We have an Air Fryer, a small one, for the two of us and I like it a lot for some of the things I have tried so far. It's great for frozen things like fries and pizza rolls with MUCH less clean up required. Have done chicken in a variety of ways (bone-in pieces, homemade "nuggets", etc.) and those turned out well. Also great for reheating leftover pizza. I will still deep fry anything that is battered.
Oh, and “He Who Dies With The Most [cooking] Toys Wins.”
We had one gifted to us. The basket was small, very high noise level and really didn't cook all that well. We gave it to Goodwill. I'm sure there are better models out there. Our full size convection ovens do a great job and are easier to keep clean.
I have a larger air frier/oven that replaces toaster in the bar table area, it’s too big for the kitchen area. I love this thing and cook something in it every day. Toast / pastry in mornin’
McCain beer battered fries tonight!
Cooking gadgets
Weber Summit Charcoal Grill Center
Weber Summit Platinum D6
Blue Rhino Razor
Dyna-Glo XL Premium Dual Chamber
Camp Chef Somerset IV along with their Artisan Pizza Oven 90
Anova WiFi
Thermometers
Thermapen Mk4 - ThermaQ High Temp Kit - ThermaQ Meathead Kit - ThermaQ WiFi - ThermoWorks IR-GUN-S - ThermoWorks Signals & Billows - ThermoPop -ThermoWorks ProNeedle - ThermoWorks TimeStick Trio x2 - and a Christopher Kimball timer - NO, I do not work for ThermoWorks...I just like their products.
Other useful bits...
KitchenAid 7-qt Pro Line stand mixer
A Black & Decker food processor that I can't seem to murder
A couple of immersion blenders, one a "consumer" model & the other a "high end" Italian thing. Yes, the Italian one is a bit better, but only marginally
Instant Pot Duo Evo Plus 8-qt + accessories like egg-bite & egg holders
All-Clad pots & pans, along with some cast iron...everything from 7" Skookie pans to 8.5qt Dutch ovens
Weber GBS griddle, pizza stone, and wok
Knives range from Mercer to F. Dick to "You spent how much for one knife? One knife?!" LOL
I have an Anova Precision Oven… Having a convection mode, and being smaller than a built it oven, it can pull off the air fryer thing. Being a steam combi though, it’s a lot more versatile than most others.
Is it worth the trouble for reheating the food? Yes, and the steam function can make a huge difference in that.
Air frying seafood? Sure
For trench fries? Indeed
Any other meats? Yep
Any vegetables? The first thing I made were steamed & roasted brussel sprouts. Very tasty.
Is cleaning a pain? Nope. Certainly no worse than a microwave.
Would a large one cook an entire meal for two? Oh yeah.
Do you leave yours on the kitchen counter or store it? It was stored when not in use, but now has a dedicated cart. It’s fairly freaking huge. LOL
Realistically how many times a week would it get used? I’m always looking for new ways to use it.
Give me your best thoughts pro or con. There’s a bit of a learning curve, but no different really than any other appliance. Pros would be the versatility and size compared to similar devices. That’s also one of the cons. It’s a pretty big unit. But not really that much bigger than the “Emeril Lagasse” thing my parents received as a gift The only other con might be that it’s a bit spendy. I got mine when Anova was having a sale.
Just an update. I did some frozen fry’s and they were excellent. Also, I did some premade crab cakes and they came out crispy. Saturday I will give salmon a shot. I’ll keep you posted as to my progress.
Scotch: Current favorite- The Arran (anything by them), Glenmorangie 12yr Lasanta, sherry cask finished. The Balvenie Double Wood, also like Oban 18yr, and The Glenlivet Nadurra (Oloroso sherry cask finished) among others. Neat please.
About meReal name: Aaron
Location: Farwell, Michigan - near Clare (dead center of lower peninsula).
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Healthcare- Licensed & Registered Respiratory Therapist (RRT) at MyMichigan Health, a University of Michigan Health System.
We sure love ours. I consider it far more valuable of an appliance in our household than my sous vide setup. Nearly equal to the importance of a microwave. Not saying anything here that hasn't already been said, but...My boys use it for things that you usually microwave for speed but would rather bake to get crispy, the usual suspects like fries, cheese sticks, egg rolls, precooked wings, frozen nuggets, etc. Even does raw wings decently.
Tip: it even resurrects leftover fries, which before an air fryer were just trashed.
Yep - reheating leftover fries and wings or fried chicken are one of the big uses of our air fryer. I can even reheat a couple slices of pizza in it, but have gone to a skillet with a lid on it for pizza lately.
LSG Adjustable Grill/Smoker, MAK Pellet Grill, Large BGE with Several Attachments from the Ceramic Grill Store, Weber Genesis E335 Gasser, Cast Iron Pans & Griddle, Grill Grates, Mostly Thermoworks Thermometers, Anova SV Stick, BBQ Guru Controller and Fan
This thread reminds me that our oven which we got last year has a Air Fryer Mode. I need to try that more often. We have some Homemade Egg Rolls in the freezer to try it on. We've only tried it a couple times when we first got the oven and it was ok.
jfmorris I am struggling to contain the "what on earth is wrong with your fool of a son-in-law? Who cooks bacon with no grease catch?" comment. Oops, look, it just slipped out. Darnit.
jfmorris This is sounding familiar now that I read it, I think you mentioned one or both of these before. I mean, not everyone can be handy but man some things you should knwo regardless of sex or occupation, like how to change a tire, how to cook, how to do laundry, how to grocery shop, and how to mow, to name a few basics.
Huskee haha I deleted the posts you responded to and sent them in a PM, as I thought better of it. Don't get me started on how badly he mows or edges with a weed eater... he likes to blow all the grass up on the patio, rather than turning the mower to blow into the yard. $%@#@. He has gotten letters from the HOA before about his yard upkeep or lack thereof.
John "JR"
Minnesota/ United States of America
******************************************** Grills/Smokers/Fryers Big Green Egg (Large) X3
Blackstone 36" Outdoor Griddle 4-Burner
Burch Barrel V-1 Karubeque C-60 Kamado Joe Jr. (Black) Lodge L410 Hibachi Pit Barrel Cooker Pit Barrel Cooker 2.0
Pit Barrel PBX
R&V Works FF2-R-ST 4-Gallon Fryer *******************************************. Thermometers
FireBoard (Base Package)
Thermoworks ThermaPen (Red)
Thermoworks MK4 (Orange)
********************************* Accessories Big Green Egg Plate Setter
Benzomatic TS800 High Temp Torch X 2 Bayou Classic 44 qt Stainless Stock Pot
Bayou Classic 35K BTU Burner Eggspander Kit X2 Finex Cat Iron Line FireBoard Drive Lots and Lots of Griswold Cast Iron Grill Grates Joule Water Circulator
KBQ Fire Grate Kick Ash Basket (KAB) X4 Lots of Lodge Cast Iron Husky 6 Drawer BBQ Equipment Cabinet Large Vortex Marlin 1894 .44 Magnum Marquette Castings No. 13 (First Run) Smithey No. 12 Smokeware Chimney Cap X 3 Stargazer No.10, 12 ******************************** Fuel FOGO Priemium Lump Charcoal Kingsford Blue and White B&B Charcoal Apple, Cherry & Oak Log splits for the C-60 ************************************************* Cutlery Buck 119 Special
Cuda 7' Fillet Knife Dexter 12" Brisket Sword Global Shun Wusthof ********** Next Major Purchase Lone Star Grillz 24 X 48 Offset
If you have a convection oven, you already have one. Sabrina brought one over when she moved in......it did not stay. I don't like stuff on my counter. I like an uncluttered kitchen. (I actually think she did as a joke)
I know people love them. But they don't come close to "frying" like a real fryer. I know people generally hate frying and all that goes with it, but air frying is not a deep fryer or even a pan fry solution. IMHO. Plus, like I said above......if you have a convection oven, you already have one. Why get something you already have?
I will take cover before the arrows start flying..........
You are correct IMO… There is NOTHING “fryer” about these. As I said above, my Anova can do the “air fryer” thing…but that’s not why I got it.
It seems that the real difference between a convection oven and an “air fryer” is the size/volume and the fan speed. They tend to be rather small but with outsized fans.
That said, if I need to fry something, by god I’m gonna that oil hot! LOL
Do you have a proper deep fryer Spinaker ? I remember when I first joined the Pit a discussion about propane ones that are for outdoor cooks. Maybe Bayou Classic or something else? 🔥🔥🐿️
100% agreed. Except I don't have a convection oven.... for a year or two I convinced Yvonne that my Vortex on the kettle was the same thing, but she ain't firing that up to reheat leftover fries, haha!
We succumbed to a small basket style 6-8 quart one on Black Friday, and it lives on a shelf in the laundry room when not in use, as we also do not leave appliances out on the kitchen counters... they go in the cabinets, pantry or laundry room.
If not cooking outdoors, I am cooking on the stovetop with my 14" carbon steel wok, 12" CI skillet, or in the oven with my two Lodge CI pizza pans, or two dutch ovens. I've also got a nifty Lodge carbon steel grill pan that rocks for veggies outdoors.
I was inspired by this thread to pull out the air fryer and reheat a big mess of fried pickles my Mother in law dropped off from Drakes at lunch time today. The air fryer did a great job of reheating them to crispy perfection, with a few tosses over 10-15 minutes.
I did salmon today and I liked the result. This air fryer is small and is quiet and efficient. It only fits one item, but the wife and I don’t eat large volumes of food. It is too small to cook two foods, but buying a second one is probably less expensive than a larger one and maybe more efficient due to the small size. Let me get more cooking adventures under my belt before I decide.
I suspect due to the heating elements, if you plug TWO air fryers into the same kitchen circuit, you will trip your breaker. It would be like plugging in two hair dryers on the same bathroom circuit. Something I dealt with for many years with the wife and two daughters, and the house having both full baths wired on the same circuit...
Check the watts/amperage, but if its more than 750-800W each, two will trip the 15A circuit.
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