Complete your weekend brunch at home with these Air Fryer Home Fries. They're the ultimate brunch companion - golden brown and crispy, seasoned with garlic powder, salt and pepper, and tossed with tender peppers and onions. They're also incredibly easy to make in the air fryer (using minimal oil!), so you can spend less time at the stove and more time enjoying that first cup of coffee!
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Table of Contents
Over the last few years, the air fryer has become my preferred way to cook any type of potato. Some of our favorites include these air fryer baby potatoes and air fryer parmesan potatoes.
We even use our air fryer to make leftover mashed potato cakes!
So, naturally, I had to try making home fries in the air fryer! They get crispy without any butter and very little oil, and they take less time than pan-fried home fries as you don't need to boil or soak the potatoes.
What are home fries?
Home fries are made with diced or cubed potatoes that are pan-fried with butter, oil and seasonings. They're typically boiled before frying, and many recipes include diced or chopped onions and peppers.
These breakfast potatoes are commonly referred to as 'diner-style' as they can sometimes be found served for breakfast in American diners.
This recipe is a twist on classic home fries. We're omitting the butter and using the air fryer instead of a skillet.
Ingredients and substitutions
Below is a brief overview of some of the ingredients and recommended substitutions. The recipe card at the end of this post includes the exact ingredients and quantities used.
- Potatoes - You'll need 1 pound of Yukon gold potatoes, or about 3-4 small potatoes, cut into 1-inch cubes. I leave the skins on and scrub them clean, but you can peel them if you prefer. The skins will add a little extra crispiness.
- Oil - You only need one tablespoon of oil to coat the potatoes. I normally use extra virgin olive oil but you can use the oil of your choice.
- Seasoning - The potatoes are seasoned with a simple mix of salt, pepper and garlic powder. Feel free to adjust to taste or add other dried herbs and spices to change things up.
- Peppers and onions - You'll need half a yellow onion and half a green pepper, both roughly chopped. Feel free to use red onion and red, yellow or orange pepper if you prefer.
How to make home fries in the air fryer
Once the potatoes are scrubbed clean and cubed, pat them dry with a paper towel to get rid of any excess moisture.
Add the potatoes to a bowl and toss together with the oil and seasonings.
Place the potatoes in the air fryer basket and air fry at 400F for 10 minutes.
Toss the basket to rotate the potatoes around and mix in the peppers and onions.
Air fry for another 8-10 minutes, or until the potatoes are golden brown, crispy and fork tender. Shake the basket another 1-2 times to ensure even browning.
Taste and season with more salt and pepper, if necessary, before serving.
Recipe FAQs
For this recipe, I found that Yukon gold potatoes worked best. They were crispy on the outside and fluffy in the middle. I also tested the recipe with Russet potatoes, and while they worked fine, they required some soaking in water first in order to achieve the same crispy texture.
No need to parboil. Some recipes call for parboiling or blanching potatoes before air frying to help achieve a crispy texture. While this may help a little, these home fries get perfectly crispy without this extra step.
I normally soak potatoes before air frying to remove any starches, which helps make them crispy, but to save time, I skipped that step with these home fries. It also helped that the recipe calls for Yukon gold which are a little less starchy than Russet potatoes.
Home fries (cut into 1-inch cubes) will take about 20 minutes to cook in the air fryer. If you cut your potatoes into smaller pieces, they will air fry a little quicker.
It could be that you didn't air fry them long enough or they weren't well dried after being washed. Using too much pepper and onion or adding them to the air fryer too soon can also result in less crispy home fries. The peppers and onions add moisture so I recommend sticking to the amount in the recipe.
Storage and reheating
Refrigerate: I think air fried home fries are best served hot and crispy. If you have leftovers, you can store them in an airtight container in the fridge for 3-4 days.
Reheat: To get them crispy again, reheat them in the air fryer at 400F for 3-5 minutes or until crispy and heated through. I don't recommend reheating them in the microwave.
Key recipe tips
- Size of home fries. I like to cut my home fries into 1-inch cubes. If you go bigger or smaller, you will need to adjust the air frying time.
- Peeling the potatoes. I like to keep the skins on so the home fries get a little extra crispy, but you can peel them if you prefer.
- Even cooking. To ensure the home fries air fry evenly, make sure they are all cut into roughly the same size cubes and shake the basket a few times to rotate the potatoes around.
- Pat potatoes dry. If you rinse or soak the potatoes, make sure they're well dried or they may not get as crispy in the air fryer.
- Air fry in single layer. I found the home fries were the crispiest when they were air fried in a single layer. If you're not able to do this, you can overlap the potatoes, but you'll need to increase the air frying time and shake the basket more often to rotate the potatoes around.
- Type of air fryer. I used a Cosori 5.8 quart air fryer for this recipe. If you have a different size, brand or model, you may need to adjust the air frying time and temperature slightly.
More air fryer potato recipes
- Air Fryer Pizza Potato Skins
- Air Fryer Potato Slices
- Air Fryer Potato Wedges
- Air Fryer Fingerling Potatoes
If you make this recipe, I'd love to hear what you think in the comments below!
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📖 Recipe
Air Fryer Home Fries
Ingredients
- 1 pound Yukon gold potatoes, about 3-4 small potatoes
- 1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
- ½ teaspoon garlic powder
- ½ teaspoon kosher salt
- ¼ teaspoon ground black pepper
- ½ small yellow onion, chopped
- ½ medium-sized green pepper, chopped
Instructions
- Rinse and scrub the potatoes clean. Cut into 1-inch cubes. Pat dry with a paper towel.
- Add the potatoes to a large bowl and toss together with the oil and seasonings.
- Place the potatoes in the air fryer basket and air fry at 400F for 10 minutes.
- Toss the basket to rotate the potatoes around, add the peppers and onions and toss everything together.
- Air fry for another 8-10 minutes, or until the potatoes are golden brown, crispy and fork tender. Shake the basket another 1-2 times to ensure even browning.
- Taste and add more salt and pepper, if necessary, before serving.
Notes
- You can substitute Russet potatoes for Yukon gold. I like to keep the skins on so the home fries get a little extra crispy, but you can peel them if you prefer.
- I used a Cosori 5.8 quart air fryer for this recipe. If you have a different size, brand or model, you may need to adjust the air frying time and temperature slightly.
- I found the home fries were the crispiest when they were air fried in a single layer. If you're not able to do this, you can overlap the potatoes, but you'll need to increase the air frying time and shake the basket more often to rotate the potatoes around.
- I didn't preheat my air fryer, but if you do, your potatoes may air fry a little faster.
- The peppers and onions add moisture. If you decide to leave them out, your home fries will get crispy quicker.
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Nutrition Facts per Serving
Disclaimer
Nutrition information is an estimate only and will vary depending on the substitutions made and the brands used.
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