What Not to Put in an Air Fryer: 10 Things to Avoid
Once you’ve had an air fryer for a while, it’s very tempting to start wondering whether absolutely everything can go in it. I’ve certainly reached the stage where my first thought about a lot of foods is, “I wonder if I could air fry that?”
Quite often you can, but there are some things that either don’t work particularly well or need a little more thought than simply tipping them into the basket and switching it on.
The important thing is that there isn’t really one universal list of foods that are “banned” from every air fryer. Models differ, accessories differ and some foods that shouldn’t be put directly into the basket can be cooked perfectly well inside a suitable heatproof dish.
Your own manufacturer’s instructions should therefore come first. With that in mind, these are the things I’d be particularly cautious about putting in an air fryer and what I’d do instead.
Wet batter directly in the basket
A thick coating such as breadcrumbs can work brilliantly in an air fryer. A very wet batter is a different matter.
Traditional battered food normally hits hot oil, which starts cooking the outside immediately. In an air fryer there isn’t a bath of hot oil to set that loose batter, so it can drip through the basket before it has a chance to become crisp. Apart from making a horrible mess underneath, you may end up losing most of the coating you wanted on the food in the first place.
That doesn’t mean every battered food is impossible to air fry. Something that’s already been commercially battered and frozen is very different because the coating has already been set. It’s freshly dipped, runny batter that I wouldn’t simply drop straight into the basket.
If you want a crunchy homemade coating, breadcrumbs or another coating that stays attached to the food is generally much better suited to air frying. My air fryer buttermilk chicken, for example, uses a coating that stays on the chicken while it cooks rather than relying on a loose wet batter.
Lots of sauce or liquid directly in the drawer
I wouldn’t pour a stew, curry or pasta sauce directly into the basket or drawer of an air fryer.
The hot air needs to circulate and, depending on the design of your machine, loose liquid can splash around or end up somewhere you really don’t want it. An air fryer isn’t a saucepan or a slow cooker just because it happens to have a drawer.
That doesn’t mean you can’t cook anything containing sauce. Some foods can be cooked in an appropriate ovenproof dish placed inside the air fryer, provided your manufacturer says this is suitable and there’s enough room around the dish for air to circulate.
For stews and very liquid-heavy meals, I’d generally stick with my slow cooker recipes rather than trying to persuade the air fryer to do somebody else’s job.
Loose baking paper or an empty liner
Baking paper can be useful in an air fryer, but don’t put a loose sheet into an empty basket while the machine is heating.
The fan inside an air fryer is powerful enough to move lightweight things around. Loose paper can potentially be lifted towards the heating element, which isn’t somewhere you want it.
If I’m using baking paper, I make sure food is sitting securely on top of it and I don’t use more than I need. You also need to think about airflow because covering every hole in the basket or crisper plate can affect the circulation that makes an air fryer work in the first place.
Very lightweight food that can blow around
Baking paper isn’t the only lightweight thing that can move around inside an air fryer.
Anything very light needs a little thought before you put it into a machine that’s deliberately blasting hot air around a small space. If something can easily lift, curl or fly around, consider whether it could get too close to the heating element.
That doesn’t mean you need to be frightened of cooking anything light. Sometimes it can be secured by other ingredients or cooked in a suitable dish. It’s simply something worth thinking about before switching the air fryer on.
Too much food at once
You can obviously put a full basket of food into an air fryer, but there comes a point where filling it too enthusiastically works against you.
If food is packed so tightly that air can’t circulate around it, you’ve taken away one of the main things that makes an air fryer useful. Instead of crisping, some of the food can end up steaming against the food surrounding it.
Exactly how full the basket can be depends on what you’re making. Chips can overlap and be shaken during cooking, whereas something breaded might be much better in a single layer.
If you’ve bought a small air fryer and are feeding several people, cooking two batches can sometimes give you much better results than cramming everything into one.
I’ve covered this, along with preheating, liners, oil and plenty of other little things I’ve learnt, in my air fryer tips and mistakes guide.
Lots of oil in the bottom
An air fryer isn’t a miniature deep-fat fryer, so don’t fill the drawer with cooking oil.
Some foods benefit from oil, but we’re talking about coating, brushing or tossing the food with an appropriate amount rather than pouring a pool of oil underneath it.
How much you need varies enormously depending on what you’re cooking. Some foods contain enough fat already, while vegetables and potatoes often benefit from a little oil for flavour, browning and texture.
If you’ve only just bought your machine and aren’t quite sure how the basket and drawer are supposed to work, my beginner’s guide to using an air fryer goes through the basics from switching it on for the first time.
Dishes and containers that aren’t suitable for the heat
Putting a dish inside an air fryer can be absolutely fine, but don’t assume something is suitable simply because it physically fits.
Whatever you use needs to be able to withstand the cooking temperature, and it’s worth checking the guidance for your particular air fryer as well as the instructions for the dish itself.
Size matters too. A dish that completely fills the basket can restrict airflow, which can affect the way the food cooks.
Suitable dishes can be really useful for foods that wouldn’t work directly in the basket. I use them for some of my eggs in the air fryer, for example, where a ramekin or small heatproof dish makes much more sense.
Popcorn unless your manufacturer says it’s suitable
I’d stick with a method designed for making popcorn rather than automatically tipping loose kernels into an air fryer.
Popcorn kernels are small and lightweight, and air fryers vary considerably in design. Something that moves around inside the basket has the potential to get closer to the heating element than you intended.
If your manufacturer specifically provides instructions for making popcorn, follow those. Otherwise, this is one of those occasions when I don’t think using the air fryer simply because it’s sitting on the worktop makes life any easier.
Raw rice or dried pasta loose in the basket
Dry rice and pasta need liquid to cook properly, so tipping either into an ordinary air-fryer basket isn’t going to achieve very much.
That doesn’t mean an air fryer can never be involved in a rice or pasta dish. A suitable heatproof container with liquid is a completely different setup from putting dry grains or pasta directly into a perforated basket, and what is possible will depend on the appliance and recipe.
For an everyday bowl of pasta or rice, though, I’m sticking with the hob. Sometimes the boring method really is the easiest one!
An air fryer can still be useful for reheating or browning suitable dishes afterwards, particularly when you want a crispy or melted topping.
Anything your particular air fryer says not to use
This is probably the least exciting one, but it’s also one of the most important.
Air fryers aren’t identical. Some have drawers, some have shelves, some have two baskets and there are now huge differences in size, power and design.
If your manufacturer’s instructions tell you not to use a particular material, accessory or cooking method, I’d follow that advice rather than something you’ve seen somebody do with a completely different air fryer online.
It’s particularly worth checking before using foil, baking paper, silicone liners or unusual dishes because advice can vary between models.
Can you put foil in an air fryer?
Foil can be suitable in some air fryers and for some foods, but this is another one where I would check the instructions for your machine rather than assume the answer is the same for every model.
You don’t want loose foil moving around towards a heating element or blocking the airflow unnecessarily. If you do use it, make sure you’re following the manufacturer’s advice and that it is securely held in place rather than putting a loose sheet into an empty basket.
Can you put baking paper in an air fryer?
Often you can, but don’t let it sit loose in an empty air fryer.
Food should hold the paper securely in place, and you don’t need to completely cover every opening in the basket. Perforated air-fryer liners can help preserve some airflow, although I still wouldn’t automatically use a liner for everything.
If crispiness is the whole point of what you’re cooking, sometimes direct contact with the basket works better.
Can you put a glass dish in an air fryer?
Don’t assume any glass bowl you have in the cupboard is suitable simply because it fits.
If you’re using a dish in your air fryer, it needs to be suitable for the temperatures involved and used according to its manufacturer’s instructions as well as those for the air fryer. Sudden temperature changes can also be a problem with some glassware.
When I’m not certain whether a particular dish is designed for that sort of heat, I don’t experiment with it.
Can you make toast in an air fryer?
You can make toast in some air fryers, although a very lightweight slice of bread is something I’d keep an eye on because of the powerful fan inside the machine.
A filled sandwich has more weight to it, and I regularly make an air fryer cheese toastie. If plain toast is something you want to make regularly, check the instructions for your model and see what works with your particular air fryer rather than assuming every machine will behave identically.
What about air fryer accessories?
There are endless liners, racks, tins, dishes and silicone gadgets sold for air fryers now, but being advertised as an “air fryer accessory” doesn’t automatically mean something is suitable for every machine.
Check the size as well as the material. There still needs to be enough room for air to circulate, and an accessory that fits a huge single-drawer air fryer might be completely useless in a narrow dual-drawer model.
I’ve put together an air fryer accessories guide covering the things you might actually find useful, rather than buying a huge set and discovering you don’t know what half of it is for.
Use the air fryer for what it does well
I love finding new things to cook in an air fryer, but I don’t think every food needs an air-fryer version simply because air fryers are popular.
Sometimes a saucepan is easier. Sometimes the oven makes more sense. Sometimes trying to force something into the air fryer creates more washing up than it saves, which rather ruins one of the reasons I like using mine in the first place.
If you’re new to yours, start with my how to use an air fryer for beginners guide, then have a read through my air fryer tips and mistakes for the things that can make a difference once you’ve started cooking.
When you actually want something to make, my air fryer recipes and cooking tips page brings together all my recipes and individual cooking guides. That’s a much better starting point than opening the fridge and wondering what completely inappropriate thing you can try to air fry next!
