These steps for making an air fryer baked potato couldn't be easier! The air fryer helps produce fluffy side dish potatoes with perfectly crisp skin, all in less time than the oven.
I'm not an early adopter by any means when it comes to kitchen trends. Having mulled over potentially buying an air fryer for months (over a year?), it took our slightly-busted, hand-me-down toaster physically falling apart for me to finally upgrade.
And upgrade I did.
I went with an air fryer/toaster oven combo that has become a kitchen workhorse. While it has a bigger countertop footprint than my old toaster, the air fry capability (which it has in addition to toasting, baking, broiling) has been my most-used. I like that this style has a window where I can watch things cooking, and the basket has a nicely-sized surface area.
After four months of air frying practice I feel confident sharing my first recipe on here, so let's start off with something straight-forward: an air fryer baked potato.
Why Use the Air Fryer for Baked Potatoes?
When it comes to baked potatoes, the air fryer is a nice middle ground between using the oven and the microwave.
While microwave baked potatoes are fast, their skin lacks a satisfying crispness. And while you get that crisp skin on a traditional baked potato made in the oven, they take quite a long time to cook.
Enter the air fryer. With air fryer baked potatoes, you get crisp, dry skin in around half the amount of cook time. All this in addition to freeing up oven space to make other parts of dinner if you need it.
Recipe Ingredients
This one's simple! In addition to your air fryer, you'll need:
- Russet potatoes
- Olive oil
- Salt
- Butter/sour cream/chives/green onions/etc. (a.k.a. your favorite baked potato toppings)
In my experience, I've found russet potatoes in a wide variety of sizes, from tiny to massive. In order for all of your potatoes to cook in the same amount of time, I recommend picking potatoes that are as similarly-sized as you can.
The potatoes you see here are between six-ish and seven ounces each. You may need to increase the air fry cook time slightly depending on if your potatoes are bigger.
Step-by-Step Instructions
- Prick with a fork. Do this all over each potato once they've been scrubbed and dried. This prevents them from bursting in the air fryer and creating a mess.
- Brush with olive oil. Or a neutral-flavored cooking oil of your choice.
- Season. I just add kosher salt at this stage and herbs later on to serve.
- Air fry. Set air fryer to 375°F and air fry for 20 minutes. Then flip the potatoes and air fry for another 15 minutes, or until a fork or knife can easily be inserted into the potato and the skin has crisped to your liking.
Quick Method
Even though making a baked potato in the air fryer saves some time when compared to the oven, it still takes around 35 minutes (for 6-7 ounce potatoes).
When pressed for time I like to do a mash-up technique, starting the potatoes off in the microwave and then finishing them in the air fryer. This way you get the speediness from the microwave, all while the potatoes develop that perfectly fluffy interior with a crisp and dry skin. To make a baked potato in the air fryer after the microwave:
- Prick holes. Start by scrubbing and drying, then pricking holes all over the potatoes.
- Microwave. Place potatoes in the microwave and cook them for two-and-a-half minutes. I picked this time since it's half the time of my microwave's automatic potato setting.
- Brush and season. Brush the potatoes with oil and sprinkle kosher salt. Be careful when doing this as the potatoes will be very hot.
- Air fry. They'll need about 10 minutes, give or take. With this microwave/air fryer combo method I find they don't even need to be flipped.
Recipe Tips and Tricks
- This recipe was made and tested in a Cuisinart air fryer/toaster oven combo. Different air fryer models may require more or less time to cook fully.
- Be careful if cooking very large potatoes as you don't want them to get too close to the upper heating element. Opt for more medium-sized potatoes.
- As always, follow all safety guidelines for your particular air fryer model.
Recipe FAQs
Per Idaho Potato, potatoes are perfectly baked when the interior reaches 210°F (99°C). That sounds a little finicky because it's not a food safety guideline or anything, but it's helpful to know if you're impatient and tend to pull them a little too early (like me), or if you have potatoes of varying sizes.
Set the air fryer to a low temperature (325°F or so) and air fry for several minutes, or until hot throughout. You can also bake them, though they'll take much longer to reheat. Don't cover the dish or wrap them in foil so the skin gets a chance to dry/crisp up again. And of course microwaving will work in a pinch, but you'll lose the crispness of the skin.
What to Eat with Baked Potatoes
- A date night at home favorite, the sauce on these rosemary balsamic pork chops is seriously something special.
- Mashed or baked are my choice side dishes for grilled flat iron steak.
- Instant Pot ribs are an excellent option if you'd like to speed up both your main dish and side dish.
- Classic meatloaf gets a big flavor upgrade in this balsamic meatloaf recipe, featuring lots of sautéed veggies.
More Air Fryer Recipes
If you’ve enjoyed this recipe, I’d love for you to leave a star rating in the recipe card and/or a comment review below!
Air Fryer Baked Potato
Ingredients
- 4 medium russet potatoes (see note on sizes/times)
- Olive oil for brushing
- Kosher salt to taste
- Your favorite toppings (butter, chives, sour cream, etc.)
Instructions
- Scrub potatoes and pat dry. Prick potatoes 8-10 times all over with a fork.
- Brush all sides of the potatoes with olive oil, then sprinkle with kosher salt.
- Spray basket of air fryer with your preferred cooking spray, then evenly space potatoes on it.
- Set air fryer to 375°F (191°C) and air fry for 20 minutes.
- After 20 minutes, carefully flip each potato over and air fry for another 15 minutes.
- Potatoes are done when the potato skin is dry and has crisped up, and the potato underneath is tender to your liking. They may require more cook time depending upon your air fryer model/preferences. I test the center of the potato with an instant-read thermometer: 210°F (99°C) is the ideal baked potato temperature for fluffiness.
- Immediately serve with your desired toppings, such as butter, chives, sour cream, bacon crumbles, etc.
Notes
Nutrition
Nutritional information is provided as an estimate. As it can vary due to many factors (brands used, quantities, etc.), we cannot guarantee its accuracy.
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ED says
SOUNDS GOOD. TIME FOR DINNER. LATER
Maria P Goede says
I'm brand new to the Foodi Air Fryer/Toaster Oven world and although I have only tried a couple of modest recipes, I am confused as to when to use the sheet pan with the basket and/or rack. Any clues I may adopt?
Alyssa says
Hi Maria, I use the basket on top of the sheet pan as that's the recommended way in my Cuisinart air fryer/toaster oven instruction manual. The sheet pan will safely catch any drips that might fall through the basket in certain recipes, preventing a messy oven in the process.
Gemma says
I have never tried straight up potatoes in our air fryer, but yours look so delicious and fluffy! I really need to try them, as I love using my air dryer wherever I can x
Alyssa says
It's such a fun tool!