This Common Air Fryer Mistake Is Why Your Food Isn't Coming Out Crispy

• Food experts say that overcrowding your air fryer with food is a common mistake most home cooks make.
• Overcrowding can prevent food from cooking evenly and crisping.
• Some of their best tips to avoid ruining your food is spacing it out, making sure it's arranged in an even layer and flipping it so it cooks evenly.

We love air fryers. The little kitchen countertop heroes have totally revolutionized dinnertime prep, producing crunchy, delicious results with less oil, less time — and best of all, less mess. So it can be tempting to throw all your ingredients in there at once, walk away and expect golden perfection. But it turns out, when it comes to air fryers, more is actually not merrier.

Despite the name, there’s no actual "frying" happening in an air fryer. Instead, they act like extra-powerful compact convection ovens, typically with a heating element on top and a powerful fan that forces hot air around the food, causing it to crisp without the extra oil. (That said, there is a difference between convection ovens and air fryers.)

And since most air fryers have a tiny capacity to begin with, overfilling your air fryer basket can prevent that air circulation from happening and instead, leave you with a sad, steamed, soggy mess. The number one enemy of crispy, evenly cooked air-fried food is overcrowding.

If you’re after signature crispiness, the key is to not pack food too tightly into your air fryer basket. Instead, make sure everything has some breathing room so that the hot air can circulate evenly and things can get golden and crunchy.

How much you can fit will mostly depend on the size of your appliance. The average air fryer has a capacity of around six quarts and can cook food for about four people at a time.

Smaller air fryers have a capacity between two and four quarts and are great for feeding just one to two people at a time, or for reheating leftovers or whipping up snacks. From our experience, small air fryers can typically fit two to three chicken thighs snugly, a pound of chicken wings (about 10 medium-sized wings) or 8 to 16 ounces of fries (though 8 ounces is better for more consistent results).

Opt for an air fryer with a capacity of 6 to 10 quarts if you want to cook in bulk or for a larger crowd. And keep in mind that it’s not just size, but shape that matters too: round air fryer baskets offer less cooking area than square air fryer baskets.

To ensure your air fryer delivers delicious, crispy results every time, follow these tips:

• Keep it even: It can be tempting to pile a whole bag of frozen French fries in your air fryer, but if the hot air can’t reach all surfaces, they won’t get crispy. Try to arrange food in a single layer so everything can cook correctly.
• Space it out: Don’t pack anything into your air fryer basket too tightly. Evenly spaced out food ensures that all sides get crispy.
• Use it right: Social media has some convinced that the inner tray of your air fryer can also be used to cook more food at once, but even adding aromatics under there can cause steam build-up, leading to mushier food.
• Cook in batches: If a recipe seems too big for your air fryer, split it up into two (or more!) smaller batches. It may take slightly longer, but you’ll get better results in the end.
• Shake it: Shaking the basket halfway through the cook time can help move food around and get that even, crispy coating on every bite. Just don’t shake too often — every time you take the air fryer basket out, it loses heat.
• Flip it: Another quick tip is to try turning over your food halfway through the cook time to help promote even browning.
• Use the oven: And of course, when it comes to big batch cooking, simply turn to another kitchen appliance — trust us, your food will thank you!