Air fryer chips are one of the reasons I bought an air fryer!

I wanted to make chips in my air fryer to solve two problems:

My small freezer always had 1-2 bags of frozen chips, filling the freezer drawer and limiting what else would fit.

I’d buy potatoes and then struggle to get through some bags before they sprouted.

If I make chips in the air fryer I can use up the potatoes before they start to sprout, plus free up half of one freezer drawer.

I shop irregularly; having to look for/get frozen chips when I was in the right shop (Tesco were my preferred brand) was often a nuisance. I’d either be short of chips and needing more, else I’d be in the shop “stocking up”.

How to Cook Chips in an Air Fryer

I didn’t weigh out the potatoes. I picked 3-4 medium sized potatoes and went by eye: How many chips I thought would fit + how many I’d be satisfied with 🙂 Just cooking for me, I can look and see “that’s about the right amount of chips”.

Firstly I peeled and cut the potatoes into chip shapes. As I chipped the potatoes, I dropped them into a jug full of water, which rinses them as I go. Once I had enough potatoes chipped, I emptied out the water from the jug and put just about ½” of water in the bottom.

These chips will be “par-boiled” by steaming them in the microwave, so very little water’s needed.

I used my large Pyrex jug to parboil the chips in the microwave, by steaming them. It’s a fabulous size and shape; I had been meaning to buy one for years, wish I’d bought it sooner!

As these are to be steamed, the jug needed a loose cover. I find my Systema Soup Bowl lid fits a treat! I microwaved the chips on HIGH for 3 minutes, turned them over, 3 minutes, turned them over, 2 minutes. The time taken varies based on how many chips are being microwave steamed and the potato variety.

Once they were still firm, but a little soft, I drained the water from the jug and tipped out the chips into a dish and left them on the worktop to cool down. Over time I’ve retained a variety of plastic/microwave dishes that are “just the right size/shape” and so I have one that’s the ideal size.

Once the chips are cold, I added a little oil and coated the chips in oil.

I lined the air fryer drawer with baking paper – just the brown stuff. This is to minimise washing up more than it being “needed”. In fact, the chips would probably cook better and more evenly without it, but I want washing up and cleaning to be quick and easy, so I usually line the air fryer with either baking paper or foil.

I placed the cold/oiled chips onto the baking paper – trying to make them in a single layer, so they’d brown more evenly. You can see in the photo how the chips are firm, yet softened.

Cook Chips in an Air Fryer

Now it was time to shut the drawer and let the air fryer cook those chips!

I set my air fryer to 180 C and turned the timer to 10 minutes. After 10 minutes they needed turning over – people say “toss”, but I found the trivet dislodged and I was rubbish at it, so I turned them individually with a spatula.

I cooked the chips for a further 5 minutes, turned them again and another 5 minutes.

You’ll know when they’re cooked because how brown you want chips to be done is personal preference. You might find you want/need to brush a little more oil on the chips when you turn them.

And that’s it! Roughly 20-25 minutes in the air fryer and my chips were cooked and ready to be served with a fried egg and baked beans!

Verdict: Are Air Fryer Chips Any Good?

These air fryer chips were great. Better than I expected. I don’t think you can beat the taste of freshly fried chips cooked in a deep fat fryer, but I’ve a fear of hot oil so will never own one. The air fryer chips were better than the frozen chips I’ve been eating for the last 10 years.

I just wish I’d bought an air fryer sooner, having said that they did used to be a LOT more expensive.

My air fryer is a Tower Vortex 4L single drawer, manual. I picked it up when I spotted it for sale at £25 in Iceland (RRP £50) and it’s been marvellous!

I will definitely be sticking with my plan of no longer buying any frozen chips and making my own. They take longer, but it does serve a dual purpose of me eating the potatoes I’ve bought + freeing up vital freezer space.

I’d recommend anybody making their own chips in an air fryer – if in doubt, cook them for 5-6 minutes at a time so you can check progress, colour and just “check/make sure”. They’re a winner!