This Air Fryer Quiche with Hash Brown Crust is breakfast at its best! A Whole30 quiche that uses a mushroom and leek filling and is encased in a hash brown crust is perfect for any Brunch menu.
There is no need to preheat your oven for this recipe. Our Whole30 quiche will be made in an air fryer. If you are looking for more suggestions, check out all of our Air Fryer Recipes.
This healthy quiche uses frozen hash browns to create a crispy golden brown crust.
Cashews, almond milk, nutritional yeast, lemon juice, and eggs are blended together to make the egg mixture. That's right, this quiche has no milk or cream, and it's delicious!
Choosing the quiche add-ins is up to you! We did a mushroom-leek combination because I love that flavor profile.
For more breakfast ideas, check out the Breakfast and Brunch Recipes for more morning eggs like our Air Fryer Omelette, and the Air Fryer Soft Boiled Eggs.
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What makes this recipe so good
- The crust is made from hash browns! Many quiche recipes use frozen pie crust or puff pastry. We wanted a gluten-free crust without flour, so hash browns were a perfect choice.
- The perfect to-go breakfast for busy families. We love this breakfast quiche for a quick meal. You can enjoy this quiche hot or cold.
- It is made entirely in the air fryer. Use your air fryer instead of waiting 15 minutes for your oven to preheat.
Recipe Testing
It took a while to find the perfect dairy-free custard. Here is my experience in creating this Air Fryer Quiche recipe.
Recipe Test #1 - I blended ½ cup of almond milk with 6 eggs for a dairy-free custard. I couldn't taste the almond milk, so the egg flavor really came through, but the quiche lacked creaminess.
Recipe Test #2 - I blended ¼ cup of coconut milk with 6 eggs for a dairy-free custard. I tasted a lot of the coconut flavor in the final quiche, not what I wanted.
Recipe Test # 3 - I blended cashews, almond milk, Dijon, lemon juice, and 6 eggs together for the custard. The quiche had a great flavor with a creamy texture, just like a traditional quiche recipe.
Verdict - All of the quiche recipes came out tasting good, but Recipe Test #3 was the clear winner.
Ingredient Notes
When making an air fryer quiche, make sure to have these ingredients on hand.
- Hash browns - They are easy to shape and mold in a quiche pan and get nice and golden brown and crispy!
- Ghee - Helps flavor and makes the hash browns nice and golden brown.
- Cashews - The key ingredient in making a dairy-free creamy custard.
- Almond milk - Turns the cashews into a cream sauce.
- Lemon Juice - This is a flavor enhancer and brightens the dish.
- Nutritional yeast - adds a cheesy flavor which is delicious in quiches.
- Dijon Mustard - For a bite!
- Eggs - Well, because you can't make a quiche without eggs. They also are needed to make the custard.
- Mushrooms and leeks - Wow! What a great combination! The sweetness of the sautéed leeks pairs perfectly with the savory mushrooms.
Substitutions and Variations
- Crust - Try using shredded sweet potatoes, puff pastry, or a frozen pie crust. You can even make a crustless quiche.
- Custard - There are many dairy-free options like cashew cream, almond milk, and coconut milk.
- Add-ins - Bacon, spinach, ham, onions, tomatoes, and bell pepper are a few common quiche fillings.
- Mini quiche - Sometimes we like to make quiche egg bites in the air fryer or muffin tin for the oven. Smaller quiche recipes are great for on-the-go breakfasts!
Hashbrown Crust Instructions
First, we start by making the hashbrowns crust in the air fryer, here's how to make it!
Step 1: Place thawed hash browns on a large kitchen towel. Squeeze the potatoes over the sink to remove all of the water.
Step 2: Mix together hash browns, melted ghee, and salt in the quiche pan.
Step 3: Using your hands, press the potatoes down and along the sides of the pie pan.
Step 4: Preheat your air fryer to 400ºF. Place into the air fryer basket and cook for 15 minutes or until golden brown.
Tip - When pressing hash browns into the pan, make sure there are no uneven spots. The crust should be an even thickness all the way around.
Quiche filling instructions
Making this air fryer quiche with hash brown crust is so easy, here's how to make it!
Step 1: In a large pan, saute sliced mushrooms and leeks with a tablespoon of ghee.
Step 2: Place the cooked veggies on the bottom of the hash brown crust.
Step 3: In a high-speed blender, combine cashews, almond milk, nutritional yeast, dijon, and lemon juice until smooth. Add in the eggs and blend on slow speed until incorporated. Pour the custard over the cooked veggies.
Step 4: Set the air fryer to 325ºF. Gently place the quiche into the air fryer basket. Cook for 20-25 minutes or until the quiche is set.
Chef Tips
- Squeeze the hashbrowns using a kitchen towel to remove as much moisture as possible.
- When pressing hashbrowns into the pan, make sure there are no uneven spots. The crust should be an even thickness all the way around.
- Cook mushroom and leeks over medium-low heat to prevent leeks from browning.
- Soak the cashews in cold water overnight to soften them up. If you forget to do this, you can boil them for 10 minutes.
- Slowly blend eggs into the cashew cream for 30 seconds. You don't want to blend the eggs for too long because the blender will start to cook the eggs.
Recipe FAQ's
Yes, this recipe is cooked in the air fryer, and comes out delicious. Make sure to find a quiche pan that will fit inside your air fryer basket.
We cook the quiche for 25 minutes at 325ºF in our air fryer. All air fryers cook differently, so you may need to play around with the time and temperature.
You may need to increase the cooking time. Sometimes the quiche needs to rest and come to room temperature before slicing. The liquid your see may come from the vegetables and not the eggs.
Yes, to achieve the golden brown and crispy crust you need to pre-bake them.
Storage
- Refrigerator - Place quiche in an airtight container and refrigerate for up to 5 days.
- Freezer - Tightly wrap the quiche with plastic wrap and place it in an airtight container and freeze for up to 1 month.
- Reheating - Bring quiche to room temperature and preheat the air fryer to 300ºF. Place slices inside the air fryer basket and cook for 3-4 minutes or until heated through.
Other brunch recipes to try
Did you make this recipe? Leave a ⭐️ review below and tag @thefrizzledleek on Instagram, Facebook, and Pinterest!
📖 Recipe
Air Fryer Quiche with Hash Brown Crust
Ingredients
- 1 pound frozen hash browns thawed
- 1 ½ teaspoons sea salt divided
- 4 tablespoons ghee melted, divided
- 1 cup mushrooms sliced
- 1 leek sliced
- 1 cup raw cashews
- ½ cup almond milk
- 1 tablespoons lemon juice
- 2 tablespoons nutritional yeast
- 1 tablespoon dijon mustard
- 6 large eggs whisked
Instructions
- Soak the cashews in cold water for at least 6 hours. Alternatively, you can boil the cashews for 10 minutes. Drain.
- Pre-heat the air fryer to 400ºF.
- Place hashbrowns on a large kitchen towel, and squeeze out as much water as possible. In the 8-inch pie pan, mix hash browns, melted ghee, and ½ teaspoon of salt. Press hash browns up the sides of the pie pan. Air fry for 15 minutes or until golden brown and crispy.
- While the crust is cooking sauté mushroom and leeks in 2 tablespoons of ghee. Cook on medium heat making sure not to burn the leeks. It should take about 10 minutes before the leeks are nice and tender. Set aside.
- In a blender, combine cashews, almond milk, lemon juice, nutritional yeast, 1 teaspoon of salt, and Dijon mustard. Blend for 1 minute until smooth and creamy. Add in eggs and blend slowly for 30 seconds to incorporate.
- Turn down the air fryer to 325ºF. Spoon the mushroom-leek mixture on top of the hash brown crust. Pour the egg custard on top and bake for 25 minutes or until the custard is set.
Notes
- Cool the quiche down to room temperature before slicing.
- Depending on your air fryer model, the cooking times can vary. If your quiche comes out runny, try adding 3-5 minutes more time.
- To reheat your quiche, place it back in the air fryer at 300ºF for 3-4 minutes.
- Use a pie or quiche pan that will fit in your air fryer basket. An 8-inch pan fits perfectly in my Gourmia Air Fryer.
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