Ok, I know you have opinions this one. Was I wrong? Do you love air fryers? Hate 'em? Leave me a comment and let me know why. Oh, and if you're looking for gift ideas, head to buyraycon.com/lagerstrom & use code HOLIDAY for 15 percent off sitewide.
Our air fryer is great for freezer tater tots, and great for reheating things like takeout onion rings. It does wings better than the oven, but not as good as deep frying or the grill. It's a useful appliance, but it doesn't live up to the hype.
I have the best of both worlds. My new stove came with a built in air fryer, plus a convection oven setting. Plus regular baking. So it's not a separate appliance sitting on my counter. There are some things I really love done in the air fryer. I do have to watch fat intake so making traditionally fried foods is not in my diet plan. Air frying gives me the deliciousness of fried food with a fat intake more in line with my dietary needs. Air fried chicken thighs are a favorite. Fresh potatoes are tasty made into fries though not quite deep fried caliber. Air fried veggies are superb. In short, I think you're selling air fryers short.
Imo air fryers only work to reheat stuff or to cook things that are already frozen. Frozen precooked French fries, egg rolls, etc or reheating stuff like tortilla chips, sausages.
@@mattc3233 I always laugh when I see recipes for “crispy” air fryer fries and I can SEE they’re soggy. If you’re reheating already frozen fries, yeah you can do that and they’ll be crispy. But oven-baked potatoes aren’t crispy just from using an air fryer. You need good technique and a few tricks.
I don't use my air fryer as a replacement for deep frying. I use it like a small countertop oven. If I don't want to heat up the big oven for a small portion or I want to reheat something that was previously oil fried, the air fryer is the go-to. NOTHING reheats fried foods better than the air fryer. Frozen chicken nuggies in the air fryer are unbeatable if you have kids. And it's much faster than the oven for most foods. I love my air fryer AND my oil fryer.
It all boils down to one thing . Deep frying is extremely unhealthy and air frying is not . Of course it depends on what you’re cooking , if you’re giving chicken nuggets to your kids whether deep fried or air fried their health will be compromised either way.
@@BalanceProper Eh, if you have to spray it down with oil, it's not healthy parse, just healthier. Which is also debatable depending on what you're cooking, if you're fixing fries, onion rings or corn dogs from a store bought bag or box, they're already been deep fried partially once, just not fried till fully cooked. And stuff like meat doesn't absorb oil, so fixing a steak, roasted chicken or pork chop is just as unhealthy as fixing it on the stove or oven, because you still need to spray with oil to get good browning.
I felt the same way before I put my first air fryer to use a few years ago and what I've learned is that they shouldn't be compared to "frying" of foods. This is where the branding of an Air "FRYER" tends to throws people off. They actually serve as a brand new cooking function in the home kitchen of "intensive convection cooking" which wasn't really available before the creation of the air fryer. It's almost a middle ground of deep frying and regular convection cooking! What I've found through my trials over the years is that there numerous reasons why an air fryer is optimal for cooking certain foods and they shouldn't be overlooked by any Pro Home Cook!
When you factor in the time to preheat an oven, for us the airfryer is faster than the oven. For the foods that it excels at (meats, especially pork belly, and potatoes), it works really well.
Um, while the oven heats up the rest of the civilized world is prepping the food for it to bake, broil, and with the convection setting it's a force to be reckoned with. Explains why restaurants that serve tasty dishes use them. 😃
Surprised there was no mention of convenience in the video. You also save a lot of energy. Washing the drawers are super easy too. But Brian is a different type of cook than most. He's more focused on the culinary experience while the rest of us is a mix of good food and convenience
An airfryer really shouldn't be compared to an oven, it should be compared to a toaster oven. In an oven you can cook larger dishes that need to be spread out to cook evenly increasing mallard, like vegetables. In a toaster oven you heat up smaller quantity items like reheating meals, toast, and the like. Sure you can cook full meals in an airfryer and toaster oven, but it's not what they excel at.
My take on the air fryer: It's not a replacement for deep-frying. Rather, it's a much better version of the "toaster oven." Frankly, you can cook or reheat food faster, and nothing restored frozen or previously fried food as well as the air-fryer (with the exception, perhaps, of refrying -- but who wants to add all those calories a second time!). Also, the oil drain aspect is always a plus!
My counter top oven is a convection oven, does all of the stuff you said, also makes toast, can roast a whole chicken, heats up in 3 minutes, etc. It's a way more versatile form factor.
>but who wants to add all those calories a second time! I do. I know, sounds crazy, but hear me out. Not all calories are equally satiating (fills you up). If I eat more satiating calories I end up eating less total calories naturally. Refrying adds fat which is probably the most satiating kind of calorie, so you can eat less total calories and feel less hungry later on. You have to get used to eating smaller meals or you'll end up over eating, so there is some downside to be fair.
Hey mate, we have a multi function airfrier, it dehydrates, it can be a standard oven, and airfrier, great video Brian 👍🏼👍🏼🇦🇺🇦🇺🦘🦘Cheers from Melbourne Australia
Air Fryers really show their strength in heating frozen fried foods and reheating any food that should be crispy -- pizza, french fries, etc. Capacity can be an issue, they make the most sense in small households where using a whole big oven for one side dish is wasteful. The Pro Home Cooks air fryer videos really show where it shines.
Mom showed me how to best reheat a pizza, Microwave pizza slices for 45 sec, to a minute, then place on a hot cast iron or carbon steel pan for a minute. Bottom crispy, top hot and melty cheese. In many cases better than when first made
Someone else pointed this out but, a toaster oven also does that well. And mine can rotisserie a chicken. I live alone and almost never use my oven. I've been trying to find a reason an air fryer would make things easier but I just can't.
I'm a small apartment haver. I love my air fryer. It is indeed bad at replicating fried foods, but it is awesome as a mini convection oven. I can roast/toast/broil small portions for 1-2 people and get good results without the expense (in time and money) of pre heating and operating my full size oven.
We resisted getting one for a long time but once we finally did I was really surprised how often we use it and with how many different type of foods. The major tradeoff is counter space but if you use it enough it's worth it!
I can see it being useful for quite a few people that's for sure...It would be nice to not heat up the large oven. But I didn't see a ton of reasons for me personally why it makes sense
@@BrianLagerstrom My family have found it useful when cooking those seasoned Pork Tenderloins you can get at the store. We cut it in half and throw them in the air fryer for 20 or so minutes and it always turns out perfect! we'll use the stove to finish the meal with gravy, steamed broccoli, and mashed potatoes. Thanks Brian!
I found that it shines when making side dishes or if the oven is already occupied. I've always hated cramming a bunch of things into the oven with different cook times.
I feel like slightly changing cook time on the broccoli or using a container so the cheese doesn't escape and get lost would have improved the result of both tests. IMO a single big drawer is better than 2 drawer model, the size lets you cook more at the same time and you are able to use bigger containers to make stuffs like cakes and pizzas.
@@danielsal5442 Not a big fan of pre-prepping? Make fifty cheese sticks, freeze 45 and have 5 blown out then 45 great later, quick and easy. Fire me it's much quicker and easier than using an entire pot of oil, waiting for the oil to heat, getting the temp to sit right, then dealing with used oil. I'll take having to freeze it accept blown out cheese sticks rather than deal with oil.
We have one of the stainless steel countertop model that also functions as an oven. I got it in April and used it for the first time on Thanksgiving to make your stuffing recipe. It came out absolutely PERFECT on the baking setting. I’ll be using it for a small oven on the regular from now on!
I’ve felt the same way as you… resisting an air fryer. However, when gifted one I have found it useful. Especially for reheating leftovers or carry out. Also.. gives me an “almost” as crispy French fry that’s much healthier than deep fried.
I'm old enough to remember when microwave ovens first came out and people were claiming they could replace your conventional oven. What we learned is that they are a different but also very handy tool that most kitchens today would not be without. For air fryers, they'll never recreate deep frying. I've found them however to be great for bringing previously fried and frozen food back to crispy life. I make things like spring rolls, wings, etc and freeze them after frying. Then when I need a quick lunch, I can toss some into the air fryer and have them turn our pretty close to when they first came out of the oil, way better than my Breville countertop oven can do. They are also handy for hard boiling an egg or two, and they are great for roasting a hot dog. My AF has earned it's place on my counter top, it's a great compliment to my other appliances.
@@TheAdultLife don't have an airfryer, but would guess that just pop eggs in the fryer and that's it? eggs don't need water to cook. they are in the shell, hot water has no bearing on the texture or taste. they just need an even source of heat to cook, and not explode the shell.
@@TheAdultLife It's simple, I do up to 6 eggs in my air fryer at 275 degrees for 15 minutes, no pre heating and eggs cold from the fridge. After the cycle completes, place the eggs in a ice bath for 15 minutes and they're done. You may see some very light browning on the shell but the egg is perfectly cooked inside. This is for a full hard cooked egg, I haven't played around with doing soft boiled but I'm sure it's possible.
For a soft- or hard-boiled egg, I steam one in a minimum of water, covered, in a tin cup! No muss, no fuss. (Bigger pot for >1, of course, but still not much water.)
@@TheAdultLife set the air fryer to 250, put the eggs in the basket, cook for 15 min, run under cool water and peel. You'll have to play around with the time to figure out what works best in your particular fryer. Also the shells will get weird. Don't be alarmed, this is normal. 🥚😁
I used to be an air fryer hater as well, insisting my regular oven with a convection setting was the same. But an air fryer heats up a LOT faster and is great for reheating things and convenience foods like you said. I love cooking, but sometimes I just wanna eat some pizza rolls and frozen fries. It doesn’t replace my oven, but it is a useful tool. Internet shaquille has a great defense for air fryers too
I was sceptical aswell. But seeing that I could half most of my cook times in the air fryer AND get better results... that pretty much cast any doubt aside instantly.
I have one, and it gets used about once a week. It’s not the best way to make a steak - but it’s the fastest/simplest/cleanest. It’s also a second oven, which comes in handy when I need to be making 2 things simultaneously at different temps. Also, as others say, it’s solid for premade frozen food. Not an essential device by any means, but there are plenty of things in my kitchen that get less use.
I cooked steak on the weekend. Cast iron pan, oil the meat not the pan and 2 minutes each side for rare. Tasted lovely. I'm yet to be convinced about AFs mainly because the food people cook seems quite processed - and am not convinced chips are as crisp as when they are cooked in dripping. Am also wary of the ingredients in the oil sprays. Quite a few of them are Tefal coated so that's another big red flag for me.
I thought air fryers were dumb for the same reason you mentioned. Since the pandemic I've been mostly working from home and decided to give air frying a try. It's been a game changer. I live in a small apartment with a pretty weak oven that takes forever to preheat, not to mention I also use the oven for storage so I have to take everything out to do so. Sometimes I just want a quick chicken breast with seasoning and some steamed vegetables for lunch and I can easily just pull a breast out of the freezer the night before, season it the morning of, pop it in the air fryer, throw my veg on a plate and in the microwave to steam, and then I can go about the rest of my lunch hour without worrying about the cleanup/prep before and after.
It’s exactly made for your situation, it’s just many of us are cooking for 4 or more. As a 1-2 person household I feel countertop appliances are better than outdated, inefficient appliances as you mentioned.
Made some killer stuffing this past Thanksgiving in my air fryer. Saved me some space in the oven and still got the good crunchy and soft texture combo.
I have always despised single use appliances but the air fryer is really the first appliance I actually am happy to have purchased. After a long day at work, being able to just pop stuff in it for 15 minutes and having quality food is a god send - ESPECIALLY because of the cleanup. Cleaning up baking sheets after making something in the oven is a special hell, and I find its a nice medium between blitzing something in the microwave and committing to preheating my shitty oven thats probably older than i am
I was also relucant to get one because of the single use thing, but if you are doing small amounts, its much more convenien, but also energy efficient, it heats up in 3 minutes, it cooks fast and it uses less electricity than a full sized oven.
I have a toaster-oven style air fryer and mostly use it for toasting bread and reheating frozen food (microwave to thaw, then air-fry to crisp). It's also great for cooking sausages and hot dogs (ease of a microwave without the rubbery texture). It also has a tendency to overcook things if you try to directly map over oven recipes to it.
I borrowed my daughters airfreight as she raved about it, I tested it with a roast chicken dinner, first it had a rotisserie feature which I was looking forward to using, but soon realised only a quail size chicken would fit, then like Brian discovered the rest of ghe meal had to be done in batches, so it took a lot more effort. Next I tried chips (fries) and they were awful, only have were crispy even after I shook them a few times. I soon realised that because I cook from scratch a airfreight is not great, my daughter likes her processed foods, straight from the freezer, that's why it works for her, plus how do you feed a family of 5? You would be cooking batches all day!
As many have said, air fryers are great for reheating things (best way to reheat fried chicken, bar none). But I find incredible utility in quickly roasting single-serving batches of vegetables. They're completely cooked in the air fryer faster than my oven can even preheat. And it's so much more efficient. The trick to avoid your result with the broccoli is a combination of practice and checking on the food so you can pull it when it reaches your desired level of doneness.
Like most kitchen gadgets I find the air fryer situationally good. As others have said it's great for reheating stuff (particularly things that were fried like french fries). I use mine regularly to make chicken wings as my wife and kids don't like them and it just doesn't make sense to me to heat up a bunch of oil I then have to dispose of later when the air fryer does an admirable job. I also use it regularly for making roast cauliflower which I really enjoy. It does a decent job with salmon as well. Generally speaking it seems to perform best with foods that contain a good amount of fat that can render quickly and effectively fry the foods. It's by no means the "best" way to make much of anything if you're going to put in the time and effort to cook, but for getting something to eat quickly it's very handy and works more quickly than the oven.
I feel like it’s all in how you use it. I use mine often to make more kid friendly meals and to reheat left overs that require being made crispy again. I don’t use it for a lot of my every day cooking but it definitely has its place
I don't think they are supposed to be compared or similar to deep fryers. Air fryers are supposed to not use oil (or very tiny amount) to provide healthy food, an easy alternative to people who want to lose weight but still be able to eat crispy food.
We now have two of this exact item, the Instant Pot Vortex 6 Qt. Air Fryer ruclips.net/user/postUgkxD4Qeo-HRLxMfom_PDinM_SBfes00qJsB . The friend just had a second one delivered a few days ago so we could take it to our lake house. We have even given a couple as gifts. And we use ours regularly. It is a killer for warming up leftovers. It is killer for warming up fries when you bring them home from the fast food place. It is killer for cooking a lot of things. It does its job fast and it does it well. This is simply one of the best items that you will ever spend money on for preparing food. And, its hard to imagine someone making one that's better than the Instant Pot Vortex.
Hey Brian. So, a couple of things! My wife and I love our air fryer, but I think the format of the fryer makes a big difference. We have one of the oven style fryers with the fold down door and trays (instapot Vortex). This allows you to have better control over how the food cooks by being able to change the distance of the tray from the heating element. Believe it or not the few inches can make a big difference! This also allows you to cook things that require different times by layering them Above and below each other. Chicken thighs on the top right under the heating element, asparagus on the lower tray. Same 12 minutes and all the food comes out perfect. Also, the big thing we have found is for proteins, they come out better when sauced. So, cooking Pesto chicken thighs or salmon filets marinated in a creamy lemon garlic. This allows the outside to caramelize and give you a really nice texture while just having perfect doneness on the inside. Lastly, we have found air fryers to be more like a grill, they each have different cooking characteristics and you will find you make better food when you have more experience with your particular fryer!
I think teriyaki salmon or marinated chicken sounds like a great idea. Im def not 100% against the AF. It just doesn't really add to my setup is all. Id love to hear more about this asparagus cooking setup you've got going on.
@@BrianLagerstrom Absolutely! We have found the best asparagus, specifically for the air fryer, are the petite spears. It allows them to cook and soften in the shorter windows of time that the more delicate proteins take to cook. Generally, any of the green vegetables we do in the air fryer follow the same sort of recipe, toss in olive oil and a garlic spice blend and then into the air fryer. For some reason we have found that the Garlic Garni blend (found on amazon) just cooks differently and produces a unique flavor when bordering the charred state. Incidentally, it's our favorite way to prepare vegetables for the grill too! Last bit of knowledge I can toss in is playing with your temps. The breaded "convivence" type items are very sensitive. Normally I drop 25 degrees off the temp of the oven and lower the tray when doing things like Moz sticks because of the exact problem you had. It allows it to brown without the environment being as intense and helps with cheese leakage.
@@The_Dude_1 I agree with everything this Dude said. An air fryer is a different tool than an oven, it seems like the disconnect is in the marketing. It's not ideal as a "replacement" for deep frying, but it's passable. Just as you wouldn't cook something the same way in a toaster oven vs a microwave oven, you need to adjust technique and/or recipe to make truly excellent food in an air fryer.
I live on my own in a camper, so not a lot of space but not a large quantity of cooking either. I've been told by a lot of people I NEED an air fryer, but when I ask what people use them for it's primarily for heating up frozen stuff. Being in a camper, I have a freezer the size of most people's microwave so I don't have a lot of frozen snacks on hand. I can see it being very useful, but I've been happy enough using my stove/oven and a cast iron skillet for frying on the occasion I do that. I don't actually know of anyone that uses an air fryer for cooking other than french fries.
It's fantastic for leftovers, since it just blasts such concentrated heat at a fraction of the time it takes the oven to heat up and properly circulate a small amount of food. But just like you showed, it absolutely dries out anything very easily. I have one in my current home since my roommate loves it, and for his purposes it's great especially since our stove/oven is kinda crap. But man do I miss my nice toaster oven that could do it all and even had good heat circulation/air fry functionality. Great vid as always Bri!
For the broccoli: if your air fryer basket can accommodate a few tbsp of water in the bottom, add the water. It’ll partly steam then roast, similar to using steam baking bread to get more rise before the surface dries out. Bake a large russet potato in the AF in half the time of an oven. Or part microwave then air fryer to finish and crisp the skin.
I think you should revisit this... there are tons of use cases and thousands of recipes specifically catering to airfryer use. You barely scratched the surface of how it can be used. Additionally, I contend that a bigger chamber is waaay more useful. You were definitely over crowding the pan which is why some items came out dry and under developed. JMHO.
I got a multipurpose cooking appliance, the Foodi, a few years ago and it changed my life. Once you get the hang of how it cooks you can do practically anything with it with very little clean-up. I don't usually like to deep fry because of having to deal with all that oil afterwards.
If you are looking for an oven-comparable gadget to try that could be a space saver for those that live in a more compact kitchen you should try a Breville smart oven or Joule. It takes up just a little more space than the air fryer but I absolutely love it because it toasts, has convection, air fries, and bakes, and is great because in the summer we don't have to heat the whole kitchen to cook. It is not cheap at $500, however, but occasionally goes on sale. We have reheated fries and have been amazed at how crispy we can get them. We really like it over the comparable counter space that that air fryer takes up.
As a single person I absolutely love the air fryer! I do more re-heating than actual cooking day to day. It's definitely better for some things than others.
I love my Ninja Foodi Flip model enough to marry it. It replaced our old Black & Decker countertop toaster oven, takes up the same footprint when it's flipped, and preheats quickly. It gets utilized every morning for toast and I use it to make sheet pan type dinners a few times a week. I cannot believe how much I use this thing.
I came to the exact same conclusion you did, Brian. I don't prepare fried food often, so we use a camp stove outside to deep fry - thus saving a mess in the kitchen and stinking up the house. Like you, I don't want my counters cluttered with appliances, so taking the air fryer out and putting it on the counter needs to have a utility to justify the effort. It rarely does. I think we used ours once last year. It now lives in the garage.
Yes I agree,I very rarely deep fry ,it's stinks the house up and the evaporated oil and water sticks to all surfaces.but I don't have an open planned house,if I do fry I open kitchen window and back door to get a through draught
An air fry/ toaster oven combo style was a great addition to my kitchen I love the fact I can thrown down some tinfoil below the food for quick clean up and can cook things both with the air fry mode as well as broil and bake functions
As a classically trained Chef I was instinctively put off by an “air” “fryer” because of course you cannot fry with air. But it seems I was somewhat ignorant, I failed to see the actual purpose of them and where they really excel and that’s as a small oven. Convenient in every way, I really cannot fault mine.
One item of great hype that seriously does live up to it is…the Challenger Bread Pan made of cast iron..I actually have two of them so I can do two ciabatta at the same time. (Easy to remove and replace the very hot lids, a shallow bottom to easily slide your doughs in, etc) There’s plenty of thermal mass, so preheating does take extra time, and I put the lids on a top shelf and the bases on the lowest shelf in the oven for preheating, put my ciabatta on parchment, and just slide the half sheets right along w the dough into the preheated pans, and throw a few ice cubes into each and clamp the lids on. Super rise, super bake, then take the lids back off at the appropriate time and put back on the top oven shelf for the crisp them up phase. I did find I had to put a cookie sheet under the pans on another shelf to keep the bottoms from overheating, but that’s just a foible of my own setup..that much cast iron that close to the bottom equals lots of heat..
I hated my drawer style air fryer because it was a pain to clean, but I actually do like air fried broccoli as a snack. The slightly chewy, slightly burned texture is a great alternative to other snacks. I got a Ninja toaster oven with air fry, roast, and bake settings and I use that thing constantly. It's a great alternative to the big oven for someone cooking for one or two people.
I got a toaster oven that doubles as a super-powered air fryer. and it's really nice when I don't wanna whip out a whole sheet tray to bake something when I'm coming home from work. But ur completely right about it sucking as a deep fryer replacement, I don't think anything can replace that flavor and texture haha
The term 'air fryer' is a bit of a misnomer - but it's a great tool! I treat mine as a more portable broiler & convection oven as opposed to a proper deep frying substitute. I've also found that they're much easier to monitor for cook done-ness than your average oven (my version has a clear glass lid) and more pleasant to clean as well. In my experience, they heat up faster than your average oven, and are a good way to par cook foods with more control. You definitely get a better result with conventional methods and higher quality cooking equipment, but I think this is a good & affordable middle ground for folks who don't have access to those things.
I would say I use it as a microwave and toaster replacement more than an oven. It just does that job so well. And I have a very small apartment stove oven combo so it's really nice to have basicly an extra oven
Bri, I love my Cosori air fryer a few times a week. French fries are simple and they rock. My favorite weeknight meal is a bone-in chicken breast and baked potato for two. I mic the taters for 5 minutes, during that time I preheat the Airfryer while I prep the breasts by patting them dry and sprinkle some S@P on em. 25-30 minutes in the fryer, take them out to rest and cook some broccoli on 400 for 5 minutes while the chicken rests. Great 30 minute weeknight meal and the chicken is juicy and skin crisp and no cranking up the oven. You are right about breaded frying, that’s over rated but it has a bundle of uses, especially for a couple
thank you sooooooooooooo much for being honest and open with us! i have thought about getting airfryer for a while but very hesitant for all the things you mentioned in your video. I love the practicality you create your content. it is just like me cooking at home!
I got an airfryer and I use it very often. Its really handy, and a godsave when you just feel a little lazy. What i think is the issue with your test is trying to do the exact same recipe in different environment, obviously things developed for one thing wont behave the same way (and turn out as good) in a different thing.
One use I do like of for my air fryer is during the summer. I live in the desert, and it gets HOT here. An air fryer tends to heat my house A LOT less compared to a full oven during the summer. It's also just my fiancé and I, so one less use of an intensive resource live ovens during that time of the year for a small portions.
You have to freeze the mozzarella sticks to get them not to leak... Try it... Also there are adjustments to recipes and specific receipes for air fryers that are great. Also I recommend not double drawers... Those have major issues. Just get two air fryers! It is basically a smaller convection oven that is WAY faster if you adjust right... Pork chops in the air fryer.... Just throw them in... Same with brats from frozen... And don't get me started on how it basically replaces my microwave... People that don't know how to use air fryers are dumb (just kidding, love ya Bri, but we need to get you on board with this one)!
Thx for taking a 2nd look at air fryers Bri. I think the issue lies in the name - it's really a small, efficient "Convection oven" - not particularly "fryer." (Also wont heatup the house on hot days!) Cheers and thanks for your enjoyable vids! CNET article: Cost of 300 hours of cooking with a gas oven on high heat: $153 Cost of 300 hours of cooking with an electric oven on high heat: $120 Cost of 150 hours of cooking with an air fryer: $39
The air fryer I have is the wider, flatter form factor that can cook a whole frozen pizza (not that I typically make those - just pointing out the scale). The main reasons I bought it were (a) my toaster oven broke and I needed to replace it, and (b) I wanted options to make something approximating fried food without having to deal with all the oil. I know that oil frying tastes better, but then I have a quart or 4 of oil that I have to let cool and then either filter to reuse or find a way to dispose of - it's WAY more hassle than it's worth IMO, so I rarely do it. My kids use it regularly as a toaster oven to make all sorts of stuff that they'd otherwise microwave to lesser results. And I will use it as either a secondary oven when I need 2 things to cook at different temps, or as a quick oven to cook or warm things up when I don't want to wait for my regular oven to preheat. Further, I find that without a real pizza oven, the air fryer does a WAY better job on crisping the bottom of a homemade pizza than my regular oven does. Plus the model I have also folds up against the wall to free up counter space. So for me, my air fryer is well worth it and it won't be getting retired anytime soon.
I do have an air fryer, and PREHEAT makes a big difference! Preheat for 5 mins at 350F, then put the seasoned chicken, potatoes, salmon, bacon, whatever. :) It's not a substitute for oven for a lot of dishes (cake? bread? nopes.), but comes handy when in a hurry. Also, putting bacon on top of the veggies (brussel sprouts! :D) helps to keep veggies from being dry.
Great vid as always Bri, I feel like air fryers work much better when cooking frozen food as where deep fryers work wonders when u are making homemade fresh food (personally i prefer deep fryers either way because i don't expect to live past 60-70)
We have an air fryer that looks more like a toaster oven, so we use it for both toast, and just like an extra (smallish) oven. I've made nice trays of roasted root veggies, or roasted cauliflower, and it browns them more evenly than my oven. But I definitely don't use it as a replacement for deep frying.
I actually love my 5-in-1 air fryer, but it's totally different than yours. For example, it has a mesh basket for frying, which increases the air-flow around the thick base you have, and it has a regular rack and a catch tray. It toasts, roasts, bakes, fries, and broils. I'm still learning the "frying" part, but it's incredibly useful. I hardly use my oven now, don't even need a toaster, and my roasted veggies are a million times better.
I pretty much felt the same as you. Held off on getting one for several years, or until my wife and I got our first RV, which didn't have an oven nor any place for one to be added. So I, not wanting to be without the capability to bake something, purchased one specifically for the RV. Funny thing is, we haven't used it in the RV yet.
the best purchase I ever made was the ninja air fryer. I got it initially cause it was supposed to be healthier but you can still fry stuff normally with oil, or go the route of healthier option with less oil I love the flexibility. I have been making so many dishes and learning to cook more with it. I made "skillet" cookies, roasted butternut squashes, eggplant parm. I loove it.
I live in the SW desert part of the US where it gets bloody hot 5 months of the year. Having an air fryer is a MUST so you don’t heat up your house using the oven. I use it for baked potatoes, pizza rolls, chicken fingers, and wings. The key is to toss in olive oil (or other oil) and season well. I’ve had to reduce cook time so sauce doesn’t ooze out of the pizza rolls, probably same for cheese sticks. Tho not as good as deep frying it’s pretty close.
There's also a HUGE sliding scale cost wise. A really low end air fryer is probably going to give you pretty disappointing results. But as someone that doesn't have the option to have a convection setting on my oven, I went out of my way to buy a really nice air fryer, it shines as it's own little thing, not a replacement!
Agree that when judged as its own thing its pretty cool. BUT, personally I don't like adding another tool to my kitchen that doesnt dramatically improve or quicken cooking.
@@BrianLagerstrom After watching a bit of Pro Home Cooks' videos on the topic, the Cosori 5.8QT! Cooks really quickly and evenly but I do wish, looking back, I went the double drawer route.
One thing to bear in mind too is the energy consumption of both appliances. In Spain, energy prices are off the charts and saving oven usage can be quite noticeable in your bill
True, kinda bittersweet story: my grandfather got an airfryer for Christmas in 2018. We tried a bunch of recipes in it because we (myself and my mother, his daughter) would go over to his place for dinner every Sunday. I guess us using it so much made him think we really liked it, so he ended up getting us an airfryer of our own for Christmas 2019. We tried, but we never really used it. He ended up passing away in 2020 (he was as comfortable as he could've been, died very peacefully in his own home, surrounded by family). When the family went through his belongings after his passing, nobody wanted the airfryer. So we ended up taking it. So now we have two airfryers in our house that we do not use, but one of which we are too sentimental to throw away. There's no lesson to this story, I just wanted to reminisce about how I got two airfryers that I don't use, lol.
Sounds like your grandpa was a really thoughtful guy even if it was a swing and miss, and a sweet and fun memory you have with him. May he rest in peace!
Thanks for this! I have been tempted to get this exact model as I have 4 kids at home. Good to see I don't need one. I have no space on my counters anyway!
The thing is, I will NEVER deep fry in my house. It’s scary, it’s messy, and I hate the thought of using all that oil. So for me (and I think most of us) the comparison is between the air fryer and the next available alternative (oven). I think air fried tastes better than just baked.
My biggest reason for the air fryer is that I hate super processed and refined food oils so if I want homemade french fries or something, melting a whole bunch of beef tallow and trying to not waste it or contaminate it with other flavors is just not worth the effort. But, if I microwave the cut potatoes in water for 10 mins, drain the water and then throw a few tablespoons of tallow in the hot fries and put them into the air fryer still a little wet (keeps them from drying out), it makes some pretty legit fries with minimal mess and effort. I also have a pressure cooker and roaster built into my air fryer as I agree that an air fryer alone is not worth the kitchen space. Nice to have in a combo unit though. I never air fry anything that I put breading on myself, but it can be pretty good at reheating previously deep fried food quickly.
Here's the thing. I'm not deep frying that often. Almost ever. If I had an air fryer, I'd probably eat *more* "fried" foods than I do now at home, so overall, that would be less healthy for me. If I occasionally deep fry or shallow fry something, I know it's a treat and it's rare. Probably a net lower amount of calories than if I were to air fry stuff on the weekly. Thanks for tackling this, bro!
The wife and I don’t have an air fryer and likely never will. We occasionally shallow fry foods, but it’s infrequent. When we get the urge, we go out for beers and french fries, or wings, etc. Going out keeps makes it a double treat. P.S. Thanks for your channel, I’ve learned so much from you.
We LOVE our airfryer, but it’s a bit more than the standard. We opted for the Breville Smart Oven Air. It’s excellent and has so much versatility. It is more expensive than the standard smaller airfryer. But, it toasts, broils, bakes, airfries, has warm, pizza, reheat and cookies settings and I can proof my sourdough at 100F for a quicker proofing. I’d suggest something like this if it’s in budget over a standard airfryer.
In addition to reheating fried foods and other obvious "frying" applications, I love using my air fryer as a way to more effectively multi-task when cooking on weeknights. For example, I can throw a batch of sliced kielbasa in the air fryer for 6-7 minutes and by the time my mirepoix for jambalaya is softened, I can just dump in the whole batch of perfectly-browned sausage slices I didn't have to batch or stir in a separate pan. I can roast some squash chunks in under 10 minutes that can be added to a curry. Stuff like that. It's definitely not necessary, but if you have an air fryer and want to use it to streamline the process, it can be helpful. And I love that it doesn't heat up the kitchen like the oven does in the summer months.
I agree with your assessment. I do know of one other good use for it. A co-worker uses it for lunch in the office. It does cook a lot of frozen convenience food but the real plus is the timer. Our work is such that lunch time might get interpreted so not having food burn is a good thing.
First off, I have the air fryer attachment for my Instant Pot, so that doesn't add an entire appliance. Second, it is the hands down best way to reheat fried foods. My first use was on leftover onion rings. They came out crispier and less oily than they were originally! Also, it's the best way to make homemade french fries. They come out very similar to fried ones, especially if you do a shoestring type. And as others have said, perfect for frozen stuff like tater tots.
Not everyone has a nice vent hood to suck up all the vaporized grease from deep frying to prevent everything in the kitchen from having a filmy grease layer on it. Air frying is perfect for partially or fully cooked frozen foods, I don't know of anyone trying to use it in place of a deep fryer.
Did the times include oven heating time? When I bought my airfryer, I have used oven only for bigger batches of food. For 2 person home, cutting down on oven heating time (20 - 30 min for my oven) saves tons of time. Everything I use oven for can be done in airfryer way faster (+ less heat in summer). No need to pre heat and food usually is faster done in small airfryer compared to the big oven. And of course the snacking is awesome. I freeze Khachapuris, Karelia pies, taquitos and other snacking food. Just take off from the freezer and you have snack in 10 - 15 minutes vs heating up oven, waiting the 30 min + cooking time.
I love my Ninja Dual air fryer. It's been a game changer for me, honestly. I can cook with the oven and/or stovetop, but my air fryer is faster, easier, requires less cleanup, uses less electricity, and doesn't heat up the whole kitchen, which I greatly appreciated over the summer. Having it made the difference between cooking something yummy and healthful myself vs carryout or frozen microwaveable on many days. I rarely eat fried food, and can't recall the last time I deep-fried at home, so my use is as a replacement for the oven, not a fryer. I have fiddled with cooking broccoli and have found that putting in more broccoli is key. When roasting in the oven, I spread things out to prevent steaming, but as you found, it can result in chewy broccoli in the air fryer. I toss florets with a spray of olive oil, salt, pepper, and garlic salt (fresh garlic burns too quickly for this, I've found), and put them into a preheated air fryer basket. I use the bake setting instead of air fry, toss once, and aim for some color but not too much. If using lemon, I squeeze it over the broccoli once it's in the basket, and that bit of moisture helps keep things from drying out.
I have an air fryer and use it on occasion - there are some things it does really well. Chicken thighs with skin - it's pretty bomb - start with skin side down and flip it 1/2 way - it crisps the skin really nicely and the end product is super moist. Like you mentioned, it does well quick frozen snacks esp. since you mostly eliminate the need for pre-heating. I think having a standalone model wastes counter real estate, but combo models like the Breville Smart Oven with an air fryer setting gives you the added bonus of having a second small toaster / convection oven for smaller meals plus air fryer functionality makes it worth the counter space. Since I rarely use the microwave to reheat, these are pretty awesome.
It depends on which type of airfryer you have and what you are cooking. I am not a huge fan of the type with drawers, but the ones that are more like mini convection ovens (racks that slide in and out) I do like. As others have said they don't heat up the whole house like a regular oven (especially the poorly insulated ovens in rentals) and many items are done faster. From the mini convection oven perspective, it is great at crisping foods (first cook or re-heat). It's a great hack for hot summers and small portions, but it does require more space between items to have good results. It does fine at the equivilant of oven frying as well, but doesn't compare to something deep fried in terms of results. If you get good with your unit, you can also cook a tiny batch of cookies too if you stash dough in the freezer to make freshies later. All in all, worth it with hot summers and a rental kitchen.
Idk what you did to your broccoli, but when I air fry cauliflower it is so much better than in the oven. 1st, it takes like 10 minutes tops to get the cauli nice and fulled browned, whereas in the oven it takes way longer. Also, the browning in the oven never gets as good as the air fryer. I use mine almost daily for stuff I could do in the oven but for a fraction of the time. I think for someone who lives alone (aka me), it works really well as a really efficient toaster oven, which is what I use it for.
I got one for my wedding at I love it. Now, one thing I found out is that for trying to replicate fried food, it works better if it's breaded in breadcrumbs vs. just flour. Just flour makes it has splotchiness of uneven browning whereas breadcrumbs (Go with panko), it will mimic the golden brown-ness of frying it much better. I do it with chicken thighs and usually I cut them up into pieces and mix it with pasta and melt cheese on top of it in the oven (With a little tomato sauce mixed in it). Sometimes I make a "chicken parm" sandwich with it. I actually haven't figured out with fries because I personally like mine pale yellow like with Wendy's and McDonalds and not TOO crispy. But I basically use my air fryer once a week usually.
Brian - MANY of us live in tiny, exorbitantly priced condominiums in major cities where the convenience of a simple countertop air fryer that's far less messy and involves far less grease, is vastly preferable to a giant vat of hot oil (and not just b/c well what the hell do I do with a giant vat of oil in my tiny apartment after I'm done using it one evening a month?)...this is arguably the #1 reason to purchase an air fryer. In addition, as you noted: since air fryers use so much less grease, we can actually use them fairly regularly to cook.
This was a cool vid, and I totally get where you're coming from. An air fryer has been useful in my kitchen, but mostly as a second, smaller, faster oven. If I'm cooking a whole meal in the oven, I use the oven. But if I'm cooking something on the stove top, and I want to quickly cook something smaller in an oven without waiting for the big one to preheat, it can be quite convenient. I suspect having three kids is a big part of why it's so useful. We're regularly reheating things or cooking additional things that we wouldn't cook if it was just my wife and I. I definitely prefer the stove top and oven approach. But the air fryer (or, really, the countertop convection oven, which is how I think of it) is a handy little device when I'm having to whip up semi-random stuff quickly.
This was very informative and useful. Could you do a video on how to deep fry for beginners? Like, what pot and oil to use? What temperature oil should be at, and what to do with all the oil and cleanup? As someone who’s never deep fried foods, it would be super helpful. Thanks!
I was gifted an air fryer a few years back, and I wasn't really sure what to use it for. The first thing I found was that it is *excellent* at cooking bacon. That was about all I did with it for the first couple years. However, I have recently found it to be a handy replacement for most tasks I'd use a toaster oven for, such as reheating pizza. It's also a convenient way to cook vegetables, chicken, and a few other things. While generally inferior to a conventional oven, it can be faster, doesn't need to be preheated, easy to clean up, etc. I ended up liking this appliance in ways I never thought I would.
As someone who both lives in a small apartment and works 2nd shift (2p-1030p) my airfryer is super helpful in being able to make quick hot lunches in small portions which is perfect for me since I don't really have time in the morning to get my chef mode on and after a long day sometime some pizza rolls made quick just sound great. My particular airfryer model also has a pretty big drawer so I can totally fit veggies and chicken in the drawer at the same. Personally my favorite thing to make in there is frozen takeout chicken and some eggrolls. While my rice cooker does the rice and I can have some takeout style eats in about 20-25 min total. Also hard boiled eggs in the airfryer is a great convenience since my lowest common denominator apartment stove/oven takes about 6 years to boil water.
I would not want to live without my air fryers and I have multiple air fryers I never thought of them as a replacement for deep frying I just thought of them as a faster cheaper more efficient oven I guess it helps that I don't have a full size oven :-) I have a countertop of it and I have my air fryers I like the cleanliness I like the speed I like the crunch and I like the frugality of electricity usage they tend to cook faster which uses less electricity by quite a lot Deep frying is not really much of an option because it's very expensive process The amount of oil you need and the cost of that oil is very cost prohibitive It might be better but it doesn't matter if I can't afford it :-)
I bought one last year, i tend to use more than regular oven now. I like how fast it is at cooking stuff, i don't really try to do breaded stuff. I mostly cook chicken, green beans, potatoes etc. I do prefer certain things in the oven that need to get carmalized like butternut squash or things that taste better when they cook in their own fat. Overall i like mine though.
canned cinnamon rolls, motz sticks, "naked chicken strips", baked potato, and a few others are my go to for the air fryer. it doesn't completely replace oil fry but it can get close. for frozen mot sticks - 380° for 5m. i have the oven style so the time could be adjusted for your sticks. i like that you said "can save time" then you didnt cut down the air fryer time at all. i dont really AF veggies but 25m is way to long! i would have tried 5-10m first then decided if more time was needed. for the most part you can reduce the temp by 25-50° too!
When we had to replace our range we found a GE range with built in air fryer at 40% off, so it cost less than the same model than without air fryer! We mostly use it for heating up prepackaged frozen foods. I've tried chicken wings but it takes forever to get them crispy.
I love my air fryer, but we also have one that does pressure cooking, steaming, slow cooking etc so it is quite versatile and we use it all the time. I think as some of the comments have said it shouldn't be compared to frying, I don't think anything can compete with deep fried goodness, but, with that said for me it has 2 major positives on that side. 1) no / low oil, you waste a lot of oil with deep frying that it can sometimes be a waste if you do not use it enough, 2) with cost of living crisis right now, you can create a whole meal in an air fryer for a fraction of the price of a hob (stove top) and an oven. Either way, loving your videos although I did miss the "let's eat this thang" comment :)
Thank you, I hear from so many ppl. How I should get an air fryer. I have no room for one and tgere is always something new coming out. Also I see no need to have another appliance that does only one thing. I am so happy to see this demo and gear your opinion.
I snagged a combination convection oven microwave a few years back for like $80 off craiglist (pretty sure the people who had it didn't know what they had, they never peeled off the film on the buttons so I think they thought they were selling us a broken microwave), and it's pretty handy. It does a decent job reheating stuff when it's hot out and we don't want to turn the oven on, and it does an ok thing getting frozen items to crisp up. It basically replaced our broken toaster oven, although I miss the broil feature from that. It has a "grill" option that tris to simulate it, but it's just not as good, or fast. But we also have a deep fryer for when we want to be gluttonous and make up deep fried pizza rolls or cook up some pork katsu. Any time I want something fried that I'm making from scratch I will, 100% of the time, use the deep fryer itself.
just got an air fryer for Christmas, never had one before. I agree with everything Brett Moore said. He is exactly right. I'll see how it goes the more I use it. I can't give up my oil frying - shallow and deep.
This was great! I always appreciate your point of view. We have an air fryer, and it's OK for frozen convenience foods, but really what I find it most useful for is reheating stuff. I hate the microwave and would not have one if I had my druthers, so reheating maybe one of those Detroit style pizzas I learned from your channel, that's an air fryer move all day. Toasting subs, etc. Basically if you have one, you can find things to do with it. If you don't and you're on a budget, I'd say skip it.
I used to be sceptical about this device but I got one as a present and I decided to give it a go. IMO, when it comes to breaded food, Air Fryers are the better alternative to deep frying by miles. I tried cooking breaded stuff a lot of times in the past in a regular oven and it takes a lot longer to brown, plus it nevers really develops a crispy crust like Air Fryers do. Same thing goes for french fries, you don't get the same crisp in the outside when cooking potatoes in an oven. So if you want to mimic fried stuff in a lighter, healthier an inexpensive way, I think Air Fryers are a good option. For other cooking options it might be unnecesary to have this extra appliance taking space in your kitchen (in terms of the final results of the food), although sometimes it feels more convenient to use it instead of having to preheat the oven, wait the extra time to cook something and then having to clean it up.
I was previously opposed to air fryers. Then we got one for our wedding. It's pretty nice for what it does actually, the main issue is people use them to try to replace other things. Air fryers suck if you want them to be an oven, a deep fryer, and and a stove top or whatever. You would not use a deep fryer to boil water for tea, so don't use an air fryer to replace another cook method.
I bought the air fryer that ATK said was the best approximately 1 year ago. Took it out of the box and sat it on the shelf and there it sits today. I still haven't used it. I don't eat convenience foods and I rarely eat leftovers, so I haven't found a real use for it in my kitchen. The chicken thighs looked good though so I may need to give it a try.
OMG so refreshing to see someone who is not in love with this device! For me it's was a gift from a friend, and I'm sure after 2 years of having it that it's completely useless if you have oven at home. For now I use it for french fries from potato and sweet potato with minimum oil, because I have it. But would be totally fine in the oven too. For me huge downside is it's size - I can make food maximum for 2 people, even only garnish for 3 is already impossible in one sit, or I have to split in 2, or the best scenario will not have any leftovers. And I just have no time not to have it I think if you have any skills and understanding at the kitchen, you don't need it. If you're food is mostly convenience food or something that you need to reheat, go for it.
I highly recommend using the “toaster oven” style of air fryer over the type used in the video. We have a Cuisinart and it gets better results than here. It has a wire mesh tray rather than the basket and allows for much more even cooking. Also bakes, toasts, broils and dehydrates.
When air fryers first took off I was on team “What’s the point? I already have a convection oven”. Then I got one. It def has its place and I use it quite often. I mostly use it for small items, or side dishes. Not having to heat up the oven for certain things is really nice. Also, I put my air fryer under/by the hood over my cooktop when I use it and there is no odor left in the house. Can’t say the same for my big oven. So, yeah…they have a place.
When I’m cooking breaded foods in the air fryer to replicate an oil fryer, I’ve found that spraying the food 2-3 times with oil during cooking helps a ton. That may have helped with the cheese sticks and chicken.
My total colesterol went from 650 to 110 and my diabetes went from ±600 to less than 200 in the first 6 months simply by getting rid of my saucepan filled with refined oils and buying an air fryer, and in my cooking, I use pork fat or beef fat as they are full of mono saturated fats instead of poly saturated fats, those poly ones are the ones who clogged my arteries and gave me an heart attack with 3 by passes, for me, it's not about loosing weight, it's about improving my health and staying alive, besides, as I adapted my recipes to a air fryer (temperature and times) they taste just as awesome with zero smell of oil in my apartment and pretty much zero cleaning afterwards (sorry for any grammar mistakes, English is not my first language) stay healthy, love your videos dude
![BLACK BAG - Official Trailer [HD] - Only in Theaters March 14](http://i.ytimg.com/vi/Du0Xp8WX_7I/mqdefault.jpg)
Ok, I know you have opinions this one. Was I wrong? Do you love air fryers? Hate 'em? Leave me a comment and let me know why.
Oh, and if you're looking for gift ideas, head to buyraycon.com/lagerstrom & use code HOLIDAY for 15 percent off sitewide.
Our air fryer is great for freezer tater tots, and great for reheating things like takeout onion rings. It does wings better than the oven, but not as good as deep frying or the grill. It's a useful appliance, but it doesn't live up to the hype.
I have the best of both worlds. My new stove came with a built in air fryer, plus a convection oven setting. Plus regular baking. So it's not a separate appliance sitting on my counter. There are some things I really love done in the air fryer. I do have to watch fat intake so making traditionally fried foods is not in my diet plan. Air frying gives me the deliciousness of fried food with a fat intake more in line with my dietary needs. Air fried chicken thighs are a favorite. Fresh potatoes are tasty made into fries though not quite deep fried caliber. Air fried veggies are superb. In short, I think you're selling air fryers short.
Imo air fryers only work to reheat stuff or to cook things that are already frozen. Frozen precooked French fries, egg rolls, etc or reheating stuff like tortilla chips, sausages.
@@mattc3233 I always laugh when I see recipes for “crispy” air fryer fries and I can SEE they’re soggy. If you’re reheating already frozen fries, yeah you can do that and they’ll be crispy. But oven-baked potatoes aren’t crispy just from using an air fryer. You need good technique and a few tricks.
QUESTION: IS THAT AIR FRYER MADE WITH TEFLON? APPEARS SO. YOU KNOW THAT CAUSES CANCER, YES? THANKS
I don't use my air fryer as a replacement for deep frying. I use it like a small countertop oven. If I don't want to heat up the big oven for a small portion or I want to reheat something that was previously oil fried, the air fryer is the go-to. NOTHING reheats fried foods better than the air fryer. Frozen chicken nuggies in the air fryer are unbeatable if you have kids. And it's much faster than the oven for most foods. I love my air fryer AND my oil fryer.
both and. copy! a better option for reheating than the microwave, no doubt.
It all boils down to one thing . Deep frying is extremely unhealthy and air frying is not . Of course it depends on what you’re cooking , if you’re giving chicken nuggets to your kids whether deep fried or air fried their health will be compromised either way.
@@BalanceProper how so?
@@jamewakk how so what ? How will their Health be compromised?
@@BalanceProper Eh, if you have to spray it down with oil, it's not healthy parse, just healthier. Which is also debatable depending on what you're cooking, if you're fixing fries, onion rings or corn dogs from a store bought bag or box, they're already been deep fried partially once, just not fried till fully cooked. And stuff like meat doesn't absorb oil, so fixing a steak, roasted chicken or pork chop is just as unhealthy as fixing it on the stove or oven, because you still need to spray with oil to get good browning.
I felt the same way before I put my first air fryer to use a few years ago and what I've learned is that they shouldn't be compared to "frying" of foods. This is where the branding of an Air "FRYER" tends to throws people off. They actually serve as a brand new cooking function in the home kitchen of "intensive convection cooking" which wasn't really available before the creation of the air fryer. It's almost a middle ground of deep frying and regular convection cooking! What I've found through my trials over the years is that there numerous reasons why an air fryer is optimal for cooking certain foods and they shouldn't be overlooked by any Pro Home Cook!
the air fryer goat has made his statement. We need a collab between two of my favorite food creators!!
Great to see you here!
An air fryer collab, or any for that matter, would be amazing.
Just posted a comment for Bri to chat with Mike lol didn’t see this one
Nice to see Mike on here
When you factor in the time to preheat an oven, for us the airfryer is faster than the oven. For the foods that it excels at (meats, especially pork belly, and potatoes), it works really well.
And when you factor in the time it takes to heat up the oil and clean up the oil, air fryer for the win there.
It's good for brussel sprouts as well
Um, while the oven heats up the rest of the civilized world is prepping the food for it to bake, broil, and with the convection setting it's a force to be reckoned with. Explains why restaurants that serve tasty dishes use them. 😃
Surprised there was no mention of convenience in the video. You also save a lot of energy. Washing the drawers are super easy too. But Brian is a different type of cook than most. He's more focused on the culinary experience while the rest of us is a mix of good food and convenience
An airfryer really shouldn't be compared to an oven, it should be compared to a toaster oven. In an oven you can cook larger dishes that need to be spread out to cook evenly increasing mallard, like vegetables. In a toaster oven you heat up smaller quantity items like reheating meals, toast, and the like. Sure you can cook full meals in an airfryer and toaster oven, but it's not what they excel at.
My take on the air fryer: It's not a replacement for deep-frying. Rather, it's a much better version of the "toaster oven." Frankly, you can cook or reheat food faster, and nothing restored frozen or previously fried food as well as the air-fryer (with the exception, perhaps, of refrying -- but who wants to add all those calories a second time!). Also, the oil drain aspect is always a plus!
Well it is actually a small countertop convection oven.
Nah, my toaster oven can make toast
My counter top oven is a convection oven, does all of the stuff you said, also makes toast, can roast a whole chicken, heats up in 3 minutes, etc. It's a way more versatile form factor.
>but who wants to add all those calories a second time!
I do. I know, sounds crazy, but hear me out. Not all calories are equally satiating (fills you up). If I eat more satiating calories I end up eating less total calories naturally. Refrying adds fat which is probably the most satiating kind of calorie, so you can eat less total calories and feel less hungry later on. You have to get used to eating smaller meals or you'll end up over eating, so there is some downside to be fair.
@@DamianSheesh hell yeah. A mini oven seems so much better than this
Great work as always, this answers all my questions! I know people who rave about air-fryers, but they mostly eat frozen foods or reheat leftovers.
Hey mate, we have a multi function airfrier, it dehydrates, it can be a standard oven, and airfrier, great video Brian 👍🏼👍🏼🇦🇺🇦🇺🦘🦘Cheers from Melbourne Australia
Air Fryers really show their strength in heating frozen fried foods and reheating any food that should be crispy -- pizza, french fries, etc. Capacity can be an issue, they make the most sense in small households where using a whole big oven for one side dish is wasteful. The Pro Home Cooks air fryer videos really show where it shines.
when you say pizza, do you mean you throw a slice or two into the air fryer buckets and then let them heat up in there?
MAKES PERFECT RE‐heated pizza.
@@johncra8982 yup
Mom showed me how to best reheat a pizza, Microwave pizza slices for 45 sec, to a minute, then place on a hot cast iron or carbon steel pan for a minute. Bottom crispy, top hot and melty cheese. In many cases better than when first made
Someone else pointed this out but, a toaster oven also does that well. And mine can rotisserie a chicken. I live alone and almost never use my oven. I've been trying to find a reason an air fryer would make things easier but I just can't.
I'm a small apartment haver. I love my air fryer. It is indeed bad at replicating fried foods, but it is awesome as a mini convection oven. I can roast/toast/broil small portions for 1-2 people and get good results without the expense (in time and money) of pre heating and operating my full size oven.
We resisted getting one for a long time but once we finally did I was really surprised how often we use it and with how many different type of foods. The major tradeoff is counter space but if you use it enough it's worth it!
I can see it being useful for quite a few people that's for sure...It would be nice to not heat up the large oven. But I didn't see a ton of reasons for me personally why it makes sense
@@BrianLagerstrom My family have found it useful when cooking those seasoned Pork Tenderloins you can get at the store. We cut it in half and throw them in the air fryer for 20 or so minutes and it always turns out perfect! we'll use the stove to finish the meal with gravy, steamed broccoli, and mashed potatoes. Thanks Brian!
I found that it shines when making side dishes or if the oven is already occupied. I've always hated cramming a bunch of things into the oven with different cook times.
I feel like slightly changing cook time on the broccoli or using a container so the cheese doesn't escape and get lost would have improved the result of both tests. IMO a single big drawer is better than 2 drawer model, the size lets you cook more at the same time and you are able to use bigger containers to make stuffs like cakes and pizzas.
Breading, then freezing the cheese sticks first may have also helped. Outside gets browned before the cheese escapes.
I agree. Two smaller baskets seems like a bad idea.
@@shanes.1691haha, yes! Just put them in the freezer before you cook them. So prepare your quick meal at least one day ahead.
@@danielsal5442 Not a big fan of pre-prepping? Make fifty cheese sticks, freeze 45 and have 5 blown out then 45 great later, quick and easy. Fire me it's much quicker and easier than using an entire pot of oil, waiting for the oil to heat, getting the temp to sit right, then dealing with used oil. I'll take having to freeze it accept blown out cheese sticks rather than deal with oil.
We have one of the stainless steel countertop model that also functions as an oven. I got it in April and used it for the first time on Thanksgiving to make your stuffing recipe. It came out absolutely PERFECT on the baking setting. I’ll be using it for a small oven on the regular from now on!
I’ve felt the same way as you… resisting an air fryer. However, when gifted one I have found it useful. Especially for reheating leftovers or carry out. Also.. gives me an “almost” as crispy French fry that’s much healthier than deep fried.
I'm old enough to remember when microwave ovens first came out and people were claiming they could replace your conventional oven. What we learned is that they are a different but also very handy tool that most kitchens today would not be without. For air fryers, they'll never recreate deep frying. I've found them however to be great for bringing previously fried and frozen food back to crispy life. I make things like spring rolls, wings, etc and freeze them after frying. Then when I need a quick lunch, I can toss some into the air fryer and have them turn our pretty close to when they first came out of the oil, way better than my Breville countertop oven can do. They are also handy for hard boiling an egg or two, and they are great for roasting a hot dog. My AF has earned it's place on my counter top, it's a great compliment to my other appliances.
I'm curious, how do you hard boil an egg in an AirFryer?
@@TheAdultLife don't have an airfryer, but would guess that just pop eggs in the fryer and that's it? eggs don't need water to cook. they are in the shell, hot water has no bearing on the texture or taste. they just need an even source of heat to cook, and not explode the shell.
@@TheAdultLife It's simple, I do up to 6 eggs in my air fryer at 275 degrees for 15 minutes, no pre heating and eggs cold from the fridge. After the cycle completes, place the eggs in a ice bath for 15 minutes and they're done. You may see some very light browning on the shell but the egg is perfectly cooked inside. This is for a full hard cooked egg, I haven't played around with doing soft boiled but I'm sure it's possible.
For a soft- or hard-boiled egg, I steam one in a minimum of water, covered, in a tin cup! No muss, no fuss. (Bigger pot for >1, of course, but still not much water.)
@@TheAdultLife set the air fryer to 250, put the eggs in the basket, cook for 15 min, run under cool water and peel. You'll have to play around with the time to figure out what works best in your particular fryer. Also the shells will get weird. Don't be alarmed, this is normal. 🥚😁
I used to be an air fryer hater as well, insisting my regular oven with a convection setting was the same. But an air fryer heats up a LOT faster and is great for reheating things and convenience foods like you said. I love cooking, but sometimes I just wanna eat some pizza rolls and frozen fries. It doesn’t replace my oven, but it is a useful tool. Internet shaquille has a great defense for air fryers too
I was sceptical aswell. But seeing that I could half most of my cook times in the air fryer AND get better results... that pretty much cast any doubt aside instantly.
It replaced my oven when I learned the foil/parchment technique. My air Fryer is squeaky clean even after like 10 uses lol
It's obviously going to heat up a lot faster than your normal sized oven.
@@Moon_Presence It's more than just the size.
Ovens tend to be 900-1000w
A good Air-Fryer is 1500w, all focused in that smaller area.
I have one, and it gets used about once a week. It’s not the best way to make a steak - but it’s the fastest/simplest/cleanest. It’s also a second oven, which comes in handy when I need to be making 2 things simultaneously at different temps. Also, as others say, it’s solid for premade frozen food. Not an essential device by any means, but there are plenty of things in my kitchen that get less use.
I cooked steak on the weekend. Cast iron pan, oil the meat not the pan and 2 minutes each side for rare. Tasted lovely. I'm yet to be convinced about AFs mainly because the food people cook seems quite processed - and am not convinced chips are as crisp as when they are cooked in dripping. Am also wary of the ingredients in the oil sprays. Quite a few of them are Tefal coated so that's another big red flag for me.
I thought air fryers were dumb for the same reason you mentioned. Since the pandemic I've been mostly working from home and decided to give air frying a try. It's been a game changer. I live in a small apartment with a pretty weak oven that takes forever to preheat, not to mention I also use the oven for storage so I have to take everything out to do so. Sometimes I just want a quick chicken breast with seasoning and some steamed vegetables for lunch and I can easily just pull a breast out of the freezer the night before, season it the morning of, pop it in the air fryer, throw my veg on a plate and in the microwave to steam, and then I can go about the rest of my lunch hour without worrying about the cleanup/prep before and after.
In extreme case scenarios like yours, it works great.
@@qud3913 how is my scenario extreme? could apply to any working young professional who works from home and lives in an apartment.
It’s exactly made for your situation, it’s just many of us are cooking for 4 or more. As a 1-2 person household I feel countertop appliances are better than outdated, inefficient appliances as you mentioned.
Made some killer stuffing this past Thanksgiving in my air fryer. Saved me some space in the oven and still got the good crunchy and soft texture combo.
I have always despised single use appliances but the air fryer is really the first appliance I actually am happy to have purchased. After a long day at work, being able to just pop stuff in it for 15 minutes and having quality food is a god send - ESPECIALLY because of the cleanup. Cleaning up baking sheets after making something in the oven is a special hell, and I find its a nice medium between blitzing something in the microwave and committing to preheating my shitty oven thats probably older than i am
Not to be silly about it, but if you line your baking sheets with aluminum foil, cleanup is a matter of disposing of the foil afterwards,
@@tonymusc I do this but feel a bit guilty wasting foil every time.
but it is not single use - it bakes, it cooks it does anything an oven can do but a giant turkey :)
@@Professor-Scientist then get a silicone mat. Reusable, easy clean up
I was also relucant to get one because of the single use thing, but if you are doing small amounts, its much more convenien, but also energy efficient, it heats up in 3 minutes, it cooks fast and it uses less electricity than a full sized oven.
I have a toaster-oven style air fryer and mostly use it for toasting bread and reheating frozen food (microwave to thaw, then air-fry to crisp). It's also great for cooking sausages and hot dogs (ease of a microwave without the rubbery texture). It also has a tendency to overcook things if you try to directly map over oven recipes to it.
I borrowed my daughters airfreight as she raved about it, I tested it with a roast chicken dinner, first it had a rotisserie feature which I was looking forward to using, but soon realised only a quail size chicken would fit, then like Brian discovered the rest of ghe meal had to be done in batches, so it took a lot more effort. Next I tried chips (fries) and they were awful, only have were crispy even after I shook them a few times. I soon realised that because I cook from scratch a airfreight is not great, my daughter likes her processed foods, straight from the freezer, that's why it works for her, plus how do you feed a family of 5? You would be cooking batches all day!
I'm so glad you addressed this! I'm going back and forth trying to decide this right now.
I suggest you look beyond Bri before making your decision. Its a very useful too that has nothing to do with mozz sticks and fried chicken
@@izattyu6863 Okay, thanks! So, drawers or trays? Does yours get too hot on the outside? Is it hard to clean? Any info is appreciated.
As many have said, air fryers are great for reheating things (best way to reheat fried chicken, bar none). But I find incredible utility in quickly roasting single-serving batches of vegetables. They're completely cooked in the air fryer faster than my oven can even preheat. And it's so much more efficient.
The trick to avoid your result with the broccoli is a combination of practice and checking on the food so you can pull it when it reaches your desired level of doneness.
Like most kitchen gadgets I find the air fryer situationally good. As others have said it's great for reheating stuff (particularly things that were fried like french fries). I use mine regularly to make chicken wings as my wife and kids don't like them and it just doesn't make sense to me to heat up a bunch of oil I then have to dispose of later when the air fryer does an admirable job. I also use it regularly for making roast cauliflower which I really enjoy. It does a decent job with salmon as well.
Generally speaking it seems to perform best with foods that contain a good amount of fat that can render quickly and effectively fry the foods. It's by no means the "best" way to make much of anything if you're going to put in the time and effort to cook, but for getting something to eat quickly it's very handy and works more quickly than the oven.
I feel like it’s all in how you use it. I use mine often to make more kid friendly meals and to reheat left overs that require being made crispy again. I don’t use it for a lot of my every day cooking but it definitely has its place
I don't think they are supposed to be compared or similar to deep fryers. Air fryers are supposed to not use oil (or very tiny amount) to provide healthy food, an easy alternative to people who want to lose weight but still be able to eat crispy food.
We now have two of this exact item, the Instant Pot Vortex 6 Qt. Air Fryer ruclips.net/user/postUgkxD4Qeo-HRLxMfom_PDinM_SBfes00qJsB . The friend just had a second one delivered a few days ago so we could take it to our lake house. We have even given a couple as gifts. And we use ours regularly. It is a killer for warming up leftovers. It is killer for warming up fries when you bring them home from the fast food place. It is killer for cooking a lot of things. It does its job fast and it does it well. This is simply one of the best items that you will ever spend money on for preparing food. And, its hard to imagine someone making one that's better than the Instant Pot Vortex.
Hey Brian. So, a couple of things! My wife and I love our air fryer, but I think the format of the fryer makes a big difference. We have one of the oven style fryers with the fold down door and trays (instapot Vortex). This allows you to have better control over how the food cooks by being able to change the distance of the tray from the heating element. Believe it or not the few inches can make a big difference! This also allows you to cook things that require different times by layering them Above and below each other. Chicken thighs on the top right under the heating element, asparagus on the lower tray. Same 12 minutes and all the food comes out perfect. Also, the big thing we have found is for proteins, they come out better when sauced. So, cooking Pesto chicken thighs or salmon filets marinated in a creamy lemon garlic. This allows the outside to caramelize and give you a really nice texture while just having perfect doneness on the inside. Lastly, we have found air fryers to be more like a grill, they each have different cooking characteristics and you will find you make better food when you have more experience with your particular fryer!
I think teriyaki salmon or marinated chicken sounds like a great idea. Im def not 100% against the AF. It just doesn't really add to my setup is all. Id love to hear more about this asparagus cooking setup you've got going on.
@@BrianLagerstrom Absolutely! We have found the best asparagus, specifically for the air fryer, are the petite spears. It allows them to cook and soften in the shorter windows of time that the more delicate proteins take to cook. Generally, any of the green vegetables we do in the air fryer follow the same sort of recipe, toss in olive oil and a garlic spice blend and then into the air fryer. For some reason we have found that the Garlic Garni blend (found on amazon) just cooks differently and produces a unique flavor when bordering the charred state. Incidentally, it's our favorite way to prepare vegetables for the grill too! Last bit of knowledge I can toss in is playing with your temps. The breaded "convivence" type items are very sensitive. Normally I drop 25 degrees off the temp of the oven and lower the tray when doing things like Moz sticks because of the exact problem you had. It allows it to brown without the environment being as intense and helps with cheese leakage.
@@The_Dude_1 I agree with everything this Dude said. An air fryer is a different tool than an oven, it seems like the disconnect is in the marketing. It's not ideal as a "replacement" for deep frying, but it's passable.
Just as you wouldn't cook something the same way in a toaster oven vs a microwave oven, you need to adjust technique and/or recipe to make truly excellent food in an air fryer.
I live on my own in a camper, so not a lot of space but not a large quantity of cooking either. I've been told by a lot of people I NEED an air fryer, but when I ask what people use them for it's primarily for heating up frozen stuff. Being in a camper, I have a freezer the size of most people's microwave so I don't have a lot of frozen snacks on hand. I can see it being very useful, but I've been happy enough using my stove/oven and a cast iron skillet for frying on the occasion I do that. I don't actually know of anyone that uses an air fryer for cooking other than french fries.
It's fantastic for leftovers, since it just blasts such concentrated heat at a fraction of the time it takes the oven to heat up and properly circulate a small amount of food. But just like you showed, it absolutely dries out anything very easily. I have one in my current home since my roommate loves it, and for his purposes it's great especially since our stove/oven is kinda crap. But man do I miss my nice toaster oven that could do it all and even had good heat circulation/air fry functionality. Great vid as always Bri!
For the broccoli: if your air fryer basket can accommodate a few tbsp of water in the bottom, add the water. It’ll partly steam then roast, similar to using steam baking bread to get more rise before the surface dries out. Bake a large russet potato in the AF in half the time of an oven. Or part microwave then air fryer to finish and crisp the skin.
I think you should revisit this... there are tons of use cases and thousands of recipes specifically catering to airfryer use.
You barely scratched the surface of how it can be used. Additionally, I contend that a bigger chamber is waaay more useful. You were definitely over crowding the pan which is why some items came out dry and under developed. JMHO.
My large Cosori can handle a small chicken or two breasts and two baked potatoes. Perfect for a couple
I got a multipurpose cooking appliance, the Foodi, a few years ago and it changed my life. Once you get the hang of how it cooks you can do practically anything with it with very little clean-up. I don't usually like to deep fry because of having to deal with all that oil afterwards.
* googles Foodi *
I had my very first success at making bread thanks to your videos man, I was beyond happy. Thanks for that
If you are looking for an oven-comparable gadget to try that could be a space saver for those that live in a more compact kitchen you should try a Breville smart oven or Joule. It takes up just a little more space than the air fryer but I absolutely love it because it toasts, has convection, air fries, and bakes, and is great because in the summer we don't have to heat the whole kitchen to cook. It is not cheap at $500, however, but occasionally goes on sale. We have reheated fries and have been amazed at how crispy we can get them. We really like it over the comparable counter space that that air fryer takes up.
As a single person I absolutely love the air fryer! I do more re-heating than actual cooking day to day. It's definitely better for some things than others.
We have a really small/tiny kitchen and it's great for us. We use that and a rice cooker for almost all of our meals.
@@jonnazimmers I'm super late! Yes they come in handy!!
I love my Ninja Foodi Flip model enough to marry it. It replaced our old Black & Decker countertop toaster oven, takes up the same footprint when it's flipped, and preheats quickly. It gets utilized every morning for toast and I use it to make sheet pan type dinners a few times a week. I cannot believe how much I use this thing.
I came to the exact same conclusion you did, Brian. I don't prepare fried food often, so we use a camp stove outside to deep fry - thus saving a mess in the kitchen and stinking up the house. Like you, I don't want my counters cluttered with appliances, so taking the air fryer out and putting it on the counter needs to have a utility to justify the effort. It rarely does. I think we used ours once last year. It now lives in the garage.
Yes I agree,I very rarely deep fry ,it's stinks the house up and the evaporated oil and water sticks to all surfaces.but I don't have an open planned house,if I do fry I open kitchen window and back door to get a through draught
An air fry/ toaster oven combo style was a great addition to my kitchen I love the fact I can thrown down some tinfoil below the food for quick clean up and can cook things both with the air fry mode as well as broil and bake functions
As a classically trained Chef I was instinctively put off by an “air” “fryer” because of course you cannot fry with air. But it seems I was somewhat ignorant, I failed to see the actual purpose of them and where they really excel and that’s as a small oven. Convenient in every way, I really cannot fault mine.
One item of great hype that seriously does live up to it is…the Challenger Bread Pan made of cast iron..I actually have two of them so I can do two ciabatta at the same time. (Easy to remove and replace the very hot lids, a shallow bottom to easily slide your doughs in, etc) There’s plenty of thermal mass, so preheating does take extra time, and I put the lids on a top shelf and the bases on the lowest shelf in the oven for preheating, put my ciabatta on parchment, and just slide the half sheets right along w the dough into the preheated pans, and throw a few ice cubes into each and clamp the lids on. Super rise, super bake, then take the lids back off at the appropriate time and put back on the top oven shelf for the crisp them up phase. I did find I had to put a cookie sheet under the pans on another shelf to keep the bottoms from overheating, but that’s just a foible of my own setup..that much cast iron that close to the bottom equals lots of heat..
I hated my drawer style air fryer because it was a pain to clean, but I actually do like air fried broccoli as a snack. The slightly chewy, slightly burned texture is a great alternative to other snacks. I got a Ninja toaster oven with air fry, roast, and bake settings and I use that thing constantly. It's a great alternative to the big oven for someone cooking for one or two people.
I got a toaster oven that doubles as a super-powered air fryer. and it's really nice when I don't wanna whip out a whole sheet tray to bake something when I'm coming home from work. But ur completely right about it sucking as a deep fryer replacement, I don't think anything can replace that flavor and texture haha
The term 'air fryer' is a bit of a misnomer - but it's a great tool! I treat mine as a more portable broiler & convection oven as opposed to a proper deep frying substitute. I've also found that they're much easier to monitor for cook done-ness than your average oven (my version has a clear glass lid) and more pleasant to clean as well. In my experience, they heat up faster than your average oven, and are a good way to par cook foods with more control. You definitely get a better result with conventional methods and higher quality cooking equipment, but I think this is a good & affordable middle ground for folks who don't have access to those things.
I would say I use it as a microwave and toaster replacement more than an oven. It just does that job so well. And I have a very small apartment stove oven combo so it's really nice to have basicly an extra oven
Bri, I love my Cosori air fryer a few times a week. French fries are simple and they rock. My favorite weeknight meal is a bone-in chicken breast and baked potato for two. I mic the taters for 5 minutes, during that time I preheat the Airfryer while I prep the breasts by patting them dry and sprinkle some S@P on em. 25-30 minutes in the fryer, take them out to rest and cook some broccoli on 400 for 5 minutes while the chicken rests. Great 30 minute weeknight meal and the chicken is juicy and skin crisp and no cranking up the oven. You are right about breaded frying, that’s over rated but it has a bundle of uses, especially for a couple
thank you sooooooooooooo much for being honest and open with us! i have thought about getting airfryer for a while but very hesitant for all the things you mentioned in your video. I love the practicality you create your content. it is just like me cooking at home!
I got an airfryer and I use it very often. Its really handy, and a godsave when you just feel a little lazy.
What i think is the issue with your test is trying to do the exact same recipe in different environment, obviously things developed for one thing wont behave the same way (and turn out as good) in a different thing.
One use I do like of for my air fryer is during the summer. I live in the desert, and it gets HOT here. An air fryer tends to heat my house A LOT less compared to a full oven during the summer. It's also just my fiancé and I, so one less use of an intensive resource live ovens during that time of the year for a small portions.
You have to freeze the mozzarella sticks to get them not to leak... Try it... Also there are adjustments to recipes and specific receipes for air fryers that are great. Also I recommend not double drawers... Those have major issues. Just get two air fryers! It is basically a smaller convection oven that is WAY faster if you adjust right... Pork chops in the air fryer.... Just throw them in... Same with brats from frozen... And don't get me started on how it basically replaces my microwave... People that don't know how to use air fryers are dumb (just kidding, love ya Bri, but we need to get you on board with this one)!
Thx for taking a 2nd look at air fryers Bri. I think the issue lies in the name - it's really a small, efficient "Convection oven" - not particularly "fryer." (Also wont heatup the house on hot days!)
Cheers and thanks for your enjoyable vids!
CNET article:
Cost of 300 hours of cooking with a gas oven on high heat: $153
Cost of 300 hours of cooking with an electric oven on high heat: $120
Cost of 150 hours of cooking with an air fryer: $39
The air fryer I have is the wider, flatter form factor that can cook a whole frozen pizza (not that I typically make those - just pointing out the scale). The main reasons I bought it were (a) my toaster oven broke and I needed to replace it, and (b) I wanted options to make something approximating fried food without having to deal with all the oil. I know that oil frying tastes better, but then I have a quart or 4 of oil that I have to let cool and then either filter to reuse or find a way to dispose of - it's WAY more hassle than it's worth IMO, so I rarely do it.
My kids use it regularly as a toaster oven to make all sorts of stuff that they'd otherwise microwave to lesser results. And I will use it as either a secondary oven when I need 2 things to cook at different temps, or as a quick oven to cook or warm things up when I don't want to wait for my regular oven to preheat. Further, I find that without a real pizza oven, the air fryer does a WAY better job on crisping the bottom of a homemade pizza than my regular oven does. Plus the model I have also folds up against the wall to free up counter space.
So for me, my air fryer is well worth it and it won't be getting retired anytime soon.
I do have an air fryer, and PREHEAT makes a big difference! Preheat for 5 mins at 350F, then put the seasoned chicken, potatoes, salmon, bacon, whatever. :) It's not a substitute for oven for a lot of dishes (cake? bread? nopes.), but comes handy when in a hurry. Also, putting bacon on top of the veggies (brussel sprouts! :D) helps to keep veggies from being dry.
Great vid as always Bri, I feel like air fryers work much better when cooking frozen food as where deep fryers work wonders when u are making homemade fresh food (personally i prefer deep fryers either way because i don't expect to live past 60-70)
We have an air fryer that looks more like a toaster oven, so we use it for both toast, and just like an extra (smallish) oven. I've made nice trays of roasted root veggies, or roasted cauliflower, and it browns them more evenly than my oven. But I definitely don't use it as a replacement for deep frying.
Yeah, i went with the basic format for mine, but I would imagine that a larger one with racks like a toaster oven would be the way to go.
I actually love my 5-in-1 air fryer, but it's totally different than yours. For example, it has a mesh basket for frying, which increases the air-flow around the thick base you have, and it has a regular rack and a catch tray. It toasts, roasts, bakes, fries, and broils. I'm still learning the "frying" part, but it's incredibly useful. I hardly use my oven now, don't even need a toaster, and my roasted veggies are a million times better.
Which one do you use?
@@kikoiekiko7440 It's a Weesta 5-in-1
I pretty much felt the same as you. Held off on getting one for several years, or until my wife and I got our first RV, which didn't have an oven nor any place for one to be added. So I, not wanting to be without the capability to bake something, purchased one specifically for the RV. Funny thing is, we haven't used it in the RV yet.
the best purchase I ever made was the ninja air fryer. I got it initially cause it was supposed to be healthier but you can still fry stuff normally with oil, or go the route of healthier option with less oil I love the flexibility. I have been making so many dishes and learning to cook more with it. I made "skillet" cookies, roasted butternut squashes, eggplant parm. I loove it.
I live in the SW desert part of the US where it gets bloody hot 5 months of the year. Having an air fryer is a MUST so you don’t heat up your house using the oven. I use it for baked potatoes, pizza rolls, chicken fingers, and wings. The key is to toss in olive oil (or other oil) and season well. I’ve had to reduce cook time so sauce doesn’t ooze out of the pizza rolls, probably same for cheese sticks. Tho not as good as deep frying it’s pretty close.
There's also a HUGE sliding scale cost wise. A really low end air fryer is probably going to give you pretty disappointing results. But as someone that doesn't have the option to have a convection setting on my oven, I went out of my way to buy a really nice air fryer, it shines as it's own little thing, not a replacement!
Agree that when judged as its own thing its pretty cool. BUT, personally I don't like adding another tool to my kitchen that doesnt dramatically improve or quicken cooking.
what kind/brand did you end up going with?
@@BrianLagerstrom After watching a bit of Pro Home Cooks' videos on the topic, the Cosori 5.8QT! Cooks really quickly and evenly but I do wish, looking back, I went the double drawer route.
@@BrianLagerstrom I agree exactly, I can't see restaurants using them
One thing to bear in mind too is the energy consumption of both appliances. In Spain, energy prices are off the charts and saving oven usage can be quite noticeable in your bill
True, kinda bittersweet story: my grandfather got an airfryer for Christmas in 2018. We tried a bunch of recipes in it because we (myself and my mother, his daughter) would go over to his place for dinner every Sunday. I guess us using it so much made him think we really liked it, so he ended up getting us an airfryer of our own for Christmas 2019. We tried, but we never really used it. He ended up passing away in 2020 (he was as comfortable as he could've been, died very peacefully in his own home, surrounded by family). When the family went through his belongings after his passing, nobody wanted the airfryer. So we ended up taking it. So now we have two airfryers in our house that we do not use, but one of which we are too sentimental to throw away.
There's no lesson to this story, I just wanted to reminisce about how I got two airfryers that I don't use, lol.
Sounds like your grandpa was a really thoughtful guy even if it was a swing and miss, and a sweet and fun memory you have with him. May he rest in peace!
Thanks for this! I have been tempted to get this exact model as I have 4 kids at home. Good to see I don't need one. I have no space on my counters anyway!
The thing is, I will NEVER deep fry in my house. It’s scary, it’s messy, and I hate the thought of using all that oil. So for me (and I think most of us) the comparison is between the air fryer and the next available alternative (oven). I think air fried tastes better than just baked.
My biggest reason for the air fryer is that I hate super processed and refined food oils so if I want homemade french fries or something, melting a whole bunch of beef tallow and trying to not waste it or contaminate it with other flavors is just not worth the effort. But, if I microwave the cut potatoes in water for 10 mins, drain the water and then throw a few tablespoons of tallow in the hot fries and put them into the air fryer still a little wet (keeps them from drying out), it makes some pretty legit fries with minimal mess and effort. I also have a pressure cooker and roaster built into my air fryer as I agree that an air fryer alone is not worth the kitchen space. Nice to have in a combo unit though. I never air fry anything that I put breading on myself, but it can be pretty good at reheating previously deep fried food quickly.
Here's the thing. I'm not deep frying that often. Almost ever. If I had an air fryer, I'd probably eat *more* "fried" foods than I do now at home, so overall, that would be less healthy for me. If I occasionally deep fry or shallow fry something, I know it's a treat and it's rare. Probably a net lower amount of calories than if I were to air fry stuff on the weekly. Thanks for tackling this, bro!
same here. I need to avoid adding yet more calories to my life :)
AGREE! I don't need more reasons to eat chicken nuggets
The wife and I don’t have an air fryer and likely never will. We occasionally shallow fry foods, but it’s infrequent. When we get the urge, we go out for beers and french fries, or wings, etc. Going out keeps makes it a double treat.
P.S. Thanks for your channel, I’ve learned so much from you.
Well said fatty and fast foods aren't healthy,
We LOVE our airfryer, but it’s a bit more than the standard. We opted for the Breville Smart Oven Air. It’s excellent and has so much versatility. It is more expensive than the standard smaller airfryer. But, it toasts, broils, bakes, airfries, has warm, pizza, reheat and cookies settings and I can proof my sourdough at 100F for a quicker proofing. I’d suggest something like this if it’s in budget over a standard airfryer.
Very useful information. Thank you
When my husband asks me if I want one I'll just say, Bri says it's not the best choice.
In addition to reheating fried foods and other obvious "frying" applications, I love using my air fryer as a way to more effectively multi-task when cooking on weeknights. For example, I can throw a batch of sliced kielbasa in the air fryer for 6-7 minutes and by the time my mirepoix for jambalaya is softened, I can just dump in the whole batch of perfectly-browned sausage slices I didn't have to batch or stir in a separate pan. I can roast some squash chunks in under 10 minutes that can be added to a curry. Stuff like that. It's definitely not necessary, but if you have an air fryer and want to use it to streamline the process, it can be helpful. And I love that it doesn't heat up the kitchen like the oven does in the summer months.
I agree with your assessment. I do know of one other good use for it. A co-worker uses it for lunch in the office. It does cook a lot of frozen convenience food but the real plus is the timer. Our work is such that lunch time might get interpreted so not having food burn is a good thing.
First off, I have the air fryer attachment for my Instant Pot, so that doesn't add an entire appliance. Second, it is the hands down best way to reheat fried foods. My first use was on leftover onion rings. They came out crispier and less oily than they were originally! Also, it's the best way to make homemade french fries. They come out very similar to fried ones, especially if you do a shoestring type. And as others have said, perfect for frozen stuff like tater tots.
Not everyone has a nice vent hood to suck up all the vaporized grease from deep frying to prevent everything in the kitchen from having a filmy grease layer on it. Air frying is perfect for partially or fully cooked frozen foods, I don't know of anyone trying to use it in place of a deep fryer.
Did the times include oven heating time?
When I bought my airfryer, I have used oven only for bigger batches of food. For 2 person home, cutting down on oven heating time (20 - 30 min for my oven) saves tons of time. Everything I use oven for can be done in airfryer way faster (+ less heat in summer). No need to pre heat and food usually is faster done in small airfryer compared to the big oven.
And of course the snacking is awesome. I freeze Khachapuris, Karelia pies, taquitos and other snacking food. Just take off from the freezer and you have snack in 10 - 15 minutes vs heating up oven, waiting the 30 min + cooking time.
I love my Ninja Dual air fryer. It's been a game changer for me, honestly. I can cook with the oven and/or stovetop, but my air fryer is faster, easier, requires less cleanup, uses less electricity, and doesn't heat up the whole kitchen, which I greatly appreciated over the summer. Having it made the difference between cooking something yummy and healthful myself vs carryout or frozen microwaveable on many days. I rarely eat fried food, and can't recall the last time I deep-fried at home, so my use is as a replacement for the oven, not a fryer.
I have fiddled with cooking broccoli and have found that putting in more broccoli is key. When roasting in the oven, I spread things out to prevent steaming, but as you found, it can result in chewy broccoli in the air fryer. I toss florets with a spray of olive oil, salt, pepper, and garlic salt (fresh garlic burns too quickly for this, I've found), and put them into a preheated air fryer basket. I use the bake setting instead of air fry, toss once, and aim for some color but not too much. If using lemon, I squeeze it over the broccoli once it's in the basket, and that bit of moisture helps keep things from drying out.
I have an air fryer and use it on occasion - there are some things it does really well. Chicken thighs with skin - it's pretty bomb - start with skin side down and flip it 1/2 way - it crisps the skin really nicely and the end product is super moist. Like you mentioned, it does well quick frozen snacks esp. since you mostly eliminate the need for pre-heating. I think having a standalone model wastes counter real estate, but combo models like the Breville Smart Oven with an air fryer setting gives you the added bonus of having a second small toaster / convection oven for smaller meals plus air fryer functionality makes it worth the counter space. Since I rarely use the microwave to reheat, these are pretty awesome.
It depends on which type of airfryer you have and what you are cooking. I am not a huge fan of the type with drawers, but the ones that are more like mini convection ovens (racks that slide in and out) I do like. As others have said they don't heat up the whole house like a regular oven (especially the poorly insulated ovens in rentals) and many items are done faster. From the mini convection oven perspective, it is great at crisping foods (first cook or re-heat). It's a great hack for hot summers and small portions, but it does require more space between items to have good results. It does fine at the equivilant of oven frying as well, but doesn't compare to something deep fried in terms of results. If you get good with your unit, you can also cook a tiny batch of cookies too if you stash dough in the freezer to make freshies later. All in all, worth it with hot summers and a rental kitchen.
Idk what you did to your broccoli, but when I air fry cauliflower it is so much better than in the oven. 1st, it takes like 10 minutes tops to get the cauli nice and fulled browned, whereas in the oven it takes way longer. Also, the browning in the oven never gets as good as the air fryer. I use mine almost daily for stuff I could do in the oven but for a fraction of the time. I think for someone who lives alone (aka me), it works really well as a really efficient toaster oven, which is what I use it for.
I got one for my wedding at I love it. Now, one thing I found out is that for trying to replicate fried food, it works better if it's breaded in breadcrumbs vs. just flour. Just flour makes it has splotchiness of uneven browning whereas breadcrumbs (Go with panko), it will mimic the golden brown-ness of frying it much better. I do it with chicken thighs and usually I cut them up into pieces and mix it with pasta and melt cheese on top of it in the oven (With a little tomato sauce mixed in it). Sometimes I make a "chicken parm" sandwich with it. I actually haven't figured out with fries because I personally like mine pale yellow like with Wendy's and McDonalds and not TOO crispy. But I basically use my air fryer once a week usually.
Brian - MANY of us live in tiny, exorbitantly priced condominiums in major cities where the convenience of a simple countertop air fryer that's far less messy and involves far less grease, is vastly preferable to a giant vat of hot oil (and not just b/c well what the hell do I do with a giant vat of oil in my tiny apartment after I'm done using it one evening a month?)...this is arguably the #1 reason to purchase an air fryer.
In addition, as you noted: since air fryers use so much less grease, we can actually use them fairly regularly to cook.
This was a cool vid, and I totally get where you're coming from. An air fryer has been useful in my kitchen, but mostly as a second, smaller, faster oven. If I'm cooking a whole meal in the oven, I use the oven. But if I'm cooking something on the stove top, and I want to quickly cook something smaller in an oven without waiting for the big one to preheat, it can be quite convenient. I suspect having three kids is a big part of why it's so useful. We're regularly reheating things or cooking additional things that we wouldn't cook if it was just my wife and I.
I definitely prefer the stove top and oven approach. But the air fryer (or, really, the countertop convection oven, which is how I think of it) is a handy little device when I'm having to whip up semi-random stuff quickly.
This was very informative and useful. Could you do a video on how to deep fry for beginners? Like, what pot and oil to use? What temperature oil should be at, and what to do with all the oil and cleanup? As someone who’s never deep fried foods, it would be super helpful. Thanks!
I was gifted an air fryer a few years back, and I wasn't really sure what to use it for. The first thing I found was that it is *excellent* at cooking bacon. That was about all I did with it for the first couple years. However, I have recently found it to be a handy replacement for most tasks I'd use a toaster oven for, such as reheating pizza. It's also a convenient way to cook vegetables, chicken, and a few other things. While generally inferior to a conventional oven, it can be faster, doesn't need to be preheated, easy to clean up, etc. I ended up liking this appliance in ways I never thought I would.
As someone who both lives in a small apartment and works 2nd shift (2p-1030p) my airfryer is super helpful in being able to make quick hot lunches in small portions which is perfect for me since I don't really have time in the morning to get my chef mode on and after a long day sometime some pizza rolls made quick just sound great. My particular airfryer model also has a pretty big drawer so I can totally fit veggies and chicken in the drawer at the same. Personally my favorite thing to make in there is frozen takeout chicken and some eggrolls. While my rice cooker does the rice and I can have some takeout style eats in about 20-25 min total. Also hard boiled eggs in the airfryer is a great convenience since my lowest common denominator apartment stove/oven takes about 6 years to boil water.
I would not want to live without my air fryers and I have multiple air fryers
I never thought of them as a replacement for deep frying I just thought of them as a faster cheaper more efficient oven I guess it helps that I don't have a full size oven :-) I have a countertop of it and I have my air fryers
I like the cleanliness I like the speed I like the crunch and I like the frugality of electricity usage they tend to cook faster which uses less electricity by quite a lot
Deep frying is not really much of an option because it's very expensive process The amount of oil you need and the cost of that oil is very cost prohibitive
It might be better but it doesn't matter if I can't afford it :-)
I bought one last year, i tend to use more than regular oven now. I like how fast it is at cooking stuff, i don't really try to do breaded stuff. I mostly cook chicken, green beans, potatoes etc. I do prefer certain things in the oven that need to get carmalized like butternut squash or things that taste better when they cook in their own fat. Overall i like mine though.
canned cinnamon rolls, motz sticks, "naked chicken strips", baked potato, and a few others are my go to for the air fryer. it doesn't completely replace oil fry but it can get close. for frozen mot sticks - 380° for 5m. i have the oven style so the time could be adjusted for your sticks.
i like that you said "can save time" then you didnt cut down the air fryer time at all. i dont really AF veggies but 25m is way to long! i would have tried 5-10m first then decided if more time was needed. for the most part you can reduce the temp by 25-50° too!
When we had to replace our range we found a GE range with built in air fryer at 40% off, so it cost less than the same model than without air fryer! We mostly use it for heating up prepackaged frozen foods. I've tried chicken wings but it takes forever to get them crispy.
I love my air fryer, but we also have one that does pressure cooking, steaming, slow cooking etc so it is quite versatile and we use it all the time. I think as some of the comments have said it shouldn't be compared to frying, I don't think anything can compete with deep fried goodness, but, with that said for me it has 2 major positives on that side. 1) no / low oil, you waste a lot of oil with deep frying that it can sometimes be a waste if you do not use it enough, 2) with cost of living crisis right now, you can create a whole meal in an air fryer for a fraction of the price of a hob (stove top) and an oven.
Either way, loving your videos although I did miss the "let's eat this thang" comment :)
Thank you, I hear from so many ppl. How I should get an air fryer. I have no room for one and tgere is always something new coming out. Also I see no need to have another appliance that does only one thing. I am so happy to see this demo and gear your opinion.
I snagged a combination convection oven microwave a few years back for like $80 off craiglist (pretty sure the people who had it didn't know what they had, they never peeled off the film on the buttons so I think they thought they were selling us a broken microwave), and it's pretty handy. It does a decent job reheating stuff when it's hot out and we don't want to turn the oven on, and it does an ok thing getting frozen items to crisp up. It basically replaced our broken toaster oven, although I miss the broil feature from that. It has a "grill" option that tris to simulate it, but it's just not as good, or fast.
But we also have a deep fryer for when we want to be gluttonous and make up deep fried pizza rolls or cook up some pork katsu. Any time I want something fried that I'm making from scratch I will, 100% of the time, use the deep fryer itself.
just got an air fryer for Christmas, never had one before. I agree with everything Brett Moore said. He is exactly right. I'll see how it goes the more I use it. I can't give up my oil frying - shallow and deep.
This was great! I always appreciate your point of view. We have an air fryer, and it's OK for frozen convenience foods, but really what I find it most useful for is reheating stuff. I hate the microwave and would not have one if I had my druthers, so reheating maybe one of those Detroit style pizzas I learned from your channel, that's an air fryer move all day. Toasting subs, etc.
Basically if you have one, you can find things to do with it. If you don't and you're on a budget, I'd say skip it.
I used to be sceptical about this device but I got one as a present and I decided to give it a go. IMO, when it comes to breaded food, Air Fryers are the better alternative to deep frying by miles. I tried cooking breaded stuff a lot of times in the past in a regular oven and it takes a lot longer to brown, plus it nevers really develops a crispy crust like Air Fryers do. Same thing goes for french fries, you don't get the same crisp in the outside when cooking potatoes in an oven. So if you want to mimic fried stuff in a lighter, healthier an inexpensive way, I think Air Fryers are a good option.
For other cooking options it might be unnecesary to have this extra appliance taking space in your kitchen (in terms of the final results of the food), although sometimes it feels more convenient to use it instead of having to preheat the oven, wait the extra time to cook something and then having to clean it up.
I was previously opposed to air fryers. Then we got one for our wedding. It's pretty nice for what it does actually, the main issue is people use them to try to replace other things. Air fryers suck if you want them to be an oven, a deep fryer, and and a stove top or whatever. You would not use a deep fryer to boil water for tea, so don't use an air fryer to replace another cook method.
I bought the air fryer that ATK said was the best approximately 1 year ago. Took it out of the box and sat it on the shelf and there it sits today. I still haven't used it. I don't eat convenience foods and I rarely eat leftovers, so I haven't found a real use for it in my kitchen. The chicken thighs looked good though so I may need to give it a try.
OMG so refreshing to see someone who is not in love with this device! For me it's was a gift from a friend, and I'm sure after 2 years of having it that it's completely useless if you have oven at home. For now I use it for french fries from potato and sweet potato with minimum oil, because I have it. But would be totally fine in the oven too.
For me huge downside is it's size - I can make food maximum for 2 people, even only garnish for 3 is already impossible in one sit, or I have to split in 2, or the best scenario will not have any leftovers. And I just have no time not to have it
I think if you have any skills and understanding at the kitchen, you don't need it. If you're food is mostly convenience food or something that you need to reheat, go for it.
I highly recommend using the “toaster oven” style of air fryer over the type used in the video. We have a Cuisinart and it gets better results than here. It has a wire mesh tray rather than the basket and allows for much more even cooking. Also bakes, toasts, broils and dehydrates.
When air fryers first took off I was on team “What’s the point? I already have a convection oven”. Then I got one. It def has its place and I use it quite often. I mostly use it for small items, or side dishes. Not having to heat up the oven for certain things is really nice. Also, I put my air fryer under/by the hood over my cooktop when I use it and there is no odor left in the house. Can’t say the same for my big oven.
So, yeah…they have a place.
When I’m cooking breaded foods in the air fryer to replicate an oil fryer, I’ve found that spraying the food 2-3 times with oil during cooking helps a ton. That may have helped with the cheese sticks and chicken.
My total colesterol went from 650 to 110 and my diabetes went from ±600 to less than 200 in the first 6 months simply by getting rid of my saucepan filled with refined oils and buying an air fryer, and in my cooking, I use pork fat or beef fat as they are full of mono saturated fats instead of poly saturated fats, those poly ones are the ones who clogged my arteries and gave me an heart attack with 3 by passes, for me, it's not about loosing weight, it's about improving my health and staying alive, besides, as I adapted my recipes to a air fryer (temperature and times) they taste just as awesome with zero smell of oil in my apartment and pretty much zero cleaning afterwards (sorry for any grammar mistakes, English is not my first language) stay healthy, love your videos dude