Broccoli is wonderful when cooked in the air fryer. It comes out softened and lightly caramelized in just 10 minutes.
Air fryer broccoli is a wonderfully easy side dish. I find 10 minutes is perfect for mostly softened stems and nice browning. You can absolutely leave them in a few minutes longer if you like them browner.
Scroll down to read more about how it all comes together or click here to jump straight down to the recipe.
Video: Making Air Fryer Veggies
What Kind Of Broccoli Should You Use?
I love convenience so I sometimes buy the bag of broccoli florets sold in the produce department. The ones at my grocery store come in 12 ounce bags and that’s a good amount for my air fryer. However, a head of broccoli is often a lot cheaper.
If you’re going in that direction, you’ll get the head of broccoli, trim off the florets, breaking them into large bite-sized pieces. Then, if you’d like, peel the stalks, and then chop the stalks into a couple pieces each. I honestly love the peeled stalks raw. You can use thin slices in salad, or just full stalks in ranch dressing. But they’re great air-fried too!
Season The Broccoli
Put the broccoli florets (and optional stalks) into a bowl and toss them with 1-2 teaspoons of cooking oil, ¼ teaspoon of salt, and 1/8 teaspoon of pepper. That’s just the basic seasonings, but of course, you could use some lemon pepper seasoning instead or add some garlic powder.
Note that you could do this right in the air fryer basket instead of dirtying a bowl. However, I find that some of the oil and seasoning drops straight through the holes in the basket when I add it directly to the basket. Using a bowl ensures more of it adheres to the broccoli, this is what I do for my Air Fryer Cauliflower too. But whatever works best for you.
If you’ve got a few extra minutes, I also love this Air Fryer Broccoli with Parmesan that also has fresh garlic and some panko breadcrumbs. Such a treat!
Time And Temperature
Get the air fryer preheating to 400°F. It doesn’t take long to preheat, but note you’ll likely be ready to add your broccoli to the air fryer before it’s done preheating. That’s totally fine. Get that broccoli in there as quickly as you can so you can move onto something else.
I find my broccoli is perfect for me after about 10 minutes and looks like the below photo. Poke a broccoli stalk with a fork. It should go in fairly easily. If so, you’re done. If not, or if you want them a bit browner, toss the basket and put it back in for another 2-4 minutes.
More Air Fryer Veggie Recipes
Browse our full collection of air fryer recipes, or take a look at more great vegetable options.
Air Fryer Broccoli Recipe
Broccoli is wonderful when cooked in the air fryer. It comes out softened and lightly caramelized in just 10 minutes.
- Prep Time: 2 minutes
- Cook Time: 10 minutes
- Total Time: 12 minutes
- Yield: 4 servings 1x
- Category: Side Dish
- Method: Air Fryer
- Cuisine: American
Ingredients
- 12 oz. broccoli florets
- 1–2 tsp. cooking oil*
- 1/4 tsp. salt
- 1/8 tsp. black pepper
Instructions
- Preheat the air fryer to 400°F.
- Put the broccoli in a medium bowl. Add the oil, salt, and pepper. Toss to coat.
- Transfer to the basket of the air fryer, even if it isn’t done preheating.
- Shake to arrange in a single layer as much as possible. Some overlap is fine.
- Put air fryer basket into air fryer and allow to cook for 10 minutes. Give them a toss and check for your desired softness and browning level, cook another 2-4 more minutes if needed.
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Notes
*They will taste and crisp up better with 2 teaspoons but will be great with 1 teaspoon. Up to you!
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