Air Fryer Baked Potatoes “bake” up in half the time of conventional baking so you can have the perfect side for dinner ready in only a fraction of the time! This easy to make recipe results in a deliciously soft interior and crispier exterior.
Honestly, I don’t know what I have been doing all these years making baked potatoes in the oven. Since making baked potatoes in the air fryer, I am not sure I will ever go back to the conventional method. How can you beat simple to make baked potatoes in only a fraction of the time.
In all honestly, we are eating baked potatoes more often now that they don’t take over an hour to make. Seriously, if you are here trying this method for the first time, you will be so happy you did this! I know, I was!
Why Air Fryer Baked Potatoes are better
Aside from the quicker cook time, making this classic side in the air fryer has other advantages too.
- Perfect texture, every time!
My absolute favourite thing about this cooking method is the soft, fluffy interior and crispy exterior skin. I always found that oven baking potatoes didn’t produce the crispy exterior I wanted. This is especially true if you wrap your potatoes in foil which causes them to steam while they cook. You don’t get this with the air fryer. The potatoes end up soft and tender inside and that skin crisps up to perfection!
I never used to eat the skin of the potato but when its crispy as it is in the air fryer, its hard to resist. And that’s a good thing because there are a lot of nutrients in potato skins.
- You don’t have to heat up the whole oven!
Yup, no need to heat up an entire oven for a few potatoes! I especially love that I don’t need to heat up the whole kitchen on a hot day in the dog days of summer. Definitely a plus. Aside from those advantages, it does free up the oven to be used for your main course. This is a huge plus, especially when different components of the meal all need to be baked at different temperatures!
- It cooks up quicker!
Okay, I know I have said this a few times already but it truly is such a win so I’m saying it again! Ha!
Tips for making the best baked potatoes in your air fryer
This recipe is as easy as they come and even a novice cook will be able to pull off this simple side dish. That said, there are a few things to keep in mind to ensure you get the tastiest baked potatoes!
- Wash your potatoes well and pat them dry. Since, you are going to want to eat these potatoes skin and all, after all.
- Coat them in a good oil. While you can pretty much use most oils in the air fryer, I personally like using olive oil as its a healthy choice. The oil will help make that tasty, crispy skin. I don’t use a lot- just enough to coat them.
- Season with salt. I give the potatoes a good sprinkle of salt because what doesn’t salt improve the taste of, huh?
- Prick your potatoes with a fork a few times each. While I have forgotten this step before and did not have a potato explode on me yet, to be safe I prick them a few times to make sure I can avoid a disaster.
- Test the potatoes are done with a fork. If you prick them with a fork and they are easily pierced, they are ready. If you are getting a lot of resistance, they are too hard and therefore undercooked inside. This cook time has worked for me for medium-largish potatoes but if you are baking with pretty big potatoes, test them to be sure.
What to serve with baked potatoes
The beauty of baked potatoes is that they are the perfect side for so many dishes, but you can also totally turn these into a lunch meal and load them up with toppings!
As a side, they go great with most meat and fish mains. You can enjoy the baked potatoes with just salt, pepper and a pat of butter but I like to add other toppings to jazz them up.
Classic toppings that go well with baked potatoes:
- fresh herbs, especially chives and parsley
- broccoli
- cheese -you can top them shredded cheese and pop them back in the air fryer for a couple minutes to melt the cheese or slather them in Queso Blanco!
- bacon
- sour cream
- green onion
Some other options for enjoying baked potatoes include:
- turning them into the main course by loading them up (for example, turning them into taco baked potatoes stuffed with taco beef, diced tomatoes, cheese and sour cream)
- transforming them into twice baked potatoes (I have a recipe for this coming real soon so stay tuned for this!)
- topping them with chili or thick stew for the ultimate comfort meal (I have also done this with Broccoli Cheddar Soup and it is SO GOOD!)
Can you reheat Air Fryer Baked Potatoes?
You absolutely can reheat these! To do so, pop them back into the air fryer and cook for 4-5 minutes or until they are heated through. The potato skins will lose its crispness when stored in the fridge but reheating them in the air fryer usually gets the crisp exterior back.
I hope you enjoy this recipe!
-Cathy
If you try this recipe, please leave a rating or comment below to let me know what you think!
You may also like:
Baked Potato Wedges
Slow Cooker Baked Potato Soup
Air Fryer Shrimp
Air Fryer Teriyaki Chicken
Air Fryer Baked Potatoes
Ingredients
- 2 russet potatoes
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- salt, to taste
Instructions
- Preheat air fryer to 400F.
- Meanwhile, wash potatoes and pat them dry. Prick the potatoes with a fork a few times each. Drizzle them with olive oil and rub so that they are well coated. Season them with salt.
- Cook the potatoes in the air fryer for 25-30 minutes or until they feel fork-tender (you can adjust the cook time depending on the size of your potatoes. When they are easily pierced with a fork, they are ready.)
Note: Metric ingredient measurements are provided as a courtesy using a third-party calculator and are rounded to the nearest unit. The recipes provided on this site have not been tested with metric measurements and their accuracy cannot be verified.
Nutrition
The nutritional information provided is based on third-party calculations and is an estimate only. Accurate nutritional facts will vary based on the particular brands used, portion sizes, measurement accuracy and more.
New favorite way to make baked potatoes! So easy and doesn’t heat up the house like the oven does, making it perfect for the heat wave we had here. The skin came out much better then when I bake them in the oven too!