Pork sausages and back bacon cooking together in air fryer basket

SEPTEMBER 23, 2023

How to cook Sausage & Bacon in air fryer both together

While cooking two food items together in an air fryer can be tricky, both sausage and bacon can be cook for reduced or additional time, which should make it easy on you.

How to air fry sausages and bacon together in an air fryer will require approximately 14 minutes of cooking time, with a temperature of 400°F / 205°C. Give the sausages a head start as expected, then with 6 minutes to go, add the bacon rashers. Line the basket with parchment paper to prevent sticking.

Cooking sausage and bacon in an air fryer together couldn't be easier, whether you have a large or small-size air fryer basket.

Simply give the sausages a head start in the cooking time - as they take longer to cook then bacon - then proceed to add the bacon for the final 6 minutes.

Continue to rotate the sausages for even cooking, as well as flipping the bacon over once, to cook both sides.

I've crumpled the bacon rashers in a way they aren't overlapping the other bacon rashers, nor are they really touching the sausages.

Unfortunately, you may not have the luxury of a large air fryer basket, of which the bacon can simply be air fried sitting on top of the sausages. Do ensure the sausages are fully browned before adding the bacon with 6 minutes to go - the sausages will stop browning as soon as the bacon are positioned on top.

As you'll be cooking thin slices of bacon rather than thick cut bacon chops which do take longer, you can give both sausage and bacon extra time to brown them both extra.

I like light crispy bacon when adding to a sandwich of which is what I've cooked them for here.

Rather than a full cooking time of 14 minutes then, you can bring the cooking time up to 16 minutes, to give the sausages and bacon an extra 2 minutes.

Preparation

Directions for preparing sausages and bacon for air frying together

Not much goes into preparing your air fryer for cooking sausages and bacon together, although planning can go into where you will sit the sausages and bacon together - after the sausages are given an 8 minute head start. Cut parchment paper down to size, but do keep the corners weighed down with the food items to prevent a fire.

STEP 1: Preheat air fryer: 5 minutes - You will want to preheat the air fryer to ensure you're following these instructions along with the rest of us
STEP 2: Line basket with Greaseproof Paper - Sausage casing likes to adhere to anything other than parchment paper, thus its vital you use this non-stick paper or add sausage and bacon directly to air fryer basket

STEP 3: Add sausages; avoid touching - I've added 4 standard size pork sausages on top of the parchment paper; its vitally important you distribute the sausages into each corner to prevent the paper floating about while cooking
STEP 4: Carefully close basket - With the sausages in place, you will want to gently close the air fryer basket to ensure you don't dislodge their position

How to air fry together

Directions for air frying sausages and back bacon

With the temperature set to its highest, as sausages and bacon are cooked by other means this way, including broiling them both - we want to avoid slowly cooking the items which will effect the quality. If you have no parchment paper available, by all means just add both sausages and bacon directly to the basket.

STEP 1: Set temp: 400°F / 205°C; time: 14 mins. - You can air fry 4 standard sausages plus 4 bacon rashers for a minimum of 14 minutes; however, you can increase the total time to 16 minutes if you like extra crispy bacon
STEP 2: Cook sausages for 8 mins. - While opening the basket to rotate the sausages, you have 8 minutes to brown off the sausage skin/casing

STEP 3: Add bacon for final 6 minutes - Once 8 minutes are up (with 6 minutes left on the air fryer timer) you will now add all 4 bacon rashers beside the sausages if you can - but its perfectly fine to overlap bacon and sausages with lack of space
STEP 4: Remove all items with silicone-tipped tongs - Of course do turn the bacon over in the final 6 minutes; but when the times up, you can simply remove all sausages and bacon rashers with silicon-tipped tongs

Keep an eye on air frying items

About to turn over a bacon rasher with the air fryer basket open

Over the course of air frying both sausages and bacon together, you will want to keep an eye on proceedings, while turning over bacon and sausages as often as needed.

With the potential for the sausages especially to stick to what will probably be the non-stick teflon coating, which would have to be worn down by now for sausage casing to stick - you must still keep an eye on what's happening.

Which means you must continue to open the air fryer basket while cooking so you can not only check on how well the sausage and bacon is cooking, but of course you must spin the sausages around.

Spinning the sausages frequently will ensure even browning, while at the same time turning the sausages will prevent them sticking.

Bacon is unlikely to stick to the bare basket nor will it stick to anything else, but you will need to flip the bacon over to ensure even cooking as normal.

If you have an air fryer rack, the best way to air fry bacon would be to sit the slices on the rack, which can be elevated above the sausages.

When basket space is limited

Back bacon piled on top of sausages in air fryer basket

When space is limited, pile your bacon on top of the pork sausages to air fry, which should have no effect on either providing you move all items frequently.

While I've cooked all 4 sausages and 4 bacon rashers together in the same basket, I did so in a 5.5 litre air fryer which provides me plenty of room.

Understandably, you won't all have an air fryer this large and thus you will have issues cooking so many food items together.

What you can do then is cook the sausages as normal, with plenty of room for 6 sausages in the smallest air fryers; then when its time to add the bacon, simply pop all slices on top of the sausages to cook.

Ensure the sausages are browned off first as the sausages will struggle too continue to brown if bacon is sat on top of them.

Bacon which is air frying on top of sausages will not be an issue health wise nor will it cause issues for either food item to cook.

Don't forget to flip over each bacon rasher where you will return them back on top of the group of sausages.

Summary

No effort goes into air frying sausages and bacon together, with the sausages needing a minimum of 14 minutes of cooking time, while the bacon needs just 6 minutes.

You will have to begin air frying the sausages first where you'll introduce the bacon rashers with just 6 minutes left to go on the cooking time.

Both sausage and bacon can be cooked for a couple of minutes more, which is relevant with the bacon if you like it crispy.

Sausages do have a tendency of sticking to all kinds of cookware, of which the air fryer basket is no different if its an old one - and therefore if the once non-stick coating is a bit worse for wear, and is past its prime - expect the sausage casing to stick.

I would recommend lining the basket with a cut to size sheet of parchment paper, rather than foil which does fuse to the sausage casing.

Its vitally important you position the sausages in empty voids - including the corners and edges - when using parchment paper, because it will fly up and catch fire if it isn't weighed down to begin with.