It’s not hard to find corn dogs at the state fair or on the boardwalk. But making corn dogs at home is easy too, thanks to air fryers and frozen corn dogs. Your dogs will come out of the air fryer tasting exactly like they do at the fair. Read on to learn how to make air fryer corn dogs in less than 10 minutes!
Find the best air fryer for your cooking style.
What Is a Corn Dog?
It’s a hot dog on a stick that’s dipped in a thick layer of cornmeal batter and deep-fried. To make the frozen corn dogs you buy at the grocery store, the hot dogs are hung upside down, dunked in batter, plunged into hot oil and fried until a beautiful golden brown. The now-cooked corn dogs are removed from the frying machine, flash-frozen in a blast chiller and packaged for sale.
You can make homemade corn dogs—but you’ll have to deep-fry them.
Who Invented the Corn Dog?
You can’t blame anyone for wanting to be the one true inventor of corn dogs, because who wouldn’t want to be an American hot dog hero? Several people have claimed to be the genius behind the deliciousness, but no one person can take full credit. In 1942, brothers Carl and Neil Fletcher introduced “corny dogs” at the Texas State Fair. The crowds went wild! Though the Fletcher brothers believed their idea was original, they weren’t the first people to ever cook a corn dog.
George and Versa Boyington, a husband-and-wife duo, claimed to have invented the corn dog in the 1930s at a hot dog stand in Rockaway Beach, Oregon. One day, a rainstorm destroyed all of the hot dog stand’s buns, and George had the idea of making “buns” to order by dipping the franks in a pancake batter-based mix. He named his invention the “Pronto Pup.”
How to Make Air Fryer Corn Dogs
You’ll need:
-
1 package frozen corn dogs
Directions
For oven-style air fryers:
Preheat your air fryer to 400° F for two minutes.
Gently spray the air fryer racks with cooking spray. Place the frozen corn dogs in a single layer, leaving at least ½-inch of space between them; since air fryers cook by rushing hot air down onto the food, leaving space allows the hot air to circulate. This means you won’t have to flip the corn dogs over while they’re air frying.
Air fry the corn dogs for eight minutes. Allow them to cool for about two minutes before serving.
For basket-model air fryers:
Preheat your air fryer to 400°F for two minutes. Then load the basket with frozen corn dogs in a single layer and cook for eight minutes.
Serve your air-fried corn dogs with small bowls of ketchup, mustard, barbecue sauce or other condiments for dipping. Preheat your air fryer to 400° F for two minutes.
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Matt Robicelli