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We absolutely love pizza in our home. Between air fryer pizza, air fryer tortilla pizza and making our own pizza dough in the bread maker we’re becoming experts in all manner of quick and tasty pizza recipes.
I love to make homemade roasted tomato pizza sauce, using air fryer roasted tomatoes, as this is a great way to make a tasty, healthy pizza sauce with minimal fuss and effort.
Making pizza bagels is a great fun activity with little ones too. You can prepare their ingredients in advance, place them in little bowls, and let everyone have fun decorating their own bagel.
These are great to go in lunch boxes too, and I often make a batch up, cooking 2-3 in the air fryer at a time. Also, if you’ve got some spare bagels be sure to try my air fryer bagel chips.

Ingredients for making pizza bagels in the air fryer:
1 bagel (cut into two halves horizontally)
30ml pizza sauce (you can use the recipe I linked above, a thickened version of this pasta sauce or any shop bought pizza sauce of your choosing)
Pepperoni or other toppings
30g grated mozzarella or cheddar cheese
Herbs (basil and oregano are my favourite!)
How to air fry pizza bagels:
Place your bagel half on a chopping board or plate.
Spread pizza sauce over the bagel half.
Add the meat or other pizza toppings.
Add the cheese last. As the air fryer has a LOT of airflow if you place the pepperoni on first, as I did with one of the bagels, this may blow off the pizza and you’ll lose out on all that delicious flavour! It may also burn on the element depending on how high it flies!
I like to use a little spray oil on the air fryer basket to prevent sticking. You COULD use baking paper if you want to, but this does block the holes of the air fryer basket and thus blocks the best airflow. Be sure to read my air fryer tips for more advice on how to use your air fryer most successfully.
There is no need to pre-heat the air fryer for this recipe.
Place the bagels in a single layer in the air fryer basket.
Cook at 200C (400F) for 4-5 minutes.
Top with a sprinkling of fresh herbs (or dried work well too).
Slice the bagel, if you like, and then serve. This goes great with a side of air fryer garlic bread, or some air fryer frozen halloumi fries. My girls also love an air fryer frozen chicken nugget or two!
What are some tasty sauces to serve with pizza bagels in the air fryer?
- Tomato ketchup
- Brown sugar BBQ sauce
- Sweet chilli sauce
- Mayonnaise
- Garlic and herb dip
- Tomato and chilli salsa
Why types of bagels can you use for these pizza bagels?
Any type of bagel works well. We love the Warburtons thin bagels, or even the protein bagel thins. Fitzgeralds have lovely seeded bagels which are great if you want something a little bit healthier.
Just about any bagels work for this recipe. Thin ones are delicious, crispy and crunchy and the thicker ones have a bit more softness to them.
What toppings work well for homemade pizza bagels?
Just about any toppings you love and enjoy are great for pizza bagels. Personally we love a vegetable mix of mushrooms, peppers and onions. While shredded mozzarella and mini pepperoni are a classic too.
If you’re looking for something a little different then be sure to try some of my great topping ideas:
- Air fryer chicken tikka, BBQ chicken or peri peri chicken
- Salami, prosciutto, ham or other cured meats
- Steak
- Air fryer cajun chicken made with homemade cajun seasoning
- Air fryer bacon or air fryer sausages
Want to try some of my other air fryer recipes while you’re here? Here are my latest ones:
- Air fryer parmentier potatoes
- Air fryer frozen roast potatoes
- Air fryer chicken tenders
- Chicken mini fillets in the air fryer
- Air fryer chocolate protein oats
- Air fryer smores
- Air fryer burgers
- Air fryer cheese crumpets
- Air fryer jerk chicken
- Air fryer Nando’s chicken
Can you freeze these?
Yes, you can make up the bagels and then freeze them. The frozen pizza bagels can be cooked, using the same method, but just add 2-3 minutes to the cooking time.
The cheese goes all gooey still, with a crispy topping, & they stay lovely and fluffy on the inside too.
What cheeses work well on pizza bagels?
Personally I find that mozzarella cheese and cheddar cheese works well, often I will use a mix of the two.
On occasion I’ve used Vegan grated cheese and while this doesn’t melt quite as well it still works good!
What herbs work well on pizza?
This is personal preference of course. I LOVE basil and oregano. Fresh herbs are my preferred choice but I’ve also used dried herbs and even frozen herbs too.
Personally I use quite a few different dried herbs, because I cook from scratch most days, and I just can’t keep up with growing enough fresh herbs at the moment!
Additional tips:
Always make sure to put the cheese last to weigh down the toppings.
I’ve got a ton of great recipe posts too such as air fryer side dishes and air fryer desserts. Packed FULL of great ideas from myself and other food bloggers too.
If you’re looking for something a little spicier then why not try making up my Mexican spice blend which is packed full of flavour to jazz up any leftover peppers and onions you may have lying around.
Here are some of my favourite air fryer cookbooks and accessories:
Something to note about air fryer recipes is that all air fryers have different sizes, depths and as such the cooking times can vary. All air fryer recipes on this website are intended as a guide, and not a guarantee that the timings will be perfect. Enjoy!
How to make pizza bagels in the air fryer:

Air fryer pizza bagels
Delicious pizza bagels cooked in the air fryer that are crispy, cheesy and delicious.
Ingredients
- 1 bagel cut horizontally
- 30 ml pizza sauce
- Pepperoni or other toppings
- 30 g grated mozzarella or cheddar cheese
- Herbs
Instructions
-
Place your bagel half on a chopping board or plate.
-
Spread pizza sauce over the bagel half.
-
Add the meat or other pizza toppings.
-
Add the cheese last. As the air fryer has a LOT of airflow if you place the pepperoni on first, as I did with one of the bagels, this may blow off the pizza and you’ll lose out on all that delicious flavour! It may also burn on the element depending on how high it flies!
-
I like to use a little spray oil on the air fryer basket to prevent sticking.
-
Place the bagels in a single layer in the air fryer basket.
-
Cook at 200C (400F) for 4-5 minutes.
-
Top with a sprinkling of fresh herbs (or dried work well too).
-
Slice the bagel, if you like, and then serve.
Note: All calorie information is for demonstration purposes only and is based on the specific uncooked ingredients that I used when creating the recipe.
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