Can You Make Bagels in an Air Fryer? Yes, Here’s What Happened When I Tried a 2-Ingredient Recipe

From caramelizing romaine lettuce to reheating pizza, my air fryer can do it all. Its ability to cook food without tons of oil is why it’s got a prime spot on my kitchen counter. Recently, I’ve started experimenting with my air fryer a bit more — specifically, with its bread baking capabilities. (Homemade bagels, in particular, are a treat I enjoy almost every morning; but between letting the dough rise and boiling them before baking, they take a very long time to prepare.) There’s good news, though: I found an easy recipe for making bagels in the air fryer in under an hour, no less! Read on for the recipe and my experience making it at home.

Why you should bake homemade bagels in the air fryer

Traditional bagels are cooked by boiling them in water and then baking them. This creates that signature chewy crust we know and love on bagels, but it can be time-consuming to do in bagels. Luckily, baking them in the air fryer speeds up this process and produces golden brown and fluffy bagels every time. All you have to do is arrange the bagels in a single layer on the air fryer basket and cook them. The air fryer will take care of the rest thanks to its circulating heat function, which pushes hot air around the bagels so they cook evenly. In about 15 minutes, you’ll have a batch of warm and crispy bagels — no boiling or oven preheating needed.

How to make air fryer bagels

This Air Fryer Bagel recipe from AllRecipes.com requires only two ingredients for the dough: self-rising flour and Greek yogurt. Once the dough is formed, the recipe calls for kneading and shaping it into bagels. Each bagel is brushed with egg white and topped with everything bagel seasoning before being air fried to golden brown perfection. Alternatively, you can leave the bagels plain or sprinkle them with sesame seeds or dried onion flakes. Using these shortcuts, you’ll have a mouthwatering breakfast in no time!

Air Fryer Bagels

Ingredients:

• 1¼ cups self-rising flour
• 1 cup full-fat plain Greek yogurt
• 1 large egg white, beaten
• 3 tsp. everything bagel seasoning

Directions:

• Prep: 15 mins
• Total time: 45 mins
• Yield: 4 bagels

1. Using fork, mix flour and Greek yogurt in medium bowl until crumbly dough forms. If mixture is too thick, add more yogurt; if too sticky, add more flour.
2. Transfer dough to a lightly-floured work surface, and knead until smooth, 5 to 7 minutes. Divide dough into 4 even balls. Roll and stretch each ball into ¾-inch thick ropes about 8- to 9-inches long. Connect both ends, pinch, and seal to form bagel. Brush with egg white and sprinkle with bagel seasoning.
3. Preheat air fryer to 280°F. Line fryer basket with parchment liner or spray lightly with cooking spray.
4. Place bagels in basket and cook 15 to 16 minutes or until golden brown. (Don’t crowd basket and cook in 2 batches if air fryer is small.)
5. Remove to rack, and cool about 15 minutes before slicing.

My taste test

I was a little skeptical about whether my air fryer bagels would taste like traditional bagels. I’m happy to say that they exceeded my expectations. They had a mild tangy flavor, thanks to the yogurt, and a soft, chewy texture. I used Dan-O’s Crunchy Seasoning to get the garlicky-onion taste I crave minus the high sodium content found in other everything bagel seasonings. Overall, I’d take these two-ingredient bagels over the store-bought kind any day. I’m excited to make this recipe the next time I’m serving brunch, and offer my bagels to guests alongside cream cheese, smoked salmon and dill. Yum!