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Would I benefit from an air fryer?

73 replies

Featherfox · 28/06/2022 14:47

Hi all.

Thinking of purchasing an air fryer as everyone is raving about them but I am wondering if it’s for me. On a lot of reviews, people mention they add oil etc. Must you add oil to every single dish? I currently oven cook things like salmon, sausages, oven chips, jacket potatoes etc with no oil and so I’m wary of buying something that will increase the amount of oil I’m using. I predominantly only use oil in a dish that I’m cooking on the hob for the meat / garlic / onions.

Any guidance or tips would be most welcome.

Thank you in advance

OP posts:
Legalwomble · 30/06/2022 21:53

I can’t decide on these. I really want one, but I don’t know what size I need (me and 3 kids), i mean, how do you cook a roast in it? Do you do it one thing at a time? We like salmon, jacket spuds, roast dinners, chips etc (wouldn’t mind doing my own chips)
I was looking at the ninja 15-1 type of thing, but it’s very expensive to sit on the side gathering dust

TwoBlondes · 30/06/2022 22:05

www.bbc.co.uk/sounds/play/m0018hjr?partner=uk.co.bbc&origin=share-mobile

Very interesting programme about them!

ItsMutinyontheBunty · 30/06/2022 23:24

I’ve got an Instant pot duo crisp (so pressure cooker and air fryer in one). Kind of thought it would be a novelty but it actually still gets used most days and I’ve had it almost 2 years! I have a gas oven (came with the house), it’s definitely cheaper than using that oven! It’s more efficient than an oven timing wise too.
Oil wise I use a spray of olive oil spray or a drizzle of olive oil but most foods don’t need it (really only do bacon and chips with oil!).

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JudgeRindersMinder · 01/07/2022 08:05

I got a Ninja dual about a month ago and it’s amazing. I’d resisted as all anyone could speak about was how great they are at cooking chips and beige food, which isn’t something we eat!
I did some proper research and bought one. It’s been life changing! The first thing I cooked in it was a roast chicken for Sunday dinner-so much less faff than doing it in the oven, and a much better result.
I’ve cooked all sorts in it since, basically anything you’d cook in the oven, but I’ve also done steaks which are amazing, salmon, fajitas, bacon, sausages, I’ve not had the oven on since I bought it

NiqueNique · 01/07/2022 09:54

Ohhh @JudgeRindersMinder that’s exactly the kind of review I needed as that’s been my issue/worry too - would it actually work well for the kind of foods I cook? Glad to hear you’ve had success with it.

JudgeRindersMinder · 01/07/2022 11:04

@NiqueNique It sounds like you could much the same way as I do, so I’d say yes you probably would. I don’t add oil to anything either and have never had any disasters (yet!😂)

dontgobaconmyheart · 01/07/2022 13:17

Each to their own but it wasn't for me. We were (very kindly) given one as a housewarming present and I was reasonably excited to give it a go but really didn't rate it. My understanding was that the point of it was to replicate the results of deep frying but without the oil and it absolutely doesn't. Healthier than doing so obviously but no healthier than oven cooking and IMO you need the same amount of oil to get a decent result for chips etc. The only thing I found cooked well with no oil was chicken, but again it can just be done in the oven. Air fryers literally are just a countertop convection oven after all.

I did find you had to generally add some sort of oil to get a good crispiness to things where you'd want it. It works without it but the finish isn't the same at all. I felt it added a weird taste to things- a bit like the taste you get from preprepared oven foods (which I don't like).

It took up so much room on the counter that when it broke (after about 6 months of minimal use) I found I was glad to take it to the tip and have the counter space back. I also think if it is for a family you would need a huge one or you would be there forever. Ours was fairly large and wouldn't really feed more than 2 portions at a time, thus making the oven preferable again if you have several to feed or several dishes on the go.

Fun for a novelty but I'd never buy one and don't miss it at all.

NiqueNique · 01/07/2022 15:01

I’m really not concerned about not using oil, at all - I intend to use it exactly as a smaller, more efficient oven, so for absolutely everything I would normally do in the oven. What I’m trying to figure out if it’ll actually work well enough to make it worth it in terms of cost of buying, ease of using, end result (very important!) and least importantly, tbh, whether it will be energy efficient.

What I’d be cooking in it could be anything from roasted vegetables, joints of meat, pies, quiches, terrines, tagines and other stews/casseroles, fish en papillon as well as meat such as pork chops/chicken - whole and jointed including chicken wings/etc, to cakes, biscuits, bread. Also fries, chips, roasties etc but all made from scratch so no coatings etc. If it cooks that sort of food well I’d find it very useful.

I would think it’d especially be very convenient for things such as baking a quick crumble on a whim, for example, or warming up some rolls/making garlic bread - most of the time I don’t like using the oven for one thing at a time as I just think it’s such a waste, but if I understand it correctly it’d be quicker and less expensive so I might be able to use it in that way much more often which would be nice.

For some reason I feel like I’m really not conveying what I want to ask but it seems like a few people have understood and that this is how they use it, and that it works well.

NiqueNique · 01/07/2022 15:03

We’re a two person household which is another reason why it appeals. Most of the time I actually am interested in being able to cook smaller amounts more quickly and more efficiently. If we have a huge roast or multiple things to cook I’m perfectly happy to use the conventional oven.

But I still just feel a liiiittle bit hesitant.

YourLittleSecret · 01/07/2022 15:09

I was very sceptical of air fryers. You can't fry in air! I love a proper deep fried chip as well.
Turns out it's not really a fryer it's a mini oven / grill. Only two of us here, no gas, and I've barely used my electric oven since I got the air fryer.

You can use as much or as little oil as you wish.

My favourite thing is pork steaks with a spice rub. They cook in 15 to 20 minutes. Roast potatoes come out lovely but bear in mind you can't really cook the meat and the veg at same time.

NiqueNique · 01/07/2022 15:17

@YourLittleSecret which one do you have?

I’d probably need to be able to cook two elements in it at a time, for sure. Otherwise I’m not sure I’d find it useful enough often enough IYSWIM.

Sugarplumfairy65 · 01/07/2022 15:17

YourLittleSecret · 01/07/2022 15:09

I was very sceptical of air fryers. You can't fry in air! I love a proper deep fried chip as well.
Turns out it's not really a fryer it's a mini oven / grill. Only two of us here, no gas, and I've barely used my electric oven since I got the air fryer.

You can use as much or as little oil as you wish.

My favourite thing is pork steaks with a spice rub. They cook in 15 to 20 minutes. Roast potatoes come out lovely but bear in mind you can't really cook the meat and the veg at same time.

You can if you have the ninja dual. You can also buy racks to go in them so you can layer things up

BigBobBoots · 01/07/2022 15:24

Oooh @ItsMutinyontheBunty - that's the one I was thinking of getting.
I already have a standard Instant Pot and I love it. I now want to get a larger one to help me batch cook, so am going for the 8l. Started investigating air fryers when I saw the 'crisp' and was intrigued.
Anything you think I should know about it?

NiqueNique · 01/07/2022 15:26

Thanks very much for all the information, everyone - it’s helping me build a much better picture of what it can/can’t do.

MsOllie · 01/07/2022 16:17

I have a swan 11l one which doesn't have a basket but has 3 metal grid shelves
Mostly I use it for beige stuff Grin so potato waffles, chicken nuggets etc
Great for doing something like a naan bread, part baked roll, a few roast potatoes as I live alone and is cheaper on electric and no preheating

YourLittleSecret · 01/07/2022 21:46

I bought a £30 one from Aldi just to test the water. I plan to give it to DS and buy myself a better one now that I know how useful it is.

NiqueNique · 01/07/2022 21:50

@YourLittleSecret perfect! I love an ALDI bargain! And I can pass it on to one of my children too at some point if I decide I want a better version.

Tunus · 01/07/2022 22:12

I have the ninja dual. Was going back and forth for ages trying to decide. We’re a family of 6 and I wasn’t sure how much I’d use it. Honestly I’ve only used my oven twice since I’ve had it. I didn’t think I’d be able to do a roast in it but I can easily do the meat in one drawer (I’ve done a 2kg chicken and a 1.8kg pork roast as well as smaller joints) and the roast potatoes in the other, then do yorkshires in the meat drawer while the meat is resting. If I’m doing roast parsnips as well I do them before the potatoes then put them in on top of the potatoes for the last few minutes to heat up, if there were fewer of us id just cook them in together but I cook a lot of potatoes!

Most stuff cooks quicker than in the oven and it doesn’t need preheating.

I don’t use much oil, just a little bit to coat the veg before putting in.

Its brilliant for stuff like frozen pain au chocolat or part baked rolls where it would seem wasteful to put the oven on just for a couple.

I just don’t like how big it is and that I have to have it out on the counter. I’ve messed up a couple of things (steaks, sweet potato wedges) but I think that was cooks error rather than the machine.

AlmostSummer21 · 11/07/2022 18:15

I think I have a fundamental misunderstanding of how they work!

the ninja ones I looked at, look to have two 'pots'? You pull out. How do you cook puzza/toasters in them & don't the chips all just go squishy down the bottom as you couldn't possibly cook the single layer. Someone said they cook pasta & curry in theirs.

it's like some are talking about a worktop grill & others an instant pot.

SO SO SO confused.

Positivelypatient · 12/07/2022 11:36

Just jumping on the thread as I was searching for some reviews on air fryers mainly as a way to keep electricity costs down. I am currently trying to use my combi microwave instead of the oven which has a convection setting. So my question is, if you also have a convection microwave - do you still prefer to use an air fryer?

stillherenow · 12/07/2022 11:59

Tempted to get one when I've got the money! Then I think I'll get the oven professionally cleaned and leave it be !

Mol1628 · 12/07/2022 12:03

That’s my plan I’m going to get the oven cleaned professionally then use it only for roast dinners now and again 🤣

AtomicBlondeRose · 12/07/2022 12:04

@AlmostSummer21 I have the Ninja Dual with two "pots" - just think of each as a small over except it's a drawer instead of opening the door at the front. The element is on the top and there is a removable plate instead you can put food like toasties on. So a small pizza or a toastie sits on there and cooks just like a normal oven (except far quicker and goes much crisper!). Chips you just tip in - the norm is to pull the drawer out every now and then and shake it (or rearrange if it's something that will fall apart) - some attention is needed but not much and you have to check a normal oven anyway.

Some people take the plates out and just use the whole drawer as a cooking pot so layer lasagna or shepherds pie in it. Never done that but you can also put small Pyrex or ceramic dishes in which I have done for things like stuffing.

Yesterday I made granola bars in it - just lined with greaseproof paper on top of the plate and packed the mixture in then lifted the paper out afterwards. Worked great and didn't have the whole oven on for one tray.

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