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AIBU?

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Original poster

Husband unreasonable air fryer demands

223 replies

Anotherdayanotherairfryer · 17/08/2023 20:41

So. Can anyone solve an argument …
husband is demanding a ‘ ninja foodie flex drawer’ becuase he thinks it will be a good investment. on the other hand I think it’s a waste of money….. I mean we can afford it … but it feels extreme, we have an oven already ! Any one say it’s a life changer … if not I’m not interested !

OP posts:
Seasidechippylover · 18/08/2023 00:00

You'll get more benefit from a 15 in 1 than a Flexi drawer. Far more versatile. Pressure cooker is a godsend

SmellyGeggsCat · 18/08/2023 00:06

I always come away from any sort of air fryer chat with the feeling that using my conventional oven is some sort of sinful indulgence.

Dinnerisburnt · 18/08/2023 00:09

I got a cheap one from Costco about 9 months ago as I was sceptical about them and didn’t want to spend a lot of money. My husband said it would end up in the shed like the bread maker and soda stream. Here we are now, everyone in my house uses the airfryer, it’s a game changer and much loved 😁.

StupidHip · 18/08/2023 00:21

I've got the £30 airfryer from Lidl and I use it a lot. Actually technically DS1 has it, I bought it for his birthday 😆

Laserbeam24 · 18/08/2023 02:11

I have two ninjas, the grill and the 9-1. I moved into my house 16 months ago and have NEVER used the oven. The hobs, yes, but never the oven. Trust me, you won't look back!

Q2C4 · 18/08/2023 02:12

PinkSparklyPussyCat · 17/08/2023 21:34

We've got a Ninja and it's a complete waste of money and I regret buying it. Our kitchen is too small to have it out all the time and the stupid thing is too heavy to lug in and out of the cupboard each time so it never gets used. I think it'll be going to the dump next time DH goes.

Sounds like OP's DH will take it off your hands!!

JudgeJ · 18/08/2023 02:19

Silvered · 17/08/2023 20:56

I was very sceptical about the hype but DH talked me into it. We only use our oven for when we have pizza - and that's only because pizza won't fit in the air fryer!!

It's so much quicker.

I have a cheap and cheerful one, used the oven once since January, for a big family lasagne, if I want a pizza, I'm on my own now, I cut it into 6 pieces, cook two, eat as the next two are in and so on.
I'm not a gadget person but this has been amazing,

DiscoBeat · 18/08/2023 02:26

My brother has one and loves it. It's that he's consulted you, most people would just go ahead and buy it anyway!

GrumpyOldCrone · 18/08/2023 02:37

Twillow · 17/08/2023 21:08

Hardly use the oven anymore. Air fryers are quicker, more efficient, less energy cost! Our teenage kids are self-sufficient using it, whereas I'd hate them to come in late at night and use the actual oven...

Haven’t read the full thread, but this caught my attention. Not long ago, my DD (aged 20) tiptoed in at 4am and put a pizza in the oven. And promptly fell asleep. An hour later she woke up, took the blackened pizza out of the oven, and put it in the bin. A few minutes after that, the carbon monoxide alarm woke everyone up. It finally stopped when I figured out what the problem was and took the bin out. Maybe an air fryer could avoid a repeat of that?

marshmallowfinder · 18/08/2023 03:27

PinkSparklyPussyCat · 17/08/2023 21:34

We've got a Ninja and it's a complete waste of money and I regret buying it. Our kitchen is too small to have it out all the time and the stupid thing is too heavy to lug in and out of the cupboard each time so it never gets used. I think it'll be going to the dump next time DH goes.

I store my air fryer in my now redundant oven! I deliberately chose one that wasn't too high, so I could do this!

WiddlinDiddlin · 18/08/2023 03:31

Yes, because an airfryer is set to a timer (which is super easy to use), the chances of putting something in then falling asleep is low (its there because you could say, put a piece of bread in and then set it to roast for an hour but that is highly unlikely, it's just now how they're used compared to an oven or grill).

I really was reluctant, I thought they were for doing slightly faster and somewhat substandard chips and as I only bother with chips if they're from the deep fat fryer, I couldn't see the point.

However they've come on a long way, and they're not a replacement or substitute for a deep fat fryer, that is a huge misconception.

They are a smaller, much more efficient convection oven, with some extra features, including easy to work and fairly intuitive pre-set programs and timer/heat settings.

It does take a bit of time to get your head round how to cook your usual things in them, but thats really the same with any major gadget change.

BarbaraofSeville · 18/08/2023 04:09

Not sure it particularly does anything a decent oven can’t, and not sure how long it would take to recoup the initial outlay in saved energy costs given the average oven costs about 20p an hour to run or something

Ovens probably cost more like £1 an hour, while it's heating up anyway. Air fryers cost half that, but they're also much quicker, and you don't have to watch them like you do a grill and they turn off at the end of a cycle so you don't have to worry about being present immediately to check/turn off to stop things burning, you can happily get on with something else knowing that it's OK to come back 5/10 mins after the end of the programme and your food won't be burnt.

We have 2 ovens (we got them when we had the kitchen done a few years ago and got two single built in ovens with grills so we could grill and oven at the same time) and I'm seriously thinking about taking one of them out and putting the air fryer in the space as we've used one occasionally (for pizza and cheese on toast) and can't see how we'll ever need 2 ovens at the same time again.

GarlicGrace · 18/08/2023 04:32

@Dixiechickonhols, can you fit a chicken in that? I'd make frequent use of the grill thingy, but can't justify that sort of expense unless it truly replaces an oven.

WiddlinDiddlin · 18/08/2023 04:59

You could definitely fit a decent sized chicken in my instant pot air fryer. Our drawer style airfryer has two drawers, so no you wouldn't, but some of the larger single drawer versions (so same size as mine but one big drawer rather than two smaller ones) yes, absolutely.

I particularly like the sync function though on the dual drawer - I can load up both sides, tell each what to do and leave it and both will be ready at the same time. Great if I want roasted veg from scratch, with something from the freezer.

We've batch cooked loads in the instant pot - casseroles, mince based stuff, soups - and then frozen in ovenproof/microwave proof dishes so we can defrost or cook from frozen, add spaghetti, mash, etc..

So even though they are great for frozen spud/quorn thing type meals, we're actually doing a lot more scratch cooking, batch cooking and eating far better as a result.

Lovewinemorethanhusband · 18/08/2023 18:02

I have 3 different air fryers all ninjas, I very very rarely use my oven now the ninjas are quicker and fit everything in.

Childhoodisnkthebesttime · 18/08/2023 18:18

@FannythePinkFlamingo @PinkSparklyPussyCat where are you based I'm desperate for an air fryer but can't afford it!

HarrietPoole · 18/08/2023 18:22

Wenfy · 17/08/2023 20:45

Depends what you eat already. If you eat a lot of meat, processed food, or fried food then get it as it will definitely save you time and money. If, however, you mostly bake from scratch then it’s not really a decent subsitute.

Have to disagree with this one - we cook from scratch and use our air fryer on a pretty much daily basis, scones, cakes, pie - all in there. Could do bread if it was a small loaf. Barely use the oven, Buy it: you won't regret it.

Dixiechickonhols · 18/08/2023 18:29

GarlicGrace · 18/08/2023 04:32

@Dixiechickonhols, can you fit a chicken in that? I'd make frequent use of the grill thingy, but can't justify that sort of expense unless it truly replaces an oven.

Yes it fits a chicken or joint of meat. You stick probe in select how done you need and leave it to it.

Thisisnotreallymyname · 18/08/2023 18:31

Fantastic gadget ! Basically a small oven, but uses less electric as you are heating a much much smaller space.
I’ve got a Corsori and I love it !

Thoughtful2355 · 18/08/2023 18:32

I never use an oven anymore just my dual airfryer

SuperBurgers · 18/08/2023 18:33

Anotherdayanotherairfryer · 17/08/2023 20:41

So. Can anyone solve an argument …
husband is demanding a ‘ ninja foodie flex drawer’ becuase he thinks it will be a good investment. on the other hand I think it’s a waste of money….. I mean we can afford it … but it feels extreme, we have an oven already ! Any one say it’s a life changer … if not I’m not interested !

The chips are so good. I hate freezer chips and since we got given our ninja by MIL, I've not done them in the oven since! I was so anti air fryer, like all new gadgets that'll gather dust, but have to admit it has its place!

Elvisismycat · 18/08/2023 18:34

ToxicPositivity · 17/08/2023 20:48

Dh bought the ninja foodie max, I think it is. It's a pain in the arse. Takes up the only decent prep area in the kitchen. We're a family of 6, cannot cook for 6 in it unless it's soup etc so not saving time or effort at all. I burn myself in the fecker everytime, granted I do have a disability related to my hands and I do tend to burn them on the oven but certainly not every time.

I hear you!!
Had ours for a year and I've only used it to fry chips and we hardly eat bloody chips!! Biggest waste of money for us.

SuperBurgers · 18/08/2023 18:34

Also, chips are done in 15 mins. Our oven was a solid 35/40 and they weren't even particular good after that, just technically cooked.

wherestheweightlosspill · 18/08/2023 18:36

What am I doing wrong? It's exactly what DH said it would be when I bought it, a bulky white elephant taking up space on the counter.. I had high hopes, looked up loads of recipes but it's too small to do enough of any one thing for the whole family at the same time, isn't any quicker than using the oven for things like oven chips, and when you factor in the small capacity, meaning you'd have to run the air fryer twice, the oven is quicker. I got a Tower one, it was about £120 so not top of the range, but not cheap, but just a bit pointless.
Sounds like all of you have really big ones (if they can fit a chicken for example)

Exdonkeylover · 18/08/2023 18:46

I love my air fryer, but don't really see why Ninja is so good really. Friend has one, only advantage I see is 2 drawers, but I live alone and so I'm good with my standard one!