Air fryer roasted garlic is just as easy as using the oven but ready in half the amount of time so you can enjoy its rich, mellow flavor in any recipe in just 25 minutes! Make a bunch and store the roasted garlic in olive oil for all sorts of delicious uses.
There’s something incredibly comforting and uniquely delicious about roasted garlic.
Compared to its pungent raw counterpart, roasted garlic offers a mellow, sweet and caramelized garlic flavor that’s much more subtle. Its buttery texture is perfect for blending into dips or spreading onto bread.
It’s a simple addition that can truly transform a dish whether that’s a side of roasted vegetables, a pasta dinner or used as a sandwich spread.
Using your air fryer to roast the garlic cloves isn’t just easier and less of a resource hog than heating up a big oven for a few heads of garlic, it’s also a lot quicker.
In just 25 minutes, the air fryer transform a head of raw garlic into the perfect golden brown, caramelized cloves of your dreams.
Ingredients for roasting garlic in the air fryer
If you’ve never roasted garlic before, you’ll be amazed at how simple the process is.
You’ll need:
- head of garlic
- olive oil
- salt & pepper, optional
- parchment paper
- aluminum foil
This recipe calls for three heads of garlic, but you can make as little as one head or as many as you can fit in your air fryer.
If you’re going through the effort, you might as well make at least two or three heads. You’ll be amazed how quickly it gets used up and air fryer roasted garlic can be stored in the refrigerator in oil or frozen for later use.
How to make air fryer roasted garlic
Step 1: Without peeling it at all, slice the top off the head of garlic so that all the cloves are exposed at the tops but connected at the bottom.
Step 2: Lay a piece of aluminum foil on a flat surface. Place a piece of parchment paper on top of the aluminum foil and situate one head of garlic in the center. Repeat this for each head of garlic you’re roasting in the air fryer.
My Pro Tip
Recipe Tip
Oil may leak out of the packets when roasting. You can line the bottom of the air fryer with aluminum foil to catch any mess.
Step 3: Drizzle the olive oil on top so that it covers all the exposed garlic cloves and season with salt and pepper if using. Wrap the foil and parchment up along the sides and crimp or twist at the top to form a sealed packet with the head of garlic inside.
Step 4: Place the packets in the air fryer. This recipe works with either an oven model or basket model air fryer. Air fry at 400°F for 25 minutes.
Step 5: Carefully remove the packets from the air fryer and let them rest for at least 5 minutes before opening. Open the packets, taking care to avoid the hot steam, and let the roasted garlic cool until you can handle it.
Step 6: Squeeze the garlic cloves out of the shells and use as desired or store according to your preferences for a later use. They will be buttery and soft and almost spreadable once roasted.
From oil sprays to muffin cups and from pizza pans to racks, we've got them all, and they make fantastic Christmas presents, too!
Getting the perfect golden brown color
If your roasted garlic isn’t golden brown after the 25 minutes of air frying, open the packets a bit and continue roasting for another 5 minutes. Once the garlic is exposed to the heat directly without the foil and parchment paper, it will develop a golden brown hue.
Is aluminum foil necessary?
With few exceptions, like sriracha salmon vegetable packets, I don’t like cooking on aluminum foil. That’s why this roasted garlic recipe uses parchment on top of the foil. This way, the garlic doesn’t come into direct contact with the foil but you can still easily make the packets without having to use twine.
If you really prefer to not use aluminum foil at all, you can roast the garlic in parchment paper alone by tying the packets with kitchen twine. However, this may result in more oil leakage while air frying.
The other option is to make roasted garlic confit in the air fryer. To do this, you would remove the cloves from the head of garlic before roasting and place them in a baking dish. Cover the garlic cloves with olive oil and roast at a lower temperature (275-300°F) for about one hour.
How to store air fried roasted garlic
There are two ways to store the roasted garlic after it’s been air fried.
- Submerged in oil
- Frozen
To store in oil – add the roasted garlic cloves to a glass jar. Pour a good quality olive oil to cover all the garlic. You can add seasonings like fresh herbs or peppercorns, much like you would a brine if you were pickling. Screw on the lid and store in the refrigerator for up to a month.
To freeze the roasted garlic – you can store the garlic in ice cube trays or use a silicone freezer bag. The garlic can be minced, stored whole or processed into a puree before freezing.
Why air fryer roasted garlic is better than the oven
- It’s ready in half the time — just 25 minutes!
- Uses less electricity or gas than heating a large oven.
- Frees up oven space for other parts of the meal.
- Keeps the house cooler.
- Easy to make in smaller spaces like dorms and RVs if you’re away from home.
Ways to use roasted garlic
- Spread onto bread — my first encounter with the mellow, rich taste of roasted garlic was at a fine Italian restaurant served with fresh focaccia. It’s since remained my favorite way to enjoy this delicacy!
- Pasta dishes like bucatini with garlic shrimp or a lightened up spaghetti alfredo are markedly improved in flavor with the use of roasted garlic.
- Elevate any sandwich by using roasted garlic as a spread on the bread. Try it with this roast beef and gouda grilled cheese or in this garlic yogurt chicken salad sandwich.
- Pizza isn’t pizza without some garlic component. Roasted garlic cloves take any pizza to the next level like this eggplant fennel pizza or this zucchini pesto pizza.
- Mash into potatoes, rutabaga, cauliflower or yuca for the ultimate creamy garlic side dish.
Roasting garlic has always been a simple kitchen endeavor that results in big impact. Roasting it in the air fryer, however, makes it even more accessible for quick and easy dinners. In just 25 minutes, this savory delicacy is ready to enjoy.
If you’re not sold on the intense flavor of regular raw or cooked garlic, roasting it is a whole new game and a must try before completely writing it off. And there’s no better way than to let the air fryer do the work for you in half the time!
Easy Air Fryer Roasted Garlic
Ingredients
- 3 heads of garlic
- 3 teaspoons extra virgin olive oil
- Dash sea salt, optional
- Dash black pepper, optional
Instructions
- Slice off the tops of the head of garlic so that the tips are cut off but the cloves are still connected and exposed a bit.
- Lay a piece of aluminum foil on a flat surface. Layer a similar sized piece of parchment paper on top of the aluminum foil. Place one of the heads of garlic in the middle of the parchment paper and drizzle with olive oil. Season with salt and pepper if using.
- Create a foil packet by bringing up the sides of the aluminum foil and parchment paper and folding them or crimping them at the top.
- Repeat with the remaining heads of garlic.
- Place each packet of garlic in the air fryer. Air fry at 400°F for about 20-25 minutes. Let the packets cool in the air fryer for at least 5 minutes before trying to handle them.
- Carefully open each packet and allow to cool further.
- Use as desired or store in an airtight container in the refrigerator.
Notes
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
Gina Matsoukas is an AP syndicated writer. She is the founder, photographer and recipe developer of Running to the Kitchen — a food website focused on providing healthy, wholesome recipes using fresh and seasonal ingredients. Her work has been featured in numerous media outlets both digital and print, including MSN, Huffington post, Buzzfeed, Women’s Health and Food Network.
This was hands down the best way to roast garlic – and it made my house smell so good!
I typically roast my garlic in the oven but it is so much easier and quicker in the air fryer. Will definitely be making it this way from now on. Thanks for the valuable information too!