Air fryers...anyone have anything positive to say?

[Old Frightful]

My lad's dating a girl who's mum has an air fryer. He comes home singing it's praises after eating whatever it's produced, whether it be fried chicken for wraps, chips or whatever.

However, when I browse the internet, I see scores of them for sale "nearly new", "used once or twice" or similar.

So I'm guessing, not everybody falls in love with them.

Anyone want to stick up for them, suggesting they're somewhere in line after the wheel, sliced bread, cellotape, superglue, etc, etc...

[voteronniegibbs]

is it one of those bits of kitchen kit, that you pay out for and then have to justify to yourself buying it, so you end up cooking everything in it?

We've got one of them tefal sandwich toasters, it sits in the back of the bottom cupboard out of sight and then every 2 years we find it again when looking for a tupperware lid and it's like having a new toy. 

[Futtocks]

18 minutes ago, voteronniegibbs said:

We've got one of them tefal sandwich toasters, it sits in the back of the bottom cupboard out of sight and then every 2 years we find it again when looking for a tupperware lid and it's like having a new toy. 

I used to have one of those, probably a Breville, but got rid of it. When I want a toasted sandwich these days, I use toaster bags in a regular toaster. They take up far less room and still give a good result.

I used the hell out of a bread machine for a while, but that became another proverbial inhabitant of the space under the sink after a year or two. But not all kitchen gadgets have a limited use. The slow cooker gets use every week, and has done for decades.

[voteronniegibbs]

2 minutes ago, Futtocks said:

I used to have one of those, probably a Breville, but got rid of it. When I want a toasted sandwich these days, I use toaster bags in a regular toaster. They take up far less room and still give a good result.

I used the hell out of a bread machine for a while, but that became another proverbial inhabitant of the space under the sink after a year or two. But not all kitchen gadgets have a limited use. The slow cooker gets use every week, and has done for decades.

slow cookers are brilliant, we've been cooking gammon joints in ours, works a treat

[Old Frightful]

20 minutes ago, Johnoco said:

I rarely use anything else than the air fryer. It's great

Hmmm...the sceptic in me suggests you're taking the proverbial.

Please let it not be so.

[JohnM]

Bought a breadmaker 15 years ago and it's still in use a couple of times a week. Bought a bacon slicer ten years ago and use it only for slicing bread. A brilliant combination and well worth the money. 

Got an LG microwave free with Nectar points again around 10 years ago, still going strong. 

Bought a very expensive Magimix centrifugal juicer 29 years ago, in use in summer only. 

All the rest of kitchen technology just sits there not being use, Polti steamcleaner excepted. Even the iron is hardly deployed. 

 

[Gerrumonside ref]

Well I’ve left a nice piece of sirloin in a pan for the last hour and still no sign of it being cooked at all!

So much for this ‘air’ frying business...

Thanks a bunch everyone 

[Futtocks]

The best kitchen gadget I've bought recently is an induction hob which, compared to my built-in electric hobs that it sits on top of most of the time, is like going from a Lada to a Ferrari.

[bentleyman]

Waste of time got rid of ours save your money 

[CanaBull]

Mine gets used several times per week, make everything from roasts, to veg, to doughnuts.  Quick and I don't have to stand over it, uses much less oil so helps as I keep a close eye on the weight for health reasons.  One of those things if it fits into your lifestyle it's great, not so much if it doesn't.  Slow cooker gets a lot of use too, throw a stew or chili in there while at work.

[George Watt]

3 hours ago, Futtocks said:

I used to have one of those, probably a Breville, but got rid of it. When I want a toasted sandwich these days, I use toaster bags in a regular toaster. They take up far less room and still give a good result.

I used the hell out of a bread machine for a while, but that became another proverbial inhabitant of the space under the sink after a year or two. But not all kitchen gadgets have a limited use. The slow cooker gets use every week, and has done for decades.

We have a Breville sandwich toaster which for several years has been used every other week - also had a bread making machine for years to make bread for our multitude of garden birds. When the unit failed a cost analysis showed it would be cheaper to buy supermarket sliced bread rather than invest in a new machine. We eat minimal amounts of bread ourselves. Use a slow cooker a couple of times a year.

 

Noticed a good special on an air cooker a couple of weeks ago and looked at a possible purchase. Talking to friends who had one and looking at reviews the cons outweighed the pros.

[unapologetic pedant]

8 hours ago, Futtocks said:

I used to have one of those, probably a Breville, but got rid of it. When I want a toasted sandwich these days, I use toaster bags in a regular toaster. They take up far less room and still give a good result.

I used the hell out of a bread machine for a while, but that became another proverbial inhabitant of the space under the sink after a year or two. But not all kitchen gadgets have a limited use. The slow cooker gets use every week, and has done for decades.

The problem with all these after the novelty wears off is the extra washing-up.

I got a breadmaker as a Christmas present. That was a particular nightmare to get clean.

[unapologetic pedant]

8 hours ago, voteronniegibbs said:

slow cookers are brilliant, we've been cooking gammon joints in ours, works a treat

Initially the slow cooker seemed perfect for gammon and brisket joints. As you say, "works a treat".

However, I got fed up with disposing of all the liquid fat you`re left with. Almost a third of the way up the pot sometimes. I would worry about pouring it down the sink.

 

[Vambo]

Use ours a lot. Very handy piece of kit.

If something takes say 20 mins in the oven you can easily halve the time using the air fryer.

[JohnM]

2 hours ago, unapologetic pedant said:

The problem with all these after the novelty wears off is the extra washing-up.

I got a breadmaker as a Christmas present. That was a particular nightmare to get clean.

How so? Non stick pan and paddle, fill pan with warm water in sink, rinse, dry. Job done. 

[Trojan]

12 hours ago, JohnM said:

Bought a breadmaker 15 years ago and it's still in use a couple of times a week. Bought a bacon slicer ten years ago and use it only for slicing bread. A brilliant combination and well worth the money. 

Got an LG microwave free with Nectar points again around 10 years ago, still going strong. 

Bought a very expensive Magimix centrifugal juicer 29 years ago, in use in summer only. 

All the rest of kitchen technology just sits there not being use, Polti steamcleaner excepted. Even the iron is hardly deployed. 

 

We had a bread maker, but unloaded it on our daughter, who unloaded it on a car boot.  I'd like an ice cream maker but SWMBO won't let me have one   We have got an air fryer though and it does make nice chips and spit roasted chicken, which is all we've used it for so far. We had an espresso machine, but it didn't make coffee as nice as that you can buy in France and Spain.  So we ditched it and reverted to the IKEA mocha pot.

[Gerrumonside ref]

I’ll kick off the modern take on the 4 Yorkshiremen sketch:

I only own a toaster, kettle and a microwave on top of the standard appliances 

 

 

[Death to the Rah Rah's]

We've had 3 air fryers and none of them were brilliant other than for making chips, and the weren't that tasty ........however we invested in a 'food ninja' before christmas and I have to say its a fantastic piece of kit. It has multiple settings so more than just an air fryer.

You can cook a large roast chicken in 40 minutes, add the potatoes and veg afterwards and cook in one pot..

the juiciest and most tender beef and pork I've ever tasted, pressure cook in the ninja for 60 minutes then switch lids and put the air fryer on for 10-12 minutes. Turns out perfectly cooked every time.

We use is for all kinds of things now. Not cheap at £200 but definitely worth the extra cost in comparison to others on the market

[unapologetic pedant]

2 hours ago, JohnM said:

How so? Non stick pan and paddle, fill pan with warm water in sink, rinse, dry. Job done. 

Firstly, I`ll admit that being domestically indolent is part of the explanation.

However, my breadmaker isn`t quite so non-stick, especially the kneading-blade. And I`m not sure "fill pan with... " does fully get the "job done". There still has to be a final clean in the washing-up bowl. Which means awkwardly manoeuvring the pan around, smashing into taps, slipping from rubber-gloved hands, and generally straying into Frank Spencer territory.

The item is still in it`s box in a corner of the kitchen, 20 years old, not been used for at least 19. I keep thinking to have another go, then the thought of the cleaning supersedes the first thought. It`s a pity, because the bread it made was excellent, particularly if you got the crust right.

[unapologetic pedant]

11 minutes ago, Gerrumonside ref said:

I’ll kick off the modern take on the 4 Yorkshiremen sketch:

I only own a toaster, kettle and a microwave on top of the standard appliances 

 

 

Why do you need a toaster? What`s wrong with the grill on the cooker?

I`ll concede the kettle, but you ought to have no idea what a microwave is. 

[Gerrumonside ref]

30 minutes ago, unapologetic pedant said:

Why do you need a toaster? What`s wrong with the grill on the cooker?

I`ll concede the kettle, but you ought to have no idea what a microwave is. 

Does it help that I still do the washing up ‘manually’ and find the routine of it quite satisfying really?

I think grilled toast does give the ‘one side isn’t toasted properly qualm’.

Its not that I don’t like mod cons but I don’t want loads of kitchen ‘ornaments’.

[Futtocks]

1 hour ago, unapologetic pedant said:

Why do you need a toaster? What`s wrong with the grill on the cooker?

I used to use the grill on my electric oven, but it takes time to come up to heat, using power for about 10 minutes before you can use it. Last year, I bought a toaster for the first time in my life, and it gets plenty of use. The toaster bags are great for a quick ham, cheese and pickle toastie lunch.

[Futtocks]

1 hour ago, Gerrumonside ref said:

Its not that I don’t like mod cons but I don’t want loads of kitchen ‘ornaments’.

It all comes down to available worktop space for me. One of the reasons I don't have a microwave.

[unapologetic pedant]

1 hour ago, Gerrumonside ref said:

Does it help that I still do the washing up ‘manually’ and find the routine of it quite satisfying really?

Arranging the pots and plates is artistically satisfying. Can turn into quite a tour de force. I mostly opt for variations on a Sydney Opera House theme.

 

1 hour ago, Gerrumonside ref said:

I think grilled toast does give the ‘one side isn’t toasted properly qualm’.

That can happen, but more often I find that grilled toast gives a "one side too well-toasted setting the bloody smoke alarm off qualm".

[unapologetic pedant]

15 minutes ago, Futtocks said:

I used to use the grill on my electric oven, but it takes time to come up to heat, using power for about 10 minutes before you can use it. Last year, I bought a toaster for the first time in my life, and it gets plenty of use. The toaster bags are great for a quick ham, cheese and pickle toastie lunch.

10 minutes !!!! - Really?

Since I`ve had an electric cooker, a couple of times in the brief interim between a kettle pegging out and my buying a new one, I`ve had to boil water a few times in a pan on the hob. Probably takes under 10 minutes on full-pelt. Unless you`re exaggerating that would be a month of Sundays on your equivalent.