Tender, sweet air fried apples coated in cinnamon and sugar are yours in under 15 minutes! Perfect for topping a bowl of oatmeal or ice cream, or just eat these plain as a simple side dish!
A favorite dining option for breakfast in our family is Cracker Barrel. I have one kid who loves it and another kid who doesn’t. This seems to be typical of every topic in our family, but I digress.
Both kids have a favorite item at Cracker Barrel though and it’s the fried apples! They seem to be pan-fried in a bit of butter and sugar and cinnamon, making them tender, sweet, and hard to resist.
We made our own version with these air fryer apples. These are perfect for topping a bowl of oatmeal, a stack of air fryer french toast, over ice cream (with caramel sauce, obviously), or just as a simple side dish for breakfast or dinner!
If you want more apple recipes, try our air fryer apple chips, air fryer apple galette, or our apple pie egg roll recipe too!
We just shared our air fryer apple crisp last week and that’s a big hit too!
Ingredient Notes:
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Apples – You want two large baking apples for this recipe.
Sauce – We will use melted butter, brown sugar, ground cinnamon, and a pinch of salt to coat the apples.
The apples dry out a teeny bit while being cooked as the moisture in the apple evaporates. For this reason, you want the juiciest apples you can get!
Granny Smith and Honeycrisp apples are superb for this recipe and nearly any recipe where your apples will be cooked. You should find them very easy to find at your grocery store. Other options include braeburn or jonagold.
How to Make Air Fried Apples:
- Prep the apples– Peel and core the apples. Slice into wedges or dice your apples about ½ inch thick. Place the apples in a bowl and drizzle the melted butter over the top. Toss to coat.
- Fry the apples– Arrange your apples in your air fryer basket. Air fry at 400 degrees F for 12-15 minutes or until apples are tender and getting a bit brown around the edges. Timing will vary a bit depending on the size you cut your apples.
- Add the flavor– Remove the apples back to the butter bowl and sprinkle the brown sugar, cinnamon, and salt over the top. Stir to coat then serve!
Shop our Favorite Air Fryers!
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FAQ:
Granny Smith and Honeycrisp are the best in my opinion. The pro’s over at Bobs Red Mill wrote a good explanation of all the relevant types of apples if you would like more information.
Sure, but butter will have more flavor. I didn’t test the recipe using oil, but if you do use oil, it shouldn’t take more than a tablespoon.
Fried Apple Serving Ideas
These fried apples can be served as a side for breakfast with any breakfast meal I can think of! My husband considers them breakfast dessert! Pile them on French toast or pancakes, serve them over a bowl of oatmeal, or just serve them up next to a pile of bacon and eggs.
They are also superb served hot over the top of a scoop of French vanilla ice cream for an actual dessert. A little caramel drizzle doesn’t hurt either.
These go great with pork chops or country fried steak as well. Fried apples aren’t the most common side dish in my part of the country, but down south they’re much more common!
Comments & Reviews
Danielle Scarpello says
Can you refrigerate them after to continue to eat them or to make a head?
Karly Campbell says
Yep! I would reheat them in the microwave. 🙂
June Leathers says
I do see that Walmart carries presliced and peeled apples. Thanks. Now my last question about it would be since you mention 2 large apples how much of a 24 ounce bag of presliced and peeled would I use?
Karly says
I’m not sure, but the average apple weighs around 1/3 of a pound so you could go for a little over 2/3 of a pound of apples. 🙂
June Leathers says
Do they sell apples in the store that are already peeled and cored? I love warm apples. If they do that would be a good way to get more fruit into my diet. I’m going to have to try this receipe for sure!!
Karly says
Hi June! They do sell bags of pre-sliced apples at my local stores.