Cooking & Baking
Related: About this forumAir fryers, anyone?
No, not flying chickens...
I've been seeing air fryers at Costco et al for a white now. Any of you use them? Any thoughts?
lapfog_1
(30,158 posts)personally I like my air battered and deep fat fried.
DaBronx
(481 posts)Got one. Disappointed. It functions the same as the convection setting on an oven. Not worthwhile in my opinion; no appreciable benefit
Beyond the oven. Takes up space.
chillfactor
(7,694 posts)I suspect you don't know how to use one properly.
DaBronx
(481 posts)I have a very good convection oven and I dont see a great difference. You can search comparisons on the internet and see that many people are able to get similar results.
To each his own!
cilla4progress
(25,908 posts)Good, quick no/low-fat way to cook!
It's combined with a toaster.
Small countertop footprint, for all it can do.
Thumbs up.
chillfactor
(7,694 posts)Very fast, easy clean up, tasty recipes!!!!!!!!!!
FalloutShelter
(12,749 posts)I have a Ninja Foodie and I use it every day.
Fires
bakes
and even has a pressure cooker lid for beans , etc.
I love it.
mercuryblues
(15,111 posts)I love it in the summer.
Between an air fryer and the grill, I barely use my oven in the summer.
RockRaven
(16,276 posts)Because air fryers are basically small differently shaped convection ovens.
Since they are smaller they heat up faster and are more energy efficient than the full size oven for small portions, but they are also limited in volume/capacity and cleaning the basket may be less easy than a basic sheet tray.
I use the convection settings on my full size oven for things like frozen French fries/tater tots, and the improvement over standard baking is noticeable (in a good way). So if I didn't have convection capability in my oven I might be more interested. But for me, at the moment, the counter or cabinet space an air fryer would take up wouldn't be worth it.
2naSalit
(92,707 posts)With just a basket, I inherited it and I was thankful because I didn't think much of it. But a friend with whom I cook at times wanted to get one but didn't know what to look for, I decided I wanted the convection oven style after a year of not liking the first one. So we went to Costco and both bought one, the same thing. I see they have newer/improved models and they still sell most for around $100 wich is what ours cost.
What we got was a convection oven that has a dehydrate setting and several other options. But it has trays, grated and a solid one for a drip pan. Included where three rotisserie options including a kabob wheel (I use that a lot) and two basket sizes, one goes on the rotisserie and then a pair of blade for a chicken or the like. Had it for almost a year and I use it several times a week for bacon and whatever I think of. I like that it's only 13qts, big enough for one person, I don't like using the oven in the range because the things I would make are so small. When I make big stiff for oven baking, I do that at my friend's house where there is also food prep space.
I think it also depends on you style of cooking as well as the kinds of food you like. I started making new things because I was inspired, never had my own convection oven, used them when I cooked in restaurants but not at home. My diet has improved.
And best of all, everything tastes 100x better and is more flavorful. Trust me. Even sliced sweet potatoes.
MLAA
(18,602 posts)It takes no time to heat up for French fries, onion rings, vegan corn dogs etc unlike 10 -15 minutes for the oven. To preheat. Even the cooking time is faster than my convection oven. I use the parchment paper trays so clean up is a breeze. I even cook a small impossible meatloaf in it using a small square pan. Im delighted with it. I still use the regular oven for baked potatoes and casseroles. Best $90 Ive spent in ages!
happybird
(5,117 posts)Bone in, skin on chicken thighs.
Roll em in any mix of spices you feel like, spray with oil and cook for 20 min, flipping halfway through. They come out tender and juicy every time and the skin crisps up perfectly. Easy and delicious. Boneless chicken comes out a little dry, definitely use the bone in.
Its especially nice in the summer to not heat up the house with the oven or keep running in and out to the grill. Also like how the drippings collect in the bottom of the pot thing. Sometimes I use them as the fat to make a roux for sauce, sometimes I just dump some right on my potatoes.
I did catfish a few different ways in the air fryer last week, all turned out well.
onecaliberal
(35,833 posts)I also have a convection oven, so I dont bake in the fryer very often. We use ours nearly everyday.
AZSkiffyGeek
(12,600 posts)Steaks come out perfectly medium rare in 10 minutes. It's also good for hot dogs, chops, etc. Burgers come out well, but cheese burgers tend to get messy - the air circulation blows the cheese slices off the burgers!
I find it more difficult to do potatoes and that sort of thing though - they don't come out "fried-tasting" - more just heated and a little browned. I know people who do bacon in the air fryer as well, but I haven't had luck with that.
PAMod
(933 posts)I mostly use it to cook potato products while I'm using the range/oven for other things.
Just for fun, I did a London broil and it came out perfect - was told I didn't need to sear it, and they were right.
It's good for warming up pizza too.
Emile
(29,836 posts)pork steaks, brats and steaks in ours. Warmed up pizza taste just as good as when you first take it out of the oven.