Air Fryer Cornbread Muffins are tender, flavorful, and super quick and easy to make. There’s nothing that competes with homemade cornbread made—especially when it’s made from scratch and hot out of the (air fryer) oven.

Low angle shot of a bunch of cornbread muffins

Tender, slightly sweet cornbread muffins in the air fryer make a great side dish

So Easy You Can Make them on a Weeknight!

Making cornbread muffins from scratch might seem arduous, but with the air fryer, cornbread muffins are just minutes away.

Serve these Air Fryer Cornbread muffins as a quick side instead of pasta, potatoes, or rice

. My family loves to have Air Fryer Cornbread Muffins with Instant Pot Turkey Chili or Hoisin Ribs.

The ingredients for air fryer cornbread are shown on a wooden table.

What ingredients do you need to make Air Fryer Cornbread Muffins?

This easy homemade air fryer cornbread recipe only requires 9 ingredients, most of which you probably have in your kitchen right now. Here’s what you need (note that the complete recipe, including ingredient measurements and step-by-step prep and cooking instructions, can be found in the recipe card a the end of this post):

Milk
Cornmeal
All-purpose flour
Melted butter (the recipe calls for salted butter, but you can sub unsalted and add an extra 1/4 teaspoon of salt)
Granulated sugar
Baking powder
Baking soda
Salt
Eggs

A white bowl of ingredients for air fryer cornbread on a wooden table. — melt the butter

A white bowl filled with flour and other ingredients for air fryer cornbread. — melt the butter

How do you make them?

You’re going to love making these easy cornbread muffins! It’s such a quick and easy recipe, you’ll never make them any other way again. Here’s how (note that the complete recipe, including ingredient measurements and step-by-step prep and cooking instructions, can be found in the recipe card a the end of this post):

Mix the ingredients together in a large bowl—milk, cornmeal, flour, melted butter, sugar, baking powder, baking soda, salt, and eggs.
Scoop the cornbread batter into silicone muffin cups, filling each well about 3/4 full. Depending on the size of your air fryer, you may have to cook these in a couple of batches. You can probably fit 6 muffins in a 6-quart basket-style air fryer.
Place the muffin molds in the air fryer basket or on the rack of your oven-style air fryer and cook at 330°F for 10 minutes, or until the cornbread muffins are golden brown on top.
Serve and enjoy!

low angle shot of a bowl of cornbread muffins.

Tips for Success

Follow these tips to make your first attempt at cooking cornbread in the air fryer an unbridled success!

Be careful not to overmix the corn muffin batter, which will make your muffins dry and dense. Just mix it enough so that everything is incorporated and there are no pockets of dry ingredients.
Use a standard size, spring-loaded ice cream scoop to scoop the batter into the muffin molds. This makes it easy to scoop the right amount each time.
Use silicone muffin cups instead of a standard muffin baking pan, which won’t fit in an air fryer basket or even in many oven style air fryers.
I use these silicone muffins molds. They are safe to put in the air fryer, easy to release the muffins from, and easy to clean.
Grease the muffin molds well before filling them for the easiest release. You can use nonstick cooking spray, vegetable oil, coconut oil, or room temperature butter.
Be sure to only fill your muffin molds about 3/4 of the way full since they will rise as they cook.
Because different air fryers cook at different rates, be sure to check your muffins on the early side of the cooking range. Use a toothpick inserted into the center to see if the muffins are done.
If you don’t want to do the measuring and/or gather all of these ingredients, there is no shame in using a cornbread mix! Air fryer Jiffy cornbread is good, too. Follow the cooking instructions here.

How to store your air fryer corn muffins

Once you’ve baked your corn muffins in the air fryer, you can store them at room temperature an airtight container for up to 3 days. You can also freeze the leftover cornbread in a resealable plastic bag for up to 3 months. Thaw at room temperature and warm them up before serving them, if desired.

low angle shot of a corn muffin being held in someone's hand. The muffin has a bite taken out of it.

Why you’re going to love this air fryer cornbread recipe

Making cornbread muffins in the air fryer is quick and easy. The best part is that you don’t need to preheat your oven and you won’t heat up your kitchen, either.

Another benefit to air frying your corn muffins is that the muffins come out absolutely perfect. The inside is tender and moist, while the outside is golden brown with a delectably crisp outer edge.

How do you serve this air fryer cornbread recipe?

Air fryer cornbread makes a great side for Instant Pot Ribs, any kind of BBQ, or Chili with Hominy or Chicken and Corn Chowder.

I also love cornbread with scrambled eggs, poached eggs, or fried eggs. I’ve been known to slice the corn muffins in half and use them in place of English muffins for a unique eggs benedict.

You can also reheat the cornbread and serve it slathered with honey butter (try this Jalapeno Honey Butter!).

More delicious air fryer recipes you’ll love

If you love using your air fryer as much as I love using mine, you’ll want to try Air Fryer Korean Fried Chicken, Air Fryer Sesame Chicken, Air Fryer Salt and Pepper Chicken, Air Fryer Salt and Pepper Tofu, Air Fryer Brussels Sprouts, and Air Fryer Taquitos.

Use your air fryer to make other delicious baked goods like these air fryer cheese crumpets or air fryer churros.