Stay informed with the latest trends in health, business, tech, travel, lifestyle, and more. Explore expert tips, creative ideas, and global insights—all in one place
If you purchase an independently reviewed product or service through a link on our website, SheKnows may receive an affiliate commission.
Is there any refrain we hear more as parents than “I’m hungry”? Being in charge of growing kids is hard enough when they’re little, but once you’ve got teens in the house, keeping up with their appetites while still having time to do literally anything else can feel like an insurmountable challenge. Our solution? Teach your teens how to cook for themselves! With the right recipes, and a couple of kitchen tools kids can use (like a handy air fryer), your teens will be able to make their own snacks, and eventually dinners, sooner than you might think.
$39.99
Air fryers are a great tool for teens who are learning how to cook because they can be used for so many different things. Air fryers are the perfect appliance for reheating leftovers, make frozen snacks and foods crispy without the mess and hazard of deep-frying, and can even be used to make simple dinners.
Teaching essential cooking skills to teens, like how to use the air fryer, will benefit them because they’ll be able to cook for themselves when they someday leave the nest. But it benefits caregivers, too, because not having to be responsible for every morsel of food that crosses your child’s lips now that they’re older can free up way more time than you might realize. Meanwhile, this new independence will help boost your teen’s self-confidence. Sound good? Then start with these easy air fryer recipes for teens.
-
Air Fryer Pizza Bagels
Image Credit: Cheese Knees. Homemade pizza bagels are a classic for a reason. Your kids can choose their favorite toppings, assemble, and air-fry their creation until the cheese is melted and the bagel is golden and crispy.
Get the recipe from Cheese Knees.
-
Air Fryer Sweet Potato Wedge Fries
Image Credit: Healthful Blondie. In high school, sweet potato fries were my favorite food, but making them from scratch felt impossible without a deep-fryer or something. Now, thanks to the air fryer, it’s easy to make sweet potato wedge fries without having to deep-fry. They’re fluffy and tender inside, crisp around the edges, and secretly a superfood.
Get the recipe from Healthful Blondie.
-
Air Fryer Nachos
Image Credit: Always Use Butter. It’s time for your teen to upgrade from microwaved nachos. Air fryer nachos are just as easy, but so much better — the chips are hot, crispy, and slightly golden, the cheese is melted and browned, and if you provide toppings like beans, chicken, pico de gallo, and corn, nachos can be surprisingly nutritious.
Get the recipe from Always Use Butter.
-
Air Fryer Quesadillas
Image Credit: Sustainable Cooks. Crispy quesadillas are safer to make in the air fryer than on the stove top, where kids would have to be in contact with a screaming hot pan and burner. Luckily, they’re just as delicious, using less oil but still getting crispy on the outside while the cheese melts inside.
Get the recipe from Sustainable Cooks.
-
Air Fryer Baked Potatoes
Image Credit: Splash of Taste. As long as you have potatoes and cheese in the house, your teen is all set for dinner. Making air fryer baked potatoes is super simple, and there’s no chance of the oven being left on by accident. Once the potatoes are done, your teen can load them up with cheese, butter, sour cream, salsa, or maybe even something green, like broccoli or spinach.
Get the recipe from Splash of Taste.
-
Air Fryer Peanut Butter Cookies
Image Credit: Career Girl Meets. These air-fryer peanut butter cookies are made with just three ingredients, and the recipe makes 20 cookies, enough for a full week of after school snacks.
Get the recipe from Career Girl Meets.
-
Air Fryer Pizza Rolls
Image Credit: Momma Fit Lyndsey. Store-bought frozen pizza rolls are full of excess sodium and mystery ingredients, and they seem to be getting more and more expensive. Your teens can make healthier, more affordable pizza rolls at home with all of their favorite ingredients right in the air fryer, and it’s super easy, thanks to refrigerated crescent roll dough.
Get the recipe from Momma Fit Lyndsey.
-
Air Fryer Potato Slices
Image Credit: My Plantiful Cooking. This French fry-potato chip mash-up recipe is easy enough for teens to make on their own, and can be devoured with dip as a snack, or even served along with dinner as a side dish your teen helped make. If your teen isn’t confident using sharp knives yet, this is the perfect recipe to test out with a safer slicing kitchen gadget, like the DASH Safe Slice Mandoline Slicer.
Get the recipe from My Plantiful Cooking.
DASH Safe Slice Mandoline Slicer$31.99
-
Air Fryer Taco Oyster Crackers
Image Credit: The Creative Bite. Seasoned oyster crackers in the air fryer is a snack that can be done a million ways. This recipe calls for a homemade taco seasoning that your teen can make, or you can stock the cupboard with several spice blends for them to choose from when they go to make this easy air fryer snack.
Get the recipe from The Creative Bite.
-
Air Fryer Apples
Image Credit: All Nutritious. We always have apples in the house. If your teen is craving an easy sweet snack, then can try making these air fryer apples. They’re delicious eaten on their own, served with ice cream, or used as a topping for oatmeal in the morning.
Get the recipe from All Nutritious.
-
Air Fryer Pigs in a Blanket
Image Credit: Homemade Interest. Why settle for a microwave-warmed hot dog when your kids could make a batch of air fryer pigs in a blanket instead? Li’l Smokies and refrigerated crescent roll dough are all it takes, and the results are crispy and craveable.
Get the recipe from Homemade Interest.
-
Air Fryer Pepperoni Pizza
Image Credit: Stay Snatched. No fussy dough kneading, rising time, or shaping here. Pita bread forms the base of this simple, kid-friendly air fryer pizza recipe.
Get the recipe from Stay Snatched.
-
Air Fryer Buffalo Cauliflower Wings
Image Credit: Live Eat Learn. If you have a vegetarian or vegan teen, here’s a recipe you’ll want to share with them. Cauliflower florets are tossed with a classic buffalo wing sauce, olive oil, garlic powder, and salt, then cooked until crispy in the air fryer for a meatless spin on wings.
Get the recipe from Live Eat Learn.
-
Air Fryer Fried Rice
Image Credit: I Heart Umami. Teach your take-out obsessed teen how to make air fryer fried rice with leftover rice and frozen veggies, and their constant begging for Panda Express just might disappear…or at least become less frequent. Hey, a parent can hope!
Get the recipe from I Heart Umami.