Best air fryer vegetable recipes you’ll want to make every night with dinner. How to make healthy low carb cauliflower, broccoli, brussels, zucchini & more! Let’s start with our most popular air fryer vegetables recipe that everyone loves and go from there….
Ready for a few air fryer vegetable recipes to serve with your meal tonight? We have a ton to choose from that adults and kids will love. I bet you’ll ask for seconds too from this air fryer recipe list. (affiliate links present)
Why We Love Vegetable Air Fryer Recipes
Why do we love this method so much, oh let me count the ways. There is nothing like it, other than spending a bunch of money at a fancy restaurant to get it like this. This method;
- Gives a crisp to the outsides without having to submerge them in oil.
- May make your children love greens, I kid you not.
- Allow you to eat healthier
- and cook quicker!
You can serve any and all of these with any main dish, you can make in this machine too. Corn or beans along side air fryer popcorn chicken is amazing and the list goes on and on.
Ninja Foodi Vegetable Recipes
I think the reason why this is such a hit is it is super cheap to make, number one. It comes out perfectly every time with perfect browning on the outside and bold flavors like Old Bay and more.
Easy Air Fryer Vegetables Recipes
You can add a ton of different seasonings on it too like making it into a Mediterranean roasted vegetables in air fryer dish even.
Can you steam vegetables in an air fryer?
Well, kinda’. There are certain greens that are tougher than others, like air fryer broccolini. Those require a bit of water underneath the air fryer basket.
- I had to do this when cooking broccoli in an air fryer.
- In the first attempt I didn’t, and it wasn’t tender enough inside for me.
- With just a bit of water added under the basket, into the drawer itself made all the difference.
- That helps when you make air fryer artichokes too.
To cook frozen vegetables in air fryer it is easier than ever. We make air fryer frozen cauliflower all the time and you’d never know it wasn’t fresh to begin with. Things like air fryer beets get nice and tender with a good helping of olive oil tossed into the mix.
There was one other time when I thought this method was needed, with cabbage. That is on the firmer side and although you want it to stay that way a bit, it needed steam to become a bit more tender.
Can you cook any vegetable in Air Fryer?
Yes anything in the produce section works in there. There are a lot of different models out there but almost all electric air fryer machines have a small space like you see above. It is underneath the basket when you lift it out. Then replace and cook as directed.
- The only one I have that doesn’t offer this option is our large air fryer that has racks instead of a basket.
- All of them can cook fresh and even frozen like we did with these air fryer frozen asparagus recipe.
You can try our popular air fryer cabbage steaks right here. If you’ve ignored this “old fashioned” veggie in the past, it’s time to air fry it!
What is the best thing to fry in an air fryer?
Everything comes out healthier this way but veggies are great because you really can’t mess them up. Everyone wants them tender but adding some texture to the edges is even better. A bit of crisp makes any and all of them go from good to amazing.
Now why is this method better than deep frying? I don’t really think I need to explain why less oil is better but I do in our air fryer benefits post.
Yes having olive oil spray is a must but not submerging required.
- Yes it took us a while to get the hang of this machine but once we did we now air fry everything. I am serious.
- To help you out so you can make less fried food and air fry veggies more, print out our air fryer cook times chart.
- It has times for all sort of main dishes and easy side dishes too
- All you need is a little spritz on top now to brown the top like air fryer acorn squash and other items.
Now let’s move on to how to cook the best brussel sprouts in an air fryer! Yes you can just use salt and pepper but our sauce has a bit of lemon too.
Should you pre heat your air fryer to cook vegetables?
My opinion is yes. It is important to do so because your food will then cook at the correct temp. the entire time. Especially for really crispy things like air fryer spinach chips it is a must.
How do you preheat Ninja air fryer?
This machine doesn’t automatically set to the usual 5 minutes so you’ll need to do it. Just close the air crisp lid (attached), set to temp. for 5 minutes. Once it beeps it is ready.
- I have a ton of easy Ninja Foodi recipes you can try.
- All of our air fryer recipes can be made in that as well as smaller versions.
- If you only have an Instant Pot you can use the CrispLid but I will be honest and say it won’t crisp as evenly.
Now let’s talk about other roasted veggies in our hot air machine like sweet potato in the air fryer! We also share how to cook air fryer baked potatoes here. Both are great dinner options.
Can you air fry frozen vegetables?
I guess so, but other than air fryer corn I just think fresh is SO much better and rarely buy them frozen.
- Frozen does take a little more time, because you’re defrosting the veggies as they cook
- Just know that the texture will not be the same
- One thing that is “technically” a vegetable we love to make are frozen french fries in air fryer. Frozen onion rings in air fryer too.
- They do come out SO much better than the oven and crispier than ever.
- Pair with dipping sauces and it’s the best snack.
If you want to try fresh though, we do share how to cook Ninja foodi french fries here. It’s crazy that in 30 minutes you can make homemade restaurant quality potato wedges. For a low carb option, try turnip fries air fryer style too.
Making frozen or fresh sweet potato fries isn’t really any different. Just use the directions above and enjoy. Wait….but there’s more…..
Recipes for cooking vegetables in air fryer
Let’s start with a tweak on the original. If you slice large veggies like our air fryer eggplant parmesan you can fit several in your basket at a time. Cover with ingredients you’d normally stuff it with, you’ll get the same classic flavors but it’s even easier to eat.
- Air fryer okra and eggplant air fryer recipes are possible y’all!
- Our air fryer breakfast potatoes are perfect with hard boiled eggs in the morning.
- Dill air fryer red potatoes cooked this way are great too.
- Try air fryer butternut squash in there, and air fryer asparagus too.
- A great appetizer with bacon are these air fryer Hasselback potatoes.
And let’s now talk about zucchini chips in air fryer shall we. They are the best by far. We’ve made air fryer zucchini fries this same way too, choose whichever you prefer. Want it heartier? Stuff zucchini boats air fryer style too. Sliced thin you can get air fryer jicama fries really crispy, or use another veggie of choice.
Is cooking vegetables in an air fryer healthy?
So much better than in a deep fryer for sure! Of course you can bake them but I haven’t found anything that doesn’t get crispier this way so we prefer it. Top of the list is air fryer spaghetti squash.
My kids will seriously eat air fryer green beans with parmesan as a snack. I will too. If they aren’t a decent price fresh, I will just make a batch of air fryer frozen green beans with butter on top with salt.
- Air fryer mashed potatoes and cauliflower steak air fryer style are even an option now.
- Have you tried making kale chips in an air fryer yet? It will make you love this super healthy veggie for sure.
- When it’s fall, you should throw in some air fryer pumpkin seeds and try a new homemade snack.
- Then try our air fryer breakfast stuffed peppers and let us know what you think!
Air Fryer Vegetable Recipes
Equipment
- 1 air fryer
- 1 knife
Ingredients
- 1 zucchini
- 1 yellow squash
- 1 package mushrooms
- 3 tbsp olive oil
- 1/2 tsp garlic salt
- 3/4 tsp Italian seasoning
- 1/4 tsp Lawrys
Instructions
- Slice mushrooms in half and squash into thick dials. Lay on paper towels and roll around to absorb the water on the outsides. Pour into a bowl. Preheat air fryer to 400 degrees for 5 minutes.
- Drizzle olive oil on veggies, toss to coat. Sprinkle on seasonings, toss to coat. Pour into air fryer basket, overlap the least possible.
- Air fry for 3 minutes, toss contents in basket. Cook for another 2-3 minutes or until tender and browned to your liking.
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.