Air Fryer Opinions

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slbbw
slbbw Posts: 329 Member
in Food and Nutrition
Debating on getting an air fryer and curious on this communities opinions on whether it helps make healthy food prep easier. We do a lot of roasted vegetables in the oven. We also currently do not have a toaster and use the oven for things like frozen waffles. Compared to oven cooking is it faster? or produce better results. I am not particularly concerned about reducing the amount of oil I use for roasting as it is not too much, but if it could give a better result it might be worth the loss in counter space. Also curious on how well it does tofu, as that is one food I rarely have the patience to get it to cook the way I like it.

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  • MelanieCN77
    MelanieCN77 Posts: 4,047 Member
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    -is faster
    -are quite big
    -novel results, nothing fancy, but good if you like variety
    -the reservoirs are not large when you consider you can't pile stuff in, single layers required really
    -air fried tofu is actually one thing I thought it did very well

    It's like ....eh? I was given one by a friend who didn't use it and got annoyed at the room it took in her small kitchen. After using it non stop the first week I've found I haven't pulled it out at all.
  • NovusDies
    NovusDies Posts: 8,940 Member
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    Use mine almost each day. The novelty of air frying has worn off in the year I have had it but the compact size is great for cooking for 1 or 2 people. I will cook a frittata in it in just a few minutes. When I take the frittata out I will put in some veggie burgers. I roast vegetables in it 2 or 3 times a week. I reheat things in it all the time.

    It may not be essential to everyone but it has become essential to me because I hate using the toaster oven and the big oven is just a waste most of the time.

    I have purchased a lot of stupid gadgets over the years but it turns out the only thing that really made them stupid was that I either never used them or they made a task harder.
  • CTcutie
    CTcutie Posts: 649 Member
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    Yes, its a small convention oven.

    I do love my air fryer, though I can totally live without it. My oven heats up the entire kitchen (its old & needs to be replaced soon), and I hate it.

    It works well for 1-2 small servings of most things you'd want baked/roasted/"fried". If I get a convection oven I would give my air fryer away. They are bulky; I have ample counter space at the moment, so I don't mind leaving it out. Some people put their appliances away, so that's a consideration. Easy to clean. The drawer where the food goes sits on a rack, and it's a little clumsy IMO.

    It really isn't suitable for large batch cooking (ideally everything should fit in a single layer for max crunchiness!). I don't use a toaster oven but I think a toaster oven is easier to use for things like toast & waffles.
  • debtay123
    debtay123 Posts: 1,327 Member
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    I enjy mine but yes depending on the size you have to beware of how much you can use in it- Also you have to cook in batches ex. if you want burger and fries- best to cook the burgers and keep warm THEN make fries- warms up fries are not good IMO- stuff like that but Ilove mine
  • swirlybee
    swirlybee Posts: 497 Member
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    I have a Phillips Air Fryer and IMO, it's only good for chicken wings/thigh and only if you're cooking enough for one or two people. I have a family of four I have to feed so it takes a while to cook because I have to cook in two batches. I've never really used it for roasting veggies as I find it more convenient to use the regular oven. The air fryer is better for chicken wings and frozen french fries compared to the regular oven, but that's about it.

    The game changer for me is the air fryer toaster oven. I roast veggies, firm tofu, corn on the cob, and of course chicken. It's a toaster over, so naturally I toast bread on it. Versatile, and worth the money. I have the Cuisineart brand one but there are cheaper varieties out there that probably perform just as well.

    Like @just_Tomek said, if you already have a convection oven, there's no need to get an airfryer.
  • acpgee
    acpgee Posts: 7,623 Member
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    I use mine a lot. The aggressive fanning seems to work better for rendering off subcutaneous fat from chicken skin, fish skin, duck skin, pork crackling than my convection oven. Chicken wings and drumsticks are different than deep fried but the skin is so thin and crisp it is just as good, without the oily mouth feel.

    It is better insulated and smaller so uses less energy than my oven. My Phillips is so well insulated that it registers only lukewarm to the touch even operating at the highest temperature.

    I have a lot of unconventional uses such as blackening peppers and aubergines for peeling, Sunday roast with potatoes (a roast beef joint for 4 or half a leg of lamb fits + potatoes in my compact Viva model). I have small casserole dishes for doing gratin dauphinoise, lasagna and clafoutis. I never use my oven anymore unless I am baking a large batch of cookies or a very large roast to feed a big crowd.

    A roast dinner with potatoes, a dutch bitterball (croquette), roast mini corn, chicken wings.

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  • cmriverside
    cmriverside Posts: 33,960 Member
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    That's beautiful food, @acpgee

    Are you a professional chef? More importantly, when's dinner?
  • acpgee
    acpgee Posts: 7,623 Member
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    cmriverside wrote: »
    That's beautiful food, @acpgee

    Are you a professional chef? More importantly, when's dinner?

    Just an enthusiastic amateur. We just ate I'm afraid. Tonight's dinner was an exercise in managing leftovers. A puttanesca-ish sauce made with leftover bagna cauda sauce from the weekend. Grilled courgettes that were languishing at the bottom of the vegetable drawer. The only thing made in the air fryer were bell peppers where the skins were blackened in the air fryer prior to peeling.
  • Idontcareyoupick
    Idontcareyoupick Posts: 2,827 Member
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    I enjoy my air fryer. It does heat up more quickly than the oven and get a better crunch if that's what you enjoy
  • Sm3018
    Sm3018 Posts: 55 Member
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    Love my ninja

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