Air-Fryer Personal Pizzas: Quick, Easy, And Delicious!

Making personal pizzas in an air fryer is a quick, easy, and delicious way to satisfy your pizza cravings. You can use store-bought or homemade pizza dough, and get creative with your favourite toppings. The air fryer ensures a perfectly crispy crust and melted cheese in just around 10 minutes, making it a convenient option for a quick weeknight dinner or a fun pizza night with friends and family.

Choosing the right ingredients

Crust

The crust is the foundation of your pizza, and you can choose from various options. You can use store-bought pizza dough, which is convenient and readily available. Alternatively, you can make your own dough from scratch if you prefer a more customised and personalised option. If you're short on time, a great shortcut is to use rolled-out crescent rolls or even a tortilla as your base. For a quick and easy option, some people also recommend using naan bread as it gives a similar taste to homemade dough.

Cheese

When it comes to cheese, mozzarella is the classic choice for pizza. It's known for its creamy texture and rich flavour, and those desirable gooey, stretchy cheese pulls. Buffalo mozzarella is an excellent variety to use, as it has a higher moisture content, ensuring your pizza stays soft and creamy. However, regular mozzarella also works just fine. If you want to mix things up, you can also opt for a pizza blend of cheese or include varieties such as cheddar or Parmesan.

Sauce

The sauce forms the flavourful base of your pizza. While you can use store-bought tomato sauce to save time, making your own marinara sauce from scratch will elevate your pizza's taste. It gives you more control over the flavour and allows you to adjust the seasoning and spices to your preference.

Toppings

The beauty of making a personal pizza is that you can customise it to your liking. Popular topping options include pepperoni, onions, fresh basil, Parmesan, red pepper flakes, cooked shredded chicken, mushrooms, bell peppers, bacon, sausage, black or green olives, pineapple, and roasted chicken. You can also get creative and experiment with unique combinations, such as Hawaiian pizza with ham, pineapple tidbits, sliced almonds, cinnamon, and a drizzle of honey. Remember, the possibilities are endless!

Preparing the dough

To prepare the dough, start by preheating your air fryer to 375-400 degrees Fahrenheit. Sprinkle some flour on a clean surface and divide your dough ball into two or three smaller balls, depending on how many pizzas you want to make. Work the dough into round shapes that are slightly smaller than your air fryer basket.

Next, spray the bottom of the air fryer basket with a bit of olive oil or non-stick spray. You can also brush the top of the crust with a small amount of olive oil to create a golden crust. If you want a flavoured crust, sprinkle some garlic salt and Italian herbs over the dough.

Before transferring the dough to the air fryer basket, use a fork to poke holes in the centre of each piece of dough. This will prevent the dough from ballooning up while cooking. Then, place the dough in the air fryer basket and pre-cook for about three minutes. This step is important because it ensures that the crust gets golden and crispy without overcooking the toppings.

Once the dough is pre-cooked, you can start assembling your pizza by adding sauce, cheese, and your desired toppings.

Cooking the crust

First, preheat your air fryer to 375–400 degrees Fahrenheit. It is important to note that the temperature and cooking time may vary depending on the brand and size of your air fryer, so adjustments might be necessary.

Next, prepare your pizza dough. You can use store-bought or homemade pizza dough, rolled-out crescent rolls, or even a tortilla. For a 12-inch piece of dough, you can make two personal pizzas. Roll out the dough to fit the size of your air fryer basket. You can also shape the dough into circles if that fits better.

Now, place the dough in the air fryer basket. If you are using a basket-style air fryer, carefully transfer the dough. It is recommended to use a parchment paper liner or a silicone mat to make it easier to get the pizza in and out of the air fryer and to prevent sticking.

Once the dough is in the air fryer, brush it lightly with olive oil and prick it in a few places with a fork. This will help create a crispy crust.

At this point, you will pre-cook the crust. Set the air fryer to 375–400 degrees Fahrenheit and cook the crust for about 3 minutes. Pre-cooking the crust is crucial as it ensures a crispy bottom without overcooking the toppings. Remember to flip the crust over after the initial cook to prevent a white bottom.

After pre-cooking, you can assemble your pizza by adding your desired toppings. However, if you are using store-bought or pre-made crusts that do not require pre-baking, you can add the toppings before placing the crust in the air fryer.

Adding toppings

First, spread a layer of pizza sauce over your pre-cooked crust. You can use store-bought or make your own.

Next, it's time to add the cheese. Mozzarella is a classic choice and can be shredded or used in little balls (bocconcini). You could also use a pizza blend, Italian blend, cheddar, or Parmesan.

Now for the fun part—choose your favourite toppings! You can go with traditional options like pepperoni, onions, mushrooms, or tomatoes. Or, get creative with cooked shredded chicken, ham, pineapple, cinnamon, almonds, roasted garlic, fresh basil, bell peppers, bacon, sausage, red pepper flakes, olives, roasted chicken, or artichoke hearts. If you like it spicy, try a drizzle of hot honey.

If you're using lightweight toppings like pepperoni, you may want to secure them with toothpicks or place a rack over the pizza to prevent them from blowing around in the air fryer.

Finally, you can finish your pizza with a sprinkle of herbs like basil, dried Italian herbs, or red pepper flakes.

And that's it! You're ready to cook your delicious personal pizza in the air fryer.

Reheating and storing

If you have leftover pizza, the air fryer is the best way to reheat it. The oven takes too long, and the frying pan doesn't cook as many slices. Reheating pizza in the air fryer will give you a crispy crust and gooey cheese.

To reheat your pizza, preheat your air fryer to 325–350 °F (160–175 °C). Place your pizza slices inside the air fryer basket in a single layer, ensuring they don't overlap. Cook the pizza for 3–4 minutes, and then check if it's warmed to your liking. If not, cook for another 1–2 minutes at a time until done. Serve immediately.

The time and temperature will depend on the thickness of your pizza crust. Thicker crusts will need more time to warm up and get crispy, while thinner crusts can be cooked at higher temperatures for shorter periods.

When reheating, avoid overcrowding the air fryer basket. You don't want the slices to stick together or to not heat properly. The number of slices you can add depends on the size of your air fryer.

Place the pizza slices directly on the air fryer basket or tray. There's no need to use aluminium foil, but you can if you want to avoid melted cheese dripping into the basket. If using foil, cut holes in it to allow for better air circulation, or use perforated parchment paper.

Use tongs to remove the slices from the fryer basket to avoid burning your fingers.

For extra crispy slices, spray them with a little olive oil before cooking.

It is not recommended to store pizza that has already been reheated. Instead, store your cooled leftover pizza slices in an airtight container or stack and seal them in a resealable bag.

Frequently asked questions