Air Fryer Accessories: What To Use?

Air fryers are a versatile kitchen appliance that can be used to air fry, roast, bake, broil, crisp, dehydrate and reheat foods. There are two main types of air fryers: basket air fryers and air fryer ovens. Basket air fryers have a removable basket in which you put food, while air fryer ovens have racks inside on which you put food. You can put aluminium foil or parchment paper in an air fryer, but you should never run your air fryer without food on top of the paper/foil, as it may lift up and touch the heating element. You can cook a wide range of foods in an air fryer, from chicken and salmon to potatoes and vegetables.

Basket air fryers

There are two main types of air fryers: basket air fryers and air fryer ovens. Basket air fryers have a removable basket in which you put food. They are more compact than air fryer ovens, which look similar to toaster ovens and have racks inside on which you place food.

To make clean-up easier, you can put aluminium foil or parchment paper in a basket air fryer. Perforated parchment paper designed for air fryer use is available for purchase. The holes in the paper allow air to flow through when cooking. However, never run your air fryer with parchment paper or foil in it without food on top, as the paper may lift and touch the heating element.

Air fryer ovens

You can put aluminium foil or parchment paper in an air fryer to make clean-up easier. You can buy sheets of perforated parchment paper designed for air fryer use, which allow air to flow through when cooking. However, you should never run your air fryer with parchment paper or foil in it without food on top of the paper/foil, or the paper may lift up and touch the heating element.

Most things that you’d do in the oven, you can do in the air fryer with some slight tweaking. For example, you can reverse sear using the air fryer to cook pork chops and steaks.

Using foil or parchment paper

You can put foil or parchment paper in an air fryer, but you should never run the air fryer without food on top of the paper or foil, as it may lift up and touch the heating element. You can buy sheets of perforated parchment paper designed for air fryer use, which allow air to flow through when cooking.

You can cook a wide variety of foods in an air fryer, from proteins like tofu, chicken, pork and steak, to vegetables like broccoli, Brussels sprouts, potatoes, zucchini, mushrooms and onions. You can also cook 'smores, salmon and French fries.

Vegetables

You can put food directly on the racks inside an air fryer, or use a removable basket. You can also use aluminium foil or parchment paper to line the air fryer, but you should always put food on top of the paper/foil.

Proteins

You can cook a variety of proteins in an air fryer, including tofu, chicken drumsticks, chicken thighs, chicken legs, chicken wings, meatballs, pork chops, bacon, salmon, steak, and shrimp. You can also cook proteins in the air fryer that are breaded or battered, such as fried chicken.

When cooking proteins in an air fryer, it is important to note that you should not overcrowd the air fryer basket or oven. This will ensure that the proteins cook evenly and thoroughly. You may need to cook proteins in batches to avoid overcrowding.

Additionally, you can use aluminium foil or parchment paper in the air fryer to make clean-up easier. However, it is important to never run your air fryer with parchment paper or foil in it without food on top of the paper or foil, as the paper may lift up and touch the heating element.

Finally, when cooking proteins in an air fryer, it is important to consider the cooking time and temperature. Different proteins will have different cooking times and temperatures, so it is important to refer to a recipe or cooking guide specific to air fryers.

Frequently asked questions