How long to air fry fish fillets

Grab your Air Fryer and make this Crispy Air Fryer Fish ASAP. Covered in a crispy delicious crust, you can have guilt-free fried fish as often as you like. Whitefish is perfectly seasoned and comes out so flakey. Get that fried flavor with a lot less oil!

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Full Recipe Ingredients/Instructions are available in the 
recipe card at the bottom of the post. 
You can find important tips/tricks in the
blog post.

Summer fish fries are my favorite outings to attend. I’m talking that catfish, whiting, perch, yummy! I have those days that I want that amazing fish at home BUT I don’t want to deal with frying in oil.

Now thanks to my air fryer, the one I bought on a whim during my pregnancy, I can make delicious golden fried fish filets whenever I want without all the grease.

Simple to prep and cook, the floured and seasoned white fish comes out so perfectly flavorful and the crust is addictively crispy.

Be sure to try my Air Fryer Whole Fish and Easy Oven-Baked Fish too!

How to make crispy air fryer fish

Great Question! Air Fried Fish is pretty easy and takes about four simple steps. The beauty of this recipe is that you don’t need any extra ingredients outside of your typical fish breading and a little bit of oil in a spray bottle. All you’ll do is:

Place fish in your favorite fish seasoning.

Place in greased air fryer basket

Cook, spray, turn, cook some more

All done.

What’s the best fish to use?

I use whiting fish in this recipe however this method will work for any other white fish. If making a fried catfish version, follow my method for soaking in milk first.

Can you make this recipe with frozen fish?

I’d suggest using fresh fish fillets for this recipe or good quality frozen fillets. If using frozen, make sure that they are fully thawed before seasoning them, and pat them with a paper towel to remove excess water.

Is it healthier?

Fish is a great high protein and low-fat food, and it’s recommended that you eat two portions a week as part of a well-balanced lifestyle. Because this fried fish is cooked in the air fryer, you only need a fraction of the oil compared to traditional frying and it comes out way crispier than oven baking. It’s the best of both worlds!

What do you serve it with?

This crispy air fryer fish is perfect to serve for an easy weeknight family dinner with potato and veggie sides, and of course some hot sauce, remoulade sauce, and tartar sauce! Serve it up with some of these favorites:

• Air Fryer Potato Wedges
• Vinegar Coleslaw
• Instant Pot Green Beans and Potatoes
• Air Fryer French Fries

Recipe Notes and Tips

More Air Fryer Recipes

• Lobster Tails in the Air Fryer
• Marinated Air Fryer Salmon
• Perfect Air Fryer Steak
• Crispy Air Fried Coconut Shrimp
• Healthier General Tso’s Chicken in the Air Fryer
• Air Fryer Brussel Sprouts
• Air Fryer Fried Chicken

Grab your Air Fryer and make this Crispy Air Fryer Fish ASAP. Covered in a crispy delicious crust, you can have guilt free fried fish as often as you like. White fish is perfectly seasoned and comes out so flakey. Get that fried flavor with a lot less oil!

Course Main Course

Cuisine American

Keyword air fryer fish fillets, crispy air fried fish, how to cook fish in the air fryer

Prep Time 10 minutes

Cook Time 17 minutes

Total Time 27 minutes

Servings 4 people

Calories 313kcal

• 4-6 Whiting Fish fillets cut in half
• Oil to mist

Fish Seasoning

• ¾ cup very fine cornmeal
• ¼ cup flour
• 2 teaspoon old bay
• 1 ½ teaspoon salt
• 1 teaspoon paprika
• ½ teaspoon garlic powder
• ½ teaspoon black pepper
• OR
• Your favorite fish seasoning

• Combine ingredients for fish seasoning in a Ziplock bag and shake. Set to the side. In the alternative, you could use your favorite fish seasoning.

• Rinse and pat dry your fish fillets with paper towels. They should still be damp.

• Place fish fillets in ziplock bag and shake, until fillets are fully covered with seasoning.

• Place fillets on a baking rack to allow any excess flour to fall off.

• Grease the bottom of your air fryer basket and place the fillets in the basket. Cook filets on 400 degrees for 7-10 minutes.

• Open basket and spray the fish on the side that is facing up before flipping, ensuring that the fish is fully coated. Flip and cook on the other side for 7-8 minutes. Remove fish and serve. 

*Adjust cook times if needed depending on the thickness of the fillet.

Highly Recommended Tools

Air Fryer

Non-Aerosil Oil Sprayer Bottle

Silicone Kitchen Tongs

• Spray your oil only halfway through cooking as this will increase crispiness.
• Do not use the over the counter misting sprays in your air fryer (For Example, Pam). For whatever chemical reason, those things can take the coating right off your air fryer basket. Your best bet is to invest in a good oil mister. I use this one. If you really love your over the counter spray and want to use it anyway, remove the fish from the air fryer basket before spraying to make sure it doesn’t land on your basket.
• Do not overcrowd your air fryer basket or your fish will steam rather than fry.
• Make sure when spraying, the fish is fully covered in oil and all seasoning has been fully covered with no flour spots showing. If flour spots are showing, you will not get that good golden color.
• Eat fried fish immediately. All fried foods are better that way.
• You must have hot sauce. I mean, it’s just a must.

Calories: 313kcal | Carbohydrates: 29g | Protein: 38g | Fat: 5g | Saturated Fat: 1g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 1g | Monounsaturated Fat: 2g | Cholesterol: 85mg | Sodium: 963mg | Potassium: 644mg | Fiber: 3g | Sugar: 1g | Vitamin A: 274IU | Vitamin C: 1mg | Calcium: 33mg | Iron: 3mg

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Although myforkinglife.com attempts to provide accurate nutritional information, these figures should be considered estimates. Varying factors such as product types or brands purchased, natural fluctuations in fresh produce, and the way ingredients are processed change the effective nutritional information in any given recipe. Under no circumstances will myforkinglife.com be responsible for any loss or damage resulting for your reliance on nutritional information.

Step by Step photos of Air Fryer Fish

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Find more Air Fryer Tips and Trick here. 

This post was updated with additional info and photos on 4/8/2022.