I’ve always loved Indian fry bread! Growing up in the upper Midwest, Navajo tacos made with this delicious bread are a common meal in homes and restaurants. The bread is a simple dough that is rolled out, stretched thinly into a teardrop or oval shape, and then deep-fat fried to golden-brown perfection. When the bread is fried, it puffs up with fluffy air pockets. To serve it in its most popular form as a taco, top it with your favorite ingredients — seasoned meat, cheese, lettuce, pinto beans, tomatoes, or whatever your tastebuds desire. It can also be served as a dessert bread — with powdered sugar, honey, jelly/jam, fruit preserves, etc.
I wondered if there was a way to make this healthier, skipping "frying in oil" and instead using my air fryer. After a lot of research, I finally found ONE recipe that was a good starting point. However, the ingredients, directions, and the cooking time weren't quite right. I was determined to figure out how to make this work in my air fryer...and I love the end results!
For this recipe, I used my KitchenAid stand mixer to make the bread dough, but you could also hand-mix and knead. Note that I’ve listed using 4 cups of flour in the recipe…but if the dough is still too sticky, you may need to add a bit more flour (a tablespoon at a time) so the dough pulls away from the sides of the mixing bowl, which is the perfect consistency.
A quick note about proofing the yeast... “Proofing” is a term used for “proving” that the yeast is alive and active by adding warm water to activate it. Proofed/alive yeast will form a froth that looks like bubbling sludge. I add a pinch or two of granulated sugar to the yeast/warm water, which helps "feed" the yeast to jumpstart the proofing/bubbling. If the yeast doesn’t respond after 15 minutes, the yeast is likely “dead” and shouldn’t be used.
This is seriously one of the easiest doughs that I've ever worked with. I love the elasticity and ease of rolling/shaping. Just a little brushing of olive oil when placing the dough into the air fryer made it brown beautifully…and no other use of oil was involved (yippee for no deep-fat frying!!). I hope you’ll love this recipe and have great success making Indian fry bread in your air fryer!
I wondered if there was a way to make this healthier, skipping "frying in oil" and instead using my air fryer. After a lot of research, I finally found ONE recipe that was a good starting point. However, the ingredients, directions, and the cooking time weren't quite right. I was determined to figure out how to make this work in my air fryer...and I love the end results!
For this recipe, I used my KitchenAid stand mixer to make the bread dough, but you could also hand-mix and knead. Note that I’ve listed using 4 cups of flour in the recipe…but if the dough is still too sticky, you may need to add a bit more flour (a tablespoon at a time) so the dough pulls away from the sides of the mixing bowl, which is the perfect consistency.
A quick note about proofing the yeast... “Proofing” is a term used for “proving” that the yeast is alive and active by adding warm water to activate it. Proofed/alive yeast will form a froth that looks like bubbling sludge. I add a pinch or two of granulated sugar to the yeast/warm water, which helps "feed" the yeast to jumpstart the proofing/bubbling. If the yeast doesn’t respond after 15 minutes, the yeast is likely “dead” and shouldn’t be used.
This is seriously one of the easiest doughs that I've ever worked with. I love the elasticity and ease of rolling/shaping. Just a little brushing of olive oil when placing the dough into the air fryer made it brown beautifully…and no other use of oil was involved (yippee for no deep-fat frying!!). I hope you’ll love this recipe and have great success making Indian fry bread in your air fryer!
Air Fryer Indian Fry Bread
I package active dry yeast
2 big pinches granulated sugar
1/2 teaspoon salt
1-2/3 cup milk
1-1/2 tablespoons butter-flavored Crisco shortening
1 egg, beaten
4 cups all-purpose flour (possibly a bit, more if needed)
Extra virgin olive oil (for brushing on dough)
In a small bowl, combine yeast, sugar, and salt; set aside. Combine milk and shortening in a saucepan over medium heat, stirring until shortening just begins to melt and bubbles form around the edges (do not boil). Remove from heat, and cool to about 105°F.
In the bowl of a stand mixer using the dough/bread hook, combine yeast mixture and milk mixture. Let stand for for 10 minutes. Add egg and 1-1/2 cups of flour. Mix until combined. Continue adding flour, stopping mixer and scraping the sides of the bowl occasionally, until the dough forms into a ball and no longer sticks to the sides of the bowl. (Add additional flour if needed, one tablespoon at a time, until consistency is reached.) Place dough into a lightly greased bowl and cover with a towel. Allow dough to rest for 1 to 2 hours (depending on the temperature of the location where it's rising) until it has doubled in size.
2 big pinches granulated sugar
1/2 teaspoon salt
1-2/3 cup milk
1-1/2 tablespoons butter-flavored Crisco shortening
1 egg, beaten
4 cups all-purpose flour (possibly a bit, more if needed)
Extra virgin olive oil (for brushing on dough)
In a small bowl, combine yeast, sugar, and salt; set aside. Combine milk and shortening in a saucepan over medium heat, stirring until shortening just begins to melt and bubbles form around the edges (do not boil). Remove from heat, and cool to about 105°F.
In the bowl of a stand mixer using the dough/bread hook, combine yeast mixture and milk mixture. Let stand for for 10 minutes. Add egg and 1-1/2 cups of flour. Mix until combined. Continue adding flour, stopping mixer and scraping the sides of the bowl occasionally, until the dough forms into a ball and no longer sticks to the sides of the bowl. (Add additional flour if needed, one tablespoon at a time, until consistency is reached.) Place dough into a lightly greased bowl and cover with a towel. Allow dough to rest for 1 to 2 hours (depending on the temperature of the location where it's rising) until it has doubled in size.
Lightly coat bottom of air fryer basket with olive oil. Set air fryer to 360°F and allow it to preheat for about 3 minutes. Break off a golfball-sized ball of dough and roll flat on a lightly floured surface. Brush top of rolled out pieces of dough with olive oil. Place dough pieces (2 or 3 at a time, so they aren't overlapping) into the basket of the air fryer (oiled side down) and brush top of dough with oil. Cook for 3 to 4 minutes; then flip and cook about another 3 to 4 minutes (until puffy and browned). Repeat with remaining dough. Enjoy!
Note: The cooked fry bread can also be frozen and then simply reheated in the microwave.
{Adapted from recipe posted by the Idaho Potato Commission}
Note: The cooked fry bread can also be frozen and then simply reheated in the microwave.
{Adapted from recipe posted by the Idaho Potato Commission}
