How To Make A Melty Grilled Cheese In The Air Fryer

A crispy grilled cheese is a perfect homemade comfort food. As delicious as it is, though, it's often made in a pan — one that likely requires you to hand-wash it when you're done. But what if you could just prep your grilled cheese and pop it in the air fryer, where it could reach ultimate gooey goodness in that dishwasher-safe air fryer basket? Well, the good news is, you can.

There isn't much to making an air fryer grilled cheese. It comes together in almost the same way a pan-grilled one would, but the best part is you don't even need to open the air fryer to flip the sandwich. Since air fryers use a convection-style heating process that whips hot air around, it will toast both the top and bottom of the sandwich at once. And in just a few minutes, you have a ready-to-eat, ultra-cheesy meal.

Tips for the best air fryer grilled cheese

You should coat the outside of the bread the same way you would for the pan. Using butter or mayo makes grilled cheese taste like heaven, while adding rich flavor that also helps that bread get nice and toasty. Yes, the air fryer toasts the sandwich on both sides, but it will toast each side a little differently. For more even toasting, you can flip it once after no more than four minutes; It will only need a minute or two on the other side. But if you're in a rush or just don't feel like the additional maintenance, there's no real need to flip.

Keep the air fryer around 380 degrees Fahrenheit. You want to make sure the cheese has a chance to melt before the bread gets too toasted. You can use any melty cheese for this snack, but you can enhance the flavor even more by seasoning the butter or mayo before spreading it onto the bread. Add garlic butter to your grilled cheese, sprinkle on some sea salt, or even mix in some ground chipotle pepper to take this snack to new heights.

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