Air Fryer Popcorn
Posted: 10/01/20
Updated: 03/24/22
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Buttery air fryer popcorn gives you a salty, crunchy, delicious snack in under 15 minutes! Popping your own kernels lets you control the amount of butter and seasoning you use, for an easy healthy snack that’s totally new every time you make it.
What You Need To Know
Air fryer popcorn takes A. LOT. of trial and error to get right. When you do get it right, it’s a great alternative to the stove or the microwave when you just can’t use those methods.
The downside, though, is that popcorn can actually destroy your air fryer. See, the air fryer isn’t closed inside. The fan and vents are directly above the basket, which allows the air to circulate. That also means it’s really easy to blow small or lightweight foods – you know, like popcorn kernels – all over the place. When that happens, popcorn kernels can easily become lodged inside the heating element, causing your air fryer to short (and creating a fire hazard).
For that reason, we don’t really recommend using an air fryer for your popcorn. You’ll likely have an easier time and much better results by using the stovetop or a microwave. That being said, it can be done, and if you want to know how, we’re here to tell you!
Key Ingredients
Popcorn Kernels – From a bag or from a jar, it doesn’t matter what kind of kernels you use, so long as they’re unpopped!
Oil – You can use 1/4 tablespoon oil to coat your kernels, or you can spray a little air-fryer-safe spray oil on them instead. Any oil will work – avocado, olive oil, even coconut oil if you like!
Chef’s Tips
- It can be hard to get all the kernels to pop at the same time. That’s why we’re working in batches and removing the popped popcorn every few minutes. If you leave the basket in until all the kernels pop then the ones that popped early on will burn. And believe me, no one likes burnt popcorn.
- As with any appliance, air fryers can vary dramatically from one unit to the next. I have two and they don’t always act the same! There’s definitely a lot of trial and error to this method. You may have better luck with a shorter or longer cook time, or you could try picking out the popped kernels more frequently. Your air fryer may do better with the foil laid flat on the bottom of the basket, and some may do better with the foil bowl almost completely closed at the top. The method outlined below is the one that gave me the fluffiest, best tasting popcorn after lots of testing.
- Just like when you pop popcorn in the microwave, you’re going to end up with some unpopped kernels at the end of your cook time. I think there’s some law of nature that prevents all of the kernels from popping completely no matter what method you use. Okay, maybe not, but it seems like it. You can increase your odds of popping every kernel by lowering the amount of kernels you start out with.
More Air Fryer Recipes
- Air Fryer Mushrooms
- Air Fryer Fried Pickles
- Sausage in the Air Fryer
- Air Fryer Zucchini Chips
- Frozen Biscuits in the Air Fryer
- Air Fryer Mozzarella Sticks
- 30 Keto Air Fryer Recipes
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Air Fryer Popcorn
Buttery, delicious popcorn is made in 15 minutes thanks to the air fryer!
servings
Ingredients
- ¼ cup popcorn kernels
- ¼ tablespoon oil
- 2 tablespoons butter
- salt to taste
Equipment
- Air Fryer
- Aluminum foil
- Microwave-safe bowl
- Large bowl
Instructions
- Preheat air fryer to 400° Fahrenheit.
- Line air fryer basket with foil in shape of basket or bowl.
- Toss popcorn kernels with ¼ tablespoon oil. Arrange in single layer on top of foil.
- Return basket to air fryer. Cook 5 minutes.
- While popcorn cooks, melt butter in microwave.
- Remove air fryer basket. Pick out popped popcorn and set aside in large bowl. Return basket with unpopped kernels to air fryer.
- Cook 3 minutes, then remove basket. Pick out popped popcorn and add to large bowl. Discard any remaining unpopped kernels.
- Pour melted butter over popcorn in bowl and add salt to taste. Cover bowl and toss to coat popcorn evenly. Serve and enjoy!
Notes
- It is unlikely all the kernels will pop at the same time.
An Important Note About Air Fryer Popcorn
Air fryer popcorn takes A. LOT. of trial and error to get right. When you do get it right, it’s a great alternative to the stove or the microwave when you just can’t use those methods. The downside, though, is that air fryer popcorn can actually destroy your air fryer. See, the air fryer isn’t closed inside. The fan and vents are directly above the basket, which allows the air to circulate. That also means it’s really easy to blow small or lightweight foods – you know, like popcorn kernels – all over the place. When that happens, popcorn kernels can easily become lodged inside the heating element, causing your air fryer to short (and creating a fire hazard). For that reason, we don’t really recommend using an air fryer for your popcorn. You’ll likely have an easier time and much better results by using the stovetop or a microwave.Video
Nutrition Information
Serving: 1serving | Calories: 193kcal | Protein: 2g | Fat: 14g | Saturated Fat: 7g | Trans Fat: 1g | Total Carbs: 15g | Fiber: 3g | Sugar: 1g | Net Carbs: 12g | Cholesterol: 30mg | Sodium: 683mg | Potassium: 60mg | Calcium: 5mg | Iron: 1mg
Number of total servings shown is approximate. Actual number of servings will depend on your preferred portion sizes.
Nutritional values shown are general guidelines and reflect information for 1 serving using the ingredients listed, not including any optional ingredients. Actual macros may vary slightly depending on specific brands and types of ingredients used.
To determine the weight of one serving, prepare the recipe as instructed. Weigh the finished recipe, then divide the weight of the finished recipe (not including the weight of the container the food is in) by the desired number of servings. Result will be the weight of one serving.
Yikes – this is terrible. I scrolled to the recipe without reading the prelude about how it’s not recommended …why post it then? Hoping I didn’t ruin my new air fryer which was a gift for my partner and a splurge.
I’m sorry, Anne! We include that same info in the Notes section of the recipe card for anyone that skips the rest of the post. While we don’t recommend this method at all, we posted about it to share our results and the reasons we don’t recommend trying it yourself. We had several requests to test it years ago, so this was obviously a method our readers were curious about, and we wanted to share our honest feedback. I hope your new air fryer recovered well and you enjoy it through many, many recipes to come!
Popcorn in the air fryer doesn’t work. Only a few of the kernels popped. Find a better way to make popcorn.
Totally agree with you that there are better ways! Like we say in the post, this method takes a lot of trial and error, and we don’t recommend it. It can be done, sure, we don’t consider it a go-to method by any means.
I’m glad I read the reviews before making this. Its dangerous to leave out or delete reveiws and unethical.
I appreciate your feedback, Sonja! We haven’t left out or deleted any reviews for this recipe. We do note throughout the post that we don’t actually recommend this method for popping popcorn, though.
Thanks for the warning. Happy I read below recipe as I was warming up my air fryer. Tuned off my air fryer and went to my stove.
Didn’t work.
Maybe better instructions. I must have done something wrong.
We’re sorry you had this experience, Deborah, but appreciate the feedback. Did you see the note at the bottom of the recipe? That could explain what happened. Regardless, we’re sorry this happened!
Yah. No good. Popped 1/4 of the kernels
Sorry you had this experience, Cheri, but thank you for your honest feedback!
This didn’t work. I followed instructions to the T. If you get the chance, can you please make a video. Thanks.
So sorry to hear that! What shape did you have the aluminum foil?
Thanks for the video. Will try again
You say to put the popcorn in and preheat for 5 minutes BEFORE cooking. Then you cook it. Im just a little confused. I always thought you preheat the air fryer without anything in it. So you say to put the drawer in and preheat for 5 minutes at 400, then finish cooking it at whatever time??
Sorry for that misunderstanding, we simply preheat the air fryer without the popcorn for five minutes prior to adding the popcorn.
This worked really well!
I’m so glad you liked it!