These Air Fryer Hot Dogs give you a juicy frankfurter sausage with a perfect snap of the skin, all served on a soft bun that’s warmed (but not toasted) to perfection right in the air fryer. Whether you keep things simple or serve them fully loaded, hot dogs are a perennial favourite and incredibly easy to put together.
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Hot dogs might be considered an American classic but we also have a long tradition of serving sausages in bread buns on Bonfire night here in the UK. And of course like most foods, hot dogs are ubiquitous year round now.
Which hot dog sausages and which type of hot dog roll you choose will make all the difference to your final hot dog. I’ve used all beef frankfurters which have that really classic hot dog flavour and casing. And then I’ve used brioche rolls because the sweetness of the bread pairs perfectly with the slightly smoky sausage. And is the most reminiscent of American rolls.
How to Serve
However you serve them, make sure your hot dogs are in fact hot and your buns are warm.
Hot dogs are a brilliant base that can be dressed up or down as much as you wish. I’ve kept things simple with some American yellow mustard and ketchup. I also like to sprinkle over some very finely chopped white onion. Sort of like the toppings you get on a McDonald’s hamburger sans the pickle!
For a more burger van vibe, gently fry some sliced onions with a little salt and oil until they’re soft with a little bit of char. Then pile them into your hot dogs. Or go a step further and add rashers of crisp streaky bacon and some plastic burger cheese.
Go Tex-Mex and drizzle over warm nacho cheese then top with guacamole, sour cream and pickled jalapenos. Or go for the full chilli cheese dog by piling on chilli con carne and topping with lots of grated cheese!
Ingredients
Hot Dog Sausages
Vienna Beef Frankfurters are my preference. The ones I like are made by The Sausage Haus and I get them from the freezer section of Farmfoods. They’re large sausages – 100g each and make for a really good option. You can also get various other varieties like ones with cheese and some made with pork and bacon.
Hot dog sausages are often sold in brine in both jars and cans here in the UK. You can use these if you need but the skins tend to be soft and the overall eating experience is very different. If you do need to use these, look for the jumbo options and make sure to drain and dry them thoroughly.
The next best option is the kind sold vac-packed. Supermarkets sell them in their fridges and you also shouldn’t overlook checking any local Polish or other Eastern European stores. I’m very lucky to have many such options near me and there is no end of frankfurter options available.
Hot Dog Rolls
There are two main considerations when selecting your buns. Firstly what size they are – look for something a little smaller than the hot dog. This will give you that classic look rather than the bread swallowing the sausage. Unless of course you want to heavily top the hot dog in which case all that extra receptacle might actually be what you want.
Secondly consider what kind of bread it is. As I mentioned, I chose brioche rolls because I like their sweetness. I also like the overall flavour and texture. They are widely available although you can also find more traditional soft white rolls everywhere too.
Allergen Information
This recipe is free from nuts.
Gluten Free: You should be able to find gluten free hot dog rolls in the free from sections of larger supermarkets and speciality shops. But it is also worth thoroughly checking the ingredients of the sausages. Whilst frankfurters shouldn’t contain any actual rusk or gluteny filler, of course some will. The frankfurters that I bought have an allergy contamination warning for example. So choose carefully as required.
Dairy or Egg Free: There is no added dairy or egg in this recipe but as I’ve used brioche style hot dog buns, they do of course contain both. Simply use non-brioche rolls to avoid this. Although you should still check the label thoroughly. And of course the same applies to the sausages.
Please note that this recipe may contain other allergens not referred to above and any variations suggested have not been tested unless otherwise stated. For more information regarding any dietary information provided on this website, please refer to my Nutritional Disclaimer.
How Long to Air Fry Frankfurter Sausages
The hot dog sausages are effectively cooked already so the air frying process is really only to heat them through and give them a snappy skin.
They cook in around 7 minutes from fresh so are a really quick meal to put together. The buns warm in a further 2 minutes
How to Air Fry Hot Dogs From Frozen
As I’ve mentioned, the frankfurter hot dogs that I buy come frozen and they can be air fried directly from the freezer. But there are a couple of extra quick steps that I like to take to make sure they cook perfectly.
Start by running the hot dogs under some water. If they are stuck together this will help the very outer layer defrost and they will be easy to prise apart. And either way this will remove any layer of frost/ice that may have collected on the outside of the sausages.
Next dry the sausages really well and then you can proceed to score the casing, add oil and air fry as normal. Add an extra 2 minutes to the cooking time to ensure they’re piping hot throughout.
Common Air Fryer Questions – A Brief Guide to Air Frying
- What exactly is an air fryer?
- What are the benefits of using an air fryer?
- Are all air fryers the same?
- Is an air fryer always better to use than an oven?
- Do air fryers need to be pre-heated?
- What is the best temperature to air fry at?
- What setting is best to use? Air fry, bake, dehydrate, etc…
- Can food be cooked from frozen in an air fryer?
- Can I reheat food in an air fryer?
- Are air fryer liners a good idea?
The Air Fried Feast Community
Come on over to Facebook and join my community discussing all things air fryer. Get involved in sharing your experiences and trials, help out others and find out what wonderful things everyone is cooking in their air fryers!
What Exactly is an Air Fryer?
Very simply, an air fryer is a small convection (fan) oven. The benefit is that the hot air is circulated all around the food being cooked which speeds up the cooking time and cooks the food more evenly.
What are the Benefits of Using an Air Fryer?
Size, time and energy usage. Air fryers are ideal for cooking smaller quantities. Heating up a space that the food just fits into requires less energy and means that the heat source is much closer to the food. Combining these two things can speed up the cooking time.
Are all air fryers the same?
Nope! The term air fryer is now used very broadly. I consider there to be 4 main types:
Basket Air Fryers
These are what I would consider to be the most common, especially in the UK. A boxy type unit has a pull out drawer/basket. Food isn’t usually visible whilst cooking.
Some larger models have two drawers so different items can be cooked at different temperatures or for different times.
This is the type that you’ll see in the images in this recipe. I mostly use a Cosori Lite 3.8L (CAF-LI401S) with a 3.8 litre capacity. The square(ish) shaped basket is 21cm x 21cm and 24cm on the diagonal. It isn’t an overly expensive or fancy model.
I’ve also recommended to several friends and family the model with a slightly larger basket. This is the Cosori 4.7L (CAF-L501) with a 4.7 litre basket. The unit is no larger than the 3.8 litre model on the outside but does have a larger internal basket capacity. I’ve since bought this version to use for some recipes where my smaller model was just too small. I’ll always note this in the recipe.
Rotary Air Fryers
Round air fryers with a paddle in the centre that rotates to move the food. This is the type I used for years – the most common is a Tefal Actifry.
Rotary types are not usually good for recipes where the food is breaded, glazed, likely to break up or in a tray/container. They do however make the best chips and roasted veg.
My 2 in 1 version like the one I’ve linked also has a rotating tray for things that could be broken up by a paddle, but the height clearance with the lid isn’t deep enough to use it to cook some items like sausage rolls. I’ve now actually retired by Actifry in favour of having my two basket type fryers.
Mini Oven Air Fryers
These usually have a glass door, shelves and overall are really quite large. You can cook quite a decent quantity of food in them so are best if regularly cooking for multiple people. They often come with extra features like a rotisserie spit or kebab skewers.
Multicookers with Air Fryer Functions
Some like Ninja 11 in 1 and some of the earlier versions with a few less functions, have an air fryer option. They mostly operate the same as a basket fryer but the basket drops in the top rather than sliding in like a drawer.
Some electric pressure cookers like Instant Pots can also air fry when used with a specific lid.
Is an air fryer always better to use than an oven?
As much as I do love air frying, the honest answer to this is no. And the more detailed answer is that it will always depend on what you’re cooking, how much of it you’re cooking and what type and size of air fryer you have.
Once you need to cook in more than 2 batches, it often makes more sense to use an oven. If you already have the oven on to cook other items, it may make more sense to throw one more item in rather than using an additional appliance.
I don’t think either method is often necessarily better than the other. The important point to note is that there is absolutely no difference in the finished product.
Do Air Fryers Need to Be Pre-Heated?
The answer to this is rather annoying – it depends. It depends entirely on your model and type of air fryer. The best advice I can offer is to check your manual and follow their guidance. My Cosori models have a preheat function. I press a button and it heats at 205c/400f for 4 minutes.
It’s also worth noting that regardless of whether you are supposed to pre-heat or not, if you are cooking in batches, it is quite likely that anything after the first batch will cook a little quicker because of the retained heat. It is best to check on them before the cooking time is completed.
What is the best temperature to Air Fry at?
It will always depend on what you are cooking and from what state. All of my air fryer recipes don’t use temperatures above 200c/390f because many of the most common fryers in the UK don’t go above this. Mine goes to 230c/450f and I use this temperature a lot but it is no help for me to share recipes which many people can’t use.
What setting is best to use? Air fry, bake, dehydrate, etc…
Not all air fryers have different settings like this. When they do it usually relates to the fan speed. The default setting to use will always be “air fry” so unless something else is specifically stated in the recipe, always use the air fry option.
There are other air fryers that have an additional heating element which cooks from underneath rather than just the top. Just as with the other settings, unless you are using a recipe which states to use a second heating element, stick with just using the top down air fry option.
Of course if and when you become more confident with air frying, using recipes and the settings of your air fryer, you can start adapting them to suit.
Can Food Be Cooked From Frozen In An Air Fryer?
Absolutely! To cook from frozen you usually will need to reduce the cooking temperature and increase the time to make sure your food is cooked right through to the middle.
It is best to check my individual recipes for cooking from frozen advice as some items are a little different. And there are occasionally exceptions to the rule.
Can I Reheat Food In An Air Fryer?
Yes. As a general rule I reheat food for roughly 1/3 of the original cooking time at the same temperature. Or at 10 degrees lower for half the time for larger items.
Are Air Fryer Liners a Good Idea?
Unless otherwise stated, I do not use liners when air frying. Basket and rotary type air fryers are designed to be used without liners. Mini oven types will generally require some kind of tray like with a regular large oven although most come with crisper racks to use.
There are many air fryer liners available including quite thick silicone ones. These will affect the cooking times and possibly temperatures of your cooking/baking. I also don’t like how cooking juices are prevented from dripping through the basket rack. This can stop food from crisping all the way around.
When I do want to collect the juices, I mostly use some foil, or occasionally a foil tray which can be washed and reused.
If you do prefer to use them, once you have got a feel for how they affect your cooking and baking, you may need to make adjustments to the recipe accordingly.
More Air Fryer Recipes
All my recipes with instructions for how to cook or bake them in the air fryer can be found in my Air Fryer Recipe Index.
Don’t forget to let me know in the comments if you try making this recipe – I want to know what you think and if you made any substitutions, how did it turn out?
Still Have Questions?
Simple! Just contact me and I will do my best to help as quickly as I am able. Head over to my Contact Me page, any of my social media channels or post a comment at the bottom of this page and I’ll see what I can do.
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The Recipe
Air Fryer Hot Dogs with Buns Recipe
Ingredients
- 4 Hot Dog Sausages - 100g/3.5oz each
- ¼ tsp Vegetable Oil
- 4 Hot Dog Rolls
Instructions
- Start the preheat setting on your air fryer now if needed.
- Prepare 4 Hot Dog Sausages by making sure they're thoroughly dried.
- Use a small sharp knife to lightly cut through the skin in a spiral along the whole length of the sausage. Keep the knife still at an angle and roll the sausage. Or just cut a few slashes horizontally along the sausages. This is to prevent them from bursting open as they cook.
- Coat the sausages in roughly ¼ tsp Vegetable Oil making sure that they are totally covered in a very thin layer.This will stop the hot dogs from becoming dry as they cook.
- Use tongs to add the sausages to the air fryer basket. Arrange them so they have space for air to circulate in-between them.
- Air fry for 7 minutes at 200c/390f. You shouldn't need to turn the hot dogs during cooking but you can if the desire takes you.
- Meanwhile loosely wrap 4 Hot Dog Rolls in foil ready to heat once the sausages are fully cooked.
- Once the hot dogs are cooked, move them to a plate.
- Add the foil parcel into the air fryer.
- Air fry for 2 minutes at 200c/390f. This will just warm the buns slightly.
- Assemble the hot dogs with a sausage in each bun and garnish however you wish.
Notes
- The air fryer version of this recipe is tested in a Cosori Lite (CAF-LI401S) with a 3.8 litre capacity. The square(ish) shaped basket is 21cm x 21cm and 24cm on the diagonal.
- Not all models advise preheating is required. Please follow the recommended instructions for your model. Mine has a specific preheat setting which is 4 minutes at 205c.
- For this recipe, I can easily fit 4 x 100g/3.5oz hot dogs in the basket at a time. This gives plenty of room to allow air to circulate. I think I could just cook another 1 or 2 without issue. Any more and they may take longer to cook and need to be turned during cooking.
- As all air fryer models are a little different, you may find that you can fit more or less in at a time. Some models include stacking shelves which will increase capacity.
- Required cooking times and temperatures can also vary between models and brands. If you know that your air fryer runs a little hotter than most recipes suggest, use a lower temperature. And vice versa. Equally if you find that food cooks more quickly in your machine than instructions usually state, reduce the cooking time (or check it earlier) and vice versa.
Amy says
Thanks for these simple instructions, it’s so easy to overcook hot dogs but your timings were perfect.
Sisley says
Genius! These are so quick and above all easy. Perfect for midweek food.
Lesley says
I love hotdogs and your recipe cooked everything to perfection in no time. Great tasting hotdogs and no faff!