Panzerotti are street food from Puglia in southern Italy: small crescents of soft yeast dough, filled with thick tomato, mozzarella and fresh basil, and sealed tight with a press of a fork. You could call them calzone’s little brother — they’re smaller, easy to eat with your hands, and in Italy they’re traditionally deep-fried.
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When I make panzerotti in the air fryer, I brush them with a little olive oil instead. That gives them a crispy, golden crust without a pot of deep-frying oil on the stove, while the mozzarella melts and pulls into long strings inside. The recipe makes 8 small panzerotti, and most of the time goes into the dough rising all by itself.
Estimated reading time: 4 minutes
Table of Contents
Table of Contents:
Why I Love Panzerotti in the Air Fryer
Panzerotti have everything I love about a good pizza, wrapped up in a small pocket you can eat with your hands. The dough turns crispy outside and soft inside, and the filling is so simple that the tomato, mozzarella and basil each get to shine. The air fryer is perfect for the format, because the hot air circulates closely around the small crescents, and with a single flip halfway through, they turn golden on both sides.
I also love how easy they are to vary. A pinch of dried oregano in the tomato filling, or a few cubes of ham or salami along with the cheese, gives you a new dish without a new technique.
Air Fryer Instead of a Deep-Fryer
In Puglia, panzerotti are fried in deep oil, where the dough puffs up and turns bubbly and crisp. That takes a pot full of oil and quite a bit of cleaning up afterwards. In the air fryer, a thin layer of olive oil on both sides does the job. The crust turns out a touch more bread-like than the deep-fried version, but it’s golden and crispy with far less fat.
My Kitchen Test of Panzerotti
I’ve baked panzerotti in my Cosori Dual Blaze, and 180°C gives the best balance: the crust has time to turn golden while the mozzarella melts all the way through without boiling out at the edge. I bake four at a time in a single layer with a little space between them, 12 minutes per batch, turning them carefully after 6 minutes. Two batches add up to 24 minutes total in the air fryer.
The whole recipe takes 114 minutes, split into 30 minutes of prep, 60 minutes of rising time and 24 minutes in the air fryer. So the dough looks after itself for more than half the time, and while it rises, you have time to drain the tomatoes and mozzarella, so the filling is ready for shaping. If you have a smaller air fryer, you can bake them in three batches at the same temperature and time per batch.
The most important trick is a dry filling. Drain the tomatoes in a sieve, pat the mozzarella dry, and press the edge tightly with a fork all the way around. That way, the crescents hold their shape in the air fryer.
Tips and tricks from the author: Morten Jensen
The Typical Mistakes and How to Avoid Them
The most common mistake is a wet filling. Chopped tomatoes and fresh mozzarella hold a lot of moisture, which turns to steam in the air fryer and pushes the edge open. Let the tomatoes drain in a sieve, stir them together with tomato purée, and pat the cheese dry with paper towel. The second mistake is overfilling them. Keep a free edge of about 1 cm, and press it tightly with a fork, or the cheese will run out during baking. The third mistake is placing them too close together. If the crescents sit right up against each other, they turn pale and soft where they touch. Bake them in a single layer with space in between, brush them with oil on both sides, and brush the basket lightly too, so the dough doesn’t stick.
How to Serve Panzerotti
Panzerotti taste best warm, once they’ve rested for a couple of minutes so the filling doesn’t burn your tongue. Here are my favorites on the side:
- A green salad with rocket, cherry tomatoes and a simple vinaigrette
- Extra tomato sauce with garlic and oregano for dipping
- A small antipasti platter with olives, grilled vegetables and marinated artichokes
- As a snack or tapas, when friends come round for a cozy evening
Storage and Reheating
Panzerotti are best the same day, but leftovers keep for 1-2 days in the fridge, covered. Reheat them in the air fryer at 150°C for 5-8 minutes, so the crust turns crispy again. The microwave makes the dough tough, so I skip that. If you want a small stash in the freezer, they can be frozen for up to 3 months. Thaw them in the fridge overnight, and reheat them the same way.
With a dry filling, a tightly sealed edge and a thin layer of olive oil, panzerotti in the air fryer become an easy route to genuine Italian street food at home. Make them on a day when the dough can rise at its own pace, and enjoy them while the cheese still pulls into strings.
FAQ
Both are folded pockets of yeast dough with a filling, but panzerotti are smaller and made to eat by hand. In Puglia, they’re traditionally deep-fried, while a calzone is a larger, folded pizza that’s usually baked in the oven.
Yes. Ready-made pizza dough from the chiller section saves you from kneading and rising the dough yourself. Cut round discs about 13 cm in diameter, and fill, fold and bake them as described in the recipe.
Yes, they can be frozen for up to 3 months. Thaw them in the fridge overnight, and reheat them in the air fryer at 150°C for 5-8 minutes, so the crust turns crispy again.
Recipe
Panzerotti in the Air Fryer
Cooking Guide
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Ingredients
How to make it
Yeast dough
- Dissolve 10 g yeast in 180 ml water in a mixing bowl, and stir in 1 tbsp olive oil and 1 tsp salt.
- Knead in 300 g plain flour a little at a time, and continue for 8-10 minutes, until the dough is smooth, soft and supple.
- Leave the dough to rise, covered, in a warm place for about 60 minutes, until it has almost doubled in size.
Filling
- Press 200 g chopped tomatoes lightly in a sieve, and let them drain for 15 minutes, so the filling becomes thick.
- Cut 250 g mozzarella into small cubes, and let them drain on kitchen paper while the dough rises. Pat them dry before use.
Shaping
- Divide the dough into 8 equal pieces, and roll out each piece with a rolling pin on a lightly floured worktop into a thin, round disc about 13 cm in diameter.
- Fill one half of each disc with tomato filling and mozzarella cubes, divided evenly between the 8 discs, and place 16 leaves fresh basil on top, 2 on each. Leave a 1 cm border free along the edge.
- Fold the disc over the filling into a crescent, and press the edge tightly together with a fork, so the filling doesn’t run out during baking.
Cooking in the air fryer
- Preheat the air fryer to 180 °C fan.
- Brush the crescents on both sides with 2 tbsp olive oil.
- Bake 4 panzerotti at a time in a single layer with a little space between them at 180 °C for 12 minutes. Turn them carefully after 6 minutes, so they turn golden on both sides.
- Repeat with the last 4 panzerotti at 180 °C for 12 minutes, and turn them again after 6 minutes.
Serving
- Let them cool for 3-4 minutes before serving, as the filling is very hot.
Our notes for the recipe
Drain the tomatoes and mozzarella thoroughly, and don’t overfill the crescents. Wet filling or too much filling will make the edge burst open in the air fryer. Press the edge firmly shut with a fork, and brush the basket lightly with oil so the dough doesn’t stick. About panzerotti:
Panzerotti (singular: panzerotto) are street food from Puglia in southern Italy. They resemble a calzone but are smaller, and are traditionally deep-fried. Here, they’re brushed with olive oil and baked in the air fryer instead, which gives a crispy, golden crust with far less fat. Variation:
Add a pinch of dried oregano to the tomato filling, or add a few cubes of cooked ham or salami along with the mozzarella. Serving:
Serve panzerotti warm with a green salad, or as a snack with extra tomato sauce for dipping. Serving size:
This recipe makes 8 small panzerotti, 2 per serving. If you have a small air fryer, you can bake them in 3 batches at the same temperature and time per batch.
Your notes for the recipe
Nutrition per serving (Guideline)
Important about shelf life and nutrition
Nutrition per serving (guideline): Calculations are based on data from the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA). Shelf life (guideline): Shelf life data is provided, as far as possible, by public institutions, including national food authorities. Our information is therefore only indicative, and it is your responsibility to obtain and calculate accurate information about shelf life and nutrition for all recipes on airfryerkogebogen.dk
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