Salmon fillet in an air fryer

An air fryer is a small convection oven, so salmon fillet cooks at 180 °C rather than 200 °C and takes 7–11 min instead of 12–18. That is roughly the usual 20 °C drop and a fifth off the time.

Side by side

The temperature that actually decides it

Times above are for planning. Whether salmon fillet is done is decided by the internal temperature and nothing else — appliance wattage varies by roughly a factor of two across the category, and thickness changes the time more than any setting does. A probe thermometer in the thickest part is the only reliable answer.

What goes wrong

• Skin-side down throughout. There is no need to turn it, and turning tends to break the fillet.
• Salmon goes from done to dry in about 90 seconds. Check early.
• A fillet is done when it flakes and the flesh has just turned opaque through the middle.

Air fryer wattage and basket size vary widely, so treat the first batch as a calibration run and write down what worked. These figures are compiled guidance, not a published standard.