Air Fryer: Yes or No?
I am considering getting one but would like some feedback. Are the worth the money and the space they take up in the kitchen? Do they perform well. What wattage and size is a minimum requirement? Are they a worthy appliance? I have a few friends that love theirs and use them daily but I would like a few more opinions.
What else do we have to discuss?
Go Blue
They are fantastic but all of the sudden “cheese sticks” become a legit consideration for dinner. It is a great performing device but has no way of not worsening your diet.
Air fried vs. oil fried improves your diet.
We use the Ninja Foodi for fried chicken with Panko bread crumbs. About 10 minutes cook time for breast tenderloins. Works great, but definitely use the pressure cooker more than the air fryer though.
We have the Ninja Foodie Grill, which is an air fryer plus indoor grill and my wife, who has all the high end cooking gear there is, said the other day that it was the best purchase she's ever made.
Chicken wings, no breading, come out crisp and tasty. Bacon can be either grilled or air crisped, and when the weather is bad it makes a good burger. End of commercial
Man I got one for Xmas and still haven't used it. With the lockdown and never going out to eat, I use my grill, flat-top, and smoker all the time. I can't tell you, other than breakfast the last time I cooked in the house.
"all of the sudden"
Yes, Yes, and hell yes you need one.
Way to ride the fence there...
I think your needs depend on your family size. We have a small one because I did not want another appliance taking up a lot of space in our apartment. I was talked into it by the wife and I am glad we bought one last year.
We have the Ninja 4 quart 1550 watt. It cooks really well (actually accurate and steady temperature) and it can hold a fair amount of food. I make about a dozen wings at a time in that bad boy. It will definitely increase the amount of time french fries are eaten in your house.
Think of it as having a small convection oven because this is how an air fryer really operates. Also use avocado oil spray to keep the calories down.
Wife has one from Pampered Chef and loves it.
I love mine! It cooks food so much faster
Hell yes. HELL YES. We got one for Christmas and we use it at least once or twice a week. It’s a great way to feel like you’re eating fried food without having to soak it in a bunch of oil and make it that much worse for you.
We use it for chicken breasts, thighs, wings, shrimp, grilled cheese, cauliflower, pickles (well, my wife uses it for pickles), and home made steak fries. You can also use it to make dried fruit if you’re into that. Absolutely endless possibilities, simple to use, easy storage.
It cooks faster, too. Far faster than the oven. Our fried chicken thighs recipe used to take an hour in the oven. In the air fryer, they’re done in just under 25 mins. Crispier and juicier, too.
Only drawback is if you’re cooking for a party or small crowd, it’s not going to be a big help there. We can’t fit more than four Costco-sized chicken thighs in at a time.
Oh yeah!! Cauliflower. Awesome... also Brussel sprouts.. and carrots are really sweet.
And agree—its not huge. Have to do a couple batches for more than 4 people.
Cauliflower? Brussel sprouts? Did we lose a war?
Go ahead.. but if you had it you would not tease.
brussles w bacon, basalmic, maple syrup.
Brussel sprouts with some bacon and onion....now that’s a way to get your veggies!! Lol, sooo good!
I think you may have lost me at the maple syrup, but I'll give it a try because you should always trust a mom.
If you've never had deep fried Cauliflower at Blimpy Burger, you have not lived a life worth living. I imagine air fried aren't as good, but if they are even a fraction as good they're the best thing you've eaten.
Brussel Spouts were the cliche food that kids from the 40's and 50's would complain about eating. I guess they used to be really bitter or something. For at least the last 20 years they've been the most delicious juicy vegetable ever. Again, if you haven't had Brussel Sprouts with bacon you haven't lived.
If we were talking green beans I'd be there with you. Green beans suck.
They were not just bitter. They were way overcooked, slimy, and soggy. And this was the 70's.
If you would have told me (even as a college student) that I would eat and enjoy them in my adult life, I would have bet you $1,000 that you were full of crap. Now I order them whenever I see them on a menu.
If this is indeed the case, I believe a username change is in order.
We use ours all of the time
I am not qualified, but air popcorn machine... hell yes
Ugh air popped popcorn is the worst type of popcorn. Whirley Pop with oil and the butter salt stuff (flavacol) is the way to go
I am not saying it's healthy by the time it hits my digestive system!!.... I has to be loaded down with at least .75 to 1 stick of real butter per popping cycle
The value of real butter and heavy cream in cooking (and your coffee) is something you learn as you get older
Popping cycle or pooping cycle?
Looks like it’s time to get an air fryer!
If you don’t have a Sous vide cooker already, try one of those too. Makes perfect steaks foolproof.
I have my reverse sear technique locked down.
Booyah.
That was a great thing I learned with my new grill! And forget grill marks, those are for yesterday's schmucks. That all-over sear is the only way to go!
No. Just fry your food like a proper human being does. If you don't have any cast iron cookware, there's your first mistake. And for the love of God please don't use an electric range.
Edit: I just read all the posts above mine and it makes me sad.
Just got a 15” cast iron skillet that’s too heavy for my wife to swing.
Does your wife even lift bro
My Mom tells the story of knocking her brother out with a cast iron skillet when they were kids. I thought it was just an intimidation technique but he confirmed it. They also used fishing line to stitch up a cut she gave him so my grandma wouldn’t find out. Spoiler alert that she did. Good times in the 1940s. No helicopter parents that’s for sure.
Username and all that
Fried food is one of those things that I would just rather get from a vendor or restaurant. I am not going to mess with a deep fryer at home and letting food sit in oil in a cast iron pot is necessary sometimes but it’s no substitute for the real thing.
I am also not going to deal with an air fryer. I can bake “fried” foods if I need to.
I mean sure, if you like the sogginess that results from baking frozen 'fried' items, sure. Or processed breading...
I don’t. That’s why, as I said, I get my fried food out of the house.
Who said anything about baking frozen products? Take some chicken, dredge it in flour, dip it in egg, roll it in panko, bake.
I cannot agree more. Can I deep fry at home? Yes. Do I want to clean up afterwards? Absolutely not.
so much good in your post and the replies. funny.
I understand your concern, but gas isn't an option for everyone. Not only am I stuck with electric, I have a glass cooktop - so no cast iron. Yeah, yeah, I know you can (technically) still use it. But no. No chance to break that glass if you don't use it. I do have some cast iron stuff for the grill, though, so I'm not a complete goober, just a goob...
I lived in my wife's condo briefly (before getting married) and ended up getting an outdoor turkey fryer kit that could do double duty to fry stuff with the cast iron since she had a glass electric range. I suspect the neighbor's thought I was crazy and were hoping I wouldn't burn the complex down.
I applaud your ingenuity! Sometimes, there are things that just do not belong in a standard pan on an electric range. I will concur that steaks and burgers head that list - which is why I've had a grill since the first day I was legally able to both own one and cook with it!
Have one, use it a lot more than I thought since it was given to me as a Christmas gift. Best way to cook chicken breast, hands down. Rotisserie feature is awesome plus it came with a frying basket which I use to dehydrate lean meats for dog treats. Overall, it’s a very versatile appliance.
An air fryer is just a small convection oven. If you have a convection oven or convection toaster oven, it’s unneeded. If you don’t, depends. As long as you recognize that you won’t get the same outcome as a deep fryer, go for it.
This is not true, at all! My oven is convection, and it has nothing on an air fryer. The concept is the same, sure, but the implementation is very different. An air fryer blows air at a far higher rate - it makes a standard convection oven feel stagnant. And the results are very different.
It sounds like it works like a convection oven but because the area inside is small, it cooks faster. While we're on the subject, if you're in the market for a new oven, I'd recommend a combi steam. I have one, along with a regular oven. I use the combi steam all the time. It has a great convection only mode (like an air fryer), but it also has a steam mode, and a steam/roast mode, so it first steams then the hot air turns on, for browning. Perfect for roasting vegetables and seafood especially. And the cavity is smaller than a regular oven, which I prefer. It heats up super fast.
I am glad to hear that about the steamer oven. I saw one at Pirch (LOVE!! This store!!), and tried some sort of sample from it that was fabulous. I wasn’t sure if it was gimmicky. Concept is great—and the high end store was promoting it...
trying to talk dear wife into upgrading our kitchen and cooking appliances. can you ladies give me some talking points on these ovens?
i keep offering to remodel the kitchen (and some of the house) and she keeps saying 'after the kids are gone'. well, when the kids are gone there won't be anyone who actually needs to be cooked for, so i'd like to do something sooner rather than later.
I’m sorry to hear that your wife must be sick.
Put some pants on, Xtra. Start the rebuild - she'll come in with plenty of ideas...