Air Fryer Cooking Guides
Master your air fryer with our cooking guides: the right temperatures and times, how to convert oven recipes, reheating leftovers, using foil and liners safely, and fixes for the most common problems.
Something Not Working Right Now?
Start here if you’re mid-cook and something’s gone wrong:
- Why Is My Air Fryer Smoking? — white smoke vs black smoke, and what to do about each
- Air Fryer Not Crispy? Here’s Why — the real fixes, not just “cook it longer”
- Air Fryer Won’t Turn On or Heat Up? — the checks to run before you assume it’s broken
Quick Start: How to Use an Air Fryer
- Preheat for about 3 minutes at the temperature you’ll cook at.
- Prep the food: pat dry, cut to an even size and toss in a little oil (skip oil for frozen coated food).
- Load a single layer with some space around each piece. Don’t fill the basket more than about half full for crisp results.
- Cook and shake or flip halfway through.
- Check early the first time you cook something, and use a thermometer for meat.
Not sure of the time? The Cooking Time Calculator gives a time and temperature adjusted for weight, servings and frozen food.
Air Fryer Temperature Guide
| Temperature | Best for | Examples |
|---|---|---|
| 140–160°C | Gentle cooking, drying and eggs | Boiled eggs (150°C), pumpkin seeds and kale chips (160°C) |
| 160–170°C | Reheating rice and delicate leftovers | Rice, pasta bakes |
| 180°C | Fish, sausages, bacon, most baking, reheating | Salmon, sausages, pigs in blankets, pizza reheats |
| 190°C | Medium-dense foods and roasting | Roast potatoes, pork chops, peppers and courgette |
| 200°C | Crisping and browning | Chips, wings, chicken thighs, steak, frozen food, broccoli |
See our meat & seafood, vegetable and frozen food guides for full times.
Converting Oven Recipes to the Air Fryer
An air fryer behaves like a small, powerful fan oven. As a rule of thumb, cook at about 20°C lower than a conventional-oven recipe (roughly the same as a fan-oven recipe) and check at about four-fifths of the time. The Oven to Air Fryer Converter works it out for you, and tells you when to check.
Reheating Leftovers
The air fryer is the best way to reheat anything that should be crisp — pizza, chips, fried chicken, roast potatoes — because it re-crisps the outside instead of steaming it. Pizza takes about 3–4 minutes at 180°C; rice about 5–8 minutes at 160°C with a splash of water and a loose cover. The Leftover Reheat Guide gives times for ten common leftovers, and How to Reheat Spaghetti in an Air Fryer covers pasta. For soups and saucy dishes, the microwave is still quicker — see Air Fryer vs Microwave.
Using Foil, Parchment and Liners Safely
Liners save cleaning but must never be loose in the basket: the fan can lift them into the heating element. Foil and parchment are fine when weighed down by food and kept away from the element; paper towels should never go in while cooking. Read Can You Put Foil in an Air Fryer? and Can You Put Paper Towel in an Air Fryer? for the full rules.
How-To Guides
- Air Fryer Boiled Eggs — soft, jammy and hard, no pan needed
- Air Fryer Jacket Potato — times by size for crispy skin
- Reheating Spaghetti — without drying it out
- Rapid Air Technology Explained — how an air fryer actually works
- How Smart Air Fryers Are Changing Cooking
- Air Fryer Cleaning & Maintenance — routines that prevent smoke and sticking
Frequently Asked Questions
Do you have to preheat an air fryer?
It’s not essential, but about 3 minutes of preheating gives crispier results and makes timings more predictable. Many newer models preheat automatically.
How full should the air fryer basket be?
For crisp results, a single layer with gaps — usually no more than about half full. Overfilling is the most common reason food comes out soft.
Can you put a glass or metal dish in an air fryer?
Yes, if it’s oven-safe and leaves room for air to circulate around it. Metal tins are useful for Yorkshire puddings, cakes and saucy dishes. Check your manual for any restrictions.
Why does my air fryer food cook unevenly?
Usually an overcrowded basket, pieces of different sizes, or not shaking halfway. Cut food evenly, cook in a single layer and shake or flip at the halfway point.
Latest Air Fryer Cooking Guides Articles
From our blog — hand-written guides and tested recipes.
