Air frying is a great way to cook frozen convenience foods (like fries, or onion rings). Cooking with hot air gets the outside to crisp up quickly – stopping the sogginess that you sometimes get with oven baking – with no need to drown them in oil in the deep fryer.
Air frying dries the surface of the food as it cooks, avoiding the sogginess you sometimes get from oven baking, and creating a crispy texture that’s similar to deep-frying, but with far less oil.
There are a few steps you should take to get the best results when cooking frozen foods in the air fryer. Read on for our step-by-step guide, and tips.
How to air fry frozen foods – step-by-step
Step 1: Preheat
Not all air fryers need preheating. However, when cooking frozen foods, especially ones with a short cooking time, it is a good idea to preheat it anyway. If the air fryer is hot when you start cooking the food will begin crisping right away, rather than partially thawing first, which can make it soggy.
Should you cook from frozen?
Most frozen convenience foods (eg fries, chicken nuggets) should be cooked from frozen. Check the packet instructions to see what the manufacturer recommends.
If cooking from frozen, remove ice crystals from frozen foods by gently patting them with a paper towel. Excess ice can make your food soggy rather than crispy.
Step 2: Give Them Space
When you place the frozen foods in the air fryer, try to add them in a single layer, and space them out so there is a gap between each piece. This allows the hot air to circulate freely ensuring that the foods cook evenly, and leading to maximum crispiness.
There are some foods where this is not practical to do (like french fries). In this case, it is ok to have them piled up, but it is very important to redistribute them during cooking (either shake the basket, or quickly flip them with tongs), to ensure that the hot air can reach all sides of the food.
Step 3: Extra Oil?
Here’s an optional one. Some frozen foods have plenty of oil already, some don’t need any adding depending on what you are cooking, but others will benefit from a teeny tiny extra bit of oil added prior to cooking.
For example, the premium brand of frozen fries we get cook fine without adding extra oil. But, if I get the grocery store’s home brand, I find that they don’t get quite crispy enough on the outside unless I add a spritz or two of olive oil before (or during) cooking.
Use your judgement, and monitor results. If you find that the air fryer isn’t getting something as crispy as you expected, try adding a little oil next time.
Step 4: Flip
Shaking or flipping food halfway through cooking, or more often, is one of the most important air fryer techniques. This simple step ensures even browning and crispiness on all sides.
For items like french fries, tater tots, and nuggets, give the basket a good shake at least once during cooking.
Some foods benefit from multiple flips or shakes. Food that is piled up (eg french fries) might need flipping every 4-5 minutes for best results.
Larger items like frozen burgers, fish fillets, or chicken need to be flipped instead. Use silicone-tipped tongs to gently turn these foods over.
Step 5: Monitor
Always check your food before the cooking time is up. You can add more time if needed, but you can’t undo overcooking!
Step 6: Check
You can generally tell when foods like fries, veggies or potatoes are done – it is when they have reached the level of crispiness that you wanted.
However, if you are cooking chicken, meat, or seafood, it is important to confirm that it is cooked through to a safe temperature. Sometimes food can look cooked on the outside, but still be cold on the inside.
Use an instant-read thermometer to check the temperature in the center of the largest few pieces. You can refer to this guide to safe minimum temperatures on the USDA website for more info.
Remember that cooking times may vary between air fryer models. Newer models with higher wattage often cook faster than older ones.
Calculating Cooking Times
Cooking food in the air fryer is quicker than in the oven, and generally needs a lower temperature.
You can convert the cooking time and temperature on food packs by reducing the temperature by around 35°F/ 20°C, and reducing the cooking time by around 20%.
Or, use our FREE air fryer conversion calculator for an easy way to convert pack instruction from oven to air fryer.
