Air Fryer Potatoes with Garlic Herb Butter

It’s Air Fryer Week Day 5, and I’m coming at ya with this Air Fryer Potatoes with Garlic Herb Butter recipe that’s so easy and delicious you’ll want to make it again and again! I love these potatoes because they’re air fried to crispy, golden brown perfection on the outside while the inside is still fluffy and tender. And the best part? No parboiling! The second best part? You also get perfectly roasted garlic right from the air fryer with almost zero effort.

The garlic herb butter is ridiculously simple but incredibly flavorful and delicious. First, you’re going to roast a whole head of garlic in the same basket as you air fry the potatoes. To do this, just cut the top off a head of garlic, drizzle with olive oil to ensure all the cut sides are coated, then wrap it up in foil. Tuck it into the corner of the air fryer basket, cut side of the garlic facing up.

When you go to shake the air fryer basket to toss the potatoes, I recommend removing the garlic using tongs to avoid the foil scratching the non-stick surface of your air fryer. Once the garlic is done roasting (same timeline as the potatoes), carefully squeeze 4-5 cloves out.

Meanwhile, add a few tablespoons of butter along with freshly chopped thyme and rosemary to a microwave safe bowl. Microwave for 30-45 seconds or until the butter is completely melted. Add in the roasted garlic cloves and mash with the back of a fork to incorporate it as best you can into the butter. That’s it! Now you’re ready to drizzle it over the potatoes.

1. Give them a bath. A quick soak in cold, salted water will help remove excess starch from the surface of the potatoes. This prevents them from getting a gummy texture on the surface when cooked and allows them to really crisp up on the outside.
2. Don’t overcrowd the air fryer basket. As is true for any air fried foods, you want to avoid piling too much into the air fryer basket or you’ll risk steaming the potatoes since they won’t have enough space for hot air to circulate around each potato piece.
3. Toss them around. At least once or twice during cooking, remove the head of garlic and give the air fryer basket a good shake to mix up the potatoes. This will help ensure even browning and crisping. And no need to be gentle about it – they’re potatoes and they’ll survive 🙂 Try to get them back into a single layer before continuing to cook (and don’t forget to return the garlic to the basket!).

Here’s what you’ll need to recreate these Air Fryer Potatoes with Garlic Herb Butter at home!

• Potatoes – I really like the flavor and texture of baby Yukon gold potatoes or baby red potatoes for this recipe. If you want to use full size potatoes, be sure to cut them up into about 1″ chunks and keep an eye on them for the last few minutes of cooking so the edges don’t burn.
• Garlic – We’re making ridiculously easy roasted whole garlic right in the air fryer, but if you’re in a pinch, you could just mix some of the jarred pre-minced garlic into the hot butter instead.
• Butter – Don’t be shy about the butter drizzle! I used an unsalted version since the potatoes are well seasoned already, but either salted or unsalted will work.
• Fresh herbs – I used a bit of thyme and chopped rosemary in mine to keep things simple and bright, but I could see sage getting thrown into the mix too. I highly, highly recommend using fresh herbs here, but if you insist on using dried, cut the amounts in half so they don’t totally overpower the potatoes.
• Olive oil – You’ll need a bit of oil to coat the potatoes and help with the browning process in the air fryer. Other oils of your choice would work here too.
• Seasoning – I went with a mix of garlic lovers seasoning, salt, black pepper, and oregano in my recipe, but you can definitely play with this flavor profile if you’d like.