Baking Potato In An Air Fryer Vs Baking Potato In The Oven: Which Is Better
Long before air fryers became popular demand, ovens were literally used for baking all kinds of food. However, ovens have its shortfalls, and now fall below the pecking order when it comes to baking or roasting food.
Baking potato in an air fryer makes it crispier, thoroughly baked, and flavorful. On the other hand, baking in the oven makes the potato unattractive, uneven, and somewhat half-baked. A perfectly baked potato is attractive and light, unlike ovens that leave the inside with an unattractive finish.
Using an air fryer saves time, and makes a whole lot of cooking pretty much more comfortable. Air fryers speed up cooking time by about 20 minutes, which is 2 – 3x faster than ovens. While some ovens are swift in cooking, getting that crispy and delicious taste is nearly impossible, and not the same as using an air fryer.
The best of it all is using an air fryer results in healthier cooking. Less oil is used, which results in less fat and calories.
How To Cook A Potato In The Air Fryer
A few months ago, we took on the challenge of testing all the ways to make a baked potato in search of a clear winner. We tried the microwave, the grill, and even the slow cooker, but ultimately settled on the oven as our favorite. Many readers, however, pointed out that we hadnt tried the air fryer and if we had, we may have landed on a different winner. So we gave it a go.
After air frying my first batch, I wholeheartedly agree if its crispy skins your after, the air fryer method is far-and-away the winner. Its not any faster than baking a potato in the oven, but its foolproof you get tender, fluffy insides and crisp skins every time. If you own an air fryer, I highly recommend giving it a go, too.
Prepare the potatoes the same way you would for baking: rinse, scrub, and dry them, prick them all over with a fork, drizzle with oil, and season with salt. The recipe below is written for a standard air fryer those in the 3-quart capacity range so it only calls for two potatoes. If youve got a larger capacity air fryer, feel free to double or triple the recipe just make sure that the potatoes have at least an inch between them to guarantee those crispy skins.
The Last Method I Tested Out Involved Baking The Potato In The Oven
I used a fork to poke 12 holes all over the potato so moisture could escape while it cooked.
Poking the fork in and out of the spud was just as labor-intensive as it was with the microwave method, mainly because the fork kept getting stuck.
Before I placed it in the oven, I coated the potato in oil and salt. Then I cooked it right on the oven rack for an hour at 350 degrees Fahrenheit.
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The Best Baked Potato Toppings:
In my humble opinion the best approach for baked potato toppings is setting up a salad bar like selection of toppings!
In my potato bar dreams there would be the following options:
- Bacon
- Mo butta is mo betta!
- Brisket
- Jalapenos
- Taco meat
Of course, I would never put all these toppings on one potato , but it is nice to have these options for whatever I am in the mood for any given day!
How Do You Know When A Baked Potato Is Done
The cook time of the baked potato will slightly vary depending on the size of the potato and your air fryer machine. Small potatoes will take less time while larger and thicker potatoes will take longer. Cook until you can easily pierce into the center of the potatoes with a knife. If your potatoes need a longer cooking time, just return the basket to the air fryer and cook another 3-5 minutes at a time.
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Tips For The Best Air Fried Baked Potatoes
You cant go wrong with air fried baked potatoes. The air fryer uses circulating air to cook the potato evenly so there are no hard spots, cold spots or tough skin. It crisps the skins to a crunchy golden brown. The skins are almost better than the insides!
- Why you poke them: As a potato cooks steam builds up on the inside, and pressure begins to build. When the pressure is stronger than the skin, it can explode. Puncturing the potato prevents the pressure from building up by giving the steam places to escape.
- Air Fryer: Check your air fryer instructions before cooking. Depending on your air fryer, you may be able to cook up to 4 potatoes at once. Be sure they are spaced evenly so the air can circulate easily.
- Sizing: Try to keep your potatoes the same size so theyll cook at the same rate.
- Seasoning: Dont be afraid to season the outside of the potato generously. Add herbs if youd like such as rosemary, dill, or other seasonings.
- Leftovers: Store leftover potatoes in the fridge. Use leftovers to dice up or shred and pan fry for tasty home hash browns or breakfast hash.
Tips For Making Air Fryer Baked Potatoes
First, dont overcrowd the Air Fryer basket. Four medium potatoes would probably be my maximum recommendation. You want to make sure that the skin has enough space to crisp up.
Also, there is no need to pierce with a fork first. When I made my first batch, I remembered about half-way through and freaked out a little. And you know what? They did fine! I havent pierced them since. So save yourself the trouble.
Last, different sized potatoes can have different cook times. The good news is that you can always put them back in for a few extra minutes.
If you want to try this method with red potatoes or gold potatoes, it will still taste great! Just check them during cooking. They may have a different cook time.
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How To Reheat A Baked Potato In An Air Fryer
Reheat your leftover, refrigerated baked potatoes in the air fryer for maximum crispiness on day 2 ! To do this, simply preheat the air fryer to 375°F, pop the potatoes in the basket, and air fry for 4 minutes. Check to see if theyre warmed through, and if they arent, continue cooking for 2-minute increments until they are!
These air fryer baked potatoes are perfectly crispy on the outside, fluffy on the inside, and so, so delicious.
- Cassy Joy Garcia
- 1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
- 1 teaspoon sea salt
Air Fryer Baked Potato Recipe
You cannot go wrong with a baked potato as a side dish, appetizer, or even the main event. With this easy air fryer baked potato recipe, you are going to love cooking baked potatoes.
Just like you would bake the potato in the oven, youll get the same results with the air fryer but less cleaning and quicker cooking time. You also dont have to wait for the air fryer to preheat like you would with an oven.
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It Came Out Crispy On The Outside And Perfectly Fluffy On The Inside
I checked it halfway to make sure it wasn’t burning and used tongs to rotate the potato for an even fry.
After 45 minutes, the skin was crispy and the potato was done.
When I cut it open, I was shocked at how evenly cooked it was. The potato was easy to fluff, and the skin had a great texture and flavor.
Quick tip: Insider’s Reviews team tested 7 air fryers and found the Philips Premium TurboStar Air Fryer the best overall.
How To Bake A Potato In An Air Fryer
Baking a potato is smooth, but baking it in an air fryer is more comfortable than most people think. Somehow, that equipment works wonders on potatoes. It makes them perfect, crispy, and the best of it all is it uses less oil in preparing it. Nothing beats an air fried baked potato. At least, to many.
Ever tried to fry with air? If you haven’t tasted some baked or roasted potatoes in an air fryer, then you are missing a great breakfast. People who have baked potatoes in an air fryer couldn’t help but fall in love with their air fryers because the results were terrific. So in this article, you will be learning more about how to bake a potato in an air fryer.
You should get yourself ready for some awesome baking experience after reading this potato baking recipes for an air fryer.
Quick Navigation of How to Bake a Potato in an Air Fryer
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Air Fryer Jalapeno Popper Stuffed Potatoes
Posted on January 13, 2022
Air fryer twice baked potatoes stuffed with all the things you love about jalapeno poppers. These potatoes are baked, then the potato is mixed with diced jalapenos, salty bacon, cream cheese, garlic, and cheddar cheese before being stuffed into the potato skins and baked again. Using the air fryer these potatoes are quick and easy. Perfect for a meal or appetizer.
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Stuffed potatoes, or twice-baked potatoes, are one of our favourite sides to serve with meals such as roast beef or ham.
The fluffy mashed potato stuffed inside a crispy potato skin is a perfect combination. Especially when the mashed potato is mixed with things like cheese, bacon, and spices.
There are endless combinations of ingredients you can mix for the perfect twice-baked potato. But in this version, we used one of our favourite appetizers as inspiration. The jalapeno popper!
These stuffed potatoes are made by mixing the fluffy potato with cream cheese, shredded cheese, bacon and diced jalapeno for a spicy kick.
They make a great side dish, but also work as the feature dish of the meal when served alongside a simple salad. If you use smaller potatoes they make an excellent appetizer.
Twice-baked potatoes are easy to make ahead and freeze extremely well so you can always have a batch in the freezer for when you need a quick side or meal.
Ingredients For Air Fryer Baked Potatoes
- 2 Idaho or Russet medium potatoes I prefer either Russets or Idado potatoes for this.
- Cooking Spray such as Pam this helps the potato skin get extra crispy if you like to eat the skin of the potato. I was told that is where all the fiber is.
- Butter Who doesnt like their baked potato topped with a tablespoon of butter? I sure do!
- Parsley is for garnish
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How To Make Sweet Potatoes In The Air Fryer
These numbered steps match the numbered pictures above and are for illustration functions. For the entire checklist of substances and directions to make candy potatoes within the air fryer, please see the recipe under.
More Tasty Air Fryer Recipes
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Air Fryer Zucchini Fritters are one in all my hottest recipes, and a brilliant scrumptious manner to make use of summer season zucchini. This recipe additionally makes use of contemporary corn for probably the most summer season you possibly can pack into one humble veggie fritter!
Air Fryer Brussel Sprouts are a easy and easy-to-make facet dish. You can be amazed at how wonderful roasted greens within the air fryer are! In case you are questioning the right way to cook dinner Brussel sprouts within the air fryer, well train you.
Discover ways to make Vegan Air Fryer Bacon. You may mix the vegan bacon to assist veg out this candy potato breakfast boat.
Air Fryer Stuffed Mushrooms are the vegetarian appetizer everybody desires to eat! These yummy stuffed mushroom caps are crammed with gooey mozzarella cheese, pink and yellow bell peppers, and a scrumptious Italian seasoning mix.
Should you liked this air fryer candy potato recipe, attempt all my air fryer potato recipes!
On our sister website we share recipes for meat within the air fryer. You might be fascinated by Air Fryer Tilapia, or this recipe for Hen Wing Rub which you might use on something!
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Which Air Fryer Is Best
We have 2 air fryers so we can thoroughly test air fryer recipes, but it depends on your needs. Not all air fryers are created equal so get to know your air fryer, peek in on your food to check progress, and adjust recipe timings as needed.
- Basket Style Air Fryer we have the 5.8 Qt Cosori Air Fryer which takes up slightly less counter space, works well for our family of 4, and has the easiest cleanup because the air fryer basket and liner are dishwasher-safe.
- Toaster Oven Style Air Fryer takes up a little more space, but is great for bigger families and you can cook most recipes in one batch. Depending on your particular model, it can cook faster. I cooked the bacon in the toaster oven style for 8 minutes, while it took 9 minutes in the basket style.
First I Used A Quick Microwave Method To Cook My Potato
Using the microwave took almost zero effort.
The only downside was having to poke the uncooked potato with a fork, which wasn’t super easy and slowed me down a bit.
I also didn’t like worrying whether or not I pricked it enough times to ensure it wouldn’t pop in the microwave.
After poking the potato about 10 times, I put it in the microwave on high for five minutes, turned it over, and cooked it for another five minutes.
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How To Make A Baked Potato In An Air Fryer:
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Do I Need To Prick My Potatoes Before Air Frying
Its up to you.
When the steam in the potatoes tries to escape, it can cause your potatoes to explode or burst a hole out the side.
I dont, and I havent had issues with mine exploding.
That being said, its an easy thing to do and wont change your finished results, so if you are worried about it, you can definitely poke a hole into each one.
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How To Make Baked Potatoes In An Air Fryer
Making baked potatoes in the air fryer is as easy as it gets. Below, find a quick hitter overview of the process.
- Prep the Potatoes: Wash potatoes, pat dry them with a towel, and poke a few holes in each with a sharp knife. Rub the potato skins with oil and sea salt.
- Air Fry the Potatoes: Arrange the potatoes in the air fryer basket, leaving at least an inch of space between each one. Bake the potatoes at 390°F for at least 30 minutes, or until you can pierce them easily with a fork.
- Split the Potatoes: After you remove the potatoes from the air fryer, split them down the middle with a knife. Serve with sour cream, butter, chives, bacon bits, or any other of your favorite toppings. Enjoy!
Air Fryer Sweet Potatoes
Sweet Potatoes cooked to perfection in the Air Fryer is a side dish that takes very little effort to make yet yields amazing results! Theyre tender and creamy on the inside with crispy skin on the outside for sweet potatoes that youll be craving time and time again.
Our family is absolutely nuts over sweet potatoes. I can honestly say that I make them at least once a week. What I really like about sweet potatoes is that I can turn them into a savory or sweet dish which makes them an ideal match for many of the main dish recipes I serve for supper. They are loaded with nutrients, are high in potassium, vitamin E, C, and are a great source of fiber when eaten with the skin on. All these extra benefits make me super happy when my family digs into them.
For a couple of years now, Ive been baking sweet potatoes in my air fryer. Its one of those pieces of kitchen equipment that really outperforms itself when it comes to cooking. Ive made so many recipes in my air fryer and have loved how they turn out. The benefits of air frying are wide-ranging, but here are my favorites
- low-fat cooking since very little oil is used.
- foods are crispy and crunchy on the outside, yet tender and juicy on the inside thanks to the circulation of hot air.
- easy clean up with none of the mess that frying requires.
- its portable so I can take it with us when we travel to the coast or mountains.
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