Air Fryer Asparagus and Potatoes

What’s better than roasted asparagus? Garlic rosemary air fryer roasted asparagus with potatoes—that’s what! This method makes crispy potatoes that are light and fluffy inside and tender crisp asparagus cooked to perfection. If you need a simple and healthy side dish, this air fryer asparagus and potatoes recipe won’t let you down.

Similar to my air fryer green beans, asparagus is a vegetable that does best with fast cooking methods. So you’ll need to air fry the potatoes on their own first and add the asparagus at the end.

Air Frying Potatoes

I’ve cooked tons of potatoes in the air fryer. Everything from air fryer breakfast potatoes and cajun fries to twice baked potatoes and Greek chicken and potatoes. And if I’ve learned anything it’s that waxy potatoes (like baby gold or new potatoes) are magical in the air fryer, and you don’t need to get fancy with your potatoes.

While you can season potatoes before roasting (like the ranch taters in my baked chicken thighs and potato wedges), I’ve found it is best to keep the seasoning minimal until the potatoes are cooked through. You can then add seasoning for a final quick stretch in the air fryer. This prevents any seasoning blend from burning and losing its flavor. So, you’ll find that this recipe calls for a simple pinch of salt and pepper on the potatoes before air frying.

One exception is store bought grated parmesan like my air fryer red potatoes and air fryer carrot fries call for. It works wonders for adding a crispy outer layer and some salty parmesan flavor. You could add some to this recipe, if you wanted to experiment.

Do I need oil for air frying potatoes?

Another thing I’ve learned about air frying potatoes is that a little olive oil goes a long way in creating a crispy exterior and golden brown color. An air fryer will still get the job done without any oil on your potatoes, but they’ll look a little sad and dried out. I highly recommend using at least a half tablespoon per pound of potatoes when air frying.

Air Frying Asparagus

I don’t know about you, but I find long asparagus spears annoying in just about any fashion other than alongside a steak where I’m wielding a proper knife. Even when they’re perfectly cooked, they can be difficult to cut. And nobody wants to have an asparagus spear springboard off their fork at the dinner table.

That’s why this recipe calls for cutting the asparagus into thirds. It’s easier to eat, serve, and cook.

For the rosemary, go with fresh if you can and be sure to remove the leaves from the woody stem. If you’re using dried rosemary, you may want to scale back to one tablespoon instead of two.

Adding the air fried potatoes to the mixing bowl with the asparagus lets the potatoes soak up some extra seasoning and excess olive oil that gives it a perfect finish.

Cook for another 6-8 minutes and you should have perfect air fryer asparagus and potatoes. You want to get some caramelization, especially on the tips of the asparagus without over cooking. If your asparagus is chewy or soft, you over cooked it.

It’s better to start on the lower end of the time range and extend as needed. For reference, I used the 8-quart Instant Pot Duo Crisp for air frying. If you have a larger air fryer with more surface area, your air fryer asparagus will cook faster.

Serving Your Air Fryer Asparagus and Potatoes

Lemon juice and grated parmesan or Pecorino Romano are no brainers and basically must-have fixin’s. If you have a high quality olive oil, you may want to drizzle a little extra over the finished asparagus and potatoes as well.

As far as main dishes to serve your roasted asparagus and potatoes with, here’s a handful of ideas:

• oven baked chicken breast
• garlic butter steak bites
• BBQ smoked chicken thighs
• healthy baked salmon
• pan fried chicken tenderloins
• creamy mushroom chicken

I’d love to see the meal you put together with your air fryer asparagus. Let me know about it in a comment or recipe review. I hope you enjoy!