Why You Can't Make Funnel Cakes And Fried Dough In The Air Fryer

The rise of the air fryer back in the late 2010s absolutely changed the cooking game. Not only does this countertop contraption "fry" foods without the use of oil, but it has also become useful for cooking everything from chicken to frozen waffles to even steak. Air fryers are versatile, easy to use, and generally affordable, but they're not great for every food — including fried dough or any kind of batter-based treat, such as funnel cake, due to its pre-cooked liquid state.

Air fryers are actually just mini convection ovens that cook food by circulating hot air. That air encompasses the food as it cooks, heating it all over. So, while a grill might only have flames coming from the bottom, a convection oven promotes even cooking on all sides, which also explains why air fryer baskets are always perforated. Those holes allow air to get on the underside of the food, too. There is usually about 2 inches of free space between the basket and the bottom of the fryer for air to easily travel. But the downside to those perforated baskets is that liquid quickly seeps through and leaves a mess.

Different batters and doughs have different consistencies. Cookie dough, for example, is thicker than brownie batter, so you could likely get away with making cookies in an air fryer without a pan, but you wouldn't have the same luck with brownies. And fried dough, such as homemade doughnuts or funnel cakes, would suffer the same fate as the brownie batter. When uncooked, these doughs and batters are too thin and lack the structure needed to stay put at the base of the air fryer; they would quickly seep through those holes and cause a mess.

When dough is cooked in frying oil, the bubbling fat's extremely hot temperature evaporates the liquid at a quick rate; this essentially cooks the dough's exterior almost instantly, meaning it doesn't have a chance to fall apart the way it would in an air fryer. In addition to funnel cake and doughnuts, other batter- or dough-based foods that you should not put in the air fryer include pancakes, fritters, and battered fish or corn dogs.

If absolutely necessary, you could potentially thicken your dough or batter in order to make it more air fryer-friendly. Keep in mind, though, that there are no guarantees here. The first option could leave the recipe too dry, while the second option might still be a mess.

You can easily thicken dough or batter by adding more dry ingredients, such as flour. Flour is already a likely ingredient in your arsenal, so carefully add a little more than necessary to create a thicker dough. Some cornstarch will also do the trick. This might take some trial and error, though, because you need to make sure the batter doesn't get too dry. Cooking times might need to be adjusted, too, to account for dryer batter, so double-check at least once halfway through cooking (or every few minutes, depending on how long the cooking time is) to make sure the dough isn't getting too dried out. 

A second option for air-frying fried dough is to make the batter as instructed but coat it in something firm that could help hold it together. If you're making a savory dish, potato chips or bread crumbs are a good choice, and for a sweet dish, something like cornflakes could work. Depending on the batter's consistency, though, this is a less promising route, so use your best judgment here; if the batter is far too liquid-like, this probably won't work.