So apparently you can make bread in an air fryer. I bought a £54 air fryer and decided to put it to the test to see if we can really make a crusty loaf. The result, well it wasn’t the best, it works but it is more like a bread roll and would be more suitable as smaller ones in my opinion, but hey, it did have a crust, it used a lot less electricity and was made in the air fryer bucket and done in less than an hour total – give it a go and see for yourself. Although I recommend not making it too big to risk touching the heating element, keep the ingredients small (this is based on a 4 litre air fryer) or make into smaller bread balls.
How to make air fryer bread
First up get the yeast going. Pour the sachet of yeast into the warm water, give a little stir and leave for 5 minutes to start to foam.
Next up add all the other ingredients (except the yolk and seeds) together into a bowl and mix well, it will be quite rough, but do your best to work it together, add in the yeast and again stir through with a wooden spoon or with clean hands in the bowl as best you can. Once it comes together as a lump, flour down your surface and knead in some extra flour until smooth, working it and stretching as you go for a good 5 minutes, form it into a nice round ball.
Place into your air fryer bucket, and cover with cling film. Put in a warm area and allow it to double in size for at least 30 minutes, it may be a little longer. Once done, remove the cling film and brush with the egg yolk, sprinkling seeds over if you wish.
Place in the air fryer at 160c for 10 minutes. You can check it if you wish as it goes, but the egg yolk should help give it a golden top. Turn it out onto a counter and tap to make sure it is hollow, this should help you know if it is cooked through. If you are unsure put it in for a little longer until happy, in 2 minute batches, keeping an eye on it.
The result does have a crust, but much more of a softer bread roll / bap type vibe which is absolutely fine! It’s quicker and cheaper than using the oven but it doesn’t quite replicate real baked bread fully, however if you don’t mind a softer crust and just want a bread like fix, this’ll do just dandy.