Can I Use My Toaster Oven As An Air Fryer? | Truth

Kitchen counter space is expensive real estate. If you already own a reliable toaster oven, you might hesitate to buy a pod-shaped air fryer just to make crispy fries or wings. The marketing around air fryers suggests they are magical devices, but the technology inside is familiar. Understanding how these two appliances overlap can save you money and clutter.

The short version is that both devices use heat and air, but the intensity differs. A standard toaster oven relies on radiant heat, which is great for melting cheese but poor for crisping. A toaster oven with a fan—often called a convection oven—gets much closer to air fryer performance. With the right techniques and adjustments, you can bridge the gap between the two.

Understanding How Air Fryers And Toaster Ovens Compare

To get the best results, you need to know what happens inside the box. An air fryer is essentially a high-powered convection oven concentrated in a small space. It uses a heating element and a large, fast-spinning fan to circulate hot air around the food. This rapid air movement strips away moisture from the food’s surface, creating that golden-brown crunch we associate with deep frying.

A standard toaster oven uses heating elements at the top and bottom. It mimics a traditional large oven. It heats up the air and the walls of the chamber, which then cooks your food. Without a fan, the air sits relatively still. This method cooks food through but often leaves the exterior soft or unevenly browned unless you broil it.

If your toaster oven has a “Convection” setting, it has a fan. However, that fan is usually smaller and slower than the one in a dedicated air fryer. The air moves, just not as violently. This means cooking times will be slightly longer, and you might need to intervene more often to get an even crisp.

Appliance Comparison Breakdown

This table highlights the functional differences you will notice during daily cooking. It breaks down the capabilities of standard units versus those with airflow features.

Feature	Standard Toaster Oven	Convection Toaster Oven	Pod-Style Air Fryer
Primary Heating	Radiant coils (top/bottom)	Radiant coils + Small Fan	Coil + High-Velocity Fan
Airflow Speed	Static (No movement)	Low to Moderate	High / Rapid
Crisping Ability	Low	Moderate	High
Cook Time	Standard	Slightly Faster	Fastest (20-30% less time)
Capacity	Medium (Slices/Personal pizza)	Large (Whole chicken possible)	Small to Medium (Basket size)
Noise Level	Silent	Quiet Hum	Loud Fan Noise
Best For	Toast, Baking, Reheating	Roasting, Baking, Mild Crisping	Fries, Wings, Frozen Snacks

Can I Use My Toaster Oven As An Air Fryer?

You can achieve air fryer-like results in a toaster oven, provided you adjust your expectations and your method. The answer depends heavily on the specific model you own. If you have an older model with just “Bake,” “Broil,” and “Toast” settings, you will struggle to get a true “fried” texture. The heat simply doesn’t wrap around the food efficiently enough.

If your unit has convection, you are in luck. The airflow helps brown the food evenly. However, because the cooking chamber in a toaster oven is usually wider and less insulated than an air fryer basket, heat loss is a factor. You cannot just use the same time and temperature settings found on a bag of frozen nuggets. You must adapt.

The main challenge is the “soggy bottom” effect. In a basket air fryer, the mesh bottom allows hot air to blast the food from underneath. In a toaster oven, you likely use a solid baking sheet. This blocks airflow to the bottom of your food, requiring you to flip items halfway through to ensure even cooking.

Steps To Mimic Air Frying In A Toaster Oven

You can trick your toaster oven into behaving more like a high-end air fryer. Small changes to your setup impact how heat travels to your food. Use these techniques to maximize crunch.

Use A Wire Rack or Mesh Basket

Airflow is the secret ingredient. If you place your food directly on a solid baking sheet/pan, the bottom will steam in its own juices while the top dries out. To fix this, place a wire cooling rack inside your baking tray. This elevates the food, allowing hot air to circulate underneath. You can also buy aftermarket mesh baskets that fit inside standard toaster ovens, which closely replicate the air fryer basket experience.

Cut Food Into Uniform Pieces

Uniformity matters more in a toaster oven. Since the air speed is lower, large or uneven chunks cook at different rates. Cut vegetables, potatoes, or meats into equal sizes. This guarantees that every piece finishes cooking at the same time, preventing some bits from burning while others remain raw.

Rotate and Flip Consistently

Even with a convection fan, toaster ovens have hot spots. The back is often hotter than the front. To avoid uneven browning, rotate your pan 180 degrees halfway through the cooking cycle. You should also flip individual pieces of food, especially breaded items like chicken tenders or fish sticks. This manual labor replaces the intense air circulation of a pod fryer.

Temperature And Time Adjustments

Recipes written for air fryers assume a very small, intensely hot chamber. A toaster oven is larger and loses heat faster through the glass door. You generally need to keep the temperature high but watch the time closely.

For most foods, you should preheat your toaster oven. Air fryers heat up instantly, but toaster ovens need 5 to 10 minutes to reach a stable temperature. Putting food into a cold oven leads to steaming rather than frying. According to general cooking physics, convection ovens cook faster than standard radiant ovens, so you will still save time compared to a traditional wall oven.

If you are following a standard oven recipe, increase the temperature by 25°F if you want a crispier result, or keep it the same and use the convection fan to speed up the process. If you are following an air fryer recipe, you may need to add a few minutes to the cook time because the fan in your toaster oven is less powerful.

What Foods Work Best?

Some items transition perfectly between these appliances, while others struggle. Knowing what to cook saves you from a disappointing dinner.

Frozen Foods

French fries, onion rings, mozzarella sticks, and chicken nuggets perform exceptionally well in a convection toaster oven. These foods are par-fried at the factory, meaning they already contain oil. The ambient heat and fan help crisp up that exterior coating effectively. Just remember to spread them out in a single layer.

Roasted Vegetables

Broccoli, brussels sprouts, and cauliflower turn out delicious. The slightly slower fan speed of a toaster oven can actually be an advantage here. Sometimes, high-powered air fryers blast the leaves of brussels sprouts until they burn before the center is tender. The gentler heat of a toaster oven cooks the vegetable through while still browning the edges nice and slow.

Meat and Poultry

Chicken wings are the benchmark for air frying. You can make great wings in a toaster oven, but they require a higher temperature—usually around 400°F (200°C) or higher. You must use a rack to let the fat drip away. If the wings sit in a pool of rendered fat on a baking sheet, they will not crisp up.

Cooking Conversion Guide

Use this table as a starting point when converting recipes. These adjustments help align the two cooking methods.

Original Recipe Source	Toaster Oven Adjustment (With Convection)	Notes
Standard Oven Recipe	Reduce temp by 25°F; Check food 25% earlier	Convection is more efficient than still air.
Air Fryer Recipe	Keep temp same; Add 3-5 minutes	Toaster oven fans are weaker.
Deep Fry Instructions	Set to 400°F; Spray food with oil	Oil spray is necessary for browning.
Baking Instructions	Reduce temp by 25°F; Cover if browning too fast	Watch tops of cakes/breads closely.
Frozen Food Package	Follow “Oven” temp; Use “Convection” mode	Usually faster than package instructions.
Reheating Pizza	375°F for 3-5 minutes	Much better than a microwave.

Common Limitations To Watch For

While asking “Can I use my toaster oven as an air fryer?” leads to a yes, there are hurdles. The biggest issue is oil management. In an air fryer basket, excess oil drips into a lower catch pan, far away from the heating element. In a toaster oven, if grease splatters onto the glowing heating rods, it causes smoke and bad odors.

Cleaning is also harder. A basket pulls out and goes into the dishwasher. A toaster oven requires you to wipe down the interior walls, glass door, and crumb tray. If you cook fatty foods like burgers or wings often, grease builds up in the corners of the oven, which can become a fire hazard over time.

Also, consider the heat distribution. Toaster ovens often have hot spots near the elements. If you load a tray with nachos, the ones in the center might cook perfectly while the corners burn. Regular rotation solves this, but it requires you to stay in the kitchen rather than walking away.

When You Should Buy A Dedicated Air Fryer

There are times when the toaster oven hack simply isn’t enough. If you cook for a large family and need speed, the dedicated unit wins. The rapid heat circulation cuts cooking time significantly for large batches of protein. If you live in a hot climate, an air fryer is also better because it keeps the heat contained, whereas a toaster oven radiates significant warmth into your kitchen.

Texture enthusiasts will also prefer the dedicated pod. If you are chasing that specific “deep fried” crunch on homemade breaded items, the high-velocity fan creates a texture that a toaster oven rarely matches. For strict adherence to safe minimum internal temperatures, a digital air fryer often provides more precise control than an analog dial on an older toaster oven.

Final Verdict on the Swap

You can definitely use your toaster oven as an air fryer substitute for most daily tasks. It excels at roasting veggies, cooking frozen snacks, and reheating leftovers with a decent crunch. The key is using a wire rack to promote airflow and utilizing the convection setting if you have it.

While it might not deliver the exact same shatter-crisp texture on fresh wings or fries as a dedicated pod unit, it gets you 85% of the way there without costing you extra counter space. If you are willing to flip your food halfway through and keep an eye on the browning, your toaster oven is a versatile tool that extends far beyond simple toast.