What to line air fryer with

Lining your air fryer as soon as you begin to use it would if you would believe, will extend the life of your air fryer basket and keep it in immaculate condition for longer.

Line any air fryer basket in cut-to-size parchment paper which is taken off a cheap roll, but widely available in-stores. Parchment paper is a must as nothing will stick, but the paper can occasional catch fire. Second option is sturdier foil which will do better to retain fat and grease and prevent a mess in the process.

What you line an air fryer with essentially comes down to what will fit in your particular air fryer, due to capacity restrictions.

To utilise foil or parchment paper whenever possible would be the way to go, providing you are aware of both options being a fire hazard. And so this type of paper liner must be cut down to size to be sure its out of reach of the heating element, situated above internally

Parchment paper is currently my go-to liner for my air fryer because nothing will stick to what would otherwise be a naked basket, and it is fairly cheap to replace.

I would mould cut-to-size sheets of aluminium foil into the bottom of my basket with elevated edges, in an effort to contain fat and grease potentially spilling onto the basket.

Lining air fryers of course is done so in an effort to avoid cleaning your air fryer after every use, yet that isn't to say your choice of lining will still allow grease and fat to get underneath, thus baking onto the teflon-coated basket.

To save money on replacing paper liners, one may depend on what are called silicone baskets, which are washable, flexible dishes which food items can be put in while sat inside the air fryer basket. Unfortunately, they can be a little difficult to shake food in and decanter - while air circulation is restricted with no holes to allow air flow.

If you are trying to keep your air fryer basket clean, avoid use of perforated paper liners, which will allow fat and grease to bake onto the basket.

When to use perforated liners in an air fryer would be ideal for preventing fish and other food items from sticking to an old, tired basket. Paper liners can't block air flow underneath food items, and should cook food quite well.

What to use lining for chart

What you line an air fryer with will primarily depend on what food item you're air fryer, with each type of lining serving to either prevent sticking, or contain access liquid.

Here I have a list of the most popular air fryer food items people enquire about the most, of which you can use it as a reference to know what lining to use for what food item.

Whilst certain foods can and probably will cook with any type of lining, and with none at all; bear in mind, parchment paper for example is essential for preventing chicken and fresh fish from sticking - caused by the skin baking onto what could be foil.

Aluminium foil however is rugged enough to catch juices rendered out of meat items like duck, pork and beef - where juices are caught and then used to baste the meat.

Multi-purpose parchment paper

While super useful parchment paper - also known as baking paper or greaseproof paper - can be used to prevent food adhering to this lining; parchment paper is used to wrap white fish and vegetables as a way to steam food inside the parcel.

In addition, parchment paper can be used to line the air fryer basket in an effort to prevent metal baking sheets and baking tins for example - scratching up the teflon-coated surface.

Most popular air fried food items will benefit hugely when cooked on this soft paper lining.

I recommend you utilise parchment paper rolls with up to 10 meters worth; rather than what is expensive disposable individual parchment paper square/rounded lining.

Cut parchment paper to size to both save on paper whilst at the same time avoid use of access paper, which can flip up into the heating element if it isn't weighed down with food items sat into the edge - including corners if utilising a square air fryer basket.

Aluminium foil for solidity

Other than must-use none-stick parchment paper, do give highly versatile foil a go. Whether its paper foil or foil trays for baking all kinds of meals in, which is all in an effort to retain sauces, marinades and natural juices.

Aluminium foil is a must for air frying, as this hard-wearing lining can be used for any one food item, as well as having many other uses.

Foil can be used to retain potential run off of natural juices and sauces which need to be saved for your meal. Foil  can be moulded into a type of tray with elevated sides - which is useful for keeping your air fryer clean of baked on food stains.

Want to air fry any kind of fresh fish? Well, foil is great for wrapping fish in when instructed to on the packaging... which in turn will steam the fish inside, rather than bake fish under direct heat which you must do occasionally.

Downside to air frying with foil mind, is it will see food sauces and marinades bake on to the foil, and if it does, they can't be saved.

You can think about doubling up parchment paper on foil to stop the sticking - all while using the foil to create a solid foundation - or indeed to wrap food that must be wrapped, with the none-stick paper used as lining actually inside the foil wrap.

Save money with silicone pots

While air frying relies mostly on high intensity air flow which leads to faster cooking time, which isn't to say you must rely on the air frying function every time.

Sitting food on any kind of lining that doesn't utilise holes to allow air to flow into the food from the underside, won't air fry properly in that respect. Whilst that isn't an issue, air frying fresh fish, vegetables, baked potato, pork chops, chicken and pastries, can all air fry just as well, without air flow from all sides.

Here is where use of a versatile silicone-based baking pot comes into play. Its basically a tray with high edges which sits directly inside the basket.

Silicone baskets are highly flexible in some products whilst quite firm in others. That is so you can air fry certain foods that need a stable base, while others can be added to a flimsy but solid silicone basket, which can feature reversible sides.

Why use silicone baskets when paper and foil lining exists? Well, of course the idea behind silicone baskets is so you can save money on disposable foil and paper liners - where the silicone basket can be washed with your dishes and re-used again.

Silicone baskets will be used when you just don't want to risk spillages and leaks, which flimsy liners like parchment paper and foil will cause every once in a while.

What to NOT line with

So while I've gone over reasons to use certain kinds of lining for cooking different foods in an air fryer, what about lining to avoid.

Well, let me remind you that lining such as parchment paper and foil still runs a risk of catching fire, even on occasions when its cut down to size to avoid the paper touching the heating element above.

What you really should be avoiding though is what is referred to as perforated liners for air fryers.

Perforated liners are made to fit square or round air fryer baskets yet they are filled with dozens of holes to allow air flow.

Paper liners featuring holes serve to cook fish and meats in an effort to stop either sticking to the basket. Whilst perforated liners don't do much to keep your air fryer basket clean - as the holes will allow fat and grease to fall through.

If holes are needed then I would personally poke holes in a much cheaper roll of parchment paper, rather than rely on a hundred or so liners per packet.

Depend on re-usable air fryer liners only if you can whilst making use of  silicone basket pots and reusable foil trays to keep the basket 100% grease-free.

Summarise

What liner I would suggest you use above anything else it multi-purpose, disposable parchment paper, also known as baking paper and greaseproof paper - among many other names given around the would.

Unroll the parchment paper to fit the bottom of your basket, whilst ensuring the paper liner extends out and up the sides of the internal basket, by about an inch - all in an effort to create what will be elevated edges - which is done to prevent grease and fat flowing over the sides of the liner, and into your basket.

Lining your air fryer is primarily done to avoid making a mess in your basket - saving you the time cleaning up later - and where old used lining can be thrown out.

I must warn you, parchment paper has a knack for rising up as its heats, thus any extra wide parchment paper will catch fire. Its vitally important the parchment paper doesn't touch the heating element above, so it must be cut down as far as possible.

In addition to parchment paper, and probably a little safer, is use of foil lining which is a sturdier and therefore hold liquid better.

Foil is also good for lifting food items out of the basket while remaining on the foil, which does make life a little easier when managing food inside an air fryer.

Other options can include what are made to fit air fryer paper liners, and paper dishes which takes advantage of useful elevated sides.

Paper liners are made to fit square or rounded air fryer baskets, and will be perforated (with holes punched into the liners) along with none-perforated - which are a must if you want to keep your air fryer clean after every use.

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