Easy Air Fryer Grilled Cheese Sandwich

Laura Lynch

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This simple Air Fryer Grilled Cheese Sandwich is wonderfully crispy and gooey. It’s a great way to make your favorite sandwich when you don’t have access to a stovetop.

Grilled cheese sandwiches make for an awesome snack or light meal. They’re quick to make and, I mean, who doesn’t love a grilled cheese. Did you know that you can skip making them on the stove and cook them in the air fryer instead?

While I’d still say that the stove top is the best way to make a grilled cheese, the air fryer cooks the sandwich more evenly, so every bite is crunchier. It’s also a great alternative for when you don’t have a stove top, like for college dorms or when camping.

This grilled cheese recipe uses cheddar cheese, but feel free to experiment with different cheeses to give it your own personal touch. It may be a simple recipe, but air fryer grilled cheese sandwiches are salty, buttery, and delicious.

Ingredients You Need

• Bread: Choose your favorite bread. Sourdough or country white bread work well, but just about any type of bread will work.
• Salted Butter: the fat of the butter will make the bread nice and crispy. The added salt gives more flavor than unsalted. Feel free to use mayonnaise on the instead.
• Cheddar Cheese: This recipe uses sliced cheddar cheese, but you can use a different type of cheese. You can also use shredded cheese, but I find that slices stay put better. Stick with cheeses that melt well.

Tips and Notes

• If your air fryer needs to be preheated, then preheat it for 3 minutes.
• Don’t overcrowd the air fryer’s basket. Having too many sandwiches in the air fryer will cause uneven cooking and the grilled cheese may not end up as crunchy. 
• Use bread slices that aren’t too thin, because the bread may come off while cooking. If you only have thinner slices of bread, then place a toothpick in the middle of the sandwich to keep it held together. Remove it before flipping the sandwich.

How to Make Air Fryer Grilled Cheese Sandwich

Step 1: Prepare the sandwich

Butter each bread slice on one side. Place the buttered side down on a plate and add on the cheese, top with the other slice of bread, buttered side up.

Step 2: Put the sandwich in the air fryer

Place the sandwich in the air fryer basket. I like to use a piece of parchment paper under the sandwich, but it’s not necessary. Another thing to note is that some air fryer are quite powerful and will blow the top off the sandwich before the cheese melts. If this is a problem for you, you might want to secure the sandwich together with a toothpick. Just stick one or two into all layers to hold it together.

Step 3: Air fry

Cook at 385° F (190° C) for 8 minutes, turning the sandwich over at the halfway mark to ensure that it gets cooked evenly on both sides.

Substitutions & Variations

• The best cheeses to use in a grilled cheese are: Cheddar, Havarti, Provolone, low-moisture Mozzarella, Monterey jack, and Swiss. You can use grated cheese as well, but grate your own. Pre-shredded cheese usually has anti-caking agents, so they don’t melt as well.
• Spray the bread with a bit of olive oil to use less fat than butter or mayonnaise. 
• Add some slices of crispy bacon or ham to the grilled cheese. 
• Make it Italian! Add a thin slice of tomato and oregano to your grilled cheese for an Italian-inspired grilled cheese. Salt and pat the tomatoes dry before adding them to the sandwich. 

Questions About the Recipe

My sandwich is burning, what do I do?

Not all air fryers are created equal. Your air fryer may get hotter than others, so lower the temperature or decrease cooking time if your grilled cheese is burning. The biggest complaint about cooking grilled cheese in the air fryer is that the bread sometimes burns. It will be a process of trial and error to get it right for your

Can I use grated cheese instead?

Yes, you can use grated cheese instead of sliced cheese. But, grate your own cheese if you are going to do this. Pre-shredded cheese has anti-caking agents that prevent the cheese from melting nicely.

Can I store these sandwiches?

You can technically store the grilled cheese for later, but I recommend eating them fresh. The bread will lose a lot of its crunch and the cheese won’t be warm and gooey.

Why Use an Air Fryer

An air fryer is an incredibly easy way to cook just about anything. You place the food in a fryer-style basket and hot air rapidly circulates all around the food, making the food crisp – much like deep-frying, but without the oil. You can cook anything you’d make in the oven.

• I use a Ninja MaxXL air fryer (pictured left). If you don’t have an air fryer yet, check out these options to find one that fits your needs.
• See reviews and prices for air fryers on Amazon.
• Here’s a printable Air Fryer Cooking Times Cheat Sheet to get you started.
• Click to find more recipes to make in your Air Fryer.
• Learn how to make fun things in the air fryer, like potato wedges, pork belly bites, and chicken wings.

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Air Fryer Grilled Cheese Sandwich

This simple Air Fryer Grilled Cheese Sandwich is wonderfully crispy and gooey. It's a great way to make your favorite sandwich when you don't have access to a stovetop.

5 from 47 votes

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Prep Time 5 minutes mins

Cook Time 10 minutes mins

Total Time 15 minutes mins

Course Main Course

Cuisine American

Servings 1 Sandwich

Calories 467 kcal

Equipment

• Air Fryer

Ingredients

 

1x2x3x

• 2 slices sourdough or country white bread
• 1 tablespoon (15 ml) salted butter or mayonnaise
• 2 ounces (57 g) cheddar cheese

Cook ModePrevent your screen from going dark

Instructions

 

• Butter each bread slice on one side. Place the buttered side down on a plate and add on the cheese, top with the other slice of bread, buttered side up.
• Place a parchment paper liner in the air fryer. Put the sandwich on the paper.
• Cook at 385° F (190° C) for 8 minutes, turning the sandwich over at the halfway mark.

Notes

• Cooking times may vary depending on the wattage of your air fryer. The first time you make it, you may need to adjust the cooking time.
• You may need to flip the sandwich one more time at the end for 1 minute.
• Use any type of cheese you prefer. Good choices include cheddar, gouda, mozzarella, edam.

All air fryers have different wattage and may cook at different rates. You may need to adjust the time or temp for the best results.

Nutrition

Calories: 467kcalCarbohydrates: 26gProtein: 18gFat: 32gSaturated Fat: 19gPolyunsaturated Fat: 2gMonounsaturated Fat: 8gTrans Fat: 1gCholesterol: 87mgSodium: 699mgPotassium: 106mgFiber: 1gSugar: 3gVitamin A: 918IUCalcium: 510mgIron: 2mg

Keyword Bread, Cheese

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Laura Lynch

Laura is a passionate foodie and owner of Air Fry Anytime She is dedicated to sharing delicious recipes and helpful tips for using air fryers at home. With years of experience in the kitchen and a love for healthy, flavorful cooking, Laura has become an expert at using air fryers to create amazing meals that are both nutritious and delicious.