Air Fryer Tortilla Chips
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Crispy and crave-worthy, air fryer tortilla chips are unbelievably easy to make. Make this homemade tortilla chips recipe with flour or corn tortillas and a little bit of oil. They’ll be ready to serve in a jiffy! Perfect for snacking, game day food, or any other occasion where chips and salsa is a must-have.
Air Fryer Tortilla Chips Recipe
My love for these Mexican snack chips runs deep! But I don’t love having a big bag of them in my house because I eat them too fast! So, being able to make a small batch of them at home is much more my style.
That’s why air fryer tortilla chips are in the regular rotation at my house. This recipe is perfect for whenever the snack cravings hit. Plus, in my opinion, warm chips always taste so much better.
These restaurant-style tortilla chips can be used to scoop up anything from dip to corn salsa. Or, use them as a base for the perfect platter of nachos. They’re a sturdy enough chip for any and all of your favorite recipes.
Learn how to cook anything in your air fryer with our free cook time chart!
I also like to serve them with Mexican vegetable soup and other Mexican dishes like chicken fajitas and burritos. Before you know it, you’ll have yourself a pretty great fiesta!
Why You’ll Love This Recipe
- They’re healthier than store-bought. This is a healthy alternative because it requires just a tiny bit of oil to make them. Great if you’re counting calories or watching your fat intake.
- Ready to eat in a few minutes. It won’t add a bunch of time onto your cooking and preparation process for your meal, and they taste so much better than store-bought chips.
- Budget-friendly. In case you haven’t noticed, the cost of groceries is skyrocketing. The average cost for a bag of store-bought chips is around $5.00 now! But, a package of corn or flour tortillas is less than $3.00, making this a much more affordable option.
Ingredients
This is a super basic tortilla chip recipe, so these simple ingredients are all that you need:
- corn or flour tortillas: This recipe works perfectly with either type of tortilla, so use what you like best and/or have on hand. For a more traditional, restaurant-style chip, use corn tortillas to make tortilla chips in an air fryer. Using flour tortillas results in a flavor that’s closer to pita chips.
- olive oil or avocado oil: Both of these are high smoke point oils, which are better for air frying because they don’t burn when cooking at higher temperatures.
- sea salt or Kosher salt – Be sure to use a large, coarse-style of salt. Table salt is not a good choice for air fryer tortilla chips because it tends to absorb into the tortilla rather than staying on the surface.
Substitutions and Variations
Tortillas – The type of tortilla you use doesn’t matter too much! You can use homemade corn tortillas or whole wheat tortillas.
For Keto or Low Carb Tortilla Chips, you can follow the same steps in this recipe and just use low-carb tortillas. There are also tortillas that are perfect for those on Weight Watchers, those who need to watch gluten, and many other preferences and dietary restrictions.
To kick the flavor up a notch with your homemade chips, try one of these flavor variations:
- spicy lime tortilla chips: Before cooking, brush or spray the tortilla with oil, and sprinkle about 1/8 teaspoon of taco seasoning per tortilla. After cooking, drizzle with fresh lime juice.
- zesty ranch tortilla chips: Brush or spray the tortilla with oil before cooking them and sprinkle on about 1/8 teaspoon of ranch seasoning per tortilla.
- sweet dessert tortilla chips: Brush the tortillas with oil, about 1/2 teaspoon of maple syrup, and sprinkle with a pinch of cinnamon and serve with cream cheese dip. A cinnamon-sugar mixture would also work!
How to Make Easy Air Fryer Tortilla Chips
When it only takes 3 simple steps to make a recipe, you know it’s a keeper!
- Brush (or spritz) and season the tortillas. Be sure to oil both sides, then sprinkle lightly with salt.
- Slice them into triangles. Use a pizza cutter or sharp kitchen knife to cut the tortilla into triangle, chip-sized pieces, making about 8 chips per 8-inch tortilla.
- Preheat and cook tortilla chips in the air fryer. It’s very important that the unit be hot and ready to use, so I suggest turning it on before you start prepping the tortillas.
- Arrange the triangles in a single layer in the air fryer basket. It’s okay if they overlap a little, but it’s better if not.
- Air fry the chips in batches, depending on how many you are making and the size of your air fryer.
- Cook for 4 to 5 minutes. Near the end of cook time, open the air fryer and check in on the chips. Remove any that might be close to overcooking before they burn and continue cooking any that need a little more time, until they are crispy and golden brown.
Tips for Success
- Preheat the air fryer. If your unit doesn’t have a preheat setting, that doesn’t mean you can’t preheat! It just means you won’t be alerted when it reaches the cooking temperature. Simply turn your air fryer on and wait about 5 minutes before you begin cooking.
- Avoid overlapping tortilla chips in the air fryer basket. Keep them in a single layer to promote even cooking. Air fry them in batches as necessary.
- Weigh the pieces down to prevent them from blowing around in the basket. I suggest placing a metal trivet (like the kind that comes with an Instant Pot) over the top of the unbaked tortilla pieces.
If you don’t have anything to weigh them down with, check them after a couple of minutes of cook time. If necessary, flip them over and move them back into a single layer. - Avoid using too much oil. It really does only take a light layer or spritzing of oil to crisp up the tortillas. I use an oil spritzer or a pastry brush to make sure just a tiny bit of oil is spread evenly across each cut tortilla. A little oil is all you need for crispy chips, trust me!
Bonus – Using less oil will keep tortilla chips made in an air fryer lower in calories and fat!
Storing Leftovers
Now I have literally NEVER had leftover tortilla chips because I eat them all, but if you do, you’re obviously a much better person than I am.
Wait until the chips are completely cool, then transfer to an airtight container or bag. Store at room temperature. They start to become stale after about a day, but they can be safely stored up to 10 days.
Serving Suggestions
I love to use these crunchy chips to make nachos. Top them however you like! My personal preference is to use mango guacamole and either chipotle barbacoa or Mexican chicken. But they’re perfect with dips, like Rotel sausage dip, crack corn dip or boat dip! Sometimes, I even simply make a batch to eat with my lunch of chicken salad.
And they are a must for taco night, whether you make the a lighter keto ground beef taco or something heartier like quesabirria. A quick snack of butter bean hummus with chips is yummy too. When parties roll around, I love to serve these with choriqueso. Spinach artichoke dip is delicious too!
Paired with salsa, they’d be a great side for Instant Pot chicken fajitas! I love to serve them with baked salsa chicken and rice too. Oh, and a hearty bowl of taco soup with a side of crispy hot chips is just to die for.
Air Fryer Tortilla Chips Recipe FAQ
I prefer using olive oil or avocado oil for air frying. However, you can use any high smoke point oil. This ensures that it doesn’t burn when it heats to high temperatures.
Honestly, my recipe works perfectly using either corn or flour tortillas. Size is the only important factor. For restaurant-style tortilla chips, I recommend using 8-inch tortillas.
Other Air Fryer Appetizers and Snacks
Air Fryer Tortilla Chips
Equipment
Ingredients
- 4 8-inch tortillas corn or flour
- 1 teaspoon olive oil
- 1/4 teaspoon sea salt
Video
Instructions
- Preheat the air fryer to 350 degrees Fahrenheit.
- Meanwhile, brush both sides of the tortillas with oil and sprinkle with salt. Cut the tortillas into triangle, chip-sized pieces, making about 8 chips per tortilla. In batches, carefully add the sliced tortillas to the air fryer basket in a single layer.
- Cook for 4 to 5 minutes. Near the end of cook time, open the air fryer and check in on the chips. Tip: If your air fryer is blowing the chips around, set a trivet (I use the one from my Instant Pot) gently on top of the chips. It will allow the air to circulate but keep them mostly in place. Remove any chips that might be close to overcooking before they burn and continue cooking any that need a little more time.
Notes
Helpful Recipe Tips
- Preheat the air fryer. If your unit doesn’t have a preheat setting, that doesn’t mean you can’t preheat! It just means you won’t be alerted when it reaches the cooking temperature. Simply turn your air fryer on and wait about 5 minutes before you begin cooking.
- Avoid overlapping tortilla chips in the air fryer basket. It’s important to keep them in a single layer. Cook in batches as necessary.
- Weigh the pieces down to prevent them from blowing around in the basket. To prevent pieces from blowing around in the basket, lay a metal trivet (like the kind that comes with an Instant Pot) over the top of the unbaked tortilla pieces.
- Avoid using too much oil. It only takes a light layer or spritzing of oil to crisp up the tortillas. Bonus – Using less oil will keep your homemade tortilla chips lower in calories and fat!
- Spicy Lime Tortilla Chips: Before cooking, brush of spray the tortilla with oil, sprinkle about 1/8 teaspoon of taco seasoning per tortilla. After cooking, drizzle with fresh lime juice.
- Zesty Ranch Tortilla Chips: Before cooking, brush or spray the tortilla with oil and sprinkle on about 1/8 teaspoon of ranch seasoning per tortilla.
- Sweet Dessert Tortilla Chips: Before cooking, brush the tortillas with oil, about 1/2 teaspoon of maple syrup, and sprinkle with a pinch of cinnamon.
Nutrition
