To think that an air fryer is only useful if you don't already cook much?

[MyOldCaravan]

Everyone seems to have one and raves about them. But I honestly can't see the benefit, other than cooking things a bit quicker

I already have a microwave/combi oven, gas hob, slow cooker.

For things that need heating and crisping, eg croissants there's a setting on the combi oven that does that. All veg cooked in a steamer on the hob.

Don't tend to eat chicken nuggets/oven chips etc much.

So why would I need one?

My kids call them caterpillar potatoes 🤣

If an air fryer is the same as a mini oven, why/how does it cook things quicker?

I imagine it's because it's far, far smaller and thus the heat is more concentrated.

I bought one, due to the pressure of FOMO! It felt like everyone was raving about this must-have item and my life would be changed forever. I had it 2 days and spent all that time trying to find something to cook in it that fitted with our likes and usual foods. Couldn’t find anything so took it back for a refund. It was also massive and unsightly.

Have recently bought a ninja multi oven and I must say I'm a convert. Quick, multifunctional and one massive advantage is it is really easy to clean. We've hardly used the oven we bought it. There are only 2 of us though, might not be as useful for large numbers, hopefully someone with a big family can tell you

There's two of us. DP uses it almost every night - roast chicken, potatoes, veg - all the things where somebody else could be paying to heat up 75l of air for 20 minutes to preheat, then cook whatever it is.

There's more than could be done with it when we have time, but the temperature is reliable, it's easier to clean, things can be cooked at the same time on different temperatures and synchronised to be ready at exactly the same moment, it's quicker and cheaper to run and when your main oven isn't working, it doesn't cost you another £150 on top of the cost of purchase for a sparks to hardwire it safely or a gas safe engineer to plumb it in legally.

You couldn't find anything at all to cook in a small oven?

We just use ours for sausage, chips, breaded stuff like fishfingers etc, it does tend to set the smoke detector off which is a bit annoying, there are just two of us but I wouldn't be bothered doing a family meal with it, its an extra and gets used as such like the microwave.

It's similar to buying a microwave really and a similar size, not an alternative to a proper oven and hob, people mainly use them as they are a bit cheaper to run, no one bothered with them much when energy was cheaper, depends really on your circumstances. If you are not putting the heating on and using one of these allows you to afford a bit of heating then they are a good thing for some.

I didn't think I'd use it as much as I do but I used my oven for the first time since November the other day cooking a pizza that wouldn't fit in the AF. The biggest thing for me is the no pre heating the oven and if I'm busy it keeps the food warm without burning it. It's been a god send! I use that, the slow cooker and the hob.

What do you eat? The air fryers can cook so much. Ideal when you’re doing different activities and eating at different times

I wasn't keen, everyone complained about the potatoes and even though I bought a large one it wasn't big enough for the chicken.

We use the slow cooker a fair amount.

I don't have one as not really got the space and I don't think we'd get huge use of it tbh, I always tend to fill the oven if I'm using it but majority of the time I'm cooking on the hob.
It does irritate me though when people are worrying about CoL and someone suggests buying a £300 airfryer so they don't have to use their oven... feel the same when people suggest log burners, and I do have one of those.

The Foodi is good if you don't want BPA which the Tower definitely has. However, it is bulky and the grill plate is only worth using for a large amount of food as it is a pain to wash.

Actually no. I've used a combi microwave for years and years. Just replaced it for a new one that has an additional air fryer setting and also a steamer function. I don't necessarily need the latter - steamer insets work just fine - but looking forward to exploring the former.

I don’t have one but most people I know that do use them as healthier way of cooking and speed

I like them for not having to wait for the oven to heat up - useful when you’re in a rush

Ours cost under £50.

If you always fill the oven, you're not the target market, but they're great if you're often cooking for one or two people, so smaller households, or families where people are eating at different times.

For us, the cost saving is an added bonus. It's quicker and you don't have to watch it like you would a grill or pan. I tend to eat little and often and don't really eat cold food, so if I make something like a pizza, I'll do it in the oven, eat half of it, then a few hours later, put a slice in the air fryer for 5 mins and it's heated up nicer than the microwave and done before the oven or grill would have even heated up.

It's also good if you want to do a couple of part baked rolls. Again, cooked before the main oven would have even heated up.

Comes in extremely handy cooking for four or five people. Had mine for about 5 years and I love it

Things I use my air fryer for,
Eggs 6/7 minutes gives perfect dippy eggs.
Chicken breast fillets in whatever spice coating, about 2/3rd the time of the grill.
Perfect steal with very little butter.
Softening garlic for making a confident about half the time of using the oven
Roast potatoes, half the time of using the oven.
But yes also useful for "crap food" but it's useful when DD won't eat the meal I've made. 10 minutes and a meal she does approve of appears.

I bought the Ninja Dual Zone airfryer, I wish I had bought one of the multi cooker Ninjas instead so I could saute & slow cook as well. I'm giving mine to ds when he gets somewhere to live.

@Fuckityfuckfuck123 how do you cook eggs in the air fryer? Haven’t tried that yet.

Love our air fryer we rarely use the oven now.