[Atunah]

So I am wondering if any of you own a Air Fryer. I want one, but I don't even know where to start looking or what to look for. There are so many brands out there I never heard off and the price ranges are all over the place. I am leaning to just go with the Phillips analog one
https://www.amazon.com/Philips-HD9220-28-Airfryer-2-75qt/dp/B01M8HZLZ3/

But I am not sure. So if you have one, what do you like about it and if you had to make the choice again, what the the things you'd look for now after using one. What regrets etc.

I want to stay at $100, not much above that. I cook for 2, but I'd like to be able to make different things at once, like 2 complete meals. The Philips you can purchase some rack that than extends the area, or some such thing. Its a bit confusing.

 

[crebel]

I received an air fryer about that size for Xmas a couple of years ago.  It became my least used small appliance very quickly and made its way to the garage sale box during some cleaning/organizing frenzy in the last year.

I found it okay for "frying" ready-made mostly frozen, already cooked-and-just-need-heating-and-crisping stuff, like chicken nuggets, fish sticks, tater tots, etc. for the grandkids.  I was not impressed with the method for "cooking".  In my opinion it's just as easy to turn on the oven for that type of use.  There was no time saving to use the the air fryer vs the oven and my electric oven is sealed well enough that it doesn't heat up my kitchen.

So I am not an air fryer cheerleader, but maybe I didn't try often or hard enough to use it as an alternate.  It's rare for us to deep fry anything, but I did try some tempura vegetables in it a couple of times, and one time some fried chicken.  Things that needed a batter coating did not turn out well ...

Hopefully someone that likes an air fryer better than I did can give you different opinion.

 

[kathc2]

So I am wondering if any of you own a Air Fryer.

I originally had a Ninja Air Fryer, and I loved and adored it. I passed it down to my son and his wife and they love and adore it. I upgraded to the Ninja Foodi combination air fryer and pressure cooker. I love it, too, but maybe a little less than the Ninja Air Fryer.

I now only cook steaks in the air fryer. I cook canned biscuits and cinnamon rolls in it too. Plus typically fried foods. And hamburgers in the air fryer are incredibly good! Chicken Breasts. Pork Chops. You name it, it's great.

So if you only want an air fryer, definitely go with the Ninja Air Fryer. If you think you'd like a pressure cooker too, then go for the Foodi air fryer/pressure cooker. Plus if you can buy kitchen appliances at Bed Bath and Beyond, they generally have 20% off coupons, so you can get it for a great price

 

[Atunah]

Thanks guys.

crebel. Yeah, it happens sometimes with certain appliances. I usually do a lot of research first. Obsessively. I would use it I am sure. It is so hot here many months of the year and since I only cook for 2, I think at times putting like 4 bicuits, or 2 chicken breasts in the oven to cook seems a bit overkill. I make larger batches of stuff when I use my instant pot. I never had a regular fryer, so I can't compare what that would taste like to use one of those. Too messy for me anyway. But I look at the air fryer as a small compact convection oven. I always had a small extra toaster oven on the counter in the apartment. We used that a lot more than the big oven. Course that stove then was from 1985. The one i have now is nicer, but still don't need it for smaller portions.
I also am going back on the keto bus I fell off. And my husband likes a few fries with his meal, home cut ones. So its one potato. I think it would be handy for those things. Or at least I hope so.

kathc2 I am leaning away from the philips because of the complaints of cleaning the wire basket. Some reviewers even said they got a ninja instead and it does look good. I would just need the air fryer one, already have the instant pot so wouldn't need another pressure cooker. If I didn't have one already, that would be a great deal. Get 2 in one.
How big is the ninja air fryer? I mean size wise. Its hard to find any size info on amazon. I'd keep it in my corner counter so that I would use it more often. Some protein, some veggies and voila, meal. I'd get the stacking accessory with it to make layers on top of each other.
I was waffling between ninja and the Dash model. But you pushed me over to the ninja. For now. .

I waffle a lot before I make purchases like this. I am also waiting a bit to see if there will finally be a belated prime day. So a good sale. Wonder if we get one this year or if they just roll it into black friday.

Oh and I got one of those electric skillets to use outside and its been a great purchase too. I just sit it on my table, plug it in, cook, eat, clean it up, put it back on the rack. I made smash burgers 2 days ago in it with onions and zuccini sticks all in one pan. And yesterday I made eggroll in a bowl. Works just as I wanted it too. No fat splattering in my kitchen, no smoke and super fast heat up so lot less time. I might do that with the air fryer too, if its light enough to carry a few feet. I also have a george foreman grill on a stand with cover that always sits outside. I do have the cord inside. But I like cooking outside here. And don't always need the charcoal grill.

Next I'll be making some nice goulash in my skillet outside. That cooks for hours and I don't want all that paprika cooking off into the air and on the walls and cabinets.

 

[Jane917]

Atunah, do you have an Instant Pot? Both Instant Pot and Mealthy make an air fryer lid that goes with the appliance you already might have. I have the Mealthy lid that goes with my IP. I also am on my second air fryer. The first was a Phillips, which worked well for a couple of years, then didn't. Now I have one that was about $70 from Target. I am not even sure of the brand, but I am sure I must have seen it recommended somewhere. It is great for wings, egg rolls, roasting veggies, even steak. I find it a very useful appliance. The basket goes in the dishwasher and is not a pain to clean. There are excellent websites devoted to cooking with the air fryer.

 

[kathc2]

How big is the ninja air fryer? I mean size wise. Its hard to find any size info on amazon. I'd keep it in my corner counter so that I would use it more often. Some protein, some veggies and voila, meal. I'd get the stacking accessory with it to make layers on top of each other.
I was waffling between ninja and the Dash model. But you pushed me over to the ninja. For now. .

I got the 4 quart size (there are at least 2 sizes), if I were buying one today I'd try the 5.5 for the larger basket size. There was nothing I didn't like about the 4.4 though.

I stopped using my gas grill, George Foreman and the oil fryer after getting the air fryer. There is very little that doesn't cook easier, cleaner or tastier in the air fryer. Definitely get the stacker. I use mine all the time.

I wasn't really a cook before getting the Ninja. I just fell in love with it And French fries are so good in it -- even reheating them is delicious.

The secret to the air fryer is that you pre-heat for 3 minutes every single time you use it. Pre-heating is a must. Food doesn't turn out as good without preheating.

 

[crebel]

I went to storage to see what brand I have set aside - it is a Black and Decker and pretty close to identical in size, shape, features of the Phillips.  I'd say it takes the same amount of counter/storage space as the Instant Pot.

I do agree with Jane, if I wanted to try air frying again I would get the Instant Pot or Melthi attachment since the IP is in use multiple times a week and already has a place of honor in my kitchen. 

 

[Atunah]

Hmm. I do have the instant pot, but I don't keep it on the counter. I drag it in and out of my pantry where I have a shelf with those things. IP, slow cookers, electric griddle. Not sure if that lid works as good as a dedicated air fryer though. I'll have to research that.

Had a quick look didn't find a Mealthy lid. I did see the instant pot brand one that is $79 and some other brand for $60.
And I see that in addition to the IP lid, one needs some accessory kit that fits inside the pot, or else the food is too far away from the lid. And I can't even find a listing for that.

 

[crebel]

Here is a link to a post from mlewis in the IP recipe thread with the Amazon link to the mealthy lid. It looks like everything you need to work with an Instant Pot comes with it. https://www.kboards.com/index.php/topic,303587.msg3822833.html#msg3822833

 

[Atunah]

Thanks for that link crebel.

I think I'll get a dedicated air fryer though. Just reading up on the things. I am now leaning towards the Cosori due to reviews and reddit air fryer forum.
https://www.amazon.com/COSORI-Electric-Reminder-Touchscreen-Certified/dp/B07GJBBGHG

I like that the basket is actually larger than the ninja, but the actual dimensions of the fryer itself are smaller. So it won't take up as much space.

i am waiting for the sales though in any case. Depending on that, I might go either directions. There have to be some sales coming. Some bought that corsori for $79 in a lightning deal.

They also give 2 year warranty if you register device online so that I like too. See the manufacter commenting on reviews and so on.

 

[loonlover]

One of the things I recently discovered that cooks excellently in an air fryer is sausage, both links and patties. No spattering on the stove top, and you don't have to keep turning the sausage. Chicken tenders, wings, and legs do well also. There are things that work better for me to fix in the air fryer rather than using the big oven. I've done large bone-in chicken breasts in it that I like the texture better than when fixed in the Instant Pot. We do home made french fries occasionally as well as using it for heating egg rolls and other assorted frozen items. On the rare occasion that there are leftover fries, chicken tenders, etc. from a restaurant, it heats them well. Also, left over pizza.

I would probably be willing to do without the air fryer more than some of my small appliances, but it does prepare some things better than trying to heat in an oven. The brownies I made in it were good; I just don't fix things like that more than a couple times a year. But, by making the size batch it made, we couldn't over indulge quite as much.

Don't really have a recommendation for brand. The one I have is a Chefman; saw it recommended on a blog, the price was acceptable, and when I bought it reviews could be trusted a little more than today, so I went for it.

 

[Atunah]

I make a lot of sausage. Bavarian and all that.  And yes, there is always a lot of splatter. Yes, skin on bone in chicken pieces, love those too. We don't eat much of the precooked frozen stuff like nuggets or some such things.

I am in no hurry so I'll wait for sales and see which one pops up. I might change my mind by then who knows. I feel so restless lately. And I waffle and question everything. "Indecision Central" is my middle name at the moment. 

 

[Sandpiper]

But I look at the air fryer as a small compact convection oven.

That's exactly how I use my air fryer -- as a small convection oven. It allows me to buy frozen prepared foods and "cook / bake" them in the air fryer / convection oven. I got an inexpensive basket style oven. Works very well for my purposes. I'm only cooking for one -- me. At first I tried preparing raw meat from scratch in it, but that was more work than I wanted. I am very happy with my choice.

I don't remember how to make a link. This is it my Secura air fryer. It comes in three sizes. I got the middle 4.2 qt size. You definitely wouldn't want the small size. Maybe the largest.

https://smile.amazon.com/gp/product/B01K1QQ2QI/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_search_asin_title?ie=UTF8&psc=1

 

[Atunah]

I agree Sandpiper, size does matter on these guys. I ended up buying the Cosori, but not the digital one, the one with the big knobs so only set temp and timer counts down. I don't need to have presets and when I cook, its hard anyway to use these touchscreens. I have a bad enough time on my phone, imaginging cooking, wet fingers and those things will never work. Anyway I wanted easy. I use my echo still for timer as most stuff is better flipped halfway so I have to stop it anyway. No advantage I can see in digital. Anywho, I made chicken drumsticks, roasted brussel sprouts, bacon, toasted some keto bread. All came out delish and its really easy to use.

This morning I made breakfast calzone. Browned some breakfast pork, half a pound, scrambled 4 eggs in there. Made some keto dough, 1 1/2 cups of mozarella shredded, some cream cheese, like an ounce or so and half a coup of almond flour. Hit in micro for a minute and stir into dough add one egg to that and make into a dough ball. Recipe told me to roll it out, but this dough is very sticky so I use a cast iron tortilla press with parchment in between. Dough makes 4 calzone so 1 of 4 balls pressed onto parchment, fill with the meat micture and top off with some sheddar. Carefully lift the dough over and around. Using the parchment. Mine had plenty holes, looked messy, I just patted it together as good as I could. I had a piece of parment on the bottom of my fryer basket and layed the 4 calzone in there. My air fryer has like a 9 inch basket so perfect size for that.

They were so delish. 15 minutes cooking only, flipped half way. I am now looking for things to put in it.
Tomorrow I'll make some chicken thighs I already have in the fridge.

This is the one I got
https://www.amazon.com/COSORI-5-8-Quart-1700-Watt-Electric-Temperature/dp/B07WBSVH33

Looks so retro with the big dials.

I have plans of making mini pan meatloafs, italian ripeye steak, Egg bites, really anything I would usually use my oven for. Cooking for 2 always seems overkill to heat the full oven for like 2 stuffed chickens or some things like that. Still need oven for cookies and big turkey of course.

And still using the instant pot of course for soups and stews and tonight I'll make chuck roast in it.

 

[Vinny OHare]

My biggest mistake was not buying one that was big enough. The cheap ones seem to have the smallest basket. I think they are worthless unless you are only making french fries or something.

 

[Atunah]

Yeah, I realized that manufactures giving size in quarts isn't helpful unless you know the dimensions of the basket. Stuff needs to be in one layer to cook right and get crispy.
The one I got actually has the smallest outside dimensions while having one of the largest baskets. I think its 9 inches. But the outside is only 11.8 square and 12.6 high. I could not find a smaller one with still having this capacity. Means its less space on counter and its also pretty light to move around easy. Has grip handles built in.

 

[loonlover]

It is our opinion that the air fryer is one of the best ways to reheat pizza (our other favorite is putting two slices together and making it into panini using the Cuisinart Griddler). Today I used the reheat setting on the air fryer for the pizza; just had to adjust the time slightly, and it came out almost as good as it was fresh from the oven Friday. I've also baked freshly made personal pan size pizzas in it. That also works well. Sometimes I freeze items in foil knowing they will be reheated in the foil, usually in the toaster oven. It hit me while reheating the pizza that I could use the air fryer for some of those fairly small packets.

 

[Sandpiper]

YES, air fryer does a good job of reheating pizza.

Today I am getting a small countertop convection toaster oven to replace the basket air fryer that I've been using as a convection oven. Ordered it from Amazon last Thursday. Good four+ star reviews. Made by manufacturer Mueller Austria. (Don't have time now to figure out how to make link.)
https://smile.amazon.com/gp/product/B078SD1JT8/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_asin_title_o00_s01?ie=UTF8&psc=1

If it does live up to reviews, then thinking of getting Mueller's single serve pod coffeemaker. Keurig has not worked well for me.

As an aside, I was in Austria 50 years, 2 months ago. I want to do that exact tour of Switzerland, Austria, northern Italy again. Swiss tour company Kuoni.

 

[msdanielle28]

I really like my air fryer and does a good job. Had it about two years now. I wish I would've purchased a bigger size like some have said. You'll be cooking in batches unless you're cooking a small amount food. Definitely great for frozen food instead of turning on the big oven. The set time is a good feature which allows you to not forget and over cook your food. I wish the one I purchased had a non stick coating that lasted. Unfortunately, it has made the basket hard to clean. The biggest thing seems to be the amount of counter space it takes up but I make room for it because I love the fun retro look it has. Glad I purchased it because I have cooked a world of food in it that I didn't even think I would.

 

[Atunah]

I have a corner on my counter that I have my air fryer on. Its on a roll thingy. I put it on, I pull it out, release the break and then roll it back in the corner.
I haven't used my stove since I got the air fryer, or the oven. Crazy. I made chicken legs, chicken thighs, mini keto cheesecake, breakfast calzone,  steak. Today I made meatloaf potatoes and radishes. I cook veggies first, then the meat and heat the veggies back up for a couple of minutes while I make the salad.
Bacon, OMG bacon comes out so great and no mess. I soak the drawer and the basket together while we eat dinner and then it cleans up nice. Never use the aerosol oil sprays on the non stick surface. I put avocado oil in a regular spray bottle to use if I need. that stuff in those aerosol sprays or non stick sprays can take that non stick coating right off. I just soak and not spend time scrubbing.