18 Great Keto Air Fryer Recipes To Try
It's 2020, the year of ... well, lots of things. But when it comes to new kitchen gadgets, it's the year of the air fryer. Surely your Instant Pot is still getting some play, but these days, it's all about the air fryer. Air fryers are a great way to enjoy just about every course of every meal—including dessert!—with minimal meal prep time You can achieve crispiness and crunchiness with far less oil in less time, with less cleanup.
Combining air fryer recipes with the ketogenic diet is the next logical step if you've been getting bored with your go-to recipes. It's just a matter of choosing your ingredients wisely and finding the right recipes to make your keto dreams come true. You can air fry just about anything, giving you tons of room for creativity, and with everyone still stuck at home, you're probably craving a change of pace.
We've collected our favorite 18 keto air fryer recipes to help you get started. We've got your proteins, your sides, and your desserts covered in this mega list of low-carb recipes tailored for your air fryer.
Air Fryer Meat and Seafood Recipes
#1 Air Fryer Chicken Wings
A party classic by Iowa Girl Eats, what's better than a platter full of chicken wings, crudités, and some yummy low-carb dips? Make a big batch and then reheat the leftovers right back where you started, in the air fryer, to get your leftovers just as crispy as your first batch.
Get the recipe here.
#2 Easy Air Fryer Marinated Steak
Steak might not be the first thing you associate with an air fryer, but this delicious air fryer steak recipe by Stay Snatched offers just that. They've even helped you out with the perfect marinade, and with a cook time of just ten minutes, you'll be enjoying it in no time
Get the recipe here.
#3 Air Fryer Scallops with Tomato Cream Sauce
If you've ever cooked your own scallops, you know that they run the risk of turning out chewy and overcooked. But the folks at Two Sleevers have found a solution: the air fryer. An added bonus: this recipe includes your veggies too—load up with creamy spinach when you enjoy this dish
Get the recipe here.
#4 Keto Crispy Fried Shrimp
Don't worry, we weren't going to skip out on keto breading entirely. This fried shrimp by How to This and That features an almond flour-based breading that works perfectly for the paleo diet as well. The authors of this recipe are so sure you'll love it that they recommend doubling the batch if you're a true seafood lover. And again, if you find yourself with leftovers, warm them in the air fryer to achieve the crispiness of the original batch!
Get the recipe here.
#5 Keto Air Fryer Fish Sticks
Fish sticks are a classic favorite for kids and adults alike. This recipe by My Life Cookbook is no exception, and they're ready in just 15 minutes. Dress them up with a fancy keto-friendly aoili or serve them to the kids with ketchup!
Get the recipe here.
#6 Crispy Keto Fried Chicken in the Air Fryer
Allrecipes created the fried chicken recipe of all fried chicken recipes. Use this low-carb batter and your air fryer as a roadmap for frying chicken breasts, chicken thighs, chicken nuggets, or chicken strips. Just adjust your cook time based on the size of your pieces, and make sure they're not touching each other in the fryer to maximize the crunch. Toss them in Frank's for the perfect fried buffalo chicken.
Get the recipe here.
Air Fryer Side/Snack Recipes
One of the main deterrents for following a healthy diet is the notion that you can't enjoy any of your favorite foods. The air fryer has turned that idea on its head, giving you the recipes we've compiled here. You can fill an entire party platter with the spoils of the keto recipes below, and your guests would never know they were eating low-carb
#7 Crispy Bacon-Wrapped Avocado Slices
If you thought avocados would get destroyed in an air fryer, think again. And when you wrap them in bacon, you have the most heavenly keto treat you could possibly imagine. Air fryer bacon is certainly among the first things new air fryer owners try out, but when the folks at Keto Focus added in the avocado, we swooned.
Get the recipe here.
#8 Air Fryer Biscuits
Have you been enjoying an occasional keto cloud bread? If so, this recipe is 100% for you. Keto Connect has found a way to make the perfect keto biscuits in the air fryer. The recipe is simple with whole food ingredients, giving you the flexibility to make these biscuits a side dish or even a morning breakfast.
Get the recipe here.
#9 Keto Jalapeño Poppers
Jalapeño poppers are a fried party appetizer classic right up there with buffalo wings and onion rings. This recipe is by That Low Carb Life.
Get the recipe here.
#10 Low Carb Onion Rings
When you started your keto diet, did you think your days of enjoying onion rings were over? Well Keto Connect will have you rethinking that idea. The breading is made with parmesan cheese and crushed pork rinds, and with the crispiness of an air fryer, you won't believe this snack is healthy.
Get the recipe here.
#11 Low Carb Air Fryer Cauliflower Tots
We love that cauliflower works incredibly well as a low-carb stand-in for so many high-carb foods. These tots by The Sugarfree Diva fit that bill perfectly. They do feature a special ingredient that you should order in advance, a low-carb bread crumb mix by Apple Foods, so plan ahead for this one.
Get the recipe here.
#12 Air Fryer Brussels Sprouts with Garlic Parmesan
Fried Brussels Sprouts have been gracing the menus of fancy farm to table restaurants for years at this point. But making them at home has always seemed like a hassle until now. The air fryer makes this restaurant favorite a home-cooking possibility, and All Day I Dream About Food has provided the road map.
Get the recipe here.
#13 Fried Pickles
Dill pickles on their own are already a pretty standard keto snack. But frying a pickle takes it to a whole new place. You can fry a pickle any way you slice it. Whether you want coin-shaped medallions or pickle spears, when you air fry dill pickles covered in "pork panko" (ie, crushed up pork rinds), you kind of can't go wrong.
Get the recipe here.
#14 Keto Low-Carb Cinnamon Donut
This recipe also requires a special keto-friendly flour mix, which you can find here. The folks at Linneyville swear by the stuff and have concocted a donut that looks, feels, and tastes like its high-carb, high-sugar cousin. And at just two net carbs per donut, we predict you won't stop at just one
Get the recipe here.
#15 Fried Cheesecake Bites
You might be thinking you've seen enough keto recipes for cheesecake. But if you haven't tried this one by Easy Keto Dishes, you haven't seen enough just yet. Featuring cream cheese, erythritol sweetener, heavy cream, and coated with almond flour, you won't believe these bite-sized treats fit your keto diet
Get the recipe here.
#16 Sugar-Free Air Fried Chocolate Donut Holes
This gluten-free recipe by The Sugar-Free Diva is a bit of chocolate heaven in every bite. Just make sure you leave enough space between the balls of dough in your air fryer basket to make sure you don't end up with one giant donut.
Get the recipe here.
#17 Keto Chocolate Chip Cookie For One
The beauty of the air fryer is that it's easy cleanup and perfect for cooking for one, even single-serving desserts like this cookie recipe by Keto Focus. Sweetened with monk fruit, this recipe only takes a few minutes to put together and 6 minutes to cook
Get the recipe here.
#18 Air Fryer Keto Blueberry Muffins
Fork to Spoon uses silicone molds to create these amazing blueberry muffins, but a muffin tin works too. It just depends on what style of air fryer you have and whether your tin will fit. Either way, it only takes five minutes to bake/fry these yummies, which work great as breakfast, a snack, or dessert.
Get the recipe here.
The Most Important Tip For Successful Air Frying
Whether you're looking to prepare a quick snack like kale chips or an elaborate, multi-course dinner of pork chops, fried zucchini, and a decadent dessert, the air fryer really is your new best friend in the kitchen. It cooks proteins evenly, keeps the crispy bits crispy, and bakes breads and cakes in no time flat.
But the most important tip to remember is to keep your batches small and flat in your air fryer basket. By cooking your donut holes or chicken wings or meatballs in one single layer at a time, you'll ensure that everything crisps up the way you want it to and nothing comes out soggy or underdone.
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Toni Sicola
Toni is a wellness professional with a Master's in Integrative Health, is passionate about spreading health, happiness, and personal fulfillment to as many people as possible. She has a professional background in health and wellness, dietary supplements, and nutrition, and embarks every day to live a well, balanced, happy life.
Published: February 2, 2021
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