Baking a Cake in an Air Fryer: Simple Steps and Timing

You can bake cakes in an air fryer if you use the right pan size, a moderate temperature, and a shorter baking time than a regular oven.

The result is a small, soft cake with a golden top, perfect when you do not want to heat a full oven.

Basic ingredients for 1 small cake

• 2 large eggs
• 90 g sugar
• 120 g all-purpose flour
• 1 teaspoon baking powder, about 5 g
• 80 ml milk
• 50 ml neutral oil
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract, about 5 ml
• 1 pinch of salt

Choose the right pan

Use a small metal or silicone cake pan that fits easily inside the air fryer basket. A pan of 16 to 18 cm works well for most medium air fryers.

Do not fill the pan more than halfway, because the cake needs space to rise.

How to make the cake

Prepare the batter

Whisk the eggs with the sugar until slightly foamy. Add the milk, oil, vanilla, and salt, then mix well.

Add the flour

Stir in the flour and baking powder until the batter is smooth. Avoid overmixing, as this can make the cake dense.

Bake in the air fryer

Preheat the air fryer to 160°C for 3 minutes. Pour the batter into the greased pan and bake at 160°C for 22 to 28 minutes.

Check with a toothpick. If it comes out clean, the cake is ready. If not, bake for another 3 to 5 minutes.

Useful tips

If the top browns too quickly, cover the pan loosely with foil after the first 15 minutes. Let the cake cool for 10 minutes before removing it from the pan.

For chocolate cake, replace 20 g of flour with 20 g of unsweetened cocoa powder.

Conclusion

Air fryer cakes are easy when you use a small pan, moderate heat, and early checking. Start with a simple batter, then adjust the flavor with cocoa, lemon zest, or fruit.