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Air Fryer Apple Fries

Air Fryer Apple Fries are golden, lightly battered apple fry-sticks with a crunchy cinnamon sugar coating—finished fast in the air fryer for crispy edges. Serve them piled like fries with a caramel dipping sauce cup for an easy cinnamon apple fries dessert.
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Prep Time 10 minutes
Cook Time 12 minutes
Total Time 22 minutes
Servings: 4 servings
Course: Dessert
Cuisine: American
Ingredients Equipment Method Notes

Ingredients
  

Apples
  • 3 large apples Granny Smith or Honeycrisp; peeled, cored, and cut into fry-shaped sticks
  • 0.5 lemon juice Optional: toss with a few drops after cutting to reduce browning (not required for flavor)
Batter
  • 0.5 cup all-purpose flour
  • 0.5 tsp baking powder
  • 0.5 tsp cinnamon
  • 2 tbsp granulated sugar
  • 0.125 tsp salt Pinch of salt
  • 0.5 cup sparkling water or club soda Use cold for a lighter batter texture
  • 1 cooking spray For greasing the air fryer basket
Cinnamon sugar coating and finish
  • 0.33 cup granulated sugar
  • 1.5 tsp cinnamon
  • 2 tbsp butter Melted for tossing
  • 1 caramel sauce For dipping

Equipment

  • 1 air fryer

Method
 

Preheat and make batter
  1. Preheat the air fryer to 380°F until it reaches temperature.
  2. Whisk together all-purpose flour, baking powder, cinnamon, granulated sugar, salt, and sparkling water/club soda until a smooth batter forms, with no dry flour pockets.
Coat apples
  1. Pat the apple fry-shaped sticks completely dry so the batter adheres.
  2. Dip the apple sticks into the batter, letting excess drip back into the bowl before placing them aside.
Air fry to crisp
  1. Spray the air fryer basket with cooking spray, then arrange the battered apple sticks in a single layer without crowding.
  2. Spray the tops lightly with cooking spray to help browning and crisping.
  3. Air fry for 10–12 minutes, flipping halfway, until the fries are golden and crisp with visible toasty edges.
Toss and serve
  1. Immediately toss the hot fries in melted butter so the cinnamon sugar coating clings.
  2. Toss again in cinnamon sugar until evenly coated, then serve hot with caramel dipping sauce in a small cup beside them.

Notes

Pro tip: keep the apple sticks very dry and don’t crowd the basket—airflow is what drives the crisp, fries-like texture. Store leftovers in the fridge up to 2 days; reheat in the air fryer at 350°F for 3–4 minutes to re-crisp. Freezing isn’t recommended because the batter texture softens after thawing. Dietary swap: for a gluten-free version, use a 1:1 gluten-free all-purpose flour blend in the batter (check that it includes a comparable starch mix).