Tell me which air fryer/cooker I need

[Morph22010]

I know there are a million and one threads which I’ve read but I’m still undecided on what’s best for my specific circumstances. My biggest bug bear is dh use of the oven. He will out the oven on for what seems like hours to cook a small quantity of food, some of which could be done in microwave, but he doesn’t like microwaved food. So for example he’ll put on the oven for about an hour including heat up time to cook one ready meal!! So I want something that dh will actually use rather than continuing to use the oven so much. We work different shifts and like different food so are often cooking for one. I’ve been looking at something like this ninjakitchen.co.uk/product/ninja-foodi-10-in-1-multifunction-oven-dt200uk-zidDT200UK as think it will do the job for dh. However my microwave is currently broken and I will be getting this to replace the microwave as no enough room for both. I use the microwave for things like heating soups
/beans which can easily do on hob, however my one thing I do like is jacket spuds which I start off in microwave then finish off in oven. Im guessing I can’t easily do jacket spuds in the multi oven thing? Any suggestions on something that would do jacket spuds but is easy enough to use for oven time things, including ready meals so that dh will stop using the oven

I will add I do have a slow cooker which I use mainly in winter for things like casserole/ curry so don’t need a one pot type thing

I would get rid of my m/wave, but other people in the house want to keep it. It's used for half a dozen things that could easily be done on the hob.

I have an instapot that I use for batch making tomato sauce, soups and a veggie bolognaise base that I use for lasagnes, shepherdess pies and chillis. Occasionally for cooking things like beetroot - again in bulk. For smaller quantities of veg, I use pan on the hob.

I have the Ninja two drawer fryer - this is what your husband needs. My son was the same - oven on for some sausages and curly fries. In the Ninja, he can use both drawer, press sync and things that are cooking at different temps and times will be ready together. Same with Mon-Fri dinners - lasagne out of freezer night before can be cooked in 20-30 mins instead of an hour in the over (including preheat). It will also cook perfect soft boiled eggs, toasties, roast veg, cookies and cakes as well as chips. Baked potatoes will take about 50 mins. Mine take half that because I microwave for 10 mins first. Not as good as those out of the oven, but ten times better than microwave.

You can buy one gadget that would replace my air fryer and instapot, but I like the flexibility of two drawers.

Thanks- can he heat a ready meal in a plastic tray (tray type that is suitable for oven cook) though as that’s what I wasn’t sure of? That’s the biggest thing that annoys me about him putting the oven on at Min

Yes, anything that can go into the oven can go into the air fryer. However, you're supposed to reduce the temp and cooking time for air fryer, so if your oven plastic tray is supposed to go in at 200deg, I'd reduce that to 190deg.

I don't buy ready meals, but I do batch cook and freeze in pyrex containers, so if you have any of those or baking tins that will fit, they can go in too. On the UK Ninja FB group, people use a lot of silicone stuff, but it's not so good for anything you want crispy. Empty Fray Bentos pie tins seem popular for things like Yorkshire puddings. Most things can just be cooked in the drawers (there are removable crisper trays) too. Very easy to clean.

Thanks think i may go for that one, now onto looking for the best deal

Get rid of Dh? Or make him pay the bloody bills for the oven use for a single ready meal?

will he actually use an air fryer?

I’ve recently got the Ninja AF400 (the larger two-drawer air fryer). Yes, you can cook ready meals in them (as pp said, reduce temperature on packaging). I recently cooked a batch of chilli on the hob and have reheated a portion in the tinfoil tray it was frozen in.

I’ve never had a microwave, so no “pre-cook” for a jacket potato. Did one in the air fryer this week and they were lovely - done in 45 minutes. I also cooked sausages for the first time. The booklet said 8 minutes - I was sceptical and convinced they were going to look a bit anaemic! They were lovely, dark and slightly crisp outside and juicy inside.

Go for it (if you can find one). I couldn’t find one anywhere online for delivery, managed to get one and pick it up from Argos. I’ve used the oven once in the last two weeks and that was for a pizza which wouldn’t fit in the air fryer.

God knows if he will! We’ve been together 28 years so abit drastic to get rid over oven use. He pays the mortgage which finishes next year so I might switch him onto electric and gas bills focus his mind 😂