Easy Air Fryer Asparagus

This easy recipe for air fryer asparagus recipe is perfect when you need a quick and healthy side dish. A delicious roasted vegetable side fast enough for weeknight dinners? Yes, please!

If you have not roasted asparagus in your air fryer yet, you will love this recipe! You can grill them or roast them in the oven, but the air fryer is even quicker and easier. It's the best way to roast fresh asparagus in less time.

The secret to perfectly cooked crispy asparagus is getting a slight char on the edges without overcooking the stalks. Air frying is perfect for this because the heat circulates all the way around each asparagus spear, cooking them perfectly in just a few minutes.

Here's what you'll need

Start with a fresh bundle of asparagus stalks, they should be firm and bright green in color. If you need to store them in the refrigerator for a few days before cooking, stand them up in a glass jar with a little water in the bottom and the vegetable bag loosely over the top.

To trim the stalks, use the snap to tell you how much to cut off the bottom. Just hold a spear on each end and bed it until the woody end snaps off the bottom of the stalk. You can use this as a guide to cut the rest of the stalks, or skip the knife and cutting board altogether and just snap the bottom off of the whole bunch.

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While you're prepping the asparagus, be sure to pre-heat your air fryer. For my air fryer, it's just a matter of setting the temperature and letting it run for 5 minutes before adding the trimmed stalks.

All you need to add to roast the asparagus spears are a little olive oil, sea salt, and cracked pepper. Toss the spears with the oil, salt, and pepper on a plate then place them in your preheated air fryer basket. Make sure they are spread in a single layer. You want the hot air to circulate all the way around them so they roast, not steam.

Depending on the size of your air fryer, you may need to cook the spears in batches if you have too many for a single layer. You can also add a rack to your air fryer basket so you can cook twice as many at the same time.

Cook the spears for about 5-10 minutes, depending on how thick they are, until they start to brown on the edges and they are just cooked through. Be sure to shake the air fryer basket halfway through so the asparagus cooks evenly.

Once they're cooked, they are ready to serve. You can sprinkle them with a little coarse salt for crunch if you like. They make a quick and easy perfect side dish to a weeknight main course of chicken, salmon, or steak. Especially when served up with a side of cauliflower mashed potatoes.

While they are perfect with just the simple seasonings, to take your asparagus up a notch try a few of these extras:

• For a special meal, top them with this easy Hollandaise sauce (making it in the blender is a game changer!).
• Garnish with a squeeze of fresh lemon juice, lemon zest and cracked black pepper.
• Drizzle with garlic flavored olive oil and serve with lemon wedges.
• Sprinkle with chopped nuts.
• Toss with a simple citrus vinaigrette.
• Top with vegan parmesan cheese and garlic powder.
• Or use your roasted asparagus in another recipe like this creamy asparagus soup.

No matter how you serve them, air fried asparagus will be the quickest and easiest roasted vegetable side dish you've ever made! And your new favorite way to make vegetables for dinner.

If you love roasted veggies, skip the oven and try air fryer tomatoes for a juicy, caramelized side dish or air fryer Brussels sprouts for a crispy, slightly charred bite.

More easy air fryer recipes to try

• Air Fryer Chicken Wings
• 21 Paleo Air Fryer Recipes
• 21 Delicious Keto Air Fryer Recipes