop for a few minutes to concentrate the flavor.
- Clean the drawer as well as the basket after every use. The drawer of the air fryer is very easy to clean, so don’t put it off. If you leave it unwashed, you’ll run the risk of food contamination and your kitchen won’t smell very nice in a day or so!
- Use the air fryer to dry itself. After washing the air fryer basket and drawer, just pop them back into the air fryer and turn it on for 2 or 3 minutes. That dries both parts better than any drying towel.
Re-heating Foods in the air-fryer
There’s no hard and fast rule for time and temperature when re-heating leftovers because leftovers vary so significantly. I suggest re-heating in the air fryer at 350ºF and doing so for as long as it takes for the food to be re-heated to a food safety temperature of 165ºF. This is especially important for any potentially hazardous foods like chicken, pork and beef.
Trouble-Shooting
- Food is not getting crispy enough. Make sure you are not over-crowding the air fryer basket and make sure you are using just a little oil. This is especially true for French fries.
- There is white smoke coming from the air fryer. Add some water to the air fryer drawer underneath the basket. The white smoke is probably because grease has drained into the drawer and is burning. Adding water will prevent this.
- There is black smoke coming from the air fryer. Turn the machine off and look up towards the heating element inside the fryer. Some food might have blown up and attached to the heating element, burning and causing the black smoke.
- The air fryer won’t turn off. Many air fryers are designed to have a delay in their shutting down process. Once you press the power button off, the fan will continue to blow the hot air out of the unit for about 20 seconds. Don’t press the power button again, or you will have just turned the machine back on. Be patient and wait, and the air fryer will turn off.
I just bought the 2 quart cooks essential air fryer because I have very little counter space and it is just my husband and myself. Some food I have to do one at a time because the basket is small. When I cook wings or thighs does the time still applies because the size is smaller. Do I have to adjust for the smaller size of my fryer?
Hi Helen,
No – you shouldn’t have to adjust the time for the smaller appliance – only if the chicken thighs are smaller. It should take roughly the same amount of time as in a larger cooker, but it wouldn’t hurt to check it just a little sooner to make sure.
How much water should I put in the bottom pan under the basket.
About one cup is sufficient, but you only need water underneath when you’re cooking something that is very fatty – like sausage, bacon, burgers, meatballs, etc…
hello < I have a question about the pan under the basket ? the black coating is coming off is it still safe to use the air fryer ?
Well, this is probably something that you have to decide on for yourself – I can’t vouch for any manufactured product. However, as long as no food comes in contact with that surface of the drawer, I think you’ll be fine. Still, if it makes you uncomfortable, please heed your own concern.
ML
Hi I have just bought an airfryer I’m just wondering doni put some oil in it
Hi Ann. No, with an air fryer, it is best to put the oil on the food with a spray bottle (or drizzle it), rather than putting oil in the fryer itself. Check out my Air Frying 101 video for help with getting started. Here’s the link: https://bluejeanchef.com/cooking-school/air-frying-101/
Meredith, what kind of Air Fryer do you use…what size? There is just two of us… I bought one but I am not sure I am going to keep it…it’s the 2.5 size…
How do you get it to brown with out over cooking things?
Hi Donna. 2.5 qt is pretty small and will limit what you can do in there. I mostly use a 3.4 qt air fryer, and sometimes a 5.3 qt. version. While the larger air fryer does take up more room on the counter, it can roast a whole chicken pretty beautifully. Remember to spritz your food with oil before you air fry – that will help with browning. If you’re cooking something that really cooks quickly and are having trouble getting it to brown, you can elevate it in the air fryer basket so that it is closer to the heating element. Many air fryers come with a rack accessory that fits perfectly.
Can I cook turkey burgers and salmon burgers from frozen? I am always afraid they won’t be cooked through but the package says to cook them frozen. If so, how long?
Hi Linda. Foods generally always turn out better if they are defrosted first, but you can cook foods from frozen as long as they are no thicker than one inch. If you’re buying frozen burgers that have instructions to cook from frozen, just follow the package instructions, but drop the air fryer temperature by about 25ºF and check them a little sooner. Remember to flip them over halfway through.
Hello Meredith, just wanted to let you know that I’ve learned a lot from reading about how to use your Air Fryer. My family had a problem with the Air Fryer when we cook sausage and bacon. The fryer began to smoke and set off the smoke alarm,so we stopped using it for sausage and bacon. Now I know what to do when cooking fatty foods. Thank you so much for the advice. Happy New Year!!!
My air fryer cuts off after preheating and takes up to 10 minutes to cut back on… same thing if I open it to redistribute food. Any suggestions or ideas? It’s not the outlet! I’m frustrated wanting to try these cool recipes and am disappointed in this gadget instead 😭
Hi Heather. I think that’s probably an issue with your air fryer and you should contact the manufacturer or retailer customer service. Sounds like you might have a lemon.
I have an Omni Plus AF Toaster Oven. We love everything we have cooked in it so far. It came with very little information which is a little frustrating at times. I have had to return two of them for different reasons. Cleaning the top of the Fryer can be tricky at times and sliding my shelves in and out is taking off the finish. Any thoughts would be appreciated.
Hi Carol. I’m afraid I’m not familiar with this model of air fryer. I can only recommend that you reach out to the manufacturer through their customer service or website for specific instructions and advice. Generally, air fryers blow the food away from the heating element, so unless you’re cooking something that splatters a lot, the element should not get too dirty. If it does get splattered, the heat from the element usually burns anything off. As for the non-stick coming off the sides, that seems as though it would be somewhat inevitable, but perhaps the manufacturer has a suggestion.
My Anko air fryer pan/ basket draw can be opened with the tap of one finger the closing mechanism does nothing please help
Hi Liz, Sorry that you are having trouble with your air fryer. I can’t really help on specific units because they all have different features. I would recommend calling the manufacturer if there is a problem with your unit. You can usually find the contact info in the manual or online.
Aloha, I have the Gourmia GAF698.
On the legs of the crisper tray there are rubber inserts and it makes inserting the tray a little tuff, any thoughts? Second, are those rubber inserts heat proof? Thanks from Hawaii.
Hi Kaniela. I’m afraid I am not familiar with the Gourmia GAF698 machine. I would reach out to Gourmia customer service to see what they say, but if there are rubber feet on a tray that goes inside the oven, I would assume they are heat-proof.
ML
I have the Cosori 5.8 Air fryer. My vegetables are always overcooked and my chicken undercooked no matter what recipe I try. Haven’t tried cooking salmon in it yet – afraid I’ll ruin it. Is it just trial by error?
Each brand of air fryer does take a little getting used to, not only because they are different wattages, but different configurations too. You will start to learn what you need to do to cook different foods to your taste by trial and error. I say it’s better to check early – you can always add more time, but never take it away.
Good information. Lucky me I discovered your site by chance (stumbleupon). I’ve saved as a favorite for later!
Can I use glass casserole dishes in my air fryer
Hi Eileen,
If the glass casserole is oven safe and fits into your air fryer, then yes, you can certainly use it.
ML
Tried to cook veggies in my new air frier. Carrots, collie & beans. What a disaster, collie burnt & beans & carrot dehydrated & schrivlled, what have I done wrong. Should I have added water maybe?
It sounds like you cooked them too long. It is best to check on them during the cooking process to toss and add additional time as needed. With mixed vegetables, you should start the harder veggies first and add the softer vegetables or greens halfway through. You do not need to add water.
Can I use a roasting bag to cook a chicken in my air fryer?
Although it is oven safe, it is not recommended to use a roasting bag in an air fryer since the plastic will be so close to the heating element.
I had bought this air fryer but I was highly confused despite reading the manual provided and then I came across this article which had everything that I needed to know about using the appliance! I am so thankful to the creator for this magnificent explanatory guide!
Just what I needed to get me to dust off my air fryer. Recipes sound wonderful and easy. Thanks a lot for sharing that info.