Why Silicone Air Fryer Liners Make Food Soggy

I bought a silicone air fryer liner for the same reason most people do: I was tired of cleanup. On a normal weekday, I’m trying to get dinner done while somebody is asking for a snack, somebody else is “just quickly” finishing homework, and I’m staring at the air fryer basket like it’s my enemy. A silicone liner looked like a simple win. Put it in, cook, lift it out, rinse it, done.

And it is a win… sometimes.

But the first time I made fries with it, I knew something was off. The fries looked decent on top, but the bottoms were soft. Not “a little less crispy,” but that specific kind of softness that feels like the food has been sitting in its own steam. Nuggets did the same thing. Wings were better, but the skin wasn’t that crackly, bite-through crisp I usually get. I started questioning my air fryer, then my timing, then the brand of fries… and eventually realized it was the liner changing the whole cooking environment.

Silicone liners don’t ruin your air fryer. They just make it behave differently. Once you understand what’s happening, you can decide when silicone is worth it and how to keep food from turning soggy.

Why Liners Burn or Fly Around in the Air Fryer (Simple Fix + What Not to Do)

What’s actually happening (the real reason food gets soggy)

An air fryer’s whole thing is moving hot air. That fan is working hard to push heat around your food and, just as important, to pull moisture away from the surface. That’s how you get crisp edges and browning without deep frying. When hot air can reach the food from multiple angles, moisture escapes and the outside dries out enough to get crunchy.

A silicone liner interrupts that in a few ways, and they all point to the same problem: moisture has nowhere to go.

First, silicone liners often act like a little bowl. Even the ones with ridges or raised patterns still create a barrier between the bottom of the food and the basket. In a normal basket, a lot of airflow comes up through the holes and circulates underneath. With silicone in the way, the underside doesn’t get the same blast of moving air. Less air underneath means less drying underneath. That alone can soften the bottom.

Second, silicone doesn’t absorb anything. Paper can absorb a tiny bit of moisture and grease. The basket lets grease drip away. Silicone keeps most of it close. As food cooks, it releases moisture—especially frozen foods, marinated meats, and anything with a lot of water (vegetables, chicken thighs, even wings). In a silicone liner, that moisture tends to collect and pool. Now your food isn’t just cooking in hot air. It’s cooking with a warm, steamy layer sitting right under it.

Third, when that liquid pools, it creates the exact conditions crispiness hates. Crispiness needs a dry-ish surface so the outside can brown and firm up. When the bottom is sitting over moisture, you’re basically steaming the underside. It’s the same reason oven fries get limp if they’re crowded on a tray. Moisture can’t escape, so it softens everything.

That’s why silicone liners can feel like they “ruin crispiness,” even though the top can still brown fine. The top is exposed to moving air. The bottom is trapped above steam.

When silicone liners are genuinely useful (and you should use them)

If you’re expecting silicone to give you the same results as a bare basket for everything, you’ll be disappointed. But silicone is great when your main goal isn’t maximum crunch.

Where I think silicone shine

s is messy food. Sauces, marinades, melted cheese, sugary glazes—these are the things that create stubborn burnt spots in the basket and make you regret cooking at all. If you’re doing honey garlic chicken bites, teriyaki salmon, BBQ wings, or anything sticky, silicone is often worth it because it keeps the mess contained. The food can still taste amazing, and you save yourself the scrub session.

Silicone is also handy for delicate foods that stick or break easily. Fish that flakes, small pieces that fall through racks, reheating saucy leftovers—silicone can make the process calmer. And on those nights when the priority is simply “feed everyone quickly,” silicone is a valid tradeoff. You’re choosing convenience over perfection, and that’s fine.

The Hidden Reason Food Tastes Flat in an Air Fryer (It’s Not the Recipe)

The foods silicone usually makes worse (the ones that go soggy fastest)

If you want that classic air fryer crunch, silicone is not your best friend for a few categories.

Fries are the big one. Fries need hot air moving all around them and they need moisture to escape. A silicone liner tends to keep moisture trapped, especially when fries release steam and a little oil. The bottom layer ends up soft, and once fries go soft, they’re hard to bring back.

Breaded foods are another one. Nuggets, schnitzel, breaded chicken, anything coated—these rely on dry heat and airflow to stay crunchy. If the bottom steams, the coating softens and you lose that crisp bite.

Wings are mixed. Wings can still be good in silicone, but if you’re chasing that crackly skin, silicone makes it harder because fat and moisture collect instead of dripping away.

So if you’re cooking something where crispness is the whole point, silicone will often work against you unless you change the setup.

The 5-minute fixes that actually work

The good news is you don’t need to throw the liner away. You just need to stop using it like a flat “nonstick sheet” and start using it like a container that needs airflow help.

The fastest fix is to lift the food off the silicone base. Even a small lift changes everything. If you have a small metal rack that fits inside the liner, use it. A rack creates a gap underneath so hot air can reach the bottom and liquid can sit below the food instead of directly under it. It’s the closest you’ll get to “normal basket crispiness” while still using silicone for cleanup.

If you don’t have a rack, sometimes your air fryer already came with a crisper plate or insert. If it fits inside the liner, it can help. The goal is simple: food should not be sitting directly on a flat silicone surface where moisture collects.

Another fix that sounds a little annoying but works ridiculously well is finishing without the liner. Cook most of the way in the silicone liner if you’re dealing with drips and sauce. Then, for the last two to four minutes, move the food into the bare basket (or onto the basket’s crisper plate) to dry out the surface. Those last minutes make a noticeable difference in texture. It’s basically your “crisp booster” step.

Next: don’t overload the liner. Silicone liners trick people because they look roomy. But depth is not the same thing as space. When you pile food higher, steam gets trapped even more. If you want crisp results, keep it to a single layer as much as possible, with some breathing room. Yes, that might mean two batches. But two quick batches that come out right feel better than one big batch that comes out soft.

Also, start drier. If you toss frozen fries straight in with ice crystals still on them, or you add wings that are wet from packaging, the liner is going to amplify the problem. Patting wings dry takes 10 seconds and can be the difference between “nice” and “meh.” Shaking off heavy marinade helps too. You can still have flavor, you just don’t want excess liquid pooling right under the food.

Finally, for foods that release a lot of liquid, don’t be afraid to pause and drain. Chicken thighs, juicy cuts, vegetables—halfway through cooking, you might see a small pool in the liner. If you tip that out carefully and continue, you reduce steam and improve browning. This is one of those “dad moves” that feels unnecessary until you do it once and notice the difference.

Common mistakes that make silicone liners feel “bad”

One mistake is using silicone for everything because it’s convenient. Silicone is a tool, not an upgrade for every scenario. If you use it for fries and breaded foods and expect peak crispness, you’ll keep getting disappointed.

Another mistake is assuming ridges solve the problem. Ridges help a little, but if there’s liquid collecting, the air still isn’t moving the same way it does in a bare basket, and the food still sits in a humid environment.

Overcrowding is a big one too. People load silicone liners like they’re making a casserole. If you’re trying to air-fry, you need air. Silicone liners naturally reduce airflow, so crowding becomes even more punishing.

And one more thing people don’t talk about: silicone can hold smells if it stays greasy. If your liner is clean but still smells like old oil, it can make you think the food is “off.” A proper hot wash and full dry helps, and an occasional baking soda soak can reset it.

Does Air Fryer Size Affect Food Quality? What Most People Get Wrong

Bottom line (the simple rule I follow)

Silicone liners are great when the goal is less mess, especially for saucy or sticky foods. They’re not great when the goal is maximum crispiness, especially for fries and breaded foods, unless you change the setup.

If your food is soggy with silicone, it’s almost always because the liner is trapping steam and pooling liquid under the food. Fix that—by lifting food up, finishing without the liner, keeping batches smaller, and draining liquid when needed—and you’ll get most of the crisp back without giving up the cleanup benefits.