How to clean your air fryer, that is the million dollar question! Wondering the correct and best way to clean your air fryer? Check out these tips for cleaning your airfryer!

How to clean your Air Fryer   

So you’ve gotten an air fryer recently? Maybe you scored it for Christmas! Lucky you and welcome to the club.

We often get asked, “how exactly do you clean an air fryer?” That is a great question and it can vary slightly from brand to brand.

One thing is for sure, that clean up duty isn’t too bad with your air fryer. You are generally using less oil, so your clean up should be a snap!

But we will do our best to break it down in this post! But first, let’s all make sure we understand the air fryer!

What is an Air Fryer?

It is a countertop appliance that will soon win your heart over! It is basically a smaller (the inside of it) type of convection oven that moves very hot air around.

The circulating air cooks your food quickly and evenly. I am guessing that you have probably seen an air fryer infomercial or two!

While smaller inside than a convection oven, the outside is often typically the size of a toaster oven or slightly smaller. Many people buy air fryers to use when camping in their RV or even for cooking “stinky” foods (think air fryer broccoli) outside.

How to clean your Air Fryer – Step by Step

1. Unplug your air fryer from the outlet. While this might seem like common sense, it is worth mentioning as it is very important.
2. Let your air fryer completely cool down. There is no need to immediately clean your machine right after use. It is dangerous and you can easily burn yourself!
3. Wipe the outside of your oil less fryer with a damp cloth. The cloth should be wet enough to gently wipe away food or grease but it should not be dripping with moisture.
4. Remove the basket container. Your basket should have two parts. Be sure to remove the inner basket from the outer basket, when cool. Gently scrub each basket with soap and water. Many new air fryer models have dishwasher safe baskets!
5. If the inside of your air fryer is dirty, you can wipe it down with a damp sponge.
6. Check the heating element of your fryer. You might need to gently turn the machine upside down to easily see and access the air fryer heating element. You can use a damp sponge to clean or a soft brush.

PRO TIP: Make sure the two air fryer baskets and the inside of our air fryer unit are completely dry before putting it back together for storage.

Food STUCK in your air fryer basket?

That’s okay, simply let the basket soak for a while. The soaking water will help to loosen the food for easier removal!

Air Fryers have Air Vents

The air vents on your air fryer may become dirty with residue after a few months pass. Simply turn the unit on its self or upside down to be able to see the vents. Use a soft bristle brush to clean the vents. Alternatively, you can also use a soft non-abrasive sponge to clean the vents.

Let’s recap WHY I LOVE MY AIR FRYER!

• This kitchen gadget is easy to use, straight out of the box.
• There are endless recipes you can make!
• Cook times are faster than your conventional oven and often food is equally heated.
• The cook time of a recipe is the actual time, unlike waiting for the pressure to rise on your instant pot or your oven to preheat!
• It uses a lot less oil!
• You can easily adapt recipes you already!

Let me just admit it here, that I love my air fryer. I think it has become fairly clear over the past year or two that I LOVE this kitchen gadget.

It was originally a Christmas gift that my mom bought my husband and I. She always likes to get us things for our kitchen. One of her friends suggested this oil less fryer! So off to Kohls she headed with her coupon and got us one!

While I’d read all the rave reviews about how amazing the air fryer truly was, I seriously had NO idea how much I’d really love it! From the moment I unwrapped the gift, my mind was already racing with everything that I couldn’t wait to cook in it.

Honestly, at this point in time we couldn’t be more thankful we were gifted an air fryer. We love our air fryers. Yes, we do have MORE than one!

These air fryers have come staples in our home. Many people ask how we store them. We actually do not have a lot of counter space, so we keep them in our laundry room. (which is slowly turning into a second pantry!)

Side note: If you are in the market for an air fryer, I recently created a post about the best air fryers on the market. The post is based off of reviews from friends, family and online consumers! Be sure to check out the best air fryers on the market!

More easy air fryer recipes:

• Air Fryer Chickpeas

• Air Fryer Broccoli

• Air Fryer Pumpkin Seeds

• Air Fryer Edamame

• Air Fryer Roasted Potatoes

• Air Fryer Zucchini Coins

• Air Fryer Honey Sriracha Cauliflower

Looking for vegan air fryer recipes? We have some of those too! You can even check out our YouTube channel for some air fryer videos.

Still don’t have an air fryer of your own? Be sure to check out our air fryer reviews from several of the top models out there. You’ll be whipping up free air fryer recipes in no time!

Want to learn more about Air Fryers? Check out our Air Fryer 101 post! Having an Air Fryer is great but may also mean that you have a ton of questions as well.

We have some great tips for using your air fryer! Be sure to check out our Common Air Fryer Mistakes post so you are avoiding common problems when using your air fryer.

Question: Let’s talk! What is your favorite recipe that you’ve made in your air fryer? What has been the messiest? Drop me a comment below telling me!