How to make delicious air fryer prawn toast

Last Updated on 17 December 2023 by cooksimply

When my parents had a Chinese takeaway perhaps one of the most ordered and popular items was prawn toast. There’s something so incredibly moreish about these crispy and tiny morsels of deep-fried prawn goodness. And it’s one of those side dishes that can be eaten with almost any other dish. Or perfect on their own. And, while I, too, can happily scoff several pieces in one go, they’re not the healthiest. Nothing deep-fried is, right? 

So if you’re a fan of prawn toast but don’t love the greasy aftermath, an air fryer may be your new best friend. This recipe for air fryer prawn toast delivers all the crispy, flavourful goodness you crave, without tons of oil. Give it a try and enjoy this nearly guilt-free Chinese appetiser. And the great thing is they’re really super easy to make – and take less than 8 minutes to cook and 10 minutes to prepare. That’s it!

If you don’t have an air fryer you can make my traditional prawn toast recipe here

What’s needed for air fryer prawn toast?

Before you start making your prawn toast, make sure you have all the ingredients. You’ll need:

• sliced white bread

• raw prawns

• crushed garlic cloves

• grated ginger or ginger paste

• egg white

• light soy sauce

• sesame seeds

• vegetable oil or spray oil

 Once you have everything ready, you can start preparing your prawn toast.

Prepare the prawn mixture

To make the prawn mixture for your prawn toast, start by finely chopping the prawns. I like to use my meat cleaver, but you can use a large knife. It will take a few minutes, but once the prawns are chopped and resemble a paste, you can add it to a bowl alongside the garlic, ginger, egg white, and soy sauce until well combined. This mixture will serve as the topping for your prawn toast. Set it aside while you prepare the bread.

You can also use a food processor to make the prawn mixture – throw in the prawns, garlic, ginger, egg white, and soy, then blitz for around 20-30 seconds. The reason I prefer to chop the prawns manually is that I enjoy it, and I find it more of a hassle washing up all food processor components.

Assemble the prawn toast

Take a slice of bread and spread a generous amount of the prawn mixture on top, making sure to cover the entire surface. Repeat with the remaining slices of bread and prawn mixture. Preheat your air fryer to 205°c. Before cooking your air fryer prawn toast, it’s important to preheat your air fryer to ensure even cooking and crispy results. Most air fryers have a preheat function, and it really helps to get a lovely crunchy prawn toast. 

How to make prawn toast air fryer

Once your air fryer is preheated, it’s time to cook your prawn toast. Place the prawn toast in the air fryer basket, making sure they are not touching each other. You may need to do them in two batches. Brush  or spray some vegetable oil over the top of the prawn toast – you don’t need lots. Cook at 190°c for 5-8 minutes, or until the bread is golden brown and the prawn mixture is cooked through. Check the prawn toast after 5 minutes of cooking, to make sure it doesn’t burn. You’ll be surprised how quickly they’ll cook. 

What to serve with it?

Well, this prawn toast is pretty good on its own! However, I do like to dip them in sweet chilli sauce. You could also serve it with extra soy or even chilli oil. 

Can you reheat this prawn toast?

If you batch cook this or have any leftovers, you can keep it in the fridge for up to two days before reheating it in the air fryer for around 3-4 minutes at 180°c. You can also freeze them in a suitable container – and reheat from frozen in the air fryer for around 8 minutes at 180°c. 

Want to try other Chinese recipes?

Air fryer crispy chicken wings

Air fryer char siu pork recipe

Poached Chinese chicken

Spring onion noodles

Chinese chicken curry

Easy air fryer prawn toast

4.93 from 14 votes

Crunchy, aromatic and delicious yet lighter and healthier than the traditional fried prawn toast, this air fryer version is quick and easy, and just as good

Servings 4

Prep Time 10 minutes mins

Cook Time 8 minutes mins

Total Time 18 minutes mins

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Ingredients

 

US CustomaryMetric

 

1x2x3x

• 4 slices of white bread
• 300 g prawns peeled and cleaned
• 1 tsp finely grated ginger
• 2 garlic cloves crushed
• 1 egg white
• 1 tsp light soy sauce
• 50 g sesame seeds
• 2 tbsps vegetable oil

Instructions

 

• There are two ways you make the prawn mixture. Using a board, I like to use my chopper [or you can use a large knife] to finely chop the prawns into a paste-like consistency - there's something quite therapeutic about doing it this way.
• Then add the prawns to a bowl and add the ginger, garlic, soy sauce, and egg white.
  
• Using your hands make sure the prawns are combined well with the other ingredients.
• If you'd prefer a quicker way to combine the prawn mixture - then you can chuck in all the above into a food processor and blitz for around 20 seconds until it's combined.
• Get your pieces of white bread, then using a spoon spread a good portion of the prawn mixture on top of the bread. Make sure to get all the mixture to the edge of the bread. Repeat with each piece of bread.
• Add the sesame seeds to a plate. Then pick up a slice of bread, and with the prawn mixture side facing down, place it onto the plate of sesame seeds so the sesame seeds will stick to the prawn mixture. Repeat with the three other slices of bread.
• Using a knife, carefully slice the pieces of bread into four triangles.
  
• Preheat the air fryer for 5 minutes at 205°c.
• Carefully place the triangles into the air fryer. Make sure they're well-spaced apart - so you may need to do the prawn toast in two batches.
• Brush or spray oil over the top of the prawn toast, then air fry at 190°c for 8 minutes. Check it for around 5 minutes to make sure the prawn toast isn't burning. Depending on your model of air fryer, it's worth keeping an eye on it. I like mine on the crispy side, so 8 minutes is about right for me.
• Serve straight away with a dipping sauce of your choice.
  

Nutrition

Calories: 360kcal

Author: cooksimply

Calories: 360kcal

Course: Appetizer, Side Dish, Snack

Cuisine: Asian, Chinese

Did you make this sesame prawn toast?

Please let me know how this recipe turned out for you. Leave a comment below and tag @cooksimplyathome on Instagram. For other simple and delicious meals take a look at my other recipes.