Can You Make Brownies In An Air Fryer?

After hearing it can help you save money on electricity costs and cook up food with a lower fat content (per BBC goodfood), you may have finally broken down and bought yourself an air fryer. But ever since you started using your new kitchen doo-dad to cook up your favorite foods, you just can't stop. And now that you've tossed shrimp into your trusty kitchen tool for lunch and even followed The Country Cook's recipe for a dinner of air-fried mac and cheese, you may have found yourself set on having brownies for a little night-time treat. So, naturally, you wonder if its possible to make them in the small appliance, too.

After all, unlike frozen taquitos, brownies aren't meant to be fried. However, Hamilton Beach reports that, despite its name, your air fryer does have baking capabilities. In fact, the home appliance brand even insists the kitchen tool can make baking easier since you won't have to wait for your oven to preheat. And there are plenty of cake and pie air fryer recipes floating around the internet to support Hamilton Beach's claim. So, all things considered, it seems brownies should be able to bake in the air fryer — which is why one Insider reporter tried the theory out for themselves by popping a batch into one of America's favorite kitchen appliances. Here were the results.

After following a recipe provided by Ninja air fryer, one Insider reporter discovered that you can make brownies using the popular kitchen appliance. However, she also found that it took 90 minutes in total to mix the treat's ingredients together and bake it. Meanwhile, a typical from-scratch brownie recipe might take less than an hour — start to finish.

While the air-fryer version of this treat took longer to make, the reporter did not get more brownies for the extended time. As Food Network reports, due to its size, when baking with an air fryer putting too much batter in your pan causes your dessert to turn out half-done. So you usually have to settle for a smaller serving size of cake. And the writer stated this proved to be the case with her air fryer brownies. Once all was said and done, she was only able to bake two brownies in the air fryer. But while the work of air fryer brownies may cost a lot of time for a little dessert, there are other treats you can make in the air fryer that are much better suited for the kitchen tool.

As it turns out, Hamilton Beach reports moist desserts like brownies are likely better off in the oven. And while some foods should not be made in the air fryer, there are some that come delicious when baked up in the appliance. And the appliance giant also advises that smaller sweets, like cookies and mini muffins, are more suited for the air fryer. Not only do these bite-sized desserts bake fully without much hassle in the air fryer, but you'll also be able to fit more of these small treats in your air fryer's basket.

Hamilton Beach does note that since these baked goods are not traditionally fried, you'll still have to air fry them at a low temperature to ensure they don't burn. However, if you want to avoid having to adjust your air fryer temperature to make dessert, The Pioneer Woman reports you can make your life easier by whipping up fried-focused sweets like churros and fried Oreos that effortlessly cook in a deep or air fryer. Not to mention, air frying these treats won't leave you tired and hungry for more dessert.