Will an air fryer help my elderly mum ?

[ooooohnoooooo]

Posting here for traffic (sorry)

My mum is mid 80s and lives alone, miles away. She's pretty independent and likes decent food but is increasingly struggling and using ready meals and stuff we batch cook for her. She's getting more clumsy too. I'm worried for her cooking safety.

Her oven is dangerous and low down - it has a massive heavy shelf that tips up and she can't bend easily.

I'm thinking of getting her a simple air fryer. I don't have one, so know nothing, have googled but still confused

Can anyone advise plse of a model that is

• easy to use (dials instead of electronic display?)
• easy to clean or dishwasher safe
• that can fit a ready meal - and that you can get it out safely when hot. I've seen videos where people create a silver foil sling thing but can't imagine she'd manage that faff.

Thanks vipers (especially the air frying ones 😬).

Any other hints or tips to help keep my mum happy and safe at home are also welcome.

Elderly parents, such a worry 😔

Op air fryers get very hot so might not be good for your mum. What about a small oven that goes on a worktop?? I have one and its brilliant. Has two shelves and a two ring hob. Less bending when its table top height. What about getting meals delivered so she can just put them in the microwave?? Would she consider that option?? Good luck x

I have an air fryer but I’m a complete novice so I may be wrong, but I’m not sure you can cook ready meals in them? Happy to be corrected though. Unless you tip the meal in and use the re-heat function maybe. You can get silicone liners that would be easier to use than the foil things.

We have a cafe near us that deliver hot home cooked meals and a dessert for £6.50, is there anything similar near to your mum? It wouldn’t be much more expensive than a ready meal really.

I would get her something like this - it’s an air fryer but looks more like a table top oven. Check that she has enough worktop space though!
https://www.argos.co.uk/product/5642566?clickPR=plp:2:47

Could you see if theres a local meal delivery service that could supply a hot meal and collect the plates with the next delivery? Can she use a microwave to heat ready meals? No experience of air fryers though sorry, sure someone else will come along with info

Ha in the time it took to type this several others have said the samething 😁

I’m planning to get my parents one. Both getting frail and Mum also bends down to her oven which is getting difficult. I had been looking at a single drawer Ninja one which I cant find on John Lewis now, but we have the 2 drawer one. I’m new to air fryers but you can do chicken, fish, sausages etc. Then your mum could still do ready meals in microwave. I think they are a good idea. They are also easy to use and can put drawers into dishwasher. My dad loves sausages and they cook so easily in air fryer!

I agree elderly parents are a worry!

This is one from john lewis
https://www.johnlewis.com/john-lewis-af9006t-gs-air-fryer-black-silver/p110879127?tmad=c&tmcampid=7&s_share=jlappios_Y29tLmFwcGxlLlVJS2l0LmFjdGl2aXR5Lk1haWw=

You can stick a ready meal in, it would have to be on a silicone tray (if you are batch-cooking, you can freeze them straight in silicone trays) or one of the meals which come in foil trays. Otherwise, I microwave might be better for her.
Otherwise, it’s very easy to use and very safe. We have a basic one from Lidl for under £30. It has a dial for temperature and a dual for a timer and that’s it.

I think a lot if the ready stuff she has is oven only - like Charlie Bingham fish pie, which she serves with fresh veg.

These need an oven not a microwave.

She's got various health issues (quelle surprise!) that make the microwave meals a no-no as they have far too much salt.

Thankyou for suggestions so far. Will look at the mini oven. She has space for that. It could go next to the teapot (which I've just knitted a new tea cosy for 🤓)

This is the one I got for my elderly mother. She found the drawers awkward on mine as she's got arthritis in her hands and wrists.

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Tower-T17038-Rotisserie-Circulation-Technology/dp/B07X2YWQF5

It's got three small shelves and it's much cheaper than heating the whole oven up when she's just cooking for one. The manual one has knobs to turn which she found easier to understand than pressing buttons on the digital one.

Have you looked at the Tower Express Manual Air Fryer? The shelves are as light as a feather, easily adjusted and removed for a quick clean. It’s a mini oven on a work top. Our air fryer is virtually the same as this, is used daily and so has replaced the main oven.
Is your mum happy to microwave her veg with a teaspoon of liquid in a covered dish?
Presumably she’s still okay to use her hob.
Tbh all our cooking is at worktop height and involves lightweight items.
Maybe other posters will recommend appliances such as instapots which have more functions. Your mum might prefer these.

Snap @YorkshirePuddingsGreatestFan !

Agree that an air fryer with shelves would be perfect for her, as she has space.

I gave my mum, 80, a regular basket air fryer and she loves it! If you do opt for this type, I get her disposable greaseproof paper liners so that she rarely has to clean it. They are great for reheating things too.

Basically, if it can go in an oven, it can go in an airfryer, but will be cooked quicker and often has better results.

I have a single tray air fryer that would do oven meals. It has a removable tray that goes under the optional basket so you can use it as an oven without any problems. As well as the oven / air fry settings it has a grill

The only thing I would caution is to use silicon liners rather than putting the trays in the dishwasher. They are officially dishwasher safe but in our dishwasher at least as soon as you get any scratches at all the dishwasher turns them into crevasses.

Ninja Foodi MAX Health Grill & Air Fryer 5.7L with Digital Cooking Probe, 6-in-1, Air Fry, Grill, Bake, Roast and more, Dishwasher Safe Parts, Large Grill Plate, Grey/Silver AG551UK amzn.eu/d/8aZw2VO

My MIL loves hers but if I was buying another one I'd get one that looks more like a table top oven. They look easier to get things in and out of.

@Channellingsophistication we have a mini tabletop oven. Had to buy one when our oven packed up during lockdown and couldn't get anyone out to fix it. Anyway... three years on and we are still using it! lol it's great, and speaking as someone with tendonitis, it's easy to use, heats up a treat, cooks stuff lovely, and is more than enough for us two. Timer, two dials, and that's about it. Oh and it does have a grill as well.

DH bought one for his Mum, he gave her a full run down on how to use it when we went to visit her. She just won’t use it so have a long discussion with her before you buy it. He bought it as a gift and thinking it would help but didn’t check first.

I have a Ninja with a single draw that can be changed to two compartments, it a big one so not appropriate.

Can you link the one you bought please?

It's pretty close to this one - this looks like the new improved version so I am now wondering whether to upgrade! Russell Hobbs 20L Oven 5-in-1 Rapid Hot Air Fryer, Mini Oven, Grill, Toaster, Warming Function, Timer, Energy Saving, Pizza Diameter 30cm, Incs. Frying Basket, Baking Tray & Grill Rack, 26680 : Amazon.co.uk: Home & Kitchen

We have a Sage Smart Oven Pro, which is very easy to use. We don't use a microwave and this is perfect for Charlie Bigham pies etc. About £220 ish I think, you can find it at Lakeland or Amazon. Worth a look at the reviews.

We are old ie non techy and find the controls easy......there is an electronic display but the oven has knobs to turn to set time and temperature, then a button to start. For getting hot dishes out we use silicone gloves.

Our last one broke after a couple of years so we replaced it straight away!

I would definitely look for a mini oven door type one rather than drawers - I have burned myself so many times getting things out of ours, the drawers get really hot and it's bloody awkward sometimes to get things!

Don't put Charlie Bingham in the air fryer. It tells you on the website not to as their tests have produced such varied results that they cannot generate a cooking instruction that guarantees the food is safely cooked.

Also, I would be curious about her ability to learn a new skill at her age. I know some older people have no issues with new things but it's not uncommon for things to completely and utterly baffle them, even though we might think they are easy.

We have this one and it is easy to use. Perfect size .

https://shop.tefal.co.uk/easyfry-xxl-ey801827-dual-zone-air-fryer-grill-1-6kg-black?gl=111yevaj4j4upMQ..&gclid=CjwKCAjw4S3BhAAEiwAA64YhsVwxur3S3wuzP2WZYDsStDdJbA0V30VKKXVdrVPYHLCxXani2KiBoCnXAQAvDDBwE&gclsrc=aw.ds&gbraid=0AAAAADkQdmLdOTydYo6rFGsoQ4_d9hWRy

We used to order the parsley box meals online for my mother in law as she got older theyre really good and just need microwaving .

@ICallPeopleDudeNow thank you!