Air fryer, yay or nay?

[Wbeezer]

Trying to decide whether it's worth buying one and if so are cheaper ones OK?
Mainly for cooking the kind of snacks teenage boys like (safely) without heating the whole oven up eg. chips,fish fingers etc.
Do you like yours?

I love my Phillips. It makes lovely healthy chips, & I use it as a small oven as well. It's over 5 years old.
Don't know about cheaper ones.

I bought the Corosi 4.7 litre one recently. I was dubious about buying one for a long time as I thought they were only really for chicken nuggets, chips etc, but we've barely used our oven since getting it.

Use it almost every day to roast veg, cook fish, make wedges or healthy chips, reheat things better reheated in the oven. And it does do an excellent job of cooking freezer food!

I bought a Ninja one a couple of months ago and I'm really impressed with it - I rarely switch my oven on these days. It's great for "freezer food" like fish fingers, I do lots of veg in it, tofu and halloumi are really good, I do a quick, meat-free roast dinner for one in it with veg, stuffing balls, roast potatoes and frozen Yorkshire pudding. It even does "boiled" eggs.

I bought the family sized tower air fryer and was unsure whether I would use it much but I barely use my oven, my air fryer gets used everyday and it's much faster, cuts cooking time to about half

I love my Ninja with a air fry function and if I didn't think it would cause friction with DP I'd be tempted to buy another- the number of times I've wanted two at once!

The good thing about the Ninja is that as well as airfrying snacks etc you can use it as a saucepan, pressure cooker, and hob.

I've currently got some sourdough dough on a last prove in there (dehydrate mode) to puff up a bit extra before I turn the mode to Bake and cook it without having to move anything and risk depuffing my dough

I've got a small one I bought from Aldi and it is handy for things like that. It also makes really nice wedges et cetera but because it's small you could only do a small portion at a time.

It also takes up quite a lot of space on the worktop, so I keep mine in the utility room and just bring it into the kitchen when I want to use it.

We use ours so much that is just permanently lives on the counter now. Oven chips come out amazing from it, but we use it for all sorts. I'm tempted to buy a second one...

I'd love an airfrier for healthier food but I just don't see how a full meal could be cooked or what the point is when you need to have the oven on as well?

@Plump82

I'd love an airfrier for healthier food but I just don't see how a full meal could be cooked or what the point is when you need to have the oven on as well?

I bought a trivet that sits inside it & doubles the usable area - so quite easy to cook e.g. pork chops & sauté spuds together.

I've got a Cosori 5.5 and it's used nearly every day especially since I've found how to make jacket potatoes in it for my lunch. I now only use the oven if I have a few things to cook at once and I can fill it up. However I use my Cosori for roasting a whole chicken as it cooks it quicker and better than the oven.

I’ve got a small Tower one - I got the small one as I thought it would be something that gets used once and ends up at the back of the cupboard, but I actually use it a lot.

It’s great for home made or frozen chips, and also for veggie sausages, falafel, chicken breasts etc.

Easy to clean too. So it’s a big yay from me.

I love my Ninja Dual airfryer for two ravenous teenage boys. You can get the Max now.

We use ours daily, not just for teenage snacks, but for other meals too. In fact I try not to use the oven.

We got the one with two drawers, I am veggie so it gives us options. A week later though they released the larger Dual Max.

I wouldn't be without it now and it's perfect for the teens.

It is perfect for jacket potatoes (microwave first), roast potatoes, chips etc.

Meat, sausages, burgers, drumsticks, chicken skewers etc

I cook mini veg lasagnes in there using small Pyrex style dishes from B&M. I also made a pasta bake, vegetable pie. Not tried cakes yet.

Pastries, pasties, sausage rolls, hot dogs, croissants etc

It is fast and hopefully more energy efficient. We bought a shelf for each drawer to maximise the space.

@galacticpixels

We use ours so much that is just permanently lives on the counter now. Oven chips come out amazing from it, but we use it for all sorts. I'm tempted to buy a second one...

Glad I'm not alone in considering buying a second.

Oh, OP, forgot, great for Chicago town pizzas. A teen staple!

I bought a small tower one just for me. I think it is brilliant. I no longer have to put the grill or oven on for small things. It is so much cheaper and cleaner to use. I am cooking healthier things because it is so convenient.

DH was so impressed that he has bought the larger Ninja one. Our grill and Oven have not be used since we bought them.

Forgot to say, perhaps the best thing, it is so easy to clean.

Another vote for Corsori and it's used nearly every day. DCs love it as they can cook toasties, pizza bagels, oven food etc
I like it for roasting veg like Sprouts and brocoli.

I love mine. I use it for all sorts, and it's handy for the DC to use as well.

Mine is permanently out on the counter, it's used daily at least once so seemed silly putting it back in the cupboard every time.

I've the ninja dual Airfryer and love having the 2 separate drawers. It cooks perfectly and makes the best home made fries.

I bought one during lockdown.

I don't tend to use it as much but DD loves it. It's good for potato products, but I have also been very impressed with meatballs.

It's basically an oven.

@TroysMammy

I've got a Cosori 5.5 and it's used nearly every day especially since I've found how to make jacket potatoes in it for my lunch. I now only use the oven if I have a few things to cook at once and I can fill it up. However I use my Cosori for roasting a whole chicken as it cooks it quicker and better than the oven.

How do you do the jackets?

@CraftyGin 5 mins in the microwave whilst the air fryer is on preheat at 205c. Then I put it on a foil tray and spray the potato with oil and put it in the air fryer on root veg for 15 mins. Check after this time with a knife because potatoes come in different sizes.

I came on to ask this question.
I've been pondering one for ages, reading stacks of reviews, recipes and comments. Just when I think I've decided I'll see someone say it's shit and I'm back to pondering
Does it have enough of an advantage over other cooking methods to justify a space in my small kitchen?
DH doesn't want one and rolls his eyes when I mention. I do virtually all the cooking so 🤷‍♀️ He was the same about my pressure cooker, I use that so much I bought a second.

A lot depends on what you normally cook. If you don’t fry, roast, grill or bake, you probably would not use it. If you do, it is much, cleaner, cheaper and quicker. I have not used my oven, grill or frying pans since I got one.

A lot of people I know have partners who are not keen. Without exception they have changed their minds after sing it.