An air fryer’s ability to use heated air instead of heated oil to deliver crispy chicken wings, chicken nuggets and french fries is magical. Plus it can revive cold slices of pizza to just-out-of-the-pizza-oven perfection. But if you’re using your air fryer solely for these purposes, you’re missing out on its full potential. Namely, cooking food from frozen, which can help you get dinner on the table, particularly if you forgot to thaw what you planned to make for dinner!
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We chatted with Christine Pittman, a recipe blogger and podcaster who has tried cooking just about everything imaginable from frozen in her air fryer, and Kathy Hester, author of the cookbook Vegan Cooking in Your Air Fryer and self-proclaimed “appliance whisperer,” for their best tips and tricks.
While Pittman doesn’t like to generalize, she does offer this guidance: “For frozen meats, fish and poultry, the rule of thumb is to cook the items for 1½ times as long as you would cook the same food, if it wasn’t frozen.” Frozen veggies will take longer, too. Hester suggests checking frequently when cooking a vegetable from frozen for the first time.
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Now let’s dig into the specifics! Here are eight frozen foods you may not have thought of to cook in your air fryer, according to these experts.
1. Frozen Chicken Leg Quarters
“The skin on chicken leg quarters get nice and crispy in the air fryer, even from frozen, therefore you don’t need to do much to them at all,” Pittman explains. She suggests putting them skin-side down in a single layer in your air-fryer basket and cooking at 370°F for 20 minutes. Then brush both sides with a little melted butter or oil, sprinkle with salt and pepper, and cook them skin-side up at 400° until an instant-read thermometer inserted in the thickest part without touching bone registers 165°, 25 to 30 minutes more.
2. Frozen Pork Loin
“For a larger piece of meat, like a pork loin roast, it’s best to start it at a lower temperature to help it thaw, then turn it up to finish cooking,” Pittman says. She suggests starting at 300° and cooking it for 10 minutes per pound, then increasing the heat to 400° and cooking until an instant-read thermometer inserted in the thickest part registers 145°, 8 to 12 minutes more per pound.
3. Frozen Fish Fillets
Fish is one of the best proteins to cook in the air fryer. And while the appliance cooks it perfectly unadorned, why not also harness its superpower for delivering crispy crusts and make a quick topping for it? “Mix up some panko breadcrumbs with seasonings of your choice. Brush the tops of the frozen fish fillets with something to help the crumbs stick, such as mayonnaise, tartar sauce, a bit of yellow mustard or some oil. Then sprinkle with the breadcrumbs,” Pittman suggests. Cook the fillets from frozen at 370° until an instant-read thermometer inserted in the thickest part registers 145° and the breadcrumbs are golden brown, 12 to 14 minutes.
4. Frozen Salmon Portions
You could, of course, cook salmon like she suggests above, but when it comes to this omega-3-rich fish, Pittman has this recommendation. “Season the fillets and lightly coat in oil. Put them skin-side down and cook the salmon at 300° for 6 minutes,” she says. “Then increase the temperature to 400° and cook until the internal temperature at the thickest point is 145°, 7 to 10 minutes more.” Here’s where it gets interesting. Pittman suggests taking the salmon out of the air fryer and removing the skin. “It should come off easily in a single piece,” she notes. “Then put the skin back into the air-fryer basket, weigh it down with a heat-safe trivet or rack and cook at 400° until it's crispy, 2 to 3 minutes.” Who knew the crispy skin can be the tastiest part of this familiar fish?
5. Frozen Meatballs
Fully cooked meatballs that are individually frozen are great, as you can pull out just exactly what you need for dinner that night. “Pop them into the air fryer at 400° for 8 to 10 minutes,” says Pittman. Frozen raw meatballs can cook at the same temperature, but typically need to cook for 12 to 15 minutes. If your meatballs have frozen into a clump, Pittman has this advice: “Start at 300° for 5 minutes and then separate them. Cook at 400° until heated through and brown, 7 to 10 minutes.” Add them to your favorite marinara sauce, stuff into a meatball sandwich or eat them as they are.
6. Frozen Broccoli & Cauliflower
Pittman says broccoli and cauliflower are her go-to vegetables for air-frying. She likes to toss them with seasoning and give them a light spritz of cooking oil before popping them in the air fryer at 400° for 8 to 10 minutes. After about 6 minutes, though the veggies are typically thawed, she says, they may be “a tad mushy at the thicker stems.” But something magical happens a few minutes later, when it starts to resemble roasted broccoli or cauliflower you’d make from fresh, with some singed spots.
7. Frozen Whole Brussels Sprouts
Hester suggests cooking whole frozen Brussels sprouts in the air fryer at 400° for about 10 minutes and then tossing with your favorite sauce before serving. We think a little balsamic vinegar and maple syrup, Lemon-Garlic Vinaigrette or Spicy Tamarind Sauce would be delicious!
8. Frozen Corn on the Cob
“Corn on the cob is magical in the air fryer,” Hester shares. “Toss it with a little garlic powder and chili powder, cook it for 5 minutes at 400°, turn it and cook it for 5 minutes more. Some of the corn will get a nice char on it,” she says.
