Air fryer cooking

karadekoolaid said:
I can make a panful of chips in 20 minutes or so - and here we´re talking up to an HOUR
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The last batch, the one I was happy with, took 25 minutes.

After circling back around to friends and family, I found four main reasons for their use of an air fryer:

1. Perception that it’s faster (and it is on some things - my roast potatoes took 15 minutes versus 45 in the oven)
2. Perception that it’s healthier (the last fries I made used 2 tsp oil)
3. Doesn’t heat up the entire kitchen to use
4. More energy efficient

Everyone I spoke to, though, use it primarily for cooking things from frozen - frozen fries/chips, frozen chicken strips, pizza rolls…all that junk food premade stuff from the frozen foods section.

For me, with respect to fries/chips - I don’t have a dedicated deep fryer. I use a Dutch oven when deep fry.

It’s messy, it uses a lot of oil, and since I deep fry in peanut oil, it’s expensive, and it takes me 20 minutes just to bring the oil up to temp for the first fry, and then they have to rest and go back in for a second fry.

For me, that’s one helluva lot longer than the 25 minutes it took in the air fryer, and a lot less mess, and a lot cheaper as well.
 
TastyReuben your last three reasons are key for me as to why I have and use an Air Fryer.
I do have a small-ish electric deep Fryer for certain dishes, like tonight's supper, Kara 'age Chicken.
We've tried this dish in AF, but both agree the deep fryer is better.
What I like about the deep fryer is it keeps the temperature constant, I don't have to be fiddling with the Gas stovetop/Hob.
The food in my deep fryer isn't greasy either. I don't think that a serving of the Kara 'age is even 2 teaspoons of oil in the consumed food.
 
karadekoolaid said:
So I´ve read this thread with certain bemusement. For me, any kitchen implement I buy has to be something that saves me time and money, and produces something at the end which is more flavourful than the way it was cooked before. I don´t see how an air fryer fits that. I can make a panful of chips in 20 minutes or so - and here we´re talking up to an HOUR...and perhaps they´re not as crispy??
I´m sure you´re all happy with your machines and I´m not criticising your choices - just that I´m wondering why I should take an hour to do something I can make in 1/3 of the time. :eek: :eek:
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I don't have an air fryer, or want one. But, I'm a foodie -- and I like to cook. My sister eats from her freezer, and doesn't like to cook, at least not for herself. She wants easy. Quality of the food is secondary. The air fryer is easy.

For those that don't like the mess of deep frying, check out the Presto Fry Daddy. It is easy to use, and easy to clean. Just plug it in. It also has a lid that you can use to store oil in for a few fry cycles. They cost about 30 bucks US.

I had one for many years. It served me well.

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CD
 
caseydog said:
For those that don't like the mess of deep frying, check out the Presto Fry Daddy.
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We had one of those when I was a kid; two, actually, as I burned through the first one.

I made fries every single weekday, as an afternoon snack, and I’d cram it full. My grandad used to make fun of me, because he’d see me and ask what I’d eaten that day, or if we were going somewhere, he’d ask what I wanted, and then in a kind of crappy, mocking drawl, he’d say, “ Le’ me guessss…fraaaaanch fries!” :laugh:

The number 1 reason I don’t have a dedicated deep fryer now is I know I’d be eating French fries (and anything else I could deep fry) every couple of days. As it stands now, because deep frying is such a PITA, I make them maybe twice a year.

I can already feel that changing with the air fryer, because I’m planning on fries again tomorrow. :laugh:
 
TastyReuben in Hawaii, we fry foods outside, sounds strange I know, but it keeps the mess and smell out of the house.
In fact, I just came back in side (where it's a heck of alot cooler) after deep frying our supper.
Of course I don't do this if it's raining or snowing, but it's much easier.

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This was my set-up until I found me a dedicated outside table for deep frying, but I degrees, sorry ...
 
I'll stick with deep frying considering I do it so rarely and make it a treat for things like fish and chips, breaded chicken, fries and calamari. Plus I'm really trying to keep sugar to a bare minimum in my blood so potatoes are out except for the odd treat, cheers.
 
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TastyReuben said:
I found four main reasons for their use of an air fryer:

1. Perception that it’s faster (and it is on some things - my roast potatoes took 15 minutes versus 45 in the oven)
2. Perception that it’s healthier (the last fries I made used 2 tsp oil)
3. Doesn’t heat up the entire kitchen to use
4. More energy efficient
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I have two further reasons:

5. Cleaner, i.e. it doesn't splash oil/fat all over the hob and backsplash.
6. Disposal of used oil is not a problem. In town there are a number of "collectors" of old oil for recycling but out here in the village the recycling guys don't want it.

TastyReuben said:
Everyone I spoke to, though, use it primarily for cooking things from frozen - frozen fries/chips, frozen chicken strips, pizza rolls…all that junk food premade stuff from the frozen foods section.
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With the exception of the experiments that I tried for the best way to cook chips, I haven't used mine for cooking frozen foods, in fact, we don't buy frozen ready made meals/foods from the superstore.
 
Yorky said:
With the exception of the experiments that I tried for the best way to cook chips, I haven't used mine for cooking frozen foods
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I’m trying some thin boneless pork loin chops in it today…with fries.
 
Air fryer bacon test, 350F for 12 minutes:

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Of the four methods I’ve used for cooking bacon, this falls in the middle; better than the microwave, on par with the skillet, not as good as the oven.
 
TastyReuben said:
Air fryer bacon test, 350F for 12 minutes:

Of the four methods I’ve used for cooking bacon, this falls in the middle; better than the microwave, on par with the skillet, not as good as the oven.
Click to expand...

A friend of mine cooks bacon in the air fryer. He puts a slice of bread underneath the cooking basket to soak up the bacon fat. I suppose that you could put a slice in the cooking basket.
 
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