Recipes for Easy Appetizers in Air Fryer

These EASY APPETIZER RECIPES can be made in little time and go great with any meal, with hardly any clean up necessary!

I’m always looking for easy appetizers for a snack or as a complement to an entree. You can focus on making the main dish while you forget about the air fryer and let it do the work.

Plus, who wants to deal with a pot of hot oil??

All of these recipes will go great with any meal or on their own. If you want to make them for larger gatherings you may need to cook in multiple batches if you don’t have a large air fryer basket but it’s still faster, easier, and less messy than traditional deep frying or baking in the oven.

Appetizers are the perfect snack for any occasion and I’ve tried to include some of the most popular recipes as well as a few healthier options!

Why air fried appetizers are better than deep fried appetizers:

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With an air fryer you are always going to use less oil than you would deep frying, which makes it a healthier option. It also happens to be a lot simpler to clean up with the mess contained in the air fryer basket. Here are some great reasons why air frying can be a superior option to deep frying:

Healthier – less oil!
Easier cleanup, no oil splatter all over your kitchen, and no smell.
Environmentally friendly! Not everyone disposes of all that used oil/grease correctly.
Less dangerous than deep frying. You can start the air fryer and forget about it until it’s done! No grease fires.

Why air fried appetizers are better than oven baked:

The oven is probably a simpler option than deep frying but there are still great reasons to choose an air fryer over an oven.

The air fryer is better at making food crispy on the outside.
You won’t heat up the whole house.
Food cooks more evenly in an air fryer than in an oven, especially when using a slotted insert or skewer accessory. We have this accessory kit and it’s great!
The air fryer heats up very quickly, no long wait for the oven to preheat.
Cleaning a messy oven is a lot more work than cleaning an air fryer basket.

Air Fryer Tips & Tricks:

Here are some things you may need or are helpful to have on hand when making air fried appetizers.

Use a pump bottle with your favorite oil. It is recommended you do not use a non-stick spray as it can ruin the air fryer basket over time! We use and love this one.
When breading food, use panko! It turns out much more crisp than traditional bread crumbs.
Small air fryers do take up less space, but we recommend buying a large air fryer so that you won’t have to cook in so many batches. Saves time and energy.
Some countertops can crack from the heat of the air fryer. Use a heat resistant mat or wooden cutting board to protect your counters.
Parchment liners are great for keeping food from sticking to the basket and they make clean up a breeze.
Check the temperature of your food using this easy thermometer! It’s magnetic, so you can stick it on your fridge and not worry about it getting lost in the junk drawer.

Basket Style Vs. Oven Style:

There are two main types of air fryers – the basket style air fryer and the oven style air fryer.

The basket style air fryers have a basket that you fill with food and insert in the air fryer. The oven style look like a toaster oven.

We much prefer the basket style air fryers, because they seem to do a better job of crisping up the food and making it taste deep fried.

The oven style air fryers can be more convenient, since there are usually multiple racks and more surface area (meaning you can fit more food at once), but we usually grab our basket style air fryer.

We use this basket air fryer and we have this oven style air fryer. We do like the oven one because it has so many other functions (toaster oven, dehydrator, baking, bread proofing, etc.). You really can’t go wrong either way.

Easy Appetizer Recipes

These air fried appetizer recipes are low prep and quick for cleanup! They can also make a great snack for movie night or while stuck at home during the pandemic!