Air Fryer Potato Skins are loaded with gooey melted cheese and crispy bacon crumbles, and topped with tangy sour cream and fresh chives. This recipe is easy to make (and can be made ahead of time), and is the perfect crowd-pleasing appetizer for game day gatherings, potlucks, or any party!
Add the potatoes, 1 tablespoon olive oil, ½ teaspoon salt, and ¼ teaspoon black pepper to a large bowl and toss to coat. Arrange the potatoes in the air fryer basket. Air fry for 30 minutes, and then flip the potatoes over and cook until a paring knife slides out. This will take an additional 5 to 10 minutes, depending on the size of your potatoes.
Let the potatoes cool until they’re not too hot to handle, then cut each in half length-wise. Scoop out the potato flesh, leaving about ¼ to ½-inch of potato intact.
Preheat the air fryer to 400F.
Arrange the potato skins in the air fryer basket with the skin sides facing down. Brush the inside of each potato skin with the remaining 1 tablespoon olive oil, and sprinkle on the remaining ¼ teaspoon salt and ¼ teaspoon black pepper. Air fry for 5 minutes to crisp up the skins.
Sprinkle the cheese into the potato skins, and then the bacon. Air fry at 400F until the cheese is melted, about 3 to 5 minutes.
Transfer the potato skins to a serving platter and top each with 1 tablespoon of sour cream and ½ teaspoon minced fresh chives.
Serve warm.
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Notes
Recipe Yield Yield and Serving Size: This recipe makes 8 large loaded potato skins; each serving is 1 potato skin.
Storage: Store leftover cheesy potato skins covered in the fridge for up to 4 days. Don’t add the sour cream and chives on top until right before serving because these toppings don’t reheat well.
Reheating: To keep them crispy, you can reheat potato skins straight from the fridge in the oven or in the air fryer. For the oven method, place the potato skins on a baking tray and reheat in a 350F oven until they’re warm and the cheese is melted, about 10 to 15 minutes. To reheat potato skins in the air fryer, preheat the air fryer to 350F, put the potato skins in the basket of the air fryer, and air fry until they’re warm, about 5 minutes. Add the sour cream and chives on top after the potato skins are reheated.
Make Ahead: To make cheesy potato skins in advance, bake the potatoes and let them cool to room temperature. Once they’re cool, you can store them covered in the fridge for up to 3 days before making them into loaded potato skins.