Is It Really Necessary To Preheat Your Air Fryer Every Time?

Preheating is generally an important step when it comes to cooking. Whether it's an oven or a stovetop skillet, we preheat our appliances so that when our food goes in, it starts to cook right away. Most air fryer instructions advise preheating as well, but I'm the first to admit that I sometimes skip preheating when I'm in a hurry or just really hungry. There's no clear-cut answer as to whether or not this is downright wrong, but most experts agree that, if your air fryer instructions – or a specific recipe – recommends preheating, you're probably going to get the best results if you do.

With that said, it can be difficult to tell if those extra few minutes affect the quality of your food, unless you do a real-time, side-by-side test. In the end, if your food comes out crispy, browned, and properly cooked, it's a success, whether you preheated your air fryer or not. When I don't preheat my air fryer, I find that cooking my food for a couple of extra minutes gives me good results. Some of the foods I often cook in this appliance (and don't preheat) include roasted potatoes, broccoli, Brussels sprouts, and leftover pizza slices. Some foods, though, like those that are larger or benefit from a good sear, will turn out better if you take the standard three to five minutes to preheat your air fryer.

To preheat or not to preheat: That is the question. Consider the specific food you're cooking if you're ever in doubt about preheating your air fryer. For example, things like steaks, hamburgers, and fried chicken wings all benefit from preheating because as soon as you place the food on the preheated surface, it should start to sear, improving color and flavor. Frozen foods that are better with a very crisp exterior, like French fries, pizza rolls, mozzarella sticks, and chicken nuggets or tenders, also may cook up better in a preheated fryer, as the hot air will start to cook and crisp the outside of the food immediately.

Baked potatoes cook easily and turn out excellent in an air fryer. Preheating the appliance for this dish can help to crisp up the outer skin. If you like crispy skin on your salmon filets, place them in a preheated air fryer basket. For bacon, it also helps to cook it in an air fryer that's already hot, so it will begin to sear on the bottom right away. When it comes to baking, preheating your air fryer is about as necessary as it is if you were baking in an oven because the right heat can affect proper rising in things like cakes, cookies, and muffins.