Air Fryer Bacon Wrapped Asparagus

Enjoy perfectly crispy bacon, wrapped around tender and delicious asparagus spears with this simple air fryer side dish recipe.

If you’re a bacon lover and are down for this classic side dish of bacon wrapped asparagus, then you’re in the right place.

Lately, air fryer recipes for easy side dishes have been one of my go to cooking methods.

It’s an easy way to finish cooking a main protein on your grill or oven, all while quickly getting a side dish made to perfection in half the time (or less) in your air fryer.

You definitely can’t go wrong with a naturally low carb side that includes bacon (am I right).

Grab all the cooking tips and techniques I use for making this air fryer asparagus recipe by reading through the article below. Let’s dive in!

“School” Supplies:

• Knife and Cutting Board
• Tongs
• Sheet Pan or Plate
• Air Fryer ( I love this Ninja Foodi air fryer)
• Paper Towels

“Class” Notes:

Below are my helpful culinary notes and tips I’ve outlined to help guide you through the recipe.

Reference this as needed to help answer commonly asked questions or jump to the recipe card at the bottom of the page and get to cooking!

Ingredients:

• Asparagus Stalks: In typical circumstances, I would normally suggest thinner stalks for more tender asparagus. But, because you want the asparagus and the bacon to cook at a similar rate, you want the asparagus stem to actually be thicker (if you can find it).
• Bacon: While you want thicker stalks of asparagus, you want thinner bacon strips (save the thick cut bacon for your breakfast)
• Olive Oil: I like to use a small amount of olive oil over the asparagus before I season everything and to add flavor to the vegetable.
• Seasonings: I like to use black pepper, garlic powder, a little sea salt, smoke smoky paprika or cayenne pepper to the asparagus and the bacon slices for a little extra flavor.

Cooking Instructions:

Making this tasty side dish is truly uncomplicated. However, there are some helpful tips for making this recipe in the air fryer.

Here is what you need to do:

1. Remove your bacon from the packaging and set it aside.
2. Prep your asparagus stalks by rinsing it off, patting it dry, and trimming the tough ends of the asparagus. You can do this by naturally snapping the ends off a few inches down at the bottom or use a knife to trim the ends.
3. Place the asparagus onto a sheet pan, drizzle with your olive oil and seasonings and toss it all together so everything is evenly coated.
4. Grab 3-4 pieces of asparagus and one piece of bacon. Wrap the thin slice of bacon around the asparagus bundle, leaving the bottom and top of the asparagus fully exposed.
5. Preheat your air fryer to 370 degrees F. Be cautious of bacon grease and cooking your asparagus at too high of a temperature.
6. Place the bundles in a single layer in your air fryer basket. Cook for 6-7 minutes, then flip and cook an additional 6-7 minutes as needed.
7. Once your bacon is cooked, crispy, and the fat has rendered, remove the bundle and place them onto paper towels to temporarily soak up some of the grease.
8. Serve them up as a delicious appetizers or side! I like to pair it with this easy homemade BBQ ranch dressing recipe too.

Can you wrap the asparagus in turkey bacon?

Yes, you can swap out traditional bacon for turkey bacon. Turkey bacon is much leaner and doesn’t have fat that will need to render.

While this is a healthier alternative, you will need to adjust the cooking time so that the turkey bacon doesn’t become overcooked.

Serving and Storing:

This air fryer bacon wrapped asparagus recipe goes so well with this double smoked ham, as a side for this oven baked BBQ chicken, or with this smoked turkey breast.

If you have leftovers, reheat them for the perfect snack and store leftovers in an airtight container for up to 7 days in the fridge.