Air Fryer Tortellini Gratin with Tomatoes

When it comes to dinner, we like it quick and simple. While a multi-course meal may be nice, it’s really better suited for the weekend or when guests are coming over. On weekdays, the motto is »fast & furious«. After a long day at work, nobody wants to spend hours cleaning in the kitchen, right? That’s precisely when this Air Fryer Tortellini Gratin with Tomatoes is perfect: minimal effort, great flavors, and ready in a flash.

Air Fryers have truly evolved into all-rounders in recent years. What started out as a gadget for making less fatty French fries, chicken wings, and the like has transformed into a multifunctional little wonder machine. These days, just about anything gets tossed into an Air Fryer. That includes this delicious tortellini gratin.

Of course, you don’t “need” to buy an air fryer just to make a gratin. A standard oven does the job just as well. However, if you already have one of these machines sitting on your counter in the kitchen, it makes a great alternative to the good old oven. These compact appliances generally consume far less electricity, heat up faster, and offer quicker cooking times. The heat simply circulates better inside the small cooking chambers, speeding things up a bit…

Making a tortellini gratin in an air fryer is incredibly easy. First, you toss in the ingredients that require a bit of roasting flavors – in our case that was the onions. It never hurts to let them pick up some color. Then come the stars of the dish: the ricotta-filled tortellini, along with some liquid and spices, giving the little pasta packages a base to “swim” in while they cook. Finally, you just add some cheese on top and let the Air Fryer do the work. Tutto bene – as an Italian might say.

Without an Air Fryer, we would first sauté the onions in a frying pan, then add the tomatoes, spices, and liquid, followed by the tortellini. We’d let it all simmer briefly, then transfer the mixture to a baking dish, top it with cheese, and pop it in the oven. It’s not particularly complicated, but there is a bit more washing up to do afterwards.

Preparing casseroles in an Air Fryer is certainly faster and easier, but admittedly, the result doesn’t look quite as impressive on the dining table as a gratin in a nice casserole dish. The cooking basket, or rather, the Air Fryer drawer just doesn’t look that stylish on the table. You really have to portion everything out onto plates or into bowls before serving when using an Air Fryer..

There are worse problems to have, right?! After all, most people plate the food before hand anyway. So, if you prefer placing the casserole dish on the table so everyone can help themselves, you’re probably better off sticking to the classic preparation method.

As mentioned, you can now prepare much more than just fries and the like in an Air Fryer. Chefs and food bloggers around the world have done an impressive job exploring just about everything these little machines can do.

Air Fryer Cheese Spaetzle aka. German Cheese Noodles definitely count as one of the more experimental dishes. It’s a slightly simplified version of the classic dish, yet it holds its own against the original in terms of flavor. We love this simple meal for a busy weeknight.

If you have a sweet tooth, you might want to try our Air Fryer Cheesecake. This version is every bit as good as a cheesecake baked in a conventional oven. The only downside is that, since our Air Fryer isn’t all that big, the cake turns out a bit smaller than what you could make in an oven.

INGREDIENTS / INGREDIENTS

DIRECTIONS / PREPARATION

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