I Tried Air-Fryer Twinkies, and It’s By Far the Best Way to Eat This Snack

Like the crispy edges are better than the fudgy center brownies, air-fryer Twinkies are better than Twinkies straight from the cellophane wrapper. You read that right: TikTokers like to toss the snack cakes into an air fryer to crisp them up.

This technique isn’t unique to Twinkies. Home bakers have been experimenting with air-fryer Oreos and air-fryer s’mores since air fryers began to boom in 2017. Here’s how to make the method work for Hostess snack cakes!

Can you put Twinkies in an air fryer?

Of course you can put Twinkies in an air fryer! If you’re unfamiliar with air fryers, the top section of the appliance holds a heating mechanism and a fan. You put the food you want to fry in the basket, and hot air rushes around the food to crisp it up.

I don’t have a dedicated air fryer, but I do have an Instant Pot air fryer lid, which does the same thing. I have to insert the basket that came with the lid, clamp the air fryer lid onto my beloved Instant Pot and I’m ready to crisp.s

How to Make Air-Fryer Twinkies

Gael Fashingbauer Cooper For Taste Of Home

I like to cook on parchment when using the air-fryer basket. I like the precut circles because they don’t curl up and touch the food as much as the rolled parchment. This probably goes without saying, but never use waxed paper in an air fryer. It will melt!

I simply set a Twinkie on the paper and turned on the Instant Pot air fryer for three minutes at 400°F. When the timer went off, I had a crispy Twinkie—like a lighter version of the deep-fried Minnesota State Fair treat.

You can also make Twinkies from scratch and then air-fry them, but I bought mine for this taste test.

What do air-fryer Twinkies taste like?

I gobbled up the air-fryer Twinkies like potato chips. How did I not realize you could do this before now?! The outside of the cake firms up so much you can rap it with a knife, as all the TikTok creators are doing. It browns up nicely, creating a satisfying crunch when you bite into it. If you’re a fan of crispy cookies, brownies and treats, these are for you.

The inner filling, once thick like frosting, transforms into the consistency of melted marshmallow. Inspired by some of the TikTok videos, I drizzled one air-fried Twinkie with chocolate syrup and dotted it with a cherry. Not sure it needed the extra sweetness, but it looked much fancier this way, and who doesn’t love chocolate syrup and cherries?

My store offered regular Twinkies, plus chocolate cake Twinkies (with a chocolate filling) and pumpkin spice Twinkies (with a pumpkin filling). I tried them all in the Instant Pot air fryer, and the chocolate ones turned out the most delectable by far. It reminded me of a chocolate lava cake! Unfortunately, the pumpkin spice Twinkies tasted too sweet for my liking. Hostess needs to take these back to the pumpkin patch and leave them there.

Overall, I would opt for the chocolate cake or original Twinkies when you’re looking for air-fryer desserts to make in a hurry!