10 Super Easy Things You Should Make in an Air Fryer

Air fryers are one of the healthiest ways of frying food. The air fryer is fantastic for making copycat recipes or even your own restaurant-style food at home. There are so many reasons why I love my Air Fryer; it cooks healthier foods, it doesn’t heat my kitchen like my oven does, and it is so easy to use that I can trust my kids with it.

When you’re just getting started with air frying, it can be a little intimidating at first. There is this massive appliance to learn, and one wrong move and your entire meal is blackened (and like a delicious salmon). Even if you are an air fryer pro, you just bought your first air fryer, or if you don’t have an air fryer yet (this list will probably convince you to buy one, check out this guide for picking the right air fryer for your family!) here are 10 different things you didn’t know you make an air fryer! 

10 different ways to use your Air Fryer

1. Pre-fried Frozen Foods

Frozen food is one of the easiest ways you can use your air fryer. Unlike baking in the oven, your food tastes crispy and like it was put in a deep fryer without the mess or the smell. You can heat your pre-fried or pre-cooked leftovers or use it to make everything from frozen fries to wings and nuggets. Some of our family’s favorite foods to cook frozen in the air fryer include sweet potato fries, chicken nuggets, and meatballs.

2. From scratch recipes that mimic pre-fried frozen foods

The frozen food aisle is a great place to go for food ideas that you can make into a made-from-scratch freezer meal yourself that is way more healthy than what you’ll find at the grocery store. This is also a great place to go for inspiration to cook in your air fryer. If you are like my oldest daughter who doesn’t love frozen foods, you can of course make any of these recipes from scratch. My three favorites are Pizza bagels in the Air Fryer, Homemade Air-Fryer French Fries, and Air Fryer Grilled Cheese. 

3. Veggies you’d Roast or Grill

Roasting or grilling food is a great way to get unique flavors on vegetables! However, this usually requires a lot of dishes and a lot of effort. With an air fryer, you can make those same delicious and tasty vegetables in your air fryer! Plus, they will be healthier than if you’d roasted or grilled them! My top 4 favorite Air Fryer vegetables include Air Fryer Asparagus, Air Fryer Zucchini Fries, Air Fryer Carrots, and Air Fryer Corn on the Cob.

4. Potatoes

There are so many delicious air fryer potato recipes you can make in your air fryer! From baked potatoes to homemade french fries, potatoes are always a great option for your air fryer.

5. Chicken Wings

Chicken Wings in the Air Fryer are also another great and healthier option. You can whip up these as a nice side, appetizer, or meal in about 20 minutes. I also love making these easy chicken tenders in the Air Fryer as well. My kids love this one for lunch or dinner.

6. Hot Dogs

Having hot dogs on hand is always a good idea, but grilling them can take so much effort! That’s why my kids and I LOVE making hot dogs in the air fryer because of how quick, easy, and yummy it is. It requires little effort to make these, and your kids will gobble them up in seconds.

7. Use your Air Fryer to Reheat Your Leftovers

Did you know you can use your Air Fryer like a microwave? But unlike a microwave, this will make your once crispy foods crispy again!

One of our family’s favorite things to do is make homemade pizza for Sunday dinner (we use this homemade pizza crust recipe to make a BBQ chicken pizza and chicken alfredo pizza). We always have leftovers to enjoy the next day, so we just reheat it in our Air Fryer for a couple of minutes and it seriously tastes like we are eating it fresh from the night before!

8. Hard Boiled Eggs

Hard-boiled eggs can always be so tricky and intense. But with your air fryer, it requires very little effort and resources. You can enjoy Air Fryer Hard Boiled Eggs in about 16 minutes. This is the best way to enjoy hard-boiled eggs for a healthy breakfast or in a salad.

9. Cookies

When you think about air frying desserts, you generally picture things like fried Oreos or churros. However, you can make delicious desserts such as cookies in just a few minutes using your air fryer! These Air Fryer cookies are great if you need some fresh treats.

There are also so many other great desserts you can make in the air fryer. Two of my other favorites are Air Fryer Molten Lava Cake and Air Fryer Smores. Be sure to check out these 10 other Air Fryer dessert recipes for more inspiration.

10. Donuts

Donuts are another classic that you can make using your air fryer! They are so easy to make and healthier than deep-frying a donut!  My favorite thing about this recipe is the simple and creamy glaze that just tops off these homemade air fryer donuts.

BONUS! Make Bacon in the Air Fryer

Bacon in the air fryer is really awesome because it cooks the bacon to crispy perfection. And you can easily cook the perfect amount that you need. Plus, it doesn’t make the house smell super greasy. Air Fryer bacon is such a great healthy alternative to any other cooking method for bacon.

Final Thoughts

As you can see, there are so many different ways that you can use your air fryer for that aren’t difficult to make! I love my Air Fryer because it makes every meal of the day so much easier and healthier for my family! Plus, cleaning up my Air Fryer is incredibly simple. There are so many various things you can do with your air fryer. What are you excited to make?