Simple to make Air Fryer Roasted Green Beans are the perfect veggie side dish for any occasion, holiday dinner, or weeknight meal. Heck, I love them just to snack on them!
Recipes like my Air Fryer Mozzarella Bites and Air Fryer Crispy Tortellini are great for when you want a family pleasing dish. I love the air fryer for fun and healthy foods, and this is one of my Air Fryer Recipes you’ll want in your recipe box!
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Please let me know if you have any questions about this recipe. I read all the comments myself and I try to help as soon as I can. I have readers from all levels of comfort and experience in the kitchen on my site, and I’ve tried to answer some of your questions already in the post. But if I’ve missed anything, please feel free to leave a comment and ask.
Easy roasted green beans in air fryer
Did you know that you can get perfectly cooked green beans from the (affiliate link) Air Fryer in just a few minutes of cooking time?
For me, I like to eat roasted green beans as a snack while I’m cooking other things. It actually helps keep me from snacking on less healthy things while I cook.
Simple veggie side dish
The simple technique of (affiliate link) Air Fryer roasting makes veggies deep in flavor and super yummy.
Serve these air fried green beans as a simple and classic side dish.
Or toss them in a salad. Add them to pasta dishes. Or serve them as a nice snack!
I love roasted green beans
If you’re looking for an oven version of this, check out my oven roasted Easy Roasted Green Beans with Mushrooms and Onions recipe.
Both the air fryer and the oven version are vegan, gluten-free, and really easy to make veggie side dish. Simplified. Classic. Healthy.
Air Fryer Recipes
I love the Air Fryer and find myself using it all the time.
The Air Fryer can be used like a small oven, and it uses less energy to heat and cook things than the big regular oven.
It doesn’t heat up the house the same way that the oven does. And, the Air Fryer is so much faster than the oven.
Holiday side dish
And this easy to make side dish is perfect for holiday meals. Think Thanksgiving, Christmas, or Easter.
You can toss in some sliced red onions and mushrooms as well (like I did for my oven version), or leave it as just the one veggie.
Some other great and simple veggie side dishes!
Looking for some other great and simple veggie side dishes? Try Roasted Sweet Potatoes, Foil Roasted Onions, and Honey Roasted Broccoli are some of my favorites!
Recipe notes & pro tips
Just chop a few veggies, or buy them pre-chopped from the produce section of your grocery store.
One pound of green beans is 16 ounces (in case your package is labeled differently). And, you know, a little more or a little less of any of the veggie isn’t going to make a huge difference.
Just be careful not to crowd the Air Fryer basket too much or the veggies will steam, and won’t get as browned. If you have a small air fryer, you may need to cook the green beans in two batches.
Small thin green beans should cook in 6-8 minutes. If you’re using large thick green beans, they may need a little longer to cook, about 8-10 minutes. Be sure to check them for the level of browning that you like on your green beans.
Want to lower the calorie content even more?
If you want to lower the calorie content even more, you can use a light spray of non-stick cooking spray instead of oil.
Personally, I like the flavor that the oil gives the green beans, and don’t mind the small calorie content that the oil has. But, again, it is an option.
Air Fryer Frozen Green Beans
I’ve had several readers ask if this recipe can be made with frozen green beans. So, I thought I’d do some testing to see if it works.
The short answer, yes, this recipe works just as written if you want to use frozen or fresh green beans. I do think that fresh green beans have a better texture and flavor than frozen ones, but if you have a bag of frozen green beans, by all means, yes, this will absolutely work.
No need to defrost the green beans either. Just pop them in frozen, and they will defrost as they cook.
To test, I cooked two batches, one at 350° F, and one at 400° F. I wasn’t sure if the frozen beans would need a lower temperature because they would be a little softer already from being frozen.
The ones cooked at 400° were browned, a little more crunchy, and had a better flavor. Also, I like the idea that you don’t have to fuss around with changing the temperature on the air fryer like in some recipes.
Air Fryer Canned Green Beans
And, I’ve had some of you asking if the Air Fryer will work on canned green beans. So, back to the testing. But I’m happy to say that, yes, the air fryer seems to work wonderfully on just about any veggie!
I recipe tested with just one 14.5 ounce can of cut green beans.
Drain the liquid out of the 14.5 ounce can of green beans. After I drained the liquid, I weighed the green beans and found that I got about 8.5 ounces of beans from my can. About 8 ounces per can would mean that you would want 2 cans of green beans to make a pound of green beans, to follow the recipe card below.
I preheated my air fryer, and cooked the beans at 400° F for 4 minutes, shaking halfway through the cooking. They are heated through and plump, so you could totally stop cooking them here and they are great.
I wondered if I could get them crispier and browned so I popped them back in for a total of 10 minutes, just like I cook the fresh and frozen ones.
They came out great at 10 minutes! Nicely cooked, a little browned, and great flavor.
So, it’s really up to you – Green Beans are great in the air fryer, fresh, frozen, canned, all work so well! Of, course, I’m still very partial to fresh green beans, I do think they have the best flavor.
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Air Fryer Green Beans Recipe
Air Fryer Roasted Green Beans
Equipment
Ingredients
Instructions
- Preheat the air fryer to 400° F.
- Place green beans in a bowl, and drizzle oil over the top, sprinkle with salt and pepper. Toss to coat.
- Once the air fryer is hot, place the green beans in the air fryer basket. Cook 6-10 minutes, shaking basket halfway through cooking time. Check for doneness again a few times towards the end of cooking, and shake the basket each time you check, so that they are done evenly, and the browning that you like.
- Remove the roasted green beans, and serve topped with extra salt and pepper if you like.
Notes
Nutrition
Nutritional information is based on third-party calculations, and should be considered estimates. Actual nutritional content will vary based on brands used, measuring methods, portion sizes, and more.
These were amazingly delicious and so simple in the air fryer!! Such great color, snap and flavor!
I really enjoyed these… Id made them in the air fryer before, but always took the time to parboil them first which was such a time add on (not to mention the hot air) I can’t believe how perfect these came out just using oil and going with it! THANKS for the new way (and the only way I’m going to make them in the future!)
Can you use frozen skinny green beans?
Mendy, I haven’t tried using frozen beans in the Air Fryer, but I suspect they will work just fine. For skinny ones, I’d suggest checking on them early so they don’t overcook.
Thank you for this recipe. I was wondering about the canned green beans? I think since I have a bunch of those, I want to give it a try.
Cherry, I think canned green beans will be fine as well. I personally feel that canned green beans don’t have a great texture, so I avoid them. I really prefer fresh ones. I would go with the same time and temperature as listed in the recipe card and I think they will turn out great. I’d love to hear back if you try them.
My air fryer doesn’t have a basket it has wire racks -it will still work the same with (I am just checking because I don’t use the air fryer very much and don’t try many new things- sorry for the dumb question)
A.B., not a dumb question at all. Yes, this recipe will still work in a wire rack style air fryer. I have one of those as well. Place the green beans on a tray that they won’t fall through. Mine has a mesh wire rack that came with it – if you have one of those that would be my first choice. If you don’t have that, a solid metal rack will work as well. Happy eating!
These were delicious but why was it 16 g carbohydrates?
Michelle,
Most beans are considered to be a higher starch/carbohydrate vegetable. Green beans are an inexpensive source of healthy carbohydrates, protein, fiber, and micro nutrients. Nutrition varies based on how they are prepared or processed, but in general, this legume is a healthy addition to your diet.
Green beans are a good source of complex carbs. Starch provides the body with quick energy.
Keep in mind that the recipe calls for 1 pound, and makes 2 servings according to the recipe card. Now, you can obviously make it serve more or less. Take a look at other nutrition analysis, keeping an eye on the serving size and the amount of green beans they are analyzing, and you will see roughly the same numbers.
Here are a couple of other sites you may want to use to check analysis: https://www.verywellfit.com/recipe-nutrition-analyzer-4157076 , https://nutritiondata.self.com/ . Weight watchers may also have one, and I know there are paid versions you can use. You can also consult a healthcare professional for more detailed information.
The nutrition information provided is approximate. Detailed analysis will depend on the specific foods you use as well as cooking methods.
Hey, sorry if this is a dumb question…The frozen ones must be first defrozen before cooking them in the air fryer?
Luminita,
Not a dumb question at all. No, you don’t need to defrost them. They will defrost as they cook. Just pop them in frozen. And I’ll update the recipe with that info. Thanks!
These came out great! I used lemon olive oil & Italian seasonings. Will definitely be doing this again. Thank you.