The Instant Pot Air Fryer helps you make crispy and delicious meals. However, you need the lid to obtain juicy meat inside and a crispy surface on the outside.
Many people don’t know how to work the Instant Pot Air Fryer Lid, but this article will provide a guide on its usage. Continue reading to know more.
An air fryer works almost like an electric convection oven, but there are differences. The enclosed space where the food is placed gets a lot heat that cooks the food in no time.
Hot air is blown over the food for a period of time which will leave it juicy and crispy. The air fryer allows for little to no oil, that is less frying and more nutrition.
Table of Contents
What is an Air Fryer Lid?
The air fryer lid allows you to fry, broil, or/and dehydrate food. You can use it alone or alongside the Instant Pot pressure cooking lid. The air fryer helps to brown up your food.
The Air Fryer Lid only works with 6-quart Instant Pots—a smaller or larger pot doesn’t have a lid. You can use the air fryer lid with the Instant Pot Duo, Lux, Duo Plus, Ultra, Viva, Nova, and Nova Plus Air Fryers.
Instant Pot Air Fryer Lid: How To Use?
The air fryer lid does not come with clear instructions on its use, which means that it can be quite difficult to operate.
However, this guide will break down everything you need to know about operating your air fryer lid. First, let us consider the settings of the air fryer lid.
The air fryer has 6 pre-programmed settings. They include:
- The Air Fry: used to make pressure-cooked meals and frozen foods crispy.
- Roast: used for finishing meats, fish, and anything you require to have a ‘roasty’ feel.
- Broil: melt your cheese on top of your spaghetti meals with this setting.
- Bake: you can use this setting for baking anything from cakes to brownies.
- Reheat: use this setting to warm up leftover meals.
- Dehydrate: you can make chips with this setting, apple, banana, or kale chips.
These are the 6 pre-programmed settings that come with your air fryer. You can use the air fryer lid with any of the above settings.
Follow this step-by-step instruction to make the process of using the lid easy for you.
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Unplug the Instant Pot Air Fryer
Always make sure that the pot is not plugged to the electric source. Also, if you used a pressure cooker to cook the food, make sure to release the pressure and remove the pressure cooker lid.
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Place the Lid on the Pot: Make sure it fits well on the pot
This instruction is clear. Place the lid on the pot and make sure to lock it in. After fitting it nicely, plug the air fryer back to the electric source.
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Select the Setting You Want to Use
There are 6 pre-programmed settings that you can use with your Instant Pot Air Fryer. Select the one that fits what you want to achieve.
Note that by this time, you should have placed the food into the air fryer before attaching the lid.
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Turn the Food if Necessary
Midway into the cooking process, you will see a message asking you to turn the food. You can choose to ignore or accept this offer.
If you accept the offer, remove the lid gently, turn the food, and then place the lid back on the fryer, making sure that it fits perfectly.
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Remove the Air Fryer Lid after the Cooking is Done
Once the cooking is done, you will be notified with an end message. Lift the lid gently from your fryer and take out your food. Eat as much as you want.
How To Clean The Air Fryer Lid
It is important to note that you should never use an abrasive cleaner to clean your air fryer lid. Abrasive cleaners are those cleaning agents with strong and harmful chemical components.
Always ask about the cleaning agent you buy before you use it on your air fryer. Also, you should never immerse your lid in water. It has electrical components.
If you want to clean your air fryer, use a damp cloth to wipe it. This way, you get to remove all the dirt and grime without damaging the lid.
Your Instant Pot Air Fryer Lid is also not dishwasher safe. Leave your inner pot and your regular instant pot lid in the dishwasher, but do not put your Instant Pot Air Fryer Lid into the dishwasher. Read step by step process.
Best Air Fryer Lid Meals
Wondering what to make with your Instant Pot Air Fryer Lid? Let’s help you with that. You can make very delicious meals with your Instant Pot Air Fryer Lid ranging from Asparagus to
Chicken tenders and crispy crunch fries, among many others. You have plenty of options. Another advantage is that it takes a little time to prepare these meals. Efficiency, effectiveness, and time management make this lid worthwhile to have. Some meals you can prepare with your air fryer lid include:
BBQ Chicken Wings
Chicken wings are really great to eat. However, air-fried chicken wings are on another level. They are both delicious and crispy. It doesn’t take long to prepare, so make sure to try it out.
Carrot Fries
You can pressure-cook your carrots, and they will taste delicious. Air fry them, and you will have a taste of the divine. Whether you use a regular air fryer or an Instant Pot Air Fryer Lid, air-fried carrots are the deal.
Kale Chips
Apart from being healthy and easy to cook, Kale Chips are delicious. Air frying your Kale Chips helps them to taste better, and you can dip them into your favorite sauces.
Salmon Cakes
There is no preheating time with these cakes, and you can make them very quickly. Salmon cakes have a high protein content, and air-fried salmon cake patties are really tasty.
Cauliflower Pizza
With your air fryer, you can make cauliflower pizza crusts and add your favorite toppings. If you are a fan of low carbs, then the air fryer is your best bet.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is It Possible To Use The Instant Pot Air Fryer Lid Without Using The Basket?
The majority of Instant Pot air fryer lid users are unsure whether they should use it with or without a basket. When you use a basket and an Instant Pot air fryer lid together, your food will cook faster and more evenly.
The air fryer lid creates a deep-fried impression by blowing and swirling hot air into your food. Air-fried food is flavorful and golden brown, just like deep-fried cuisine.
An elevated basket in the pot is required for the hot air to flow freely over the meal. This ensures that enough and constant air will flow.
However, the appliance can be used without a basket. Some situations may not necessitate the use of a basket.
If you’re baking a cake or a whole chicken or turkey with the Instant Pot air fryer cover, for example, utilizing a basket may be inconvenient.
However, in order to achieve decent outcomes, you must follow the correct airflow concept. Roll some aluminum balls to use as a base for your chicken or cake tins.
If you don’t have a basket, a stainless-steel rack or silicon molds are excellent alternatives.
How Do You Use An Instant Pot Air Fryer To Cook?
For starters, because it is fast, an Instant Pot air fryer does not require preheating. Simply insert your ingredients in a stainless-steel basket, lay the air fryer lid on top of the cooker base, and select the time, temperature, and program to your liking.
Connect the plug to an electrical outlet and turn it on. Your cooker will start heating up and finish cooking your dish.
When the timer on the air fryer runs out, it will beep to let you know. Lift the lid, plate your meal, and indulge your senses.
Lift the air fryer cover and lay it on its protective pad on a countertop if you need to check the cooking progress halfway through. Replace the cover and turn or rotate your meal. Easy!
How do I preheat the lid of my Instant Pot Air Fryer?
Even though preheating an Immediate Pot air fryer cover isn’t necessary (the hot air is instant), you should know how to do it.
Preheating the Instant Pot will allow you to heat the cooking utensils inside before adding your ingredients.
You must lay your Instant Pot air fryer top on the pot’s base to warm it. Connect the power source to the electric code and turn it on. When the display reads On, your air fryer lid has started to heat up.
Which Instant Pot Lid work With An Air Fryer?
Depending on their capacity, Instant Pot and air fryer lids are compatible. The 6-quart Instant Pot is compatible with the Instant Pot Lid.
Is it possible to use my Instant Pot as an air fryer?
Yes, it is possible. You can make an air fryer out of your Instant Pot. The only thing you’ll need is an air fryer lid.
The lids are designed for a specific purpose. They come in a variety of sizes to fit Instant Pots of various quarts or capacities.
The Instant Pot air fryer lid is an example. It’ll fit in your Instant Pot’s 6-quart capacity.
You may use your Instant Pot as an air fryer as long as you purchase the correct size. With this one-of-a-kind cooker, you can make delicious fries with little or no oil, bake cakes, reheat food, dehydrate vegetables, roast chicken, cook meat, and prepare a variety of other things.
You can’t see into the base of your Instant Pot while using an air fryer lid, but you can check on the progress of your food halfway by lifting the lid.
Like a complete air fryer, the lid has temperature, time, and frying characteristics and functions programmed into it.
When utilizing this one-of-a-kind device, remove any non-stick ceramic insert from the pot to ensure compatibility.
When using the air fryer lid, make sure to follow these precautionary steps:
- Turn off the electricity to your Instant Pot.
- Arrange your food in your Instant Pot base or, if you have one, on an air fryer basket. Because ceramic-coated inner pots cannot be used with air fryer lids, use a stainless-steel inner pot instead.
- Take the pressure cooker out of the oven and turn it off. Connect the power source to the air fryer lid and place it on your Instant Pot’s base.
- Choose any of the cooking methods on the lid, such as reheating, dehydrating, baking, broiling, or air frying.
- To adjust the cooking time and temperature, press the Time +/– buttons. As the Air Fryer Lid heats up, you’ll see the display.
- To pause cooking, lift the Air Fryer Lid and set it on a pad. To resume cooking, place the Air Fryer Lid on the protective pad, then turn, twist, or flip it back on the pot base. Most air fryer lids feature a standby mode that turns on when you replace it on the cooking base after a few minutes.
- When finished, the lid will beep to indicate that the cooking time is up. Remove the lid from the Instant Pot air fryer and serve the dish. Food can be kept warm for up to an hour in an air fryer with the lid on. To avoid damage, always place the lid of your air fryer on a protective pad.
Final Thoughts
The Instant Pot air fryer lid is a space and money saver when adding new equipment to your kitchen. You don’t need to buy a new air fryer; all you need is a cover to get started.
When you use your Instant Pot with the air fryer lid, you can cook, roast, dehydrate, preheat, broil, bake, and do a lot of other things that you couldn’t do with a regular Instant Pot.
