9 Mistakes Everyone Makes Cooking Salmon In The Air Fryer

Trying to come up with a way to prepare the salmon you have in your fridge? Baking it is a popular option, and in many cases, you can even serve it raw. But a lot of home cooks don't think about using their air fryer to cook salmon. In reality, though, it's totally possible to cook fish — including salmon — in an air fryer. In fact, if you're looking for a crispy exterior and a tender, flaky interior, it might just be one of the best cooking methods. However, salmon can be finicky to work with, which is why it's easy to make mistakes when cooking it in the air fryer.

But we're here to help you prevent those mistakes so your air-fried salmon turns out perfectly every time. We've consulted some experts to get the 411 on the most common air fryer salmon mistakes and to learn how to prevent them moving forward. Dylan Werth, executive chef at Typhur; Carly Campbell, food expert and content creator at Bite-Sized Bash; Claudia Syanny, founder and recipe developer at Butter Joy Kitchen; and Mark McShane, chef and food safety expert at Level 3 Food Hygiene Certificate, all shared their insights with us, providing some useful tips in the process. Take a closer look at these mistakes you should avoid, and get ready to taste the best air-fried salmon of your life.

One of the biggest mistakes you can make while using an air fryer, generally — but especially when air frying salmon — is crowding the air fryer basket. But Claudia Syanny of Butter Joy Kitchen says this is a common mistake home cooks make when cooking fish this way. "Air fryers rely on hot air circulating around the food," she explains, "so placing fillets too close together prevents even cooking and browning." That doesn't necessarily mean that the fish isn't going to cook through. It just means that it's more likely to steam instead of crisp up nicely. And since that's kind of the whole point of using an air fryer in the first place, it's a mistake you'll really want to avoid.

There are a few different ways you can rectify this mistake. If you're not cooking a ton of salmon at the same time, Syanny says that you should simply "leave a little space between each piece." However, if you're cooking for a whole crew, it might make more sense to cook the salmon in batches. Yes, this method takes more time, but since salmon is a pretty hands-off dish anyway, it shouldn't be too difficult to cook only a few fillets at a time.

Overcooking can be a problem when it comes to just about any kind of fish, no matter what cooking method you use, and salmon is no exception. But since you're probably not watching the salmon in the air fryer as closely as you would if it were in the oven, overcooking it is a surprisingly common mistake.

"Air fryers blow out hot air very quickly, and most people do not realize how fast salmon will cook," says Mark McShane. "Therefore, a few more minutes may end up making your salmon extremely dry and chalky versus moist and flaky."

If it's your first time cooking salmon in an air fryer, the best bet is to follow an established recipe so you know what to expect. We have a tasty Korean-style air fryer salmon recipe for you to try if you're looking for some guidance. But since all air fryers are different, you should also follow this piece of advice from McShane: "To ensure you don't overcook your salmon, I always tell my students to check it about two minutes prior to the recommended cooking time."

But what if you've already overcooked your salmon? You might think you have to either force it down or just throw it in the trash, but there are actually many ways to use overcooked salmon that taste surprisingly delicious.

Have you ever tried making fish in your air fryer, only for half of it to stick to the bottom of the basket? It's a common problem home cooks run into when they try to prepare salmon this way, and it's one that may make you throw in the towel altogether when it comes to air-fried salmon. However, there's one super simple way to ensure you'll never be stuck cleaning dried, hardened fish pieces off of your air fryer basket again: Use parchment paper or air fryer liners to prevent sticking.

If you're not using a dedicated fryer liner, just cut the parchment paper to fit your air fryer basket, then place it on the bottom of the basket before adding the salmon on top. Make sure that there are no loose portions of the paper sticking up around the edges of the machine, and ensure the parchment paper is weighed down with enough fish. Otherwise, it could potentially be blown around and into the fan, which can eventually start a fire. But as long as that parchment paper stays underneath the cooking salmon where it belongs, you can ensure a mess-free air fryer basket and whole, intact salmon fillets to enjoy.

When you're cooking a steak on the grill or trying to achieve the perfect roast chicken, it makes sense to use a meat thermometer, right? By using one of these tools, you can determine exactly when to take the meat off the heat. That way, your food won't be over- or undercooked — it'll be just perfect. But for some reason, a lot of home cooks don't even consider using a meat thermometer when cooking fish, including in the air fryer. But for Mark McShane, neglecting to use a meat thermometer for your air fried salmon is a mistake.

"I always advise [home cooks] to have an instant read thermometer available to measure the temperature inside the fish," says McShane. "Cooked salmon has reached an internal temperature of 145 degrees Fahrenheit (63 degrees Celcius)." But that doesn't mean that you should wait until the thermometer reads exactly 145 degrees. "By pulling the salmon out of the air fryer one minute shy of that internal temperature," McShane explains, "carry-over cooking will continue cooking the fish until it reaches the safe internal temperature while maintaining the tenderness of the fish." Of course, this may involve reaching into the air fryer a few times to check its temperature, but it's all worth it when you get a piece of salmon that's perfectly cooked.

Of course, you can try to time the doneness of your salmon, but honestly, the salmon's actual size and thickness have a lot to do with how quickly it cooks. This is why it can be a big mistake to use salmon fillets of varying thicknesses — if you're not careful, at least. Claudia Syanny says that this is a common mistake home cooks make when air frying salmon, and it can have unfortunate consequences.

"Using salmon fillets of different thicknesses often leads to uneven results," says Syanny. That means you can have some pieces that are cooked perfectly, while others are overcooked, and thicker cuts are raw. "Choosing pieces of similar thickness, or removing thinner fillets a minute or two earlier, helps ensure every piece is cooked perfectly," instructs Syanny. This is why it's such a good idea to use a meat thermometer as well. If you're working with salmon fillets that are drastically different sizes, you can take their temperatures as they cook, so you know when to pull them out.

You know when you take a piece of salmon out of its packaging, and it's all wet? That probably seems fine because the fish is raw and you're about to cook it anyway. But according to Mark McShane, it's common for home cooks to forget to pat the salmon dry before the cooking process. This is a mistake because that excess moisture can lead to your fish steaming instead of developing that crispy crust you're looking for. "Excess moisture on the top of the fillet prevents it from browning as beautifully as it could," explains McShane.

"When I am getting ready to put my salmon fillets in the air fryer, I gently dab them dry with paper towels," says McShane. It's at that point he adds oil, which functions as a binder for the spices. But he says that you don't need to use a ton of oil to get the kind of texture you're looking for. "As far as oil goes, I believe that a thin layer of oil is sufficient," he says. Feel free to use whatever combination of seasonings sounds best to you. We like keeping it simple with basic dried spices like salt, pepper, and garlic powder.

Take a look at salmon recipes online, and you'll probably notice that many of them call for lemon. Carly Campbell of Bite-Sized Bash specifically suggests using lemon when air frying salmon. In fact, she uses a lot of lemon to make her salmon more flavorful. "I particularly love my lemon-garlic salmon with olive oil, salt, pepper, and garlic," she says. First, she says, she puts the raw salmon in the air fryer. Then, she adds sliced lemons directly on top of the salmon. "Then I remove them from the fryer once cooked and dress them with some more lemon juice and a few herbs," says Campbell.

She's onto something — not only does lemon provide your dish with a bold and fruity acidity that pairs well with the fatty fish, but it also helps to neutralize any unpleasant fish smells in the salmon. Since this is an ingredient that serves so many purposes in a good air fried salmon dish, it seems like a mistake not to use any at all.

Salmon is a fish that can handle a bit of sweetness, which is why you'll see so many honey-glazed salmon recipes out there. These types of recipes are often paired with sweet marinades that create a sweet-and-savory combo that always tastes good. But if you're choosing to cook your salmon in an air fryer, then it can be a mistake to use a marinade or sauce that's too sugary.

"I would advise against applying a heavy marinade that contains a lot of sugar," says Mark McShane, "because these can be burned by the high heat produced by the air fryer." Generally, sugar burns very quickly, so any ingredients that tend to be super sugary — like honey — can be a risk. Instead of focusing too much on sugary ingredients in your salmon marinade, you should prioritize oil, which helps the fish's exterior reach the crispy texture you're looking for.

Compared to other types of meat, fish like salmon can seem super delicate and easy to mess up. And since you don't want to overcook your fish, you may assume that it's better to cook your salmon at a lower temperature. That lessens the likelihood that you'll actually cook it for too long, right? But cooking your salmon at too low a temperature is a big mistake that can ruin the fish's texture. This is especially true when you're trying to achieve the level of crispiness air fryers are known for.

This is why Dylan Werth of Typhur says that you should "Always aim for a high temperature to get that gorgeous crust." Not only will a higher temperature yield the exterior texture you're going for with your salmon, but it also "ensures it's perfectly cooked in the middle." Many air fryer salmon recipes suggest setting the temperature to 400 degrees Fahrenheit. Another benefit of using higher heat? It means your fish will be done quicker and dinner will be on the table sooner to boot.