25 Essential Thanksgiving Recipes to Make in Your Air Fryer

updated Sep 26, 2022

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A photo of a black plate with two roasted Cornish hens on it, with two rosemary sprigs on the plate beside them. — Credit: Tara Holland
Air Fryer Cornish Hen

By now you’re probably well-acquainted with all the amazing things you can do with your air fryer (hello, potato chips and crispy tofu!). So it should come as no surprise that this mighty appliance is a totally brilliant addition to your Thanksgiving game plan.

While it’s definitely not big enough to fit a whole turkey, there are a ton of other ways it will make getting your holiday dinner on the table a little easier. Whether there’s not quite enough space in the oven, you need to cook one dish at a different oven temperature than everything else, you want to minimize cook time on a side dish, or you simply want to turn out an impossibly crispy batch of Brussels sprouts, your air fryer is the answer.

From crowd-pleasing apps to side dishes galore to holiday-worthy mains, here are 25 air fryer Thanksgiving recipes you’ll want to include in your menu.

Ninja Air Fryer

Air Fryer Thanksgiving Sides

Whether you need more oven space, a faster way to cook baked potatoes, or want the crispiest Brussels sprouts ever, the air fryer has your back.

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Air Fryer Butternut Squash

For crispy and tender butternut squash in a fraction of the time, use your air fryer.

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Air Fryer Roasted Potatoes

Turn to your air fryer for this impossibly crispy and easy side dish.

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Air Fryer Carrots

In less than 12 minutes, the carrots are hot, blistered, and ready for a squeeze of fresh lemon and herbs.

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Air Fryer Green Beans

Air fryers are great for cooking green beans (fresh or frozen!).

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Crispy Air Fryer Brussels Sprouts

Brussel sprouts may be the perfect veggie to cook in the air fryer. Their insides become tender while their outsides crisp to perfection.

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Air Fryer Mushrooms

Bite-sized garlic-butter mushrooms are savory with crispy edges, all thanks to the air fryer.

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Air Fryer Broccoli

Air-fry slender stalks of broccoli for a tender and crispy-tipped side dish to serve all year long.

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Air Fryer Beets

The concentrated heat from the air fryer halves the time it would take to roast beets in the oven, and your results will be even crispier.

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Crispy Air Fryer Baked Potatoes

The high fan speed and concentrated heat of the air fryer makes baked potatoes that are fluffy and tender on the inside and shatteringly crisp on the outside.

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Quick & Easy Air Fryer Asparagus

Air fryer asparagus comes out perfectly tender and crisp every time, with just the right amount of char at the tips. Plus, it's ready in less than 10 minutes.

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Air Fryer Sweet Potato

Just 35 minutes stands between you and tender, fluffy sweet potatoes with lightly crisped skin.

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Air Fryer Squash

While summer squash and zucchini are most abundant in summer, they're available year-round and make a color Thanksgiving side.

Air Fryer Thanksgiving Appetizers

This countertop appliance is also the easy to get a crowd-pleasing app on the table.

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Air Fryer Stuffing Hushpuppies

Here's how to use your air fryer to make near-instant 2-ingredient hushpuppies, which are easier and way less messy than traditional deep-fried hushpuppies.

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This crispy snack is best served alongside remoulade sauce for dunking.

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Air Fryer Fried Shrimp

Here's how you can create crispy, crunchy shrimp at home with your air fryer — no hot oil required!

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Air Fryer Chickpeas

There’s a whole wide world out there for chickpeas beyond hummus, and it can start as easily as putting them in your air fryer.

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Air Fryer Zucchini

Thin and crispy Parmesan zucchini slices served with an herb-yogurt sauce is summer's answer to chips and dip.

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Air Fryer Meatballs

These quick and easy air fryer meatballs are as moist and flavorful as they come, thanks to a combination of ground meat and the addition of ricotta.

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Air Fryer Sweet Potato Chips

These air fryer sweet potato chips deliver everything you love about the deep-fried version, but require way less oil to make.

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Air Fryer Mozzarella Sticks

Want an app that everyone's sure to love and devour in an instant? This is the family-friendly solution that's guaranteed to deliver.

Air Fryer Thanksgiving Mains

If you’re cooking for just a couple people and want an alternative to turkey, the air fryer is also the perfect solution for a totally tasty main.

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Air Fryer Cornish Hen

A perfect Thanksgiving substitute for turkey for one or two.

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Perfect Air Fryer Salmon

If your stepping away from tradition, salmon makes an elegant holiday-worthy main course. These salmon fillets cook up perfectly on all sides in minutes, and the resulting salmon is crisp on the outside and juicy and flaky on the inside.

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Air Fryer Chicken Breast

For small celebrations, chicken breast is a nice alternative to turkey. And the air fryer is your answer for always juicy, always tender boneless, skinless chicken breasts.

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Air Fryer Greek Chicken and Potatoes

Here's the main and side dish all in one. Garlic, lemon, dill, and oregano add tons of flavor to a simple chicken and potatoes dinner, and, thanks to the air fryer, everything's crispy-crunchy.

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Air Fryer Pork Chops

If you'll serve up pork chops as your main, the air fryer is quite possibly the most irresistible way to cook them. Thanks to the convection heat of the air fryer, these breaded pork chops cook up crisp and juicy every time.

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