These 5-Ingredient Air Fryer Potatoes and Onions Go With Everything

These crispy Air Fryer Potatoes and Onions are a simple, comforting side dish that pairs well with practically everything. They crisp up in the air fryer – the perfect multi-tasking kitchen tool in the winter and a beautiful no-oven-needed recipe for sweltering summer evenings! Just a handful of ingredients tossed in everything bagel seasoning, this potato recipe is… everything! 

By now it’s no secret: the air fryer is such a great way to cook practically anything. And using for this delicious side dish is a great way to use less oil and ensure even cooking for crispy roast potatoes every time. 

The Five-Ingredient Potatoes Recipe You’ll Make Again and Again

Diced Potatoes: For this recipe I use a variety called “Little Yellows.” They have a yellow skin and cook up crispy on the outside and creamy on the inside. Baby Dutch Yellow Potatoes, Baby Gold or anything similar will yield similar results. Of course, you can always dice a pound of russet potatoes or quarter baby red potatoes, just know that changing the type of potato will change the texture of the side dish, but what variety you choose is mostly a matter of personal preference.

Fresh Onions: For this recipe you can use yellow onions, white onions or red onions. You’ll want to cut your onions into thick slices (or thick dices) to avoid burning them in the air fryer. 

Everything Bagel Seasoning: Everything bagel seasoning is a mixture of common pantry spices you may already have in your kitchen. It’s a mix of poppy seeds, sesame seeds, dried garlic powder, dried onion, and salt. Of course, Everything Bagel Seasoning is readily available in many grocery stores, and we keep a bottle on hand to flavor everything from these potatoes to air fryer broccoli to chicken tenders and actual homemade bagels. 

Extra Virgin Olive Oil: Even though extra virgin olive oil has a lower smoke point than light olive oil because it is not refined for consumer use, we are going to use it in this recipe because our air fryer potatoes and onions will be air fried below the smoke point of EVOO. Extra virgin olive oil is healthier than light olive oil, too. You can, of course, use any oil that will withstand the air-fryer temperature, and I’ve provided a few alternatives below. 

Salt and Black Pepper to Taste: I’ve found that when I make homemade potatoes, the trick for success is to aggressively season them. Everything Bagel Seasoning is already seasoned with salt, but I like to add ¼ teaspoon to the mixture before I even cook the potatoes. I’ve found this the be the perfect seasoning for our family’s preference. The first time you make these, I recommend seasoning with additional salt when you take these out of the air fryer. To season these to my family’s liking, I tossed everything in another teaspoon of salt before removing from the air fryer. I recommend, seasoning in ½ teaspoon increments and tasting as you go.

How to Make Air Fryer Potatoes and Onions

1. In a large bowl, toss potato quarters and diced onions in olive oil and everything bagel seasoning. 
2. Pour everything into the air fryer basket. 
3. Cook potatoes and onions at 400°F for 20 minutes total, giving them a stir after 10 minutes of cooking. You’ll know they are done when they look golden brown. 
4. Add a little salt to taste and enjoy these potatoes as part of a healthy meal. 

Which oil is best for air-fried potatoes?

Every oil has a “smoke point.” The “smoke point” of an oil is the temperature at which a chemical breakdown occurs, which can alter the taste of the oil, giving it an undesirable burnt taste. The telltale sign your oil is close to its smoke point is when you start to see wisps of smoke coming out of the pan. Extra-virgin olive oil is known for having a relatively low smoke point of just 410°F.

This still makes it a suitable option for today’s recipe, where we’ll be cooking our potatoes and onions at 400°F.

Some oils with a high smoke point include: clarified butter – or ghee (450), peanut oil (450), avocado oil (440), light olive oil (465), sunflower oil (440), and vegetable oil (400-450). 

What are the best potatoes for air frying?

The best classic frying potato is the russet potato (think Idaho), but coming in for a close second is yukon gold potatoes, known for its versatility. Today, we’re using a baby potatoes that come from the same family as the yukon gold because for whatever reason, I find the prep to be less tedious and I am all about making this an easy side dish. 

Although I haven’t tried it yet, I suspect this would also be delicious with sweet potatoes. 

What goes good with air fried or roasted potatoes? 

Literally anything. They are delicious for breakfast topped with a runny egg and served with sausage or bacon. They are the perfect side dish with roast chicken or fish. Serve them with a grilled steak. Recently, I posted a recipe for salsa verde chicken (pollo verde) and these would be excellent served as a side to the dish for a complete meal.

Honestly, these potatoes are delicious plain, but you can also serve them with ketchup, mustard or a homemade dipping sauce. For this recipe, I made quick harissa tahini yogurt sauce for an added flavor boost.

📖 Recipe