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Home » Blog » Recipes » Air Fryer

How To Get Started With Air Frying

by Donya Mullins 7 Comments This post may contain affiliate links.

This post may contain affiliate links.

Getting a delicious meal on the table quickly has never been easier, thanks to the Air Fryer! You can cook anything from bacon to chicken wings with this speedy and stress-free method of cooking, plus it’s super easy to clean up. These super-simple Air Fryer Recipes are full of bold flavors and destined to become family favorites in no time!

Air Fryer Baked Potatoes are soft on the inside with an irresistible crispy skin.

Table of contents

  • How Do Air Fryers Work?
  • Which Air Fryer Should I Buy?
  • How To Clean An Air Fryer
  • Air Fried Appetizers
  • Main Dish Air Fryer Recipes
  • Air Fryer Side Dishes

In the past couple of years, Air Frying has become a very popular method of cooking, and for good reason! There are truly countless pros to using an Air Fryer, but here are a couple of the reasons I love it so much…

  • It’s healthier since you’re not using as much oil
  • Your food is cooked evenly on all sides
  • Foods are crispy and crunchy on the outside, yet tender and juicy on the inside thanks to the circulation of hot air
  • Using it can free up oven space during the holidays or anytime you’re feeding a crowd
  • It’s portable so you can take it with you when you travel
  • Clean-up is VERY minimal

This kitchen tool is can also make just about anything, the recipes you’ll find below range from appetizers and finger foods to main dishes and vegetable sides! Whether you’re making a fast dinner for your family, or you’re trying to find a healthier option for fried food, Air Frying is the answer!

How Do Air Fryers Work?

When you’re using an Air Fryer, you place the food that you’re cooking in a basket and then slide that basket into the machine. When you start your Air Fryer, incredibly hot air will rush from the upper part of the machine into the basket, quickly circulating around the food to create the crispy fried texture.

This method of cooking has all the things we love about fried food, like crispy textures without all the excess oil and fat.

Which Air Fryer Should I Buy?

The key to successfully cooking in an air fryer is to test and practice with different foods. Different Air Fryers will have slightly different cook times, so I would recommend trying yours out with a simple recipe like my Air Fryer Hot Dogs!

These are the Air Fryers that I have personally tried and had great success with!

  • 7 Quart Power XL Air Fryer
  • 4 Quart Ninja Air Fryer
  • 5.3 Quart Power XL Air Fryer
  • 5.5 Quart Ninja Max XL Air Fryer

How To Clean An Air Fryer

Here are a few tips for keeping your air fryer clean and in top-notch working order.

  • Unplug the air fryer, then let it cool. Remove any crumbs from the basket and inside the fryer.
  • Wash the basket. Many air fryer baskets can be put into the dishwasher, but before doing so, check the manufacturer’s recommendation. Clean the basket just like you do other dishes with warm soapy water, then rinse and dry.
  • Clean the interior of the air fry with a damp sponge or dishcloth.

Air Fried Appetizers

Air Fryer Chicken Wings

Air Fryer Sweet Potato Fries With Spicy Dipping Sauce

Air Fryer Parmesan French Fries with Dipping Sauce

Main Dish Air Fryer Recipes

Best Air Fryer Salmon (Quick And Easy)

Easy Air Fryer Hot Dogs

The Best Air Fryer Whole Chicken

Air Fryer Roasted Turkey Breast

Air Fryer Side Dishes

Air Fryer Cajun Potatoes

Best Air Fryer Potatoes Wedges

Crispy Air Fryer Brussels Sprouts

Air Fryer Baby Potatoes

Air Fryer Baked Potatoes

Air Fryer Sweet Potatoes

Donya with A Southern Soul

Meet A Southern Soul

Hey, there! I’m Donya and welcome to A Southern Soul. I love to cook and entertain with easy to make recipes and simple ideas that make people feel special. Read More

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  1. Stacey

    December 21, 2022 at 9:09 am

    Thank you for these tips. I have an air fryer which I have been too intimidated to try! I also have an Instant Pot which I have no clue how to use, so I will look and see if you have a post on that as well! Your recipes are always excellent. I am an old-fashioned southern cook and know I can count on them to turn out good.

    Reply
  2. Barbara Ford

    November 20, 2022 at 9:47 pm

    My new air fryer is coming tomorrow (Instant Pot Vortex Plus). Although I have been cooking and baking for 57 years, I am a newbie with the air fryer. I came to your site because I am loving all your recipes I have tried so far, so I wanted to see what you had to say about the air fryer. I want to try baked potatoes first, and I’m wondering if they need to be turned halfway through, like most foods, apparently.

    Reply
    • Donya

      November 21, 2022 at 8:54 am

      Hey there Barbara!
      I am thrilled to hear that you’re getting into Air Frying, it’s one of my most-used kitchen tools, I promise you’re going to love it! Starting off with a recipe like Baked Potatoes is a great idea since it’s super simple to make. For my Air Fryer Baked Potato Recipe, you don’t have to flip the potatoes halfway through the cook time, you just let them bake until they’re fork tender which is about 30-40 minutes. Another easy Air Fryer recipe is my Air Fryer Hot Dogs, they’re perfect for learning how to use the air fryer since it’s a relatively inexpensive meal and it allows you to experiment with times and temps. Please let me know if you ever have any questions about a recipe, I’m always happy to help!
      ~Donya

      Reply
  3. Susan

    June 24, 2022 at 2:11 pm

    Excellent recipes! Just an FYI. Did you know you can air fry with a NuWave Oven? Might be good to pass on to your fans, which I am definately one of. Thanks for all the great recipes, I have never tried one I didn’t love!

    Reply
    • Donya

      June 27, 2022 at 9:22 am

      Hey there Susan!
      My goodness, this has made my day! I am thrilled to hear that you’ve been enjoying my recipes, it warms my heart to hear. I appreciate you passing this on, I have seen those NuWave ovens before, but unfortunately I don’t have one so I tend to stick with my countertop Air Fryer. That way I can test my recipes a couple times over before sharing them with everyone. Thank you so very much for your kind words of support and your fabulous rating, if you ever have any questions about a dish please don’t hesitate to ask!
      ~Donya

      Reply
  4. Pam Elkin

    May 17, 2022 at 2:38 pm

    My goodness! This is a wonderful, helpful, excellent post!! Thank you so much for sharing this information with us! This is just what I need to learn about my new air fryer!!

    I always enjoy your posts. You share the best recipes! Thank you!!

    Reply
    • Donya

      May 18, 2022 at 8:09 am

      Hey there Pam!
      My goodness, reading this just made my day! I am so happy to hear that you found this post useful, I know I was slightly intimidated by my Air Fryer when I first got it so I am very glad this information was helpful. I really hope you enjoy the recipes as well, if you’re new to Air Frying I would recommend starting with Air Fryer Hot Dogs to test out all the settings and then moving onto the recipes like Air Fryer Chicken Wings. If you ever have any questions, please don’t hesitate to ask. Thank you so much for your kind words of support, I hope you have a wonderful day!
      ~Donya

      Reply

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Donya with A Southern Soul

Meet A Southern Soul

Hey, there! I’m Donya and welcome to A Southern Soul. I love to cook and entertain with easy to make recipes and simple ideas that make people feel special. Read More

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