Creamy Air Fryer Mac and Cheese

Name: Air Fryer Mac and Cheese
Prep time: 5 min
Cook time: 20 min
Total time: 25 min
Ingredients: 1 ½ cup elbow macaroni; 1 cup water; ½ cup heavy cream; 8 oz sharp cheddar cheese (shredded and separated); 1 teaspoon dry mustard; ½ teaspoon kosher salt; ½ teaspoon black pepper; 1/4 teaspoon garlic powder

Published: Aug 13, 2019 · Modified: Aug 23, 2021 by Tanya · This post may contain affiliate links · 82 Comments

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This Creamy Air Fryer Mac and Cheese is made in your Air Fryer and you do not have to boil the noodles first. It’s a delicious side dish that can be made in your Air Fryer in about 20 minutes.

air fryer mac and cheese in the air fryer basket with a spoon sticking out

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Full Recipe Ingredients/Instructions are available in the
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Macaroni and cheese is something that happens quite often around our house. Whether it’s this creamy baked macaroni and cheese recipe or this white cheddar mac and cheese in the Instant Pot, we are a pasta-loving family and mac and cheese is a favorite.

I bet you’re wondering if you can make macaroni and cheese in your Air Fryer. The answer is a huge YES! Because I love my Air Fryer, I pondered on how I would make mac and cheese work in it. I knew a few things, I did not want to boil the noodles first and I wanted it to be a quick recipe. I’m glad to report that this recipe fits the bill.

How to Make Mac and Cheese in your Air Fryer

First, if using block cheese, which I highly recommend, shred it. I find that block cheese melts much better than the pre-shredded packaged kind.

Then combine uncooked elbow macaroni, water, heavy cream, mustard powder, garlic powder, salt, black pepper, and about ¾ths of the shredded cheese in a 7-inch pan that will fit in your Air Fryer and is deep enough to hold your macaroni. I use the cake pan that comes in this Air Fryer Accessory set. Stir until combined.

cheese and elbow macaroni and liquid in circle pan

Place in your Air Fryer and cook on 360 degrees Fahrenheit for 18-20 minutes, stirring and adding the remainder of the cheese halfway through cooking.

pan with air fryer mac and cheese in air fryer basket

pan with air fryer mac and cheese in basket halfway through cooking, it's liquid white yellow cheese sprinkled throughout

Once done, your mac and cheese will look hot, bubbly, and watery. Please don’t stress, because....

Mac and cheese in air fryer basket before stirring

Once you stir, it'll start to thicken up.

air fryer mac and cheese in basket with spoon sticking out of macaroni

And once you let it cool a bit, it'll thicken up even more and you'll have yummy creamy mac and cheese goodness.

close up image of finished air fryer mac and cheese

Notes:

I use sharp cheddar for this recipe but you can certainly add any combination of cheeses you like. Here’s a list of great cheeses for mac and cheese from the pros.
The cheese will thicken while it cools. It’s a good idea to let it rest before digging in.
Various air fryers will cook at different speeds so you’ll want to make sure you check it halfway through. My Philips took a total of 18 minutes to complete this dish while my Ninja Foodi took 20 minutes.

I hope you enjoy this recipe as much as we do!

What to serve this mac and cheese with?

You can also use this recipe to make these Air Fried Macaroni and Cheese Balls recipe

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Watch this video tutorial and see how I make this mac and cheese from start to finish.

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4.41 from 64 votes

Air Fryer Mac and Cheese

This Creamy Mac and Cheese recipe is made right in the Air Fryer in about 20 minutes or less. There’s no need to boil the noodles and everything can be made right in your Air Fryer.

Course Side Dish

Cuisine American

Keyword air fryer mac and cheese, creamy baked macaroni and cheese, mac and cheese

Prep Time 5

Cook Time 20

Total Time 25

Servings people

Calories 530kcal

Author Tanya

Ingredients

1 ½ cup elbow macaroni
1 cup water
½ cup heavy cream
8 oz sharp cheddar cheese shredded and separated
1 teaspoon dry mustard
½ teaspoon kosher salt
½ teaspoon black pepper
¼ teaspoon garlic powder

Instructions

Combine elbow macaroni, water, heavy cream, ¾ of the cheese, dry mustard, kosher salt, black pepper, and garlic powder in a 7-inch pan that is deep enough to hold all the ingredients. Stir to combine.
Place in Air Fryer basket and set Air Fryer on 360 degrees Fahrenheit. Set the timer for 18-20 minutes and start Air Fryer. Halfway through cooking, open the Air Fryer basket and add remaining cheese and stir. Close and continue cooking.
Once the Air Fryer is done cooking, open Air Fryer and stir the mac and cheese. Remove the pan from the basket and allow it to cool for 5-10 minutes. The mac and cheese will thicken while it cools. Serve and Enjoy 🙂

Suggested Tools

Air Fryer

Box Grater

Air Fryer Accessory Kit

Video

Notes

Various Air Fryer brands cook at different speeds. Check on your mac and cheese around the 18-minute mark. If the noodles are al dente, your mac and cheese can be removed from the Air Fryer.

Nutrition

My Southern Air Fryer ECookbookFind all my Top Southern Air Fryer recipes in one place! My Southern Air Fryer ECookbook!

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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.