Mini sweet peppers, salt, and an air fryer. That is the entire recipe, and it takes fifteen minutes.

Sixty calories for the whole batch, which is what makes it useful as a snack rather than a side.

Shake them halfway

Ten to twelve minutes at 400F, shaking the basket partway through.

An air fryer is a small convection oven, and the air circulates from a fan above. Whatever faces up gets the most direct airflow, and whole peppers sitting still cook unevenly.

Shaking rolls them so a different surface faces the fan. It also stops them sticking to the basket where they touch it.

One shake is enough for a batch this size.

Tender inside, crisp outside

Which is the stated target and it is a useful one.

Mini sweet peppers have thin walls and a hollow interior, so they behave differently to a thick bell pepper. The wall softens quickly while the skin blisters and takes colour.

Undercooked they are still raw and squeaky. Overcooked they collapse and go limp. Ten to twelve minutes hits the middle, and it is worth checking at ten on your first attempt since air fryers vary.

Spray the basket, or line it

Non-aerosol nonstick spray, or a parchment or silicone liner.

Peppers release a little sugar as they cook and it sticks. A liner is the easier option and it makes cleanup trivial.

The recipe specifies non-aerosol spray, which is worth following. Aerosol cooking sprays contain propellants that can damage the non-stick coating on air fryer baskets over time.

Spray the peppers too

After they are in the basket, before the salt.

There is no oil in this recipe beyond that spray, which is why the calorie count is so low. What little there is helps the skin blister and gives the salt something to adhere to.

An eighth of a teaspoon of salt across eight ounces of peppers is restrained. Add more at the table if you want.

They are a vehicle

The peppers on their own are pleasant and mild. What makes this recipe worth having is what you put on them.

The three suggested directions each work. Refried beans with cheese and salsa turns them into something like a nacho. Tzatziki with olives and feta goes Greek. Whipped ricotta with marinara and basil goes Italian.

Hummus is the simplest option and it needs no assembly at all.

Eight ounces is one serving

About twelve mini peppers, and that is a genuinely generous single portion.

At sixty calories for all of it, with five grams of fibre, this sits in an unusual place: substantial enough to fill a gap and light enough not to matter.

Scaling up is simply a matter of batches. Do not crowd the basket, since air fryers rely on airflow and a packed basket steams rather than crisping.

Why an air fryer suits this

Peppers roast well in a conventional oven and it takes twenty five minutes at 425F to get anywhere near the same result.

The difference is the moving air. Circulating hot air strips moisture from the skin far faster than static oven heat, which is what produces blistering in ten minutes rather than half an hour.

A grill pan or a very hot skillet also works and gives you char marks rather than even blistering. Both are good; the air fryer is simply faster and needs no attention.

Seeds and stems

The recipe does not call for removing either, and mini sweet peppers are usually cooked whole.

Their seeds are few and soft, unlike a bell pepper's, and most people eat them without noticing. The stem is usually left on as a handle. <p>If you are stuffing them with a topping, halve them lengthwise before cooking and the seeds come out easily with a thumb. ## Serving them warm or cold Warm from the fryer is best, when the skins are still crisp. They soften within about twenty minutes and go noticeably limp once refrigerated.

This is not a make-ahead recipe. Cook them when you want them.

Other seasonings

Smoked paprika, garlic powder, or a pinch of chilli flakes all work sprinkled on with the salt. Anything wet, like a marinade, will stop the skins crisping.