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Air Fryer Baked Potatoes give you that steakhouse-perfect crispy salted skin and fluffy inside in a fraction of the oven time, and I make a batch almost every Sunday so Maddie and Lizzie can pile on their own toppings for a build-your-own potato bar. If you love a classic oven baked potato, the air fryer version is faster and just as crispy.
With just three ingredients and no oven to heat up, this is the easiest way to get perfectly crispy, fluffy baked potatoes any night of the week.
Air Fryer Baked Potatoes Quick Look
- 🕒 Prep Time: 5 minutes
- 🌡️ Cook Time: 40 minutes
- ⏳ Total Time: 45 minutes
- 🍽️ Serving: 3 potatoes
- ⚡ Calories: 189kcal
- 🌶️ Flavor Profile: Crispy salted skin with a light, fluffy interior
- ✋ Difficulty: Easy, on par with our air fryer hot pockets
Quick Answer
Wash and dry russet potatoes, prick them a few times with a fork, then brush with olive oil and sprinkle generously with kosher salt. Air fry at 400 degrees for 25 minutes, flip, and cook another 15 minutes until fork tender. Let them rest 5 minutes, then slice open, fluff, and add your favorite toppings.
Jump to:
- Air Fryer Baked Potatoes Quick Look
- Quick Answer
- Why This Recipe Works
- Why You’ll Love This Recipe
- Key Ingredients
- Variations and Substitutions
- How to Make Air Fryer Baked Potatoes
- Recipe Tips & Tricks
- Serving Ideas and Suggestions
- Air Fryer Baked Potatoes FAQs
- Other Recommended Air Fryer Recipes
- Air Fryer Baked Potatoes
Why This Recipe Works
Click to see the technique science
- The air fryer crisps the skin like magic. Circulating hot air gives you that crackly, salted steakhouse skin without heating up the whole oven.
- Olive oil and salt are the secret. Brushing with oil and a generous sprinkle of kosher salt is what makes the skin crispy and seasoned through.
- Pricking lets steam escape. A few fork pokes keep the potatoes from bursting and help the insides steam up light and fluffy.
- It is faster than the oven. No long preheat and a quicker cook time mean baked potatoes in about 45 minutes, mostly hands-off.
- Just three ingredients. Potatoes, oil, and salt are all you need for the perfect base; the toppings are where you get creative.
- Perfectly fluffy every time. Air frying cooks them evenly, so you get a fluffy interior without a gummy or undercooked center.
Why You’ll Love This Recipe
- Crispy skin and fluffy insides with barely any effort.
- No need to heat up the oven, perfect for warm days.
- A blank canvas for a build-your-own loaded potato bar.
- It earns a spot in the rotation right next to our baked potato chips.
- It delivers that same everyone asks for seconds energy as our slow cooker baked potatoes.
Key Ingredients
Here is all you need for air fryer baked potatoes. It is a short, simple list.
- Russet potatoes: their thick skin crisps up beautifully and the starchy inside bakes fluffy.
- Olive oil: brushed on for a crispy, golden skin and to help the salt stick.
- Kosher salt: a generous sprinkle seasons the skin and helps draw out moisture for crispiness.
- Your favorite toppings: butter, sour cream, cheese, bacon, and chives turn these into a meal.
- An air fryer: the tool that makes the skin extra crispy in less time than the oven.
See recipe card for exact quantities.
Variations and Substitutions
These potatoes are a blank canvas. Here are a few ways to enjoy them.
- Loaded baked potatoes: top with cheese, bacon, sour cream, and chives.
- Make them a meal: pile on chili, broccoli and cheese, or pulled pork.
- Try sweet potatoes: the same method works; just check a few minutes early.
- Smaller potatoes: use Yukon Golds or small reds and reduce the cook time.
- Extra crispy skin: rub with a little more oil and salt before air frying.
- Prefer the oven? Try our oven crispy baked potatoes instead.
- In the mood for something different? Our grilled potato salad scratches a similar itch.
- If you want to switch things up, our air fryer chicken thighs plays on similar flavors in a whole new way.
How to Make Air Fryer Baked Potatoes
- Wash and dry the potatoes, prick them a few times with a fork, then brush all over with olive oil.
- Sprinkle generously all over with kosher salt for crispy skin.
- Air fry at 400 degrees for 25 minutes, then flip and cook 15 minutes more until fork tender.
- Rest 5 minutes, slice across the top, fluff the inside with a fork, and add your toppings.
Recipe Tips & Tricks
- Dry the potatoes well before oiling so the skin crisps instead of steams.
- Do not skip pricking the potatoes, or steam can build up and cause them to burst.
- Leave space between potatoes in the basket so the air circulates for even cooking.
- Use plenty of salt on the oiled skin; it is what gives that steakhouse crust.
- Check for doneness with a fork; if there is resistance, cook 3 to 5 minutes more.
- Let them rest 5 minutes before slicing so the insides finish steaming and fluff up.
- Make it a full spread. Our air fryer breakfast sausage links rounds out the table.
Serving Ideas and Suggestions
Air fryer baked potatoes are the ultimate build-your-own dinner. Set out bowls of butter, sour cream, shredded cheese, crispy bacon, chives, and broccoli and let everyone load up their own.
They are also a perfect side for almost any main. Serve them alongside a grilled steak, our steak kabobs, or a rotisserie chicken for an easy, comforting meal.
Got leftovers? Store cooled potatoes in the fridge for up to 4 days. Reheat them right in the air fryer for a few minutes to bring back the crispy skin, or microwave for speed.
Air Fryer Baked Potatoes FAQs
Russet potatoes are the classic choice. Their thick skin crisps up beautifully and their high-starch, fluffy interior is exactly what you want in a baked potato. You can use Yukon Golds or red potatoes too, but they will be creamier and may need a little less time.
Yes, prick each potato three or four times with a fork before cooking. This lets steam escape as they cook, which keeps them from bursting in the air fryer and helps the insides bake up light and fluffy.
Medium russet potatoes take about 40 minutes total at 400 degrees, cooking 25 minutes, flipping, then 15 minutes more. Larger potatoes may need a few extra minutes. They are done when a fork slides easily into the center.
Yes. Air fry them fully, let them cool, and store in the fridge for up to 4 days. Reheat in the air fryer at 350 degrees for a few minutes to re-crisp the skin, or microwave for a faster, softer result. They are great for meal prep.
The most common reasons are wet skin or not enough oil and salt. Pat the potatoes completely dry, brush them with olive oil, and salt them generously. Also leave space between them in the basket so the hot air can circulate and crisp the skin.
Flipping once halfway through helps the potatoes cook and crisp evenly on all sides, so it is worth doing. If your air fryer cooks very evenly you can skip it, but you may get slightly more browning on the bottom.
Still filling out the menu? Readers love pairing this one with our stuffed taco baked potatoes, air fryer turkey bacon, Grilled Chicken Sandwich, and Bloomin Onion Sauce.
And when you are planning next week’s dinners, our Smashed Potatoes, bacon in the air fryer, Homemade Potato Chips, and homemade corned beef hash keep the same easy comfort going.
Air Fryer Baked Potatoes
Ingredients
- 3 russet potatoes
- ½ tbsp olive oil
- ½ tsp kosher salt
Instructions
- Preheat your air fryer to 400°F.
- Wash and scrub the potatoes thoroughly under running water, then pat them dry. Prick each potato 3-4 times with a fork to allow steam to escape while cooking. Brush each potato with olive oil and sprinkle generously with kosher salt for extra crispy skin.3 russet potatoes, ½ tbsp olive oil, ½ tsp kosher salt
- Place the potatoes in the air fryer basket in a single layer, ensuring at least ½ inch of space to allow air flow between them for even cooking. Air fry for 25 minutes. Flip and cook an additional 15 minutes until fork tender.
- Check for doneness by inserting a fork into the center. If it’s tender, they’re ready. If there is any resistance, cook for an additional 3-5 minutes and check again.
- Let the potatoes cool for 5 minutes. Slice across the top lengthwise then squeeze the sides toward the center. Fluff the insides with a fork and top with your favorite toppings.
Video
Notes
- Go classic with butter or pile on the toppings—rich, melty cheddar, cool and tangy sour cream, crispy, smoky bacon, and a sprinkle of fresh zesty chives.
- Use Yukon Gold or red potatoes for a creamier potato. They will take less time, however.
- Sweet potatoes can also be made in the air fryer
- Make heartier with chili, shredded BBQ chicken, beans, or broccoli and cheddar cheese.
Nutrition
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These look and taste amazing – Thanks for the recipe!