Can You Make Rice in an Air Fryer?

Yes, rice can easily be made in an air fryer, and the results can be just as good as cooking rice the more traditional way on the stovetop. Here, Fetch walks you through cooking rice in an air fryer from start to finish. We also cover how to properly store and reheat your cooked rice.

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Is Making Rice in an Air Fryer Easier Than Cooking Rice on the Stove?

Yes! Where cooking rice on a stovetop means waiting for your water to boil and requires a bit more attention throughout the process, making rice in an air fryer is essentially set-it-and-forget-it.

Which Kind of Rice Should I Use?

For the best results, we recommend using either jasmine or basmati rice. Long-grain white rice varieties tend to work best when cooking with an air fryer because they are less starchy and therefore less likely to get stuck together, allowing the rice to cook more evenly.

Air Fried Rice Recipe: How to Use Your Air Fryer to Cook Rice

The following air fryer rice recipe involves around 45 minutes of cooking time (30 minutes in the air fryer, plus an additional 15 minutes of steaming in the air fryer once turned off). Thankfully, making rice this way is very easy and hands-off, allowing you to focus on whatever else you’re cooking to go with your rice.

Before adding your rice to the air fryer, however, you’ll want to make sure you first wash your rice.

How to Wash Rice Properly

Why rinse rice? Washing your rice before cooking not only helps remove any dust particles, but it also washes away residual starch and helps your cooked rice turn out fluffier. Not washing away this excess starch can cause your rice grains to stick together more and also have a tackier texture.

To wash your rice:

1. Pour your rice into a large bowl.
2. Add water to the bowl until your rice is covered.
3. Swirl the rice around with your hand until the water gets cloudy.
4. Drain the water, while making sure you don’t pour out any of the rice.
5. Repeat 3-4 times, until the rice water runs clear.

What Temperature Do You Use to Make Rice in an Air Fryer?

Set the temp on your air fryer to 300 degrees. 

How Long to Cook Rice in an Air Fryer

It will take approximately 30 minutes for your rice to cook in the air fryer. Keep in mind that all air fryers are different, so the cook time on your rice may vary. 

Following this cook time, you will turn off the air fryer but leave your rice inside to steam for an additional 15 minutes before removing it from the air fryer.

How to Cook Rice in an Air Fryer: Step-by-Step

1. Wash 1 cup of rice (see instructions above).
2. Add rice to a cake pan.
3. Add 1 ¼ cups of water to the pan, and stir.
4. Tightly cover the cake pan with foil, and place the pan in your air fryer basket.
5. Air fry your rice for 30 minutes at 300 degrees.
6. After 30 minutes of cook time, turn off your air fryer, but keep the rice inside and let it steam for another 15 minutes before removing it from the air fryer.
7. Use an oven mitt to take your rice out of the air fryer (the pan will be hot), and remove the foil.
8. Fluff your rice, and enjoy!

What to Eat With Your Air Fried Rice

Rice makes for an excellent side or accompaniment to any number of dishes or recipes. Here are just a few ideas of things to eat with rice:

• Beef with broccoli
• Teriyaki chicken or steak kabobs
• Szechuan chicken
• Chicken fajitas
• Curried cauliflower
• Pink beans (check out this awesome Puerto Rican Rice and Beans recipe from Goya)

How to Store Cooked Rice

Once cooled, place your leftover cooked rice in a tightly-covered container and store the container in your refrigerator. Cooked rice can stay good for up to 5 days when refrigerated. If you don’t plan to use the rice within 5 days, you can also freeze your leftover cooked rice.

Can You Freeze Cooked Rice?

Yes, you can freeze your leftover rice. Before freezing, however, you should allow your rice to cool in the refrigerator in a shallow container. Once your rice is cold, you can transfer it to a freezer bag (or bags, depending on how you’re portioning it); make sure to get as much air out of the bag as possible before placing your rice in the freezer. Once in the freezer, your rice can be stored for up to six months.

How to Reheat Rice in an Air Fryer

Just as you can use your air fryer to make rice, you can also reheat your cooked rice in an air fryer. Plus, similar to the benefits of cooking rice in an air fryer, the process of reheating rice in an air fryer is much more hands-off than reheating rice in a pan on the stove.

To reheat your rice in the air fryer:

1. Preheat your air fryer at 320 degrees for 3 minutes.
2. Place your refrigerated or frozen rice in a cake pan.
3. Air fry your rice for 8 minutes if refrigerated; if your rice is frozen, you will want to up that to 10 minutes.
4. Remove the rice from your air fryer, coat with cooking spray or drizzled olive oil, and stir.
5. Return your rice to the air fryer, increase the temp to 360 degrees, and heat for 5 more minutes.
6. Remove your rice from the air fryer, stir, and enjoy!

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