Can You Stack Food in an Air Fryer? (How to Arrange Them)

Written by: Alex Smith

Updated on:

Air fryers use hot air to cook food and air circulation matters the most.

If you’re thinking about stacking your food in your air fryer, then this article will help you the most.

There are some foods that you can stack in an air fryer and some foods that are not allowed to pile in your air fryer. The most important thing is that you never disrupt the airflow which in turn gives you unevenly cooked foods.

Can You Stack Food In An Air Fryer?

So let’s answer this question:

Can You Stack Food In An Air Fryer?

Yes, you can stack foods like fries, sliced potatoes, chicken wings, and chopped vegetables. When stacking foods like fish, beef, etc. remember to use a rack to maximize the airflow, or else you don’t want to put these foods.

What’ll happen if you stacked a lot of food?

If you want to experiment with your air fryer, you may be thinking about overfilling your air fryer. Overfilling your air fryer will result in unevenly cooked food and even the air fryer can stop working due to improper airflow.

It’s not about what you can do with your air fryer, it’s about doing it the right way.

Can I Stack Fish in My Air Fryer?

As large meat is not allowed to be put in a small air fryer which can disrupt airflow, you can stack fish in a that doesn’t block the airflow. Or better you can use a rack to air fry fish properly.

What is the best way to stack food in an air fryer?

There are some ways you can air fry foods without disrupting the airflow.

#-1 Air Fryer Racks

While most air fryer comes with air fryer racks as accessories, you can buy them online if your air fryer doesn’t have one.

air fryer rack

Racks are great for stacking food within a small space and they don’t block the airflow as a flat pan does. These types of racks come in stainless design and are dishwasher safe.

Check out our recommended air fryer rack.

#2- Buying a Larger Air fryer

If you have a small air fryer then most probably you can’t cook food easily. Buying a large capacity air fryer will help you to stack a lot more food easily and probably have a rack as an accessory.

While this option is costlier, in the long run when you want to stack chicken thighs, wings or even a whole chicken will be easier. There will be more preset options that you can choose from and different settings for roasting, baking, defrosting, reheating, dehydrating, etc.

#3- Batch Cooking

If you’re not satisfied with the two methods listed above, you can use this method easily without spending a dime. Rather than cooking a pile of foods, you may want to divide them into batches depending on your air fryer space.

By air frying in a small amount without blocking the airflow will give the best result. Yes, its time consuming but cooking meats, and fish will be easier. You’ll enjoy it too.

Foods that You can Stack in An Air Fryer

  • Fries (Yes, you can stack fries)
  • Donuts
  • Vegetables
  • Small sliced potatoes
  • Chicken wings

Foods that You shouldn’t Stack in An Air Fryer

  • Steak
  • Fish (doable, but needs small pieces with thin slices)
  • Chicken Breasts (need a bigger air fryer)
  • Burgers
  • Pork Chops
  • Ribs (will need an oven-type air fryer to cook)

Can you cook 2 things at once in an air fryer?

Yes, you can cook 2 foods at once in an air fryer. You’ll need a basket with a divider or an oven-type air fryer with 2 or more racks. NuWave 6 qt model has a divided basket where you can cook fries and chicken nuggets at once.

NuWave BRIO 37012 6 QT model

You can check out the NuWave BRIO 6 qt. here.

Conclusion

We hope that you find the best way to arrange your food so that you can cook in your air fryer. Always remember, blocking airflow will result in unevenly cooked food and possibly the air fryer stopping working.

So it’s better to invest in an air frying rack or a better air fryer with a large cooking space.

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