$0.70 cheapest snack

Yes all under $1

15–25 min time

Yes all gluten-free

 

Air fryer snacks have a reputation for being either expensive (specialty coatings, premium ingredients) or disappointing (soggy in the middle, burned on the outside). These three break both assumptions. They’re built from the most affordable ingredients in any grocery store, they cost under $1 per serving, and the air fryer produces the crispiness that an oven simply can’t match at this size and this speed.

Roasted Sriracha Green Peas

4.8g protein

4g fiber

$0.70 cost/serving

25 min time

 

Ingredients

• 1 can (15 oz) green peas, drained and rinsed (or 1 1/2 cups frozen peas, thawed)
• 1 teaspoon sriracha sauce
• 1 teaspoon olive oil
• 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
• 1/4 teaspoon salt

 

Instructions

1. Pat the peas completely dry with paper towels — moisture is the enemy of crispiness.
2. Toss the peas with sriracha, olive oil, garlic powder, and salt.
3. Preheat the air fryer to 375°F (190°C).
4. Spread the peas in a single layer in the basket. Do not overcrowd.
5. Air fry for 12–15 minutes, shaking the basket every 5 minutes, until the peas are crispy and beginning to shrink slightly.
6. Remove from the basket and allow to cool for 2–3 minutes — they continue to crisp as they cool.

Tested note: Drying the peas completely before seasoning is the single most important step in this recipe. Any remaining moisture creates steam in the air fryer, which prevents the exterior from crisping. Press them firmly between two paper towels and give them a full minute of patting rather than a quick dab.

 

Roasted Fava Beans

11g protein

7g fiber

$0.80 cost/serving

25 min time

 

Ingredients

• 1 can (15 oz) fava beans, drained, rinsed, and peeled (slip off the outer skin if present)
• 1 teaspoon olive oil
• 1/2 teaspoon cumin
• 1/2 teaspoon smoked paprika
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• Optional: pinch of cayenne for heat

 

Instructions

1. Drain, rinse, and dry the fava beans thoroughly. If the outer skin is loose, slip it off — the inner bean crisps better without it.
2. Toss with olive oil, cumin, paprika, and salt.
3. Preheat the air fryer to 380°F (193°C).
4. Arrange in a single layer in the air fryer basket.
5. Air fry for 15–18 minutes, shaking halfway through, until golden and crunchy.
6. Cool for 3–4 minutes before serving — they crisp significantly as they cool.

Tested note: Fava beans at 11g of protein per serving are genuinely high for a snack — they outperform most protein bars on a cost-per-gram-of-protein basis at $0.80 per serving. The key to avoiding a rubbery texture is making sure they’re completely dry before they go in the basket and not crowding them so the air can circulate around each bean.

 

Crunchy Zucchini Sticks

4.5g protein

2g fiber

$0.75 cost/serving

25 min time

 

Ingredients

• 2 medium zucchini
• 2 tablespoons nutritional yeast
• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 1 teaspoon garlic powder
• 1/2 teaspoon onion powder
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 teaspoon black pepper

 

Instructions

1. Cut the zucchini into sticks roughly 3 inches long and 1/2 inch wide — consistency in size is important for even cooking.
2. Toss the zucchini sticks with olive oil, nutritional yeast, garlic powder, onion powder, salt, and pepper.
3. Preheat the air fryer to 390°F (199°C).
4. Arrange the sticks in a single layer in the basket — work in batches if needed.
5. Air fry for 12–14 minutes, flipping halfway through, until golden and crispy on the outside.
6. Serve immediately with your preferred dipping sauce.

Tested note: Nutritional yeast gives these zucchini sticks a savory, slightly cheesy flavor without any dairy — it’s the coating doing the work here, not breadcrumbs, which keeps them naturally gluten-free. If the sticks look pale after 10 minutes, give them another 3–4 minutes at a slightly higher temperature rather than trying to compensate by cooking them longer at the current setting.

 

Air Fryer Tips That Apply to All Three Recipes

• Never skip the preheating step — a properly preheated basket starts crisping immediately instead of warming up with the food inside.
• All three snacks are best eaten within 20 minutes of cooking. They lose their crispiness quickly at room temperature and don’t reheat as well as they cook.
• For larger quantities, cook in batches rather than filling the basket more than 2/3 full. A properly spaced batch takes 25 minutes. An overcrowded batch takes 40 minutes and still comes out soft.

 

Cookbook bridge These air fryer snack recipes are a preview of our upcoming Whole-Food-Inspired Plant-Based Air Fryer Cookbook. Get notified when it launches. [Join the waitlist]