Yes, an air fryer is great for crisping up potatoes, making savoury mains and reheating leftovers. But it is a great tool to easily make baked treats and desserts too. Get the most out of your air fryer with these classic chocolate chip cookies, which only need to bake for a mere 12 minutes. For extra chocolatey flavour, use chocolate chunks instead of chocolate chips. The cookies will come out of the air fryer out gooey delicious and perfectly browned.

This recipe is by Michelin-trained chef and social media star Poppy O’Toole. She wrote Poppy Cooks: The Actually Delicious Air Fryer Cookbook to share easy recipes that helps you get the most out of your air fryer. Besides these easy air fryer chocolate chip cookies, check out her recipes for delicious sides like Corn Ribs, Spring Rolls and the Best Air Fryer Fries. For quick mains, try her Air Fryer Chicken Wings or Vegetarian Stuffed Peppers.

Can you bake cookies in an air fryer?

Yes, you can bake cookies in an air fryer. In fact, using an air fryer reduces the baking time compared to using a conventional oven. This recipe only requires the cookies to bake for 12 minutes.

What temperature do you cook chocolate chip cookies in the air fryer?

Poppy O’Toole would recommend heating your air fryer to 160°C/ 325°F, and lining the basket with greaseproof paper.

Chocolate chunk cookies on a black wire rack.

Classic Chocolate Chunk Cookies

Poppy O'Toole

You probably already have all these ingredients in the cupboard, and with the help of your trusty air fryer, these warm chocolatey cookies will be ready in no time.

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Equipment

1 Air Fryer

Ingredients

½ cup unsalted butter
2/3 cup light brown soft sugar
1 egg
1¾ cups plus 1 tbsp plain/all-purpose flour
½ tsp baking soda
1 tbsp cornflour/ cornstarch
1-2 cups milk chocolate roughly chopped

Instructions

Line a baking tray with greaseproof paper. Using a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, or a hand whisk, combine the butter and sugar together until light and fluffy with no crunchy bits left.
Whisk in the egg, then sift in the flour, baking soda and cornflour/ cornstarch, to form a dough. Break off pieces of dough, each about 3 tablespoons, and roll them into little balls. Roll the balls in the chopped chocolate and place them on the lined baking tray. Transfer to the fridge and chill the cookies for at least 10 minutes to firm up.
Heat the air fryer to 160°C/325°F and line the air-fryer basket with greaseproof paper.
Gently flatten the balls slightly and place them in the air fryer to cook for 12 minutes, making sure they’re spaced well apart. How many you can cook at one time will depend on the size of your air fryer.
Once they are cooked, remove from the air fryer and leave to cool for, like, 1 minute before digging in. Repeat for the next batch.

Notes

For vegan cookies, mix 60ml/¼ cup of vegetable oil, a dash of vanilla extract, 50g/¼ cup of light brown soft sugar, 50g/¼ cup of caster/ superfine sugar and 35ml/2 tablespoons plus 2 teaspoons of water in a bowl. Sift in 150g/1 cup plus 2 tablespoons of plain/all purpose flour, and a pinch each of bicarbonate of soda and baking powder. Follow the recipe as above, using 200g/1 cup plus 1 tablespoons of vegan dark chocolate to roll the balls in.

To make stuffed cookies, take 1 teaspoon of, let’s say, hazelnut spread, and put it on a piece of greaseproof paper on a baking tray. Keep going until you have as many teaspoons as you want stuffed cookies. Pop the tray in the freezer and leave the little mounds to freeze. When you make your cookie dough, take 50g/3 tablespoons, flatten it out, and add a frozen teaspoon of spread. Mould another piece of cookie dough over the top, pinching the dough together to make sure the spread is fully encased. Repeat, refrigerate the cookies for 30 minutes and then air-fry as in the recipe above.

Keyword Air Fryer, chocolate, cookies and bars