Over the last couple years, my family has come to rely on our air fryer for breakfast on hectic school mornings and Saturdays. These canned cinnamon rolls in the air fryer are worth a try! Read on to see how to air fry cinnamon rolls to perfection!
Cooking Canned Cinnamon Rolls in the Air Fryer
You can buy canned cinnamon rolls at most any grocery store in the dairy section near the biscuits and refrigerated pie shells. We typically buy the canned Pillsbury cinnamon rolls at Kroger, Edwards, or Walmart.
You can see the newer cans of Pillsbury cinnamon rolls have air fryer instructions on the back of the can. I can’t even tell you at the moment what the instructions on the can say. This post is simply about what WE do with our cinnamon rolls in the air fryer.
How Long to Cook Cinnamon Rolls in the Air Fryer
With our Phillips 2 quart air fryer, we cook Pillsbury cinnamon rolls in the air fryer at 12 minutes at 325 degrees. Of course, all air fryers are different. It might be best to keep an eye on the the rolls a few minutes before the timer goes off – especially the first time you are making this recipe.
We first put down parchment paper which helps with the mess and prevents sticking to the air fryer pan or basket. It can be a bit tricky to cut the parchment paper just right. We just get it good enough and shove it in.
The cinnamon rolls go in with the brown cinnamon-y topping bottom down. You should not overcrowd your air fryer basket or pan. Note that I am only cooking four at once (which is really what my air fryer fits anyway) because I split the can in half. For the purpose of this post, we cooked four in the air fryer and four in the oven so we can compare the results at the end of this post.
After the first six minutes, we flip the cinnamon rolls and cook for another six minutes.
Next, we bring them out and add the icing while they are still warm.
How Do Air Fried Cinnamon Rolls Compare to Oven Cinnamon Rolls?
Typically, for cooking Pillsbury cinnamon rolls in the oven, we follow the “faster baking” method that is no longer listed on the can. (These instructions have been removed from the can packaging to make room for the air fryer instructions…or at least that is my guess.) We usually put the cinnamon rolls on a sheet pan sprayed with Pam, about two inches apart. We cook for 8-10 minutes at 375 degrees.
The newer oven instructions currently on the can lead to a longer bake time.
Here is one of our Pillsbury cinnamon rolls straight from the oven after we added the icing.
Again, here is the air fryer cinnamon roll straight from the air fryer after we added icing.
And here is a side-by-side of them both together (air fryer version on the left and oven version on the right) on a paper plate before icing was added.
The air fryer ones clearly are darker and seem a tad smaller as if they didn’t puff out as much. Despite the color, they are not tough or overdone by any means. The cinnamon rolls might be a tiny bit softer, but it’s nothing I would have noticed had I not been taste-testing them both. Once they have the icing on, they look very similar.
The Pillsbury air fryer cinnamon rolls are every bit as delicious as the cinnamon rolls from the oven!
Why Would You Use an Air Fryer for Cinnamon Rolls?
The main draw to using an air fryer for cinnamon rolls is if you are doing small-batch baking and don’t need to bake the whole can at once. Or maybe because you don’t wish to heat your house with a hot oven. Here is the south, many people try not to use their ovens much in the summer months to try to keep the house as cool as possible.
There is really not much more effort involved in one method to the other, in my opinion. I certainly wouldn’t turn either one down!
Don’t forget you can add any ingredient from any of our recipes straight to your Insta Cart shopping card right through the recipe cards here at Planted in Arkansas! It’s so easy and convenient!
Air Fryer Cinnamon Rolls
Equipment
- 1 air fryer
Ingredients
- 4 Cinnamon Rolls Pillsbury
Instructions
- Lay a piece of parchment paper down in the basket of the air fryer.
- Place four cinnamon rolls top down in the air fryer basket, careful not to overcrowd or overlap.
- Cook at 325° for 6 minutes. Flip and cook again for 6 minutes again.
Nutrition
More Breakfast Ideas from Planted in Arkansas
If you like our canned cinnamon rolls in the air fryer, you will enjoy some of our other breakfast items.
English Muffin Breakfast Sandwich
Crispy Bacon on George Foreman Grill
Migas con Huevos Southwest Egg Scramble
You Will Love These Other Air Fryer Recipes
And if you are really into using your air fryer, you will enjoy our other air fryer recipes!
Blueberry Mini Pies in the Air Fryer
Air Fryer Turkey and Cheese Sandwich
Frozen Waffles in the Air Fryer
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