This toasted bagel sandwich is a fun, flexible lunch made easily in your air fryer! Go through your fridge and use up all your bits and pieces to make a satisfying and flavorful meal, quickly and with minimal clean up – this is especially perfect for work from home lunch breaks.
Toasted bagel sandwiches are so much better than regular sandwiches! The sturdiness of the bagel allows you to pack a lot of fillings in, so you can really go to town with whatever flavors you are craving today. The joy of air frying them is that, however tall and full, you never have to squish it together and try to cook the inside without over-doing the outside. It’s a much more even way of toasting the bagel, and completely hands off too.
My bagel sandwich today is piled high with gouda and mozzarella, tomatoes and sundried tomatoes, onions, lettuce and pesto mayo. Lots of stuff that needed to be used up getting used up in the most delicious way. But you can do whatever you like here. This is very flexible, so just follow the cook temp / times and make it work for your own sandwich.
Top Tips for Air Fryer Bagel Sandwich Making
- We pre-cook the bagel for a few minutes so that it’s already a little bit toasted before we assemble the sandwich. This stops the bagel from staying too soft in the middle. If you want to skip this step, you can, it will just be more doughy.
- I like to add the lettuce and the pesto mayo after it’s toasted. They warm up and the lettuce wilts a little, but it’s not too much.
- I can make two sandwiches at a time in my Instant Vortex, but you may be able to make more or less depending on the size of your air fryer.
- Some air fryers have much stronger fans than others, and the top of your bagel may end up blowing away. This has never happened to me while testing (in an Instant Vortex and a Philips Viva) but if you are concerned, you can use a toothpick to hold your sandwich together.
More Easy Air Fryer Lunches
Air Fryer Bagel Sandwich
Ingredients
- 1 bagel
- 2 slices cheese
- other fillings: tomatoes, cheeses, vegetables, etc
- 1 tbsp pesto mayo, dressing, or other sauce
- 1 leaf lettuce
Instructions
- Preheat the air fryer to 180C / 360F.
- Slice your bagel in half (if it didn't come pre-sliced) and place it in the air fryer, cut side up. Toast for 3 minutes until it is lightly browned around the edges.
- Remove the bagel from the air fryer and assemble your sandwich. Add a slice of cheese to each side, then fill with whatever other fillings you want. Today I went for fresh mozzarella, tomatoes, onion and sundried tomatoes.
- Place the bagel sandwich in the air fryer for an additional 3-4 minutes until the cheese is melting and the bagel is well toasted.
- Pull off the top and quickly add some lettuce and sauce over the top, before placing the top back on.
- Serve immediately.
