Satisfy your craving for that classic carnival treat with this quick and easy air fryer funnel cake recipe. It’s the perfect combination of crispy and fluffy, plus made in minutes!
Traditional funnel cake is deep-fried, but using an air fryer gives you a crispy texture with significantly less oil or in this case, no oil. There is no oil used for these funnel cakes in the air fryer, so you can easily make that funnel cake you love right at home and still get that perfectly golden brown texture.
These funnel cakes in the air fryer will have a wonderfully chewy interior with the perfect texture, plus these are made in just about 10 minutes with 6 minutes in the air fryer. That means this wonderful treat is ready to eat in less than 20 minutes.
What ingredients do you need for an Air Fryer Funnel Cake?
- All-Purpose Flour
- Baking Powder
- Salt
- Egg
- Sour Cream OR Plain Greek Yogurt
- Granulated Sugar
- Vanilla Extract
- Water
These are simple ingredients to make a delicious funnel cake, mostly found in your pantry. Sour Cream can be used or Greek Yogurt, either one will work to create an easy funnel cake.
What type of parchment paper for Air Fryer Funnel Cakes?
Use glossy parchment paper as the cakes will easily be released from it. The parchment paper should be cut into 6×4 inch rectangles or similar sizes. The batter will then be piped onto the prepared parchment paper.
Tips for Making Air Fryer Funnel Cake Recipe:
Parchment Paper will be needed to make these funnel cakes and it will need to be cut down to about 6×4 inches. Each sheet of parchment paper will be used for each cake, this recipe will make 6 small cakes.
It’s best to use a glossy parchment paper as the cake will easily release from it.
Once the parchment paper is prepared, warm up the air fryer to 370 degrees F.
The wet ingredients and dry ingredients will be slowly mixed together, be sure to read the recipe instructions in the recipe card below for full directions on how to combine the batter. It is imperative to slowly combine the ingredients to avoid overmixing. Using a Danish Dough Whisk is the best way to avoid overmixing, just lightly mix until there are no more lumps.
Once the batter is prepared, it will be poured into a large piping bag. If you want a design, add a tip to the piping bag. If you are fine with dough ropes, you can just cut the end of the bag and pipe it right out of the bag without a tip.
The bag needs to be cut NO MORE than 1 CM, this will allow you to have thin, skinny ropes. If they are too large the cake will be too dense.
Once the dough is ready, pipe it out onto the parchment paper, then place the prepared cake with the parchment paper directly into your air fryer basket. This will cook at 370 degrees F for 6 minutes.
Once they are done, carefully remove and add a generous dusting of powdered sugar before serving. Powdered Sugar is the perfect finishing touch for your funnel cake.
The batter or dough can be piped into any pattern that you prefer, there will likely be a wide variety of shapes, but keep them consistent with the size of the parchment paper to be sure to make equal pieces of funnel cake. It can also be done with the shape of a classic funnel cake.
Variations of Air Fryer Funnel Cakes:
- Add Cocoa Powder
- Add Sprinkles
- Add Whipped Cream and Toppings
- Add Fruits
- Drizzle with Hot Fudge or Chocolate Sauce
- Drizzle with Caramel Sauce
How do you store leftover funnel cake?
The funnel cakes can be stored in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 1 week. When ready to reheat, rewarm in the basket of the air fryer at 300 degrees F for 4-5 minutes. This will make it taste like a freshly baked or fried funnel cake again.
We prefer to make these easy funnel cakes paired with Air Fryer Turkey Legs – it’s the best way to enjoy carnival food or fair food with way less oil and at home! This air fryer dessert will be a hit with your family with that golden brown exterior and warm, soft interior!
Air Fryer Funnel Cake
Ingredients
- 1 1/4 Cup All-Purpose Flour
- 1 Tsp Baking Powder
- 1/2 Tsp Salt
- 1 Large Egg
- 1/2 Cup Sour Cream OR Plain Greek Yogurt
- 1/4 Cup Granulated Sugar
- 1 Tsp Vanilla Extract
- 1 Tbsp Water
Instructions
- Preheat the air fryer to 370°F for 5 minutes.
- Cut 6 rectangular parchment papers about 6×4 inches and set aside.
- In a bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, and salt. Set aside.
- In a separate mixing bowl, whisk the egg, sour cream, and granulated sugar. Use a whisk or handheld mixer.
- Add the vanilla extract and water. Mix well.
- Add half of the dry mixture and continue to combine.
- Add the remaining dry mixture and mix well but do not overmix or it will make the cake dense. A Danish dough whisk works best for this to avoid overmixing.
- Pour the batter into a piping bag. Add a tip if you prefer for a design or you can cut the end of the bag without a tip.
- When cutting the bag, the end should not be any larger than 1 CM. This will make for a nice, thin funnel cake.
- Pipe the funnel cake onto the prepared parchment paper and set aside.
- Once the air fryer is preheated, add 1 or 2 funnel cakes to the air fryer basket. Pick up the parchment paper with the cake on it and place it in the basket.
- Air Fry at 370°F for 6 minutes.
- Sprinkle with powdered sugar before serving.
- Serve and Enjoy!
Notes
Nutrition
Kristy says
The best better for you version of fair food!
Esme Slabbert says
Yippee, no oil. I have been looking for this for a while. Bookmarked it
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