This Air Fryer Welsh Rarebit recipe is a simple version of a classic British delicacy. There’s no need to make a sauce first or melt the cheese before adding to the bread. Simply mix the topping ingredients including the traditional flavours or mustard, Worcestershire sauce and ale along with a good mature cheddar and away you go!
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I’m working though a list of classic British recipes which can be adapted to be quicker and easier in the air fryer. From suet jam roly poly and roasted chestnuts to roast lamb and pigs in blankets. They’re all extremely popular but the runaway success is my air fryer cheese on toast recipe – as much of a surprise to me as anyone, I nearly didn’t even publish it!
So it was only natural that the next step was to share a recipe for this Welsh rarebit – the fancier cousin of cheese on toast if you will. I’ve found just the right combination of flavours to make a well balanced cheesy topping with a great texture.
The fact that Jamie Oliver recently shared a truly awful looking version of rarebit on his last TV show only made getting this published a priority. You good folk deserve better! Janice at Farmersgirl Kitchen watched it with me and had exactly the same idea!
The classic recipe calls for butter to melted, flour stirred in to make a roux and then the ale, mustard, Worcestershire sauce is added to form a thick sauce. The cheese is added next which melts down into a very thick and flavourful cheese sauce. Some recipes call for egg to be added. That sauce is that poured on top of toast and then grilled until brown and bubbling.
I knew that I didn’t want to make this recipe a two stage process so I’m sharing my preferred method which is to mix all the toppings together including flour and an egg yolk to bind it together. This is simply piled onto bread which has been slightly toasted in the air fryer and buttered. Everything then cooks and heats together. Simple perfection!
How to Serve
I think of Welsh Rarebit as being a supper type dish. Something tasty made on a Sunday evening when you’re finally feeling like something to eat after a roast dinner at lunchtime. Or something that is the centrepiece of a classic country pub lunch – like a ploughman’s platter or even part of one.
Welsh rarebit doesn’t need any sides really so don’t feel like you need to do anything other than let it cool ever so slightly so you don’t burn your face off. But if you want to make more of a meal, I am quite partial to adding a bit of salad. And because I’m a raving carnivore – I love some cold cuts on the side too.
Whatever you fancy, the only real thing I would advise is to make sure that you’re eating it while still warm – the taste and texture are far superior than when its cold and the cheese has all set up again.
Ingredients
Cheese
Using a decently strong cheese is key to this recipe. I’ve said to use cheddar in the recipe and that is really just the standard. I mixed a little red Leicester into mine because I do really like the colour and flavour. Double Gloucester and Lancashire cheeses are also great options.
The biggest point to note is that it needs to be grated. You can get to this point however you please – buy it pre-grated or grate it yourself. I have no qualms and zero judgement about ready grated cheese – it is always in the fridge. I know some people say that it doesn’t melt properly because of the added anti-caking agents. This is usually a touch of flour/starch to stop it clumping together. And I’ve never found any issue with it.
Bread
I like to use a “cutty loaf” for Welsh rarebit. The kind of bread that you can cut nice thick slices from. I’ve used slices from a white boule loaf. The also shape means that I can easily fit 2 long slices next to each other in my square air fryer basket.
So the shape and thickness are something to take into consideration but other than that, you can use most standard loaves to make this dish. White is my preference in general but I also like a granary or malted loaves. Those flavours complement the cheese and ale really well. But you can use brown, tiger loaf, etc. I would avoid anything high in oil like focaccia or anything highly flavoured unless you’re certain that those flavours will complement the toppings.
Ale
Ale is a very traditional ingredient but the type used varies wildly. I used a medium brown ale. Nothing fancy, just a basic beer in a bottle. Many recipes call for a stout like Guinness so you can go as dark as you like. I wouldn’t advise using a lager as I don’t think the flavour will be rich enough.
The ale is a very prevalent flavour int he finished rarebit. So if you’re not a fan, or if you don’t drink any alcohol at all, you can leave it out. It will affect the finished flavour but it’ll still be good. Add a little milk to the topping mixture instead.
Mustard
Mustard is another must have flavour in the recipe. It is most traditional to use English mustard powder and that is what I’ve used. If you can avoid using any more liquid than needs be, that is a good thing. But if you only have prepared English mustard (the kind in a jar) you can use that.
English mustard has a potency that the likes of Dijon, wholegrain and American yellow mustard simply don’t have. So although you can sub in another option, it is really most ideal if you can use English Mustard.
Worcestershire Sauce
If you don’t know how to pronounce Worcestershire sauce, just stick with “Lea and Perrins”! Much simpler. That’s the original brand and the one I choose. I go though roughly one bottle a decade so I feel like the extra 50p cost is fairly acceptable. But if you have a preference for another brand or own label version, go for it.
Worcestershire has a deep and funky flavour with sweet and sour notes. Anchovies, tamarind, vinegar and molasses along with a few other spices and flavourings are left to ferment and mellow. It’s also an essential ingredient in caesar dressing.
If you don’t want to use it, sub in a little Thai fish sauce, a drop of dark soy and a little brown sugar. It won’t quite be the same but it’ll give the right essence. Henderson’s sauce is another good alternative with similar vibes.
Egg
As much as I try to create recipes where the whole egg is used, in this case you really do just need the yolk. And I do find it essential for binding the other ingredients as they cook. It also helps the topping to set up rather than just run right off the toast.
Flour
The flour is another essential ingredient to bind the topping ingredients together. As the ale makes the cheese mixture quite wet, the flour soaks this up as the rarebit cooks. You could sub in a a few breadcrumbs if you really can’t find any flour.
Make sure to use plain/all purpose flour – you don’t want to be introducing any raising agent into proceedings.
Allergen Information
This recipe is free from nuts.
Gluten Free: The bread will of course need to be switched to a gluten free variety. Most Lea and Perrins Worcestershire outside of the US is made with barley vinegar and therefore contain gluten. But there are gluten free alternatives readily available. Ale can have exactly the same issue but again gluten free options are available. And lastly the flour can be subbed for a gluten free blend, cornflour, tapioca starch or potato starch.
Dairy Free: Bit of a tricky one this. You can of course use dairy free versions of the butter and cheese but I can’t say I’m terribly convinced about the options available. However if you are needing to make dairy free rarebit then I’m sure you have your preferred substitution ingredients already. Also make sure to check the bread you’re using for dairy.
Egg Free: I do find that the egg yolk is the most preferable way to bind the toppings. But if that isn’t an option, I would suggest using a little more flour to really bind the liquid ingredients. Just be careful to not make things too gummy.
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 Welsh Rarebit
I use a two step process to air fry the rarebit to perfection. One of the tricks to making sure that the bread holds up to the melted topping is to give it a little toast first. 3 minutes seems to do the trick just nicely. The top will toast more than the bottom so the slices get flipped over so the toastier top becomes the underneath which wont see direct heat again.
The second stage is to air fry the bread and cheesy topping together for around 8 minutes. You can melt and brown the top layer of cheese using a higher heat and quicker cooking time but this will just hide a raw underneath of unmelted cheese and watery sauce and raw egg. So this slightly longer and lower cook time ensures that the whole of the topping is perfectly cooked without burning the very top.
Leftovers – Storage & Reheating
If you can avoid having leftovers, then I really would. The rarebit is by far best cooked fresh and served immediately. So for the most part it isn’t difficult to just cook what is largely going to get eaten. However if you want to make up the topping but not cook it straight away, that will happily sit in the fridge for a couple of days.
If you cannot avoid having leftovers, they will happily keep in the fridge for a couple of days. You can reheat in the microwave or air fryer. Of course the air fryer will give you a crispier result.
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
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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
Simple Air Fryer Welsh Rarebit (Recipe with Ale)
Equipment
- Mixing Bowl
Ingredients
- 150 g Cheddar Cheese - grated/shredded
- 2 tsp Plain Flour (All Purpose)
- 1 Egg
- 4 tbsp Ale
- 1 tsp Worcestershire Sauce
- 1 tsp English Mustard Powder
- 2 thick slices Bread
- 2 tsp Salted Butter
Instructions
- If your air fryer requires pre-heating, start this setting now.
- Measure around 150g Grated Cheddar Cheese into a bowl. Sprinkle with 2 tsp Plain Flour and toss to coat the cheese strands.
- Separate 1 Egg and set aside the white for another time. Add the yolk to the cheese along with 4 tbsp Ale, 1 tsp Worcestershire Sauce and 1 tsp English Mustard Powder.
- Mix everything together really well.
- Take 2 Slices Bread and put in the air fryer basket.
- Air-fry for 3 minutes at 200c/390f.
- Remove the lightly toasted bread from the air fryer and flip it over onto a board. Spread around 2 tsp Salted Butter onto the toast.
- Pile the cheese mixture onto the slices of buttered toast.
- Gently spread out the mixture to totally cover the slices – aim for an even layer rather than a mouth in the centre – this will help even cooking.
- Carefully place the toast back into the air fryer.
- Air fry for 8 minutes at 170c/340f until the cheese is melted and bubbling. This is a lower and longer cook than regular cheese on toast – this is to make sure the thick layer of cheese melts all the way through and the egg/ale/flour paste has time to fully cook.
- Serve hot!
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 just fit two thick 60g slices of bread in the basket at a time. This gives just enough room to allow air to circulate. But my bread happened to be long and thin so it fitted well. You may need to check the fit depending on what type of bread you’re using.
- 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.
Lesley says
This was so easy to make, and the perfect topping for my sourdough toast. Loved the addition of ale which added extra flavour. I’ll be making this again, a real treat.