Making air fryer roasted tomatoes is an easy way to use fresh tomatoes with just a few ingredients and a little time. Juicy cherry tomatoes are air fried in olive oil and sea salt, bringing out their intense and robust flavor. They are great for adding to pasta meals, sauces, soups, breads, chicken dinners, and even dips!
Table Of Contents
Roasting tomatoes in your air fryer is so quick and easy, and is a fantastic way to use up ripe, fresh tomatoes from your garden or farmer's market. At the heart of the summer when tomatoes are at their peak, roasted tomatoes should be a recipe you have on repeat!
This recipe uses just 3 wholesome ingredients- cherry tomatoes, olive oil, and sea salt.
I have made roasted tomatoes in a basket style air fryer like this and in my Instant Omni Plus tray type air fryer. The outcome is great in either, so no matter your air fryer style or brand, this recipe will work for you.
Air frying has become my favorite way of cooking, so make sure to check out some of my other tried and tested air fryer recipes! And for the latest recipes follow me on Facebook and Instagram.
Ingredients
You need 3 simple ingredients: cherry tomatoes, olive oil, and sea salt.
While cherry tomatoes are perfect for roasting due to their naturally sweet flavor and small size, roma tomatoes are also a good choice.
In place of the sea salt use regular table salt or himalayan pink salt.
A good quality oil is always your best friend when air frying. I use extra virgin olive oil.
Step-by-Step Directions
This is an easy 2 step recipe with no preparation other than to slice the tomatoes.
First, wash and cut the tomatoes into halves. If using roma tomatoes, cut them into quarters. Toss with olive oil and put into the air fryer basket or spread evenly in 1 layer on the cooking tray. Sprinkle with sea salt.
Set the air fryer to 400 degrees Fahrenheit or 204 degrees Celsius for 10 minutes. If yours has a preheat function, allow it to preheat fully. Then insert the tray or basket. Toss the tomatoes halfway through or at the turn food notification, if you'd like (see notes about this below).
The cooking time may vary depending on your specific air fryer and preferred doneness. Begin watching the tomatoes around the 7 minute mark. For reference, the tomatoes in the picture below were air fried for 10 minutes and not tossed halfway through.
Remove, taste, and season with more salt if desired. Then use in your favorite recipe (see suggestions below!).
Cooking Tips
Making air fried roasted cherry tomatoes is so easy that there aren't many tips needed for them to turn out perfect.
- Don't forget to use all of the juice! If you have an air fryer basket with a reserve underneath, make sure it's completely clean prior to cooking. You want to use all the juice that bursts out from the tomatoes and drips down under the basket.
- For air fryers with trays, use the cooking pan (the one without holes) so that the tomatoes roast in their own juices.
- Don't overcrowd the tomatoes in your basket. The tomatoes should be in 1 layer, and not piled on top of each other. The goal with roasting is to allow each tomato halve enough cooking time on each side to begin to caramelize and break down the skin to produce an intensely tangy and sweet flavor. If they are layered on top of each other, they won't be able to do this as well.
The short answer is no, you do not need to flip or toss the tomatoes at the "turn food" mark (of halfway through if your air fryer doesn't give a turn notice).
But it also depends. For roasted tomatoes with a few brown and caramelized bites, don't flip or toss them. If you prefer tomatoes that are not browned, give them a toss around the 5 minute mark.
There is no need to peel them! The skins create a flavor packed outcome when roasted. They keep the tomatoes intact just enough to keep each as an individual in dishes like pasta or salad. But they will still be pliable and soft enough if you'd like to mix them into a soup or dip.
You should allow it to preheat before inserting the food if your brand and style has this setting. Many don't. If yours does not have a preheat setting, insert the food tray or basket without preheating.
Variations
Make these changes prior to cooking:
- Seasoned: add italian seasoning, your favorite seasoning blend, or fresh herbs.
- Spicy: add red pepper flakes.
- Garlic roasted: peel and halve garlic cloves and mix in with the tomatoes.
- Smoky: add a dash of smoked paprika for a Cajun-inspired variation.
How To Serve Roasted Tomatoes
Use your air fried cherry tomatoes in appetizers, main dishes, salads, soups and sandwiches. Or in any recipe you like! Here are some ideas:
- Mix into pasta with roasted garlic, olive oil, and fresh basil. Mix in some parmesan cheese and panko breadcrumbs, or even grilled chicken. Yum!
- Use in homemade tomato-flavored bread. They can be a substitute for the sun dried tomatoes in my bread machine tomato basil bread.
- Spread onto sandwiches, use in quesadillas, or on pizza. They would be especially delicious on this air fried tomato basil flatbread or mediterranean quesadilla.
- Use them in place of the fresh tomatoes in this Instant Pot spaghetti. There is a stove top version too!
- Make an appetizer of crusty bread spread with roasted garlic, greens, and drizzled with the roasted tomatoes.
- As an ingredient in soups, like minestrone, vegetable, cabbage, or spinach tortellini.
- Mix into your favorite salads.
- Create a roasted tomato cheese dip for holidays, Sunday game days, or fancy dinners.
How To Store
Fridge: keep in an airtight container or mason jar for up to 7 days.
Freezer: store in a freezer safe container for up to 3 months. After 3 months, they will begin to lose flavor.
Roasted tomatoes can also be canned.
MORE AIR FRYER RECIPES TO TRY:
Recipe
Air Fryer Roasted Tomatoes
Equipment
Ingredients
- 1 pint cherry tomatoes (or roma)
- 1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
- ½- 1 teaspoon sea salt
Instructions
- Preheat the air fryer to 400°F (if yours has a preheat setting).
- Cut the tomatoes in half (or quarters if using roma tomatoes). Toss with olive oil and ½ teaspoon of the sea salt.
- Place on the cooking pan or in the basket in 1 layer. Air fry for 10 minutes, tossing halfway through if preferred (see notes below).
- Serve mixed into pasta, on crusty bread, in dips, soups, or salads.
Notes
Nutrition
I hope you enjoy these air fryer roasted tomatoes and will let me know how they turned out in the comments below.
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Anonymous says
Great !! Used compari cut into quarters, skin side down, Put on a pizza
Just as they oven. Wonderful and I'll be making them a lot!
Stephanie Westerfield says
No matter how long I cook them, they are still soggy. I’ve had them that aren’t. And they don’t taste as sweet as the ones I’ve had in dishes at restaurants. What am I doing wrong?
Kristina Tipps says
Hi Stephanie,
The sweetness depends on the type of tomato you use, as does how much liquid the tomatoes release, thus making them seem too soggy. Plum tomatoes are a good option for less watery tomatoes.Before air frying them, soak them between 2 paper towels for about 10 minutes to absorb some liquid, then salt them and let them sit for about 10 more minutes. Salt will help draw out any remaining moisture and also give you a bit more sweetness once they're cooked. If you're still not satisfied with how roasting the tomatoes turns out, you could try dehydrating them instead for a crispier option.
Ramona says
I love sun dried tomatoes I could eat them everyday! Air frying sun dried tomatoes looks and sounds amazing and I can’t wait to try these out. Thank you for sharing this recipe!
Hayley Dhanecha says
I loved my roasting cherry tomatoes in the air fryer, so easy and quick recipe.
Dani says
We were gifted a flat of cocktail tomatoes and stumbled over your recipe for Air Fryer Roasted Tomatoes. What an unique (and tasty) way to cook them. Served them with some shaved parmesan cheese and fresh basil as a side dish. Everyone loved them
Enriqueta E Lemoine says
I'm in heaven with these roasted cherry tomatoes. I made a double batch and saved them in a Mason jar. they are addictive. thanks for sharing!
Jenny Graves says
Air fryer recipes are fun because of they’re easy and delicious. Same goes for this air fryer roasted cherry tomatoes recipe. Enjoy!