Can You Steam Food in the Air Fryer?

So the air fryer is such a great tool for healthy air frying, but have you ever wondered if you could use it to steam your food too?!

I am always down to find out new and great ways to use the air fryer, so we did a little test with veggies to determine whether it will work.

You can watch it the test and the results on my YouTube channel where I Tested Steaming in the Air Fryer!

What are we testing?

For this test, we did a few different veggies to set how the air fryer handled the attempt to use the air fryer to steam the veggies.

Vegetables Used:

• Broccoli
• Carrots
• Asparagus

Results of the Tests!

Broccoli steam test:

When I tested the broccoli I out about water up about 1/4 inch of the bottom of the Cosori Dual Blaze air fryer basket.  

I made sure there was enough water in the bottom of the air fryer so that there can be steam to produce and not burn off by the air fryer, and also not touch the veggies.

Based on a little Google search the results came up a little mixed but one of the results suggested steaming the broccoli at 220 degrees F or 104 degrees C for 10 minutes. 

After doing the suggested time and temperature, the broccoli was coming in with an internal temperature of 140-142 degrees F or 60-61 degrees C.

If you are not sure what the internal temperature of broccoli should be you can always check out my cheat sheet for the internal temperature at AirFryerCheatSheet.com!

When I test the water in the bottom of the pan it was around 142 degrees F  or 61 degrees C. 

Final results: I thought the air fryer did a decent job steaming the broccoli without overcooking it!

Carrot steam test:

Again when steaming the carrots in the air fryer, I poured water in the bottom of the air fryer so that it was about 1/4 in up in the pan. 

I turned the air fryer on at 220 degrees F or 104 degrees C for 10 minutes and let the air fryer do its thing.

The internal temperature of the carrots was about 135 degrees F or 57 degrees C but didn’t seem to be cooked through well. 

So, I returned the carrots in the air fryer and cooked them for another 220 degrees F or 104 degrees C for 5 minutes. 

Final results: Even after cooking the carrots for another 5 minutes they were not done the way I would like them to be.

So I will not be steaming them in the air fryer again – definitely not a winner in my book.

Asparagus steam test:

When attempting to steam the asparagus I pour enough water in the air fryer so that it was about 1/4 in up in the pan. 

I turned the air fryer on at 220 degrees F or 104 degrees C for 10 minutes and let the air fryer do its thing yet again.

While the asparagus came out to be about 135 degrees F or 57 degrees C I actually prefer the asparagus to be undercooked slightly.

Final results: I found the way that the asparagus steamed in the air fryer came out surprisingly well and was super tasty! I would call them a win! 

So what is the overall result, can you steam food in the air fryer?

I would say that if you are looking to make steamed broccoli or asparagus in the air fryer you might just find the results that you want!

However, I would stay away from any of the more types of dense vegetables like carrots, but thinner veggies like peppers, beans, and onions are great options for steaming!

Air fryer tips and tricks

• Air Fryer 101
• Learn these common Air Fryer Mistakes!
• All about the Best and Worst Air Fryer Accessories
• How to Clean Your Air Fryer
• How to Cook Any Recipe in the Air Fryer
• FREE Download → Air Fryer Tips & Temps
• Air Fryer Buying Guide
• Watch Fabulessly Frugal YouTube Channel for Air Fryer Recipes

Keep up to date on our newest air fryer recipes!

Follow Fabulessly Frugal on Instagram | Facebook | Pinterest | YouTube