Easy Air Fryer Garlic Bread (Fresh Or Frozen Mini Loaves)
on May 09, 2024
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How convenient to have crowd pleasing homemade garlic bread ready to pair with dinner at the last minute! It’s so easy to prepare and bake a mini loaf in your air fryer in around 15 minutes.
Wrap in foil for delicious crisp on the outside tender inside garlic bread, and for easy clean-up. It’s also perfect for baking straight from frozen if you prefer.
Why you’ll love it
Who doesn’t love a slice or two of hot, crispy-on-the-outside and tender inside garlic bread dripping in rich and aromatic melted butter? It’s a perfect crowd pleaser served as a simple appetizer, or with anything from pasta and lasagna to chili, soup and more.
So… great news if you have an air fryer! Air fryer garlic bread is a dinner game changer. The mini size used in this recipe is a perfect last-minute side dish for a weeknight family dinner. Here’s what else I think you’ll love:
- Super quick and easy. It takes just minutes to prepare the garlic bread, then around 10 minutes to air fry it perfectly. No need to heat up the oven!
- Wrapped in foil. Unlike many other air fried garlic bread recipes, this one is for whole mini loaves wrapped up in foil. The foil not only keeps your air fryer clean, it also stops the bread from browning too much. No need to check on it while it’s cooking! It also keeps the moisture in for perfectly tender bread. Last but not least, it makes it easy to prepare a few in advance, and throw them in the freezer for another day.
- Air fry fresh or from frozen. Following on from the above, you can either air fry a fresh loaf, or you can freeze some wrapped garlic breads. Then air fry straight from frozen whenever you like. How convenient is that?
- Made with real butter. I got the inspiration for this idea after trying to buy ready-prepared garlic bread at the supermarket one day. Each one was made using margarine, not butter! How difficult could it be to make my own at home with good quality ingredients and cook it in my air fryer, I thought? Not difficult at all, it turned out.
About the ingredients
Bread: I like to use mini loaves of fresh crusty bread such as half-size baguette, small Italian ciabattas, large rolls, or similar. Alternatively, a full-sized baguette cut to size to fit in your air fryer is fine.
Butter: Since you only use a few simple ingredients for this recipe, try to use a good quality real butter. Either salted or unsalted is fine.
Let the butter come to room temperature first so that it’s easy to mash in the garlic, parsley and salt. Where I live, you can also buy a softened butter (called Buttersoft!) which works really well, too.
Garlic: I think the perfect amount of garlic is 2 cloves per mini air fried garlic bread. It’s no problem, however, to increase or decrease the amount according to taste.
Fresh parsley: This works perfectly for a splash of green color and freshness in and on the garlic bread. Substitute with dried parsley or different fresh or dried herbs such as oregano, thyme or basil.
Salt: If you use salted butter, skip the salt. If not, mash around a quarter of a teaspoon into the butter mixture, if you like (you can completely skip the salt if you prefer).
How to make garlic bread in an air fryer
Firstly, preheat your air fryer to 200C while you’re preparing the bread to go in it.
Then slice the mini loaf into roughly 1.5 to 2cm slices. Slice nearly to the bottom but WITHOUT cutting all the way through the bread.
Mash crushed garlic, chopped parsley and salt into the softened butter.
Spread the butter mixture on both sides of the inside of the bread slices…
…and all over the top and sides.
Then wrap the butter-smeared bread in foil.
Place it in the air fryer and cook for about 10 to 15 minutes.
The garlic bread is ready when the butter is melted and the top and sides of the bread are lightly crisp and golden.
Helen’s Top Tips
- Unwrap the garlic bread at the table for everyone to ‘tear and share’!
- Try preparing extra foil-wrapped garlic breads to throw into your freezer for another day. You can air fry them straight from frozen! Simply cook for around 5 minutes longer than the recipe states. You can easily unwrap the foil to check for doneness and cook for slightly longer if you think it needs it.
- How about cheesy air fryer garlic bread instead? Stuff some grated cheddar, parmesan, or mozzarella in with the butter before wrapping and cooking.
- Serving hungry people, or more than 4? Simply prepare more garlic breads and air fry them one by one.
Recipes to serve with garlic bread
I don’t really need to tell you what to serve your deliciously crisp and tender air fried garlic bread with, do I?
However, here are a few of the recipes that I think it goes particularly well with:
- One pot marry me chicken pasta (the garlic bread is virtually essential!)
- 5 bean chili
- 30-minute sheet pan gnocchi with sausage, peppers and tomatoes (delicious!)
- These two delicious eggplant recipes: Greek baked eggplant or vegetarian eggplant lasagna
- Classic tomato soup (or any of these easy soups!)
- Chicken and chorizo with cherry tomatoes
- Stove-top creamy pesto chicken (15-minute dinner – make it while the garlic bread is in the air fryer!)
Recipe FAQs
You can, but for best results only store for 1 to 2 days. Simply wrap the completely cooled leftover bread in the foil again, pop into a food storage bag or airtight container and store in the fridge. Alternatively, you can freeze it for up to a month. When ready to reheat, reheat still wrapped in the foil in the air fryer heated to 340F/170C for around 5 minutes or until hot and crisp again.
Yes, it’s fine, as long as it isn’t touching the elements at the top.
More easy bread recipes for dinner
- Incredibly delicious and easy no-knead Greek bread
- 2-minute toasted bread with olive oil and salt
- No-knead Italian focaccia bread (ready in just one hour!)
Or see more easy air fryer recipes.
Easy Air Fryer Garlic Bread (Fresh Or Frozen Mini Loaves)
Equipment
Ingredients
- 1 small loaf bread, e.g. ciabatta or baguette cut to size, large roll, small loaf of bread
- 1½ tablespoons butter, unsalted or salted, softened (1 to 2 tablespoons depending on size of loaf)
- 2 large cloves garlic, (2 to 3 cloves to taste and depending on size of loaf)
- 2 tablespoons fresh parsley, chopped
- ¼ teaspoon salt, or to taste
Instructions
- Slice the bread (roughly 1.5 to 2cm wide or as you like). Cut almost to the bottom but not all the way through.1 small loaf bread
- Mash the butter, garlic, salt and parsley together well.1½ tablespoons butter, 2 large cloves garlic, 2 tablespoons fresh parsley, ¼ teaspoon salt
- Pre-heat the air fryer to 390F/200C for 3 minutes.
- Meanwhile, spread both sides of all the bread slices evenly with the butter mixture. Spread some all over the top and sides of the mini loaf as well.
- Wrap the loaf in aluminium foil, scrunching it up at the top to close.
- Making sure the foil isn't touching the air fryer element at the top, air fry the bread for roughly 10 to 15 minutes, or until all the butter has melted and it's lightly golden and crisp on the outside. Serve at the table, letting everyone tear slices off the loaf while still hot and crisp.
