The air fryer can cut your cooking time in half and provide super crispy results like our Air Fryer Chicken Wings and Air Fryer Bacon. You’ll love the crisp salty skins on these potatoes. This post may contain affiliate links. Read my disclosure policy.
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, you’ll get the same results with the air fryer but less cleaning and quicker cooking time. You also don’t have to wait for the air fryer to preheat like you would with an oven.
Ingredients
This is such an easy recipe using only 3 basic ingredients you probably already have in your kitchen.
Potatoes – We recommend using Russet potatoes, also known as Idaho potatoes. You’ll want to make sure all your potatoes are the same size for even cooking. Oil – The oil is what gives the skin its crispiness, we use olive oil for this recipe. You can easily use cooking spray instead of oil. Salt – We like to add fine sea salt to the potatoes for flavor but you can use the salt you have on hand.
How to make Air Fryer Baked Potatoes
For a Toaster-style Air Fryer: reduce the temperature to about 375˚F, flipping halfway, and keep the timing the same.
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.
Baked Potato Toppings
We love a fully loaded baked potato as a side dish, or even for lunch. It’s especially fun to make a baked potato bar. The toppings are endless and these are some of our favorites:
Salt – sprinkling on a little extra is always a good idea Butter – dot cut potato with butter and let it melt over Sour Cream – add a generous dollop Bacon bits – chop up some Air Fryer Bacon Shredded cheese – Mexican or cheddar Everything bagel seasoning Jalapeno – sliced or diced Chives or green onion to garnish
Tips for Potatoes in the Air Fryer
Test for doneness – Your potato is cooked through if a knife inserted into the center is easily pierced. You can easily continue cooking them in the air fryer if they need more time. Scrub potatoes – The potato peels are edible and super tasty when you salt them. Just be sure to clean the potato under running water before cooking it. Poke potatoes with a fork – air fryer potatoes don’t have to be poked with a fork, but there is a small chance your potatoes will burst and make a mess in your air fryer which is why we take 10 seconds to poke the potatoes. Don’t overcrowd the air fryer. You want the air to circulate evenly around the potatoes. Reheat the potato by cooking it in the air fryer at 400 until heated or use a microwave.
Air fryer baked potatoes are so satisfying, especially when they are loaded up with all the fixings. I’d love to hear about your favorite toppings in the comments.
More Easy Air Fryer Recipes
Air Fryer French Fries Jalapeno Poppers (Baked or Air Fried) Air Fryer Pork Chops Crispy Air Fryer Chicken Wings Easy Hot Dogs Air Fried Salmon
title: “Air Fryer Baked Potatoes” ShowToc: true date: “2024-11-05” author: “Adam Mccarthy”
How to Determine the Cooking Time
Baking potatoes is easy, so the only challenge is determining how long to cook them. After cooking potatoes in my air fryer for over a month, I’ve found that the following cooking times result in perfect baked potatoes. For potatoes that weigh:
8 oz. or less:Bake at 400ºF for 45 minutes 9 oz. to 16 oz.: Bake at 400ºF for 1 hour Over 16 oz:Bake 400ºF for 1 hour and 15 minutes (or until an internal temperature of 207ºF is reached)
Use a kitchen scale to weigh your potatoes, if you’d like to estimate an accurate cooking time. Alternatively, you can just start cooking the potatoes for 45 minutes, then add additional 10 minute intervals until the center of each potato reaches an internal temperature of at least 207ºF.
Ingredients You’ll Need
To make perfect air fryer baked potatoes, you’ll need 3 ingredients:
Baking potatoes Olive oil Salt
Once the potatoes are baked, you can add any toppings you love. I usually stick to a pat of butter on top, but you can also add sour cream, freshly chopped chives or green onions, or even some crispy bacon pieces. The crispy skin is irresistible on these, making them the perfect side dish.
How to Cook Air Fryer Baked Potatoes
Prepare the potatoes. Choose potatoes that are roughly the same size, and scrub them well under running water. Dry them off, then pierce the potato several times with a fork or knife, to allow for venting. Rub the outside of each potato skin with olive oil, then sprinkle salt on top. If you’d rather use another oil, like avocado oil or cooking spray, that works too.
Cook. There’s no need to preheat your air fryer for this recipe, but some models will force you to run a preheating cycle before the timer will start working. (The Instant Pot Vortex and Breville Air Fryer do this, for example.) You’ll need to bake these potatoes at 400ºF. Place the prepared potatoes in the air fryer basket, then set the timer on your air fryer to cook for 45 minutes at 400ºF. (This is for medium potatoes that are 8 ounces or less; see the guide above for different sizes.)
Test. When the timer goes off, you’ll need to check the potatoes to see if they are fork tender on the inside. Traditionally, this is done by poking a fork into the center of the potato. However, if you want to ensure that the potato is perfectly cooked and fluffy on the inside, use an instant read food thermometer instead! When the inside of a potato reaches at least 207ºF, you’ll know it’s tender on the inside. Just be sure to test at the very thickest part of the potato. If the potato isn’t done yet, simply return the basket and air fry for an additional 5 to 10 minutes at 400ºF, checking on the potatoes until they are done.
Enjoy! Let the potatoes cool slightly, then cut them open and fluff with a fork. You can add any toppings you love, like butter or sour cream, plus some extra salt and pepper. You can store leftover baked potatoes in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 5 days. To reheat, I usually cut them in half and cook in the air fryer again for about 10 minutes at 400ºF, or until the center is heated through. Need more topping ideas? Try these with my favorite black bean soup or veggie chili on top, for a heartier meal. They are also great with cheddar cheese, salsa, or with fresh chives on top.
Tips for Choosing the Best Baking Potatoes
- Choose potatoes that are roughly the same size. This will ensure the potatoes all finish cooking at the same time. Russet potatoes are the classic choice for baked potatoes, because they have a starchy inside that makes them extra fluffy, but you can also use Yukon gold potatoes for a creamier middle. This method works for baking air fryer sweet potatoes, too.
- Look for a narrow shape. A long, narrow potato will cook faster and more evenly than a potato that is very wide in the middle. Keep this in mind if you are in a hurry!
- The smaller the potato, the faster it will cook. I’ll give you specific cooking guidelines down below to determine the cooking time based on weight, but in general, a smaller potato will cook faster than a very large potato. Look for ones that are 8 ounces or less, if you’d like to keep the cooking time under 1 hour. Can you put aluminum foil in an air fryer? Yes! Unlike a microwave, you can use aluminum foil in an air fryer, since it’s more similar to an oven. If you don’t want your baked potato skins to get too crispy, you can cover the potatoes in aluminum foil if you would like to. I personally avoid using aluminum when possible, since cooking with it may leach small amounts of aluminum into your food. This study suggests that wrapping meat in aluminum foil can significantly increase its aluminum content. The increase ranged from 89% to 378% higher aluminum in red meat, and 76% to 215% in poultry. But, the choice is up to you! In terms of cooking, I tested a potato wrapped in aluminum foil side-by-side with an unwrapped potato, and they cooked in the exact same amount of time. The only difference is the skin wasn’t quite as crispy in the foil-wrapped potato.
Which is the best air fryer to use? I’ve tested these air fryer baked potatoes in both a basket-style air fryer and an oven-style air fryer, with very similar results. If you’d like to know more about a specific brand, be sure to read my complete air fryer review. Looking for more air fryer recipes? Be sure to try Air Fryer Chicken Breasts, Air Fryer French Fries, and Air Fryer Salmon, or browse more air fryer recipes. If you try this air fryer baked potato recipe, please leave a comment and star rating below letting me know how it works out for you!
