In under 15 minutes you can enjoy Air Fryer Peaches caramelized to perfection, without the need to fire up the grill (or even go outside!). Making grilled peaches in the air fryer means enjoying this sweet summer dessert at any time of year.
If you enjoy air fried dishes, try my air fryer broccolini or these easy delicata squash fries.
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🌟 Why This Recipe is Great
Quick to Make: this summertime dessert recipe is like a healthy peach cobbler, but without all the work of creating a base or a streussel topping. It's done in under 20 minutes, from fridge to fryer to table.
Source of Vitamin C: in addition to being low in calories and a decent source of fiber, peaches are also a reliable source of Vitamin C, a mast cell-stabilizing nutrient that helps support your immune system as well as your joints.
Easy Air Fryer Dessert: all these air fryer grilled peaches need is a quick cook coated in ghee, and then a dollop of spiced butter. Once done, just drizzle on the cream, heavy cream or coconut cream, as well as your favorite fruit jam, like my blueberry jam or blackberry jam, for even more flavorful contrast.
🍑 Ingredients
Peaches: you can use either white or yellow peaches, but make sure you opt for slightly underripe peaches - like the kind you find at the grocery store - so that they don't fall apart in the air fryer. Also, there's no peeling required, so try to buy organic if possible.
💡 Fun Fact: peaches are closely related to almonds, so closely in fact that sometimes peach pits are used to make imitation marzipan. However peaches and nectarines are botanically the same species (though they're generally sold as different fruits), so you could also make this recipe with nectarines.
Ghee: while peaches are most commonly baked, they can also be microwaved, sautéed, grilled, or air fried like we do here. For that you need a cooking oil that's safe to use at higher temps, like the ghee I've used here.
You don't need much, either, especially if using an oil sprayer! For an intolerance, use olive oil or another high-heat oil like refined coconut.
Butter: this is the key to making golden brown peaches in the air fryer, as the high fat content helps caramelize the sugars and temper the spices you pick. Alternatively, you could use vegan butter if tolerated.
Coconut Sugar: this natural sweetener is a great swap for the usual air fried peaches with honey or maple syrup, though there are numerous alternatives to coconut sugar if that's not your preference.
Spices: here I use cardamom and vanilla, though you can also add cinnamon if tolerated, to add more complexity to the delicious sweetness of air fried peaches.
Cream: this is an optional topping, which you can use dairy or coconut for, though vanilla ice cream or whipped cream are also great contrasts to the warm, juicy flavor of grilled fruit in the air fryer.
✔️ Tips for Cooking with Peaches
- Avoid donut peaches for cooking, unless you plan to cut them up to make slices, sauteed, or caramelized peaches.
- The best type of peaches to cook with are freestone varieties. If you're buying from the farmer's market, be sure to ask which of their varieties are freestone (as opposed ot 'clingstone'), because they'll be easiest to cut and core.
- Buy slightly under-ripe peaches if you plan to cook with them, as they'll stay whole for longer no matter how you cook them, and it gives you a bit more time to cook them.
- It's best to keep the skin on the peaches for a sturdier final product, as peeling the peaches can hurt the integrity of the fruits, making them fall apart more easily.
- Don't use canned or frozen peaches in the air fryer, as they're too soft to stay completely together in the fryer basket. But if all you have are canned or frozen peaches, make sure to use an air fryer liner in order to keep the pieces more whole.
- The best way to peel peaches, if needed, is to cut them in half, remove the stone inside, and then gently cut off the outside while holding the half in your other hand.
📖 How to Cook Peaches in Air Fryer: Step-by-Step
Step 1. Preheat your air fryer to 325°F (160°C) for 3-4 minutes.
Step 2. Meanwhile, warm your ghee or coconut oil, then carefully wash and halve each peach, removing the pits (stones) and then dabbing each half dry of water (a bit of juice is fine).
Step 3. Brush the ghee onto the cut side of each peach half, then put them cut side (flat side) down into your preheated air fryer and brush ghee onto the outsides, as well, and cook for 7 minutes.
Step 4. While you do that, mix together the butter, coconut sugar, cardamom, cinnamon (if using) and vanilla in a bowl, but don't microwave everything for more than 15 seconds if you need to soften the butter. The residual heat will be sufficient to soften everything without getting it too liquid.
Step 5. Once the peaches have pre-cooked, flip them over in the air fryer so the flat part is now facing you, and then dollop or pour a quarter of your spiced butter mixture into each peach half and air fry them for another 6-8 minutes, until fork-tender and lightly golden, but not falling apart. Serve hot, drizzled with cream and honey, if desired.
📝 Substitutions & Variations
No Peaches - Nectarines are the next-best substitute for peaches, but this recipe is really formulated to be made with the flavor profile and density of fresh peaches.
Alternate Oils - Since you need to air fry peaches at a higher temp, you do need some high-heat oil. If you can't tolerate or don't want to use ghee or butter, some good alternatives would be coconut oil, avocado oil, or even olive oil.
Spices & Flavorings - If you know you don’t tolerate one or more of the spices on these air fryer peaches, you can swap them for a blend of roughly 1 teaspoon of other herbs and spices you think would go well. Spices that taste good with peaches, include cinnamon, coriander, cardamom, vanilla, and ginger.
- Savory Air Fryer Peaches: if you leave out the vanilla and cardamom, you could serve these grilled peaches with torn burrata and fresh basil for a slightly more savory air fryer peach dish, drizzling it with some balsamic glaze (if not eating low histamine).
- Traditional Grilled Peaches: try using riccotta cheese in place of the butter and spices, and topping with a drizzle of honey for a more typical grilled peaches vibe.
- Tangy Air Fryer Peaches: for a less sweet option, try enjoying these with yogurt and a sprinkle of either granola or toasted oats.
🥘 Freezing & Reheating
Honestly, I don't like to freeze these. They don't reheat very well, so I purposefully use just two peaches when I make this recipe, as it can easily be halved or doubled for varying crowd sizes.
However if you need to freeze them, cook them beforehand and add copious toppings once reheated. To freeze them, put a single layer of peach halves on a baking sheet topped with a piece of waxed paper, freeze them fully through (at least 30 minutes), and place them into a larger container for long-term storage.
To reheat air fried peaches, heat them in the air fryer at 400°F (205°C) for 4-5 minutes, then serve with lots of toppings to cover the mushier texture they'll have form the freezer.
If you're not on a low histamine diet, these peaches can stay good in the fridge for up to 3 days when stored in an air-tight container and cooled to room temperature beforehand.
👨🏻🍳 Expert Tips
Peach Size: it's important to use peaches that are all roughly the same size, to ensure even cooking. I like to use peaches that are roughly the size of my palm (around 8oz., give or take an ounce).
Batching: to make more than 2 peaches in the air fryer at once, you'll want to cook everything in batches, starting with cooking them in ghee and then immediately adding the sweet butter to the center. Don't try to par-cook all your peaches in ghee and THEN cook all of them with the butter mixture.
Serving Suggestions: enjoy these with a tolerated ice cream and a drizzle of seasonal fruity simple syrup, like my blackberry simple syrup or even ginger syrup.
❓ What to Serve with Air Fryer Peaches
🙋🏻♂️ Frequently Asked Questions
Yes, peaches are widely considered low histamine, though they can be higher in sugar when very ripe, and so should be consumed in moderation.
Peaches will keep slightly longer in the fridge, but it's best to not refrigerate them until they're nearly or completely ripe, just to extend the shelf life by a bit.
The best peaches for baking are white or yellow peaches that are just a little underripe. When making desserts or appetizers with peaches, like burrata and peaches or caramelized peaches, make sure the fruits are no more than a little soft with clean skin.
If you don't have a grill, you can air fry, roast, broil, or bake peaches in the oven.
In other words, do you peel peaches before you cook them? The answer is that you can, but it's not necessary. Just make sure you wash the peaches very well before cooking or baking with them, if you're going to leave the peach skin on.
Most warm, sweet spices go well with peaches, including cinnamon, cardamom, ginger, vanilla, and even coriander or sweet paprika (in small amounts).
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📖 Recipe
Caramelized Air Fryer Peaches (in 15 Minutes)
Equipment
- air fryer
Ingredients
- 2 large peaches
- 1 teaspoon ghee alt. coconut oil
- 1 ½ Tablespoons unsalted butter alt. vegan butter
- 1 Tablespoon coconut sugar
- ¼ teaspoon cardamom optional
- ¼ teaspoon cinnamon optional addition
- ⅛ teaspoon vanilla powder alt. ¼ teaspoon vanilla extract
- ⅛ teaspoon of salt
- 1 ½ Tablespoons cream optional, dairy or coconut
Instructions
- Preheat your air fryer to 325°F (160°C) for 3-4 minutes.
- Meanwhile, warm your ghee or coconut oil, then carefully wash and halve each peach, removing the pits (stones) and then dabbing each half dry of water (a bit of juice is fine).
- Brush the ghee onto the cut side of each peach half, then put them cut side (flat side) down into your preheated air fryer and brush ghee onto the outsides, as well, and cook for 7 minutes.
- While you do that, mix together the butter, coconut sugar, cardamom, cinnamon (if using) and vanilla in a bowl, but don't microwave everything for more than 15 seconds if you need to soften the butter. The residual heat will be sufficient to soften everything without getting it too liquid.
- Once the peaches have pre-cooked, flip them over in the air fryer so the flat part is now facing you, and then dollop or pour a quarter of your spiced butter mixture into each peach half and air fry them for another 6-8 minutes, until fork-tender and lightly golden, but not falling apart. Serve hot, drizzled with cream and honey, if desired.
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