Now that you’ve got an air fryer I’m guessing you’re exploring what kind of possibilities it provides. Being able to take french fries, chicken or spring rolls right out of the freezer, throw them in the air fryer, and have them ready to eat in a couple of minutes sounds tempting.
Doesn’t it? The only problem is that most packages don’t include cooking times for air fryers. In order to get the right results, you will have to convert cooking times. I’ve tried to gather information on frozen foods in the air fryer and here’s what I’ve found.
Can you cook frozen food in an air fryer? You can definitely cook frozen food in an air fryer but for the best results, you may have to tweak your air fryer settings just a bit. The air fryer cooks food faster than the oven, therefore, the time suggested on the package has to be adjusted to suit the air fryer. With frozen convenience foods such as spring rolls or nuggets, the rule of thumb is to use the same temperature as you would in an oven but cut cooking time in half (If the instructions on the package recommend 20 minutes at 400 degrees, you should only cook it for 10 minutes at 400 degrees in an air fryer).
I’ve included a cooking chart for frozen food in the article. Scroll down to find it. The chart shows cooking times and temperature for different frozen foods.
Most air fryers reach their limits at 400 degrees Fahrenheit. If the packaging says anything above 400 degrees, set the air fryer to 400 degrees and cut the time in half.
While the half-time rule has worked wonders for me and people all over the internet, some people prefer to only cut cooking times by 25% rather than 50%, however, with longer cooking times, the risk of overcooking would increase too.
One has to keep in mind that an air fryer is smaller than an oven and a very powerful heat source, allowing the air fryer to reach high temperatures very quickly. It might be better to start by cutting the cooking time by 50% and then add more time if the wished for results aren’t achieved.
Air Fryer Cooking Chart For Frozen Food
For even more guidance when cooking with the air fryer, you can use cooking charts to get an estimate of how long and at what temperature specific food should be cooked.
Because there isn’t a universal size for chicken breasts all over the world, the cooking chart may need to be adjusted depending on the size of your chicken breast or whatever it may be you are cooking. You don’t want to risk eating undercooked food, especially not poultry.
Here’s a cooking chart for frozen food in the air fryer.
| Type | Cooking Time | Temperature |
| Frozen Chicken Tenders | 10 minutes | 400F |
| Frozen Chicken Strips | 12 minutes | 390F |
| Frozen Onion Rings | 8-10 minutes | 400F |
| Frozen Hamburgers | 13 minutes | 360F |
| Frozen Sausage Rolls | 13 minutes | 360F |
| Frozen Fish Fingers | 8 minutes | 360F |
| Frozen French Fries (Thick) | 18 minutes | 400F |
| Frozen French Fries (Thin) | 14 minutes | 400F |
| Frozen Shrimp | 9 minutes | 400F |
| Frozen Chicken Breast | 20-25 minutes | 390F (Preheat)* |
| Frozen Pizza Rolls | 7 minutes | 380F |
| Frozen Corn Dogs | 10 minutes | 400F |
| Frozen Chicken Wings | 9 minutes | 400F |
| Frozen Mozzarella Sticks | 8 minutes | 400F |
| Frozen Burritos | 10 minutes | 400F |
| Frozen Tater Tots | 10 minutes | 400F |
*When cooking frozen food like chicken breast. I suggest you either preheat the air fryer or place the chicken breast in the air fryer for 5 minutes at 320F before you start cooking it at the recommended temperature.
Placing And Preparing Frozen Food In An Air Fryer
Even though the air fryer is a very simple appliance to use, it doesn’t come with guidelines for every situation.
Thanks to the pioneers who started using the air fryer and did their best to decipher it and all of its functions, we can use their tips and tricks to get the most out of our machines. With that said, I’m still discovering new methods and techniques of using the air fryer and I’ve had mine for years.
When cooking frozen foods in an air fryer, make sure to be generous with the space you give each piece of food. You want to spread them out as much as possible to prevent them from sticking to each other.
It is recommended that you shake the basket halfway through to keep the food from sticking to the basket.
When you’re done shaking the basket, make sure the food is separated again before you put it back in the air fryer. Some air fryers provide more space than others, but you’ll have to work with what you’ve got.
If you own an XL air fryer I’m sure you don’t have these problems. If you don’t own one, don’t worry, there are accessories to solve your problem.
Another thing to take note of is the risk of losing the texture of the food if its air fried when frozen, this only applies to frozen food that isn’t breaded or wrapped.
You want to prevent the food from changing texture as it may alter the taste as well. There’s an easy solution for this and it comes in many different flavors.
You need to moisturize frozen food that isn’t breaded or wrapped before cooking it in the air fryer.
This is done by applying a sauce or dressing to your frozen food before cooking, that way some moisture is present when cooking. The sauce will keep the food from getting a dry texture and also enhance its flavors.
Converting Recipes To Make Them Air Fryer Friendly
Food packages don’t have instructions for air fryers yet, so as the owner of an air fryer, you’ll have to convert the recipes to make them more suitable for the air fryer.
You should not follow the cooking instructions for an oven or a microwave when cooking in an air fryer. The results will most likely be terrible if you do.
If you don’t trust the same temperature, half the time-rule or can’t seem to get the results you want by using it, you can always try another method.
Until air fryers have their own cooking instructions on the products, we will have to craft our own. Here’s an online calculator that converts your recipes from conventional oven to air fryer.
It’s easy, you just take the traditional recipe (cooking instructions) and give the calculator the information it needs.
It will instantly tell you what you need to tweak to cook the dish with an air fryer. It’s a very useful tool, after a while you’ll get the hang of it and you’ll be able to convert your own recipes on the go.
Here’s a list of other things you can do to get the best results when cooking with an air fryer
- Shake the basket halfway through or every 5-9 minutes to make sure the food is cooked evenly. It’s important that all sides of the food are exposed to the hot air circulating the air fryer.
- Don’t stack frozen foods on top of each other. Instead, give them space so the air can flow through. Stacking food will prevent it from being cooked thoroughly.
- Take the size and power of the air fryer into consideration. Larger air fryers are often more powerful than the smaller, lower wattage air fryers. It’s a relatively small difference between them but it might be good to be aware of it.
- The universal rule of thumb: Same temperature, half the time.
- Open up the basket to check on the food to avoid overcooking it.
Related Questions
Can you cook frozen vegetables in an air fryer? Yes, you can cook frozen vegetables in an air fryer. Cooking vegetables in an air fryer makes them delicious and easier to feed to kids who usually don’t eat enough greens. Sprinkle your favorit spices on the vegetables and you’ve got a very healthy, low-calorie snack. Follow the instructions on the packaging and use the same temperature, half the time rule when cooking them.
Should I preheat my air fryer? Unlike a conventional oven, the air fryer does not need to preheat. By preheating the air fryer you would cut the cooking time down by very little. Unless there seems to be a specific reason to preheat the air fryer, you can just go ahead and place your ingredients in the air fryer and hit start. Some products will benefit from gradually coming up to temperature.