What Can You Put in an Air Fryer?
Nearly every mistake here comes from treating an air fryer like a microwave. It isn't one. It's a small convection oven with a fierce fan - so metal is fine, plastic melts, and anything light enough to be picked up by the airflow can end up against the heating element. Here's the whole list, and the reason behind each verdict.
| Item | Verdict | The catch |
|---|---|---|
| Cardboard | No - it burns | Cardboard is combustible and can ignite at temperatures an air fryer reaches. |
| Paper Towel | No - fire risk | The fan lifts it into the heating element, where it can ignite in seconds. |
| Plastic | No - it melts | Plastic softens and melts at air fryer temperatures, ruining the food and the container. |
| Aluminum Foil | Yes - if you weigh it down | Loose foil is blown into the heating element by the fan and can catch fire. |
| Bowl | Yes - oven-safe, and expect a bake not a fry | The walls of the bowl shield the food from the airflow, so it bakes instead of crisping. |
| Ceramic | Yes - oven-safe ceramic only | Thermal shock can crack ceramic when cold dishes hit a fast-heating fryer. |
| Glass | Yes - oven-safe glass only | Thermal shock - cold glass into a hot fryer, or hot glass onto a cold surface - can crack or shatter it. |
| Parchment Paper | Yes - perforated, under food | Unweighted parchment is lifted by the fan into the heating element, where it can scorch or catch fire. |
| Plate | Only if oven-safe - and it hurts crisping | A plate covers the basket and blocks the airflow that crisps food, giving a slow, uneven bake. |
| Pyrex | Yes - but bring it to room temperature | Thermal shock can crack or shatter it - air fryers heat much faster than ovens, so the change is more abrupt. |
| Toothpicks | Yes - soak them first | Dry wood exposed above the food can scorch or smoulder in the fast, dry heat. |
| Water | Only in the drawer, to stop smoke | Water in the basket steams the food, so it comes out soft and pale instead of crisp. |
| Metal | Yes - oven-safe metal is fine | A pan that fills the basket blocks airflow and gives slow, uneven cooking. |
| Silicone | Yes - the safest liner there is | A solid, unperforated silicone liner blocks airflow to the base of the food, leaving it soft. |
The two rules that cover almost everything
If it's light, it will fly. The fan in an air fryer moves air hard enough to lift a sheet of foil, parchment or paper towel off the basket floor and pin it against the heating element, where it scorches or catches fire. Anything sheet-like has to be weighed down by the food sitting on top of it, and it must never go into an empty basket that's preheating. That single rule is behind most air fryer fires.
If it can't go in your oven, it can't go in here. An air fryer is a convection oven, so the oven test settles nearly every case: oven-safe glass, ceramic and metal are all fine; plastic, wax paper and plastic handles are not. Forget what you know about microwaves - the rules are almost exactly inverted.
Never put these in an air fryer
Every item, one by one
- Can you put aluminum foil in an air fryer? Yes - if you weigh it down
- Can you put parchment paper in an air fryer? Yes - perforated, under food
- Can you put glass in an air fryer? Yes - oven-safe glass only
- Can you put metal in an air fryer? Yes - oven-safe metal is fine
- Can you put water in an air fryer? Only in the drawer, to stop smoke
- Can you put paper towel in an air fryer? No - fire risk
- Can you put ceramic in an air fryer? Yes - oven-safe ceramic only
- Can you put plastic in an air fryer? No - it melts
- Can you put silicone in an air fryer? Yes - the safest liner there is
- Can you put Pyrex in an air fryer? Yes - but bring it to room temperature
- Can you put a plate in an air fryer? Only if oven-safe - and it hurts crisping
- Can you put a bowl in an air fryer? Yes - oven-safe, and expect a bake not a fry
- Can you put cardboard in an air fryer? No - it burns
- Can you put toothpicks in an air fryer? Yes - soak them first
FAQ
What can you not put in an air fryer?
Never put paper towel or plastic in an air fryer. Paper towel is unrated for heat and light enough for the fan to blow it into the heating element, where it can catch fire. Plastic softens and melts at air fryer temperatures, releasing fumes and bonding to the basket. Wax paper and anything with plastic handles are out for the same reasons.
Can you put metal in an air fryer?
Yes. An air fryer is a small convection oven and its own basket is metal, so any oven-safe metal is fine. The microwave rule about metal sparking does not apply - there is no microwave radiation involved, just a heating element and a fan.
Are air fryers and microwaves the same when it comes to what goes in?
No, and confusing the two causes most of the mistakes. A microwave heats the food and leaves the container relatively cool, so microwave-safe plastic survives. An air fryer heats the air to 350-400°F and blows it at everything inside, container included - so microwave-safe plastic melts, while metal, which is a problem in a microwave, is perfectly fine.
What is the safest liner to use in an air fryer?
A perforated parchment liner or a reusable silicone liner. Both are heat-rated, both are shaped to sit flat in the basket, and the perforations let air reach the underside of the food so it still crisps. Put either one in with the food already on top, never into an empty basket that is preheating.
Now you know what can go in - work out how long it needs with the air fryer cooking times chart, or convert an oven recipe with the conversion calculator.