Air Fryer

[Ikeasucks]

Aibu to buy another kitchen gadget they might sit unused? Why should i buy one and which one?

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MNHQ

We resisted for the longest time then we acquired one free. We love it.
We use it every day. Our only problem is it’s too small and we are only a family of 3 so, if you are getting one, get the biggest.

cooking time is quicker and electricity use is a lot less than turning on the oven. It’s also really easy to clean compared to oven trays.

(using an old name as a friend knows I'm posting this)

@LetMeInYourWindow

you can come in my door, much easier!

I have wine, spirits & ice pops!!

what I don't have (yet) is an air fryer, hence me stalking threads!!!

your post caught my eye 'easy to clean'. Which one do you have?

@Ikeasucks (it doesn't!)

I have no idea what to buy & there are FAR too many options.

even with all the hype, I didn't want one. Not at all interested. I never use 'gadgets' or 'appliances' so I just swerve buying them. The only thing making me consider one now is the waste of electricity to heat the whole oven to cook a few sausages or roast a few veg.

I live alone, I'm vegetarian & I eat very low carb (so won't be cooking chips!! Sadly).

im thinking

• Vegetarian sausages
• marinated tofu
• roast vegetable

not sure if I could put raw veg, cheese/cream in & mix it up & it turn it into veg in a cheese sauce or would I need to do them separately.

I suppose I could do a curry in it? But I don't usually bother making curry now anyway 🤣

I hate cooking, so I won't be whipping up any masterpieces, nor will I be baking.

it seems an expense & big item of clutter just to save me putting on the 'big oven' to cook some sausages....

gah... help....

Following with interest....DH got it into his head the other week that it would be good to get one. We ummmed and ahhhed - pros we were thinking of the saving electricity versus heating the whole oven, and speed and ease of doing baked / roasted things versus cons it would take a lot of worktop space and the reality is we don't eat fried food very much at all, thinking we would use it for just oven food but wondering whether we would get much use in reality.

If you have one, what do you use it for / do you get a lot of use out of it / find it useful?

Our first one was tower brand, piece of crap, it packed in after two months. Replaced with a ninja. Was more expensive but a far more robust appliance n air fryer will save heaps on electricity usage. 😁

I live on my own, and have a Vortex Mini. It measures 28.6 × 22.9 × 29.8 cm, so doesn't take up a lot of space. You can cook anything that fits, that you would fry or oven bake. It cooks hotter and faster than an oven, so I drop the temperature by 20 degrees and the time by up to 10 minutes. After cooking, I just put hot soapy water in the drawer and give it a quick wipe out.
BTW, Robert Dyas have them for £40 at the moment.

Absolutely love mine.

Might be a silly question but how do you know how long to cook things?

Think of it as a tiny oven that cooks quicker and costs less to use.

I have one of those.

I liked it so much I bought the bigger size of the same make and one for each of my daughters.

Mine is from Qvc, you can use it and return if no good for you. There's a button that allocates the cooking time e.g. press button for chicken, prawns etc.

I got the small one. It's cooking right now. A lifesaver in a boiling flat as I don't have to turn the oven on, but also I imagine it will save a lot of leccy.

Very easy to clean, cooks quickly. You can't make a curry in it but I think QVC have other products that do the air fry bit and more.

They are great but pay for a decent one. We had a cheap one and it was crap. We now have a Ninja one and love it. Use it all the time.

@Hurstlandshome with the Ninja ones, the theory is 10 degrees lower then the oven and 10% less time. I find it even quicker then that to be fair. You get used to it quickly. We also have the XL grill which air fries (as well as bakes & grills), it has a built in probe that tells you when it’s cooked and switches off.

I utterly love mine, and it's a cheap £50 one.
Just cooking for me though, but it does all I need it to do.

We have the Ninja XL grill, it air fries, bakes, grills & reheats. I can count on one hand how many times I’ve have the oven on since I got it. We do pretty much everything in it. The only thing that goes in the oven is pizza as it doesn’t fit in the Ninja. (We also have the 14 in 1 so use them both as the same time).

Trust me, it will not go unused if you get a decent one, not the cheap tiny ones. I absolutely love mine and cook almost everything in it. It’s so much quicker and easy to use. I have a ninja foodi which is worth it to me but there are cheaper alternatives that are still good. Go for it 🤣

We have an instapot, gave our kids our slow cooker and air fryer as the insta does everything, hardly ever use the cooker and in this hot weather I have it plugged in the utility while I food prep in the kitchen.
really good purchase.

Love mine too. Have the Ninja Foodi dual one. It lives in the utility room and it’s so much easier than heating up the entire oven for small things. Just thinking back over the last week and I’ve used it at least 5 times.

I absolutely love mine, hardly use the oven any more! it’s so quick and food tastes so much better especially joints of meat. I’ve got the ninja airfryer and it’s so easy to clean.

We use ours for all sorts. It cooks very quickly. Nice crispy jacket potatoes in 30 mins, cheese on toast takes 2 mins. Cheesy garlic bread took 5 mins last night.

All the usual crispy beige food takes 10-15 mins depending on what it is. So around 5-10 minutes quicker than the oven.

The name is a bit misleading, as it doesn't fry things, it's really a mini fan oven.
I've got a Phillips, and it seems well made and robust.

Although I live alone, I got the 2/3 person size, as all the reviews mentioned that the stated capacity was over optimistic, and I thought the larger size would give me more options for possible meals.

Things I've found it very good for include cauliflower cheese, sausages, pasta bakes, garlic bread, tempura prawns, baked goods eg croissants, quiche, sausage rolls, chicken pie, samosas etc.

Something that didn't work was a Chinese crispy duck as it didn't fit in!

I have an instant pot duo crisp (so air fryer and pressure cooker in one). Had it almost two years and it gets used most days! So much quicker to do food - lovely chips from scratch in 20 minutes! Crispy bacon, chicken, kids waffles and breaded whatever’s..I also do meals in the pressure cooker side like risotto, Mac and cheese. All delicious and quick. I wouldn’t be without mine. Also cleanliness wise - it comes with a stainless steel pot and inner basket which are easily cleaned in the sink or in the dishwasher. The only thing I did that made it easier was cut a mesh pizza tray to size for the inner basket, easier to lift out the food and catch sticky bits.

I would suggest a Ninja. We bought one whilst we had a makeshift kitchen while ours was getting renovated.

I wouldn't be without it. Its a pressure cooker, air fryer, grill, oven, sauté and more.

It's honestly the best gadget I've ever bought.

Got one a couple of months ago and haven't used the oven since!

The only thing I use my oven for is pizza, as they don't fit in the air fryer.

I have a cosori 5.5l. I've cooked bacon, sausages, chicken pieces, whole chicken, gammon joint, falafels, chips, roast potatoes, fish, fish cakes and croissants. Not all at the same time. I've also reheated chip shop chips.

The one person ones look stupidly tiny.
Mine apparently is for a family of four, so assuming 2 adults, 2 younger kids, eh no.
It's generous for one and could do two but that's it, unless you are The Borrowers