Just get a nice convection oven. For toast and like small batches of biscuits or baked goods/ fish is amazing baked. If you are single the convection oven is your friend lol
Or just not preheating at all in the air fryer. Usually I just chuck some food in and press the button, it comes out perfect because that tiny space doesn't take nearly as long to heat compared to a whole giant oven. That, plus the food is like 2 inches away from the heat source, so it's really broiling and convection cooking at the same time.
@@ClioMioo yeah good point. I've been doing the same lately. Plus (and this is small) the oven heats up my whole kitchen whereas the air fryer doesn't.
I wonder how much money is saved on electricity over a years time when comparing preheat and cook times. I spend a lot of time waiting on my oven to preheat and I know she has to be chewing up some serious electricity doing so.
@@1bcordell Electric appliances use next to no electricity. For example even if you live where electricity is ridiculously overpriced like California, running an oven at full heat for 1 hour only costs 40 cents of electricity. Most of the world your electricity cost will be half of that. So lets say you use your oven a ridiculously high amount like 5 hours a day which only people who run a restaurant would ever get close to, you are only paying $60 in electricity per month.
So I have tested my oven and it takes around 8 minutes to reach 200C 400F and 10-12 to reach 250C 480F. I usually preheat for 5 minutes and then put the food in.
Great video. 🙂 I am not sure if anyone has mentioned this yet but another pro of the air fryer is that when it's super hot outside in summer, it does not heat up your home like an oven does.
That seems the most obvious benefit. Oven cooking in the southern US is one of those things that doesn't really make good sense. No other culture near the tropics does that sort of thing. They all cook on stovetops. I live in Florida and that's one reason I ditched baking in favor of cuisine that doesn't use an oven. That's also why I'm interested in an air fryer (I have a counter-top convection oven, but it's only a marginal improvement).
@@raminolta not sure what you are commenting on as I don't see anything that could possibly relate to what you just said here. My comment was that if your house is hot and you don't wish to add more heat by cooking in the kitchen, an air fryer is portable and can be taken outside to do your cooking thus not making it hotter inside your house.
Preheating should really be taken into account here. I never thought I’d use an air fryer. Thought it was a pointless waste of space. But it can turn out incredibly crispy chicken nuggets in 10 minutes, less time than it takes my oven to preheat to 400.
@@vincedibona4687 Depends on the air fryer. In the video the air fryer isn't being used optimally. Using it the way he does is effectively using it like a toaster oven which you would be correct. No difference. BUT proper use of an air fryer can mean preheating takes less then a minute. A toaster oven just can't do this. With the one I have purchased, in the time I have placed the food on the rack, the air fryer is ready. Bacon takes 7 minutes TOTAL to cook including preheating, wings usually take around 19 minutes, and I consistently can shave off around 15% of cooking time for any premade food from the store. Some I have noticed I can do in half the time. Just like his deep frying videos, it matters how you use an air fryer to get the best results. Most air fryers are just rebranded toaster ovens though so research is important.
I agree, preheating time should've been included in overall cooking times. And the preheat was far too long, if not entirely unnecessary for the air fryer.
air fryers are nice for reheating when you dont want to wait ages for a big oven to heat up for those two slices of pizza and you dont want that wet slimey texture you get in the microwave.
I live in South Korea and most apartments here don’t have an oven already installed. So, I’m going to buy an air fryer bc my microwave can’t do what an air fryer can. Still enjoyed this video!~
Air fryer would probably be a better choice for Asian cuisine than a convection oven. I have a convection oven and it's really only a marginal improvement over a regular oven. It is more energy efficient and smaller, however.
Air fryers are great for people with rental homes where the oven in the house provided by the landlord and is the cheapest, crappiest oven that you are stuck with.
@@gamezahoy712 Not true.I don't know where you people get your information, but I've been using convection ovens for decades and it really isn't the same technology. My airfryer preheats in under 2 minutes, there's no way that my similarly sized convection oven would be ready to cook that quickly. They both use convection as the primary method of transferring heat to the food, but the fans that the air fryers use are significant. Typically, you can reduce the temperature by about 50F and the cooktime by about 20% on the airfryer to get similar results to what you'd get out of a convection oven. If it were really just a marketing ploy, those settings would be much closer. On top of that, by being able to operate at a lower temperature over a shorter period of time, you're likely to save the difference in purchase price over the time you own the appliance.
@@SmallSpoonBrigade I guess you didn't watch the video, because none of what you're saying about faster or lower temp turned out to be true when he tested it
@@Monochromicornicopia "the movement caused within a fluid by the tendency of hotter and therefore less dense material to rise, and colder, denser material to sink under the influence of gravity, which consequently results in transfer of heat." Constantly circulating hot air with a fan is convection
@@WolfBangAlpha You just proved yourself wrong by posting the definition of convection. Convection is moving air due to gravity. A fan spinning around pushing air is not movement due to gravity.
It's a good comparison. I'd only say it depends on how much you typically cook. I have a friend who lives alone, she uses her air fryer virtually exclusively for her cooking. I have sons that live with me, so I need the capacity offered by a convection oven.
@@justinnguyen3906 Currently I have a Toshiba 1.5 cu ft capable of 425 F on the convection side. It's rated at 1000 watts, that's a tad light, but it's a combo micro/convection. I use it all the time, it's absolutely the best way to make garlic bread, warms meats well without the microwave drying out thing I hate. AND it does everything a micro needs to do as well. It's a replacement for the one I had that was 2 cu ft, 1400 watts, and totally awesome, but getting one that big and powerful is like $600 this one cost me around $200 on sale. it bakes very well, it cooks pizza exceptionally well, and on those occasions I need to "finish" something coming off of the grill, the ability to control the temperature to bring a hunk of meat to safe temps is a real boon. This has happened in the past where I have a thick chuck roast or big poultry quarters that are done on the outside but the inside temp isn't quite what I'm comfortable with, so I set the convection to around 200 and let it ride in there until I feel ok. My big oven could do this too, but it takes longer to heat up and because the heating elements are at the bottom then it can at times scorch the underside of whatever I'm trying to heat up. I haven't used it for actual "air frying" as of yet, but I've done regular and sweet potato fries in the past in my old one that came out fine, as well as roasted vegetables. Various brands have either racks or pans to do that type of thing on, I tend to use the rack and put a paper plate beneath it if it's meat that will drip. I *really* favor it for cooking ANY frozen item that you would otherwise fry, like battered fish, meat pies, pierogis, chimichangas, or chicken nuggets, it heats so evenly and quickly as well. Ok you got me talking about the damn thing sorry for the exposition here ;-)
We have a Miele Speed Oven. It microwaves, bakes, broils, and does combinations of those. It is also convection. It cooks things anywhere from 50-75% of the stated time on a pizza, or most other baked items. It is a bit slower on the microwave, but considering all that it does, albeit expensive, we rarely use the big oven and it does an amazing job on fries, onion rings, etc.
I have one similar. Ninja Foodi 9 in 1. Doesn't have the microwave function but it's a pressure cooker (with associated functions like steaming) mixed with an air fryer (again with associated functions like grill and baking/roasting)
To me, Air Fryer changed my life! As a single person living by my own thats an incredibly useful, time saving tool. I cook almost everything in it, chicken breast, bacon, vegetables, frozen bites etc. Great for summer when you dont want to heat up your place and faster because you dont have to pre heat your machine. Love love love it
Eulogy but honestly, i think thats why hes the best! he focuses more on the people who want the best food with the least amount of effort in the shortest amount of time. Babish and weissman just make cooking vids for entertainment like making ninja turtles pizza or making in n out better. none of that shit is actually going to apply to someones home cooking its just way too complicated and annoying to even consider making.
Good video. I got tired of using a large oven for small tasks; I live alone. I bought a Cuisinart AirFryer Toaster Oven that bakes, convection bakes, broils, convection broils, warms, toasts, and airfrys. When I make Key Lime pie or cake, I don't want the fan and when I do wings, I want the airfryer feature. Choice is a wonderful thing.
I have both. I use my Ninja pot&airfryer, bake, and more just to cook small portions: one or two pieces of chicken, a few chicken wings, or a piece of meatloaf, also to warm up 2 or 3 pieces of the bread-oven set. I reheat leftovers from restaurants, homemade food, or pizza. It works very well and the food back to life wonderful. I use my convection oven for big or large meals, which works perfectly. I love and use both. HAPPY to have them.
I only use my big oven when making big dinners and friends or family are eating at my house. I have a family of 3 so I usually only use either my air fryer/convection oven or the stove top. It’s so much easier. I love how much faster/easier it is to clean because it’s smaller and the fact that its A LOT faster to cook in it because not much preheat time if any at all. I totally recommend them. I’ve had all of them separate but my favorite is the air fryer/oven/dehydrator/rotisserie combo.
Thank you, this was so helpful. I have been contemplating an air fryer but I have a convection oven. Your video has saved me a few bucks and reorganizing the storage cupboard above the fridge.
The one thing I love about my airfryer is the lack of having to preheat. It's convenient for putting foods in quickly to reheat them. I find that if you factor in the preheat time then they are much quicker to use. Of course they shouldn't take different amounts of time to actually cook the food, the temperature is the same. What he also didn't factor in is the cost saved not having to heat a big oven. I live alone and I find an airfryer great in that situation. You're not having to heat a big oven to cook a relatively small amount of food. Of course if you are cooking for probably more than two people, normal oven is better. I can do quick toasties and pitta bread pizzas easily. They're also great as an additional oven when cooking for an occasion such as Christmas when multiple things need oven cooking.
i was planning to purchase an air fryer but i was confused as i already have a panasonic convention oven thats is working wonderfully for me....now i know i dnt need to put my money on an air fryer. thank you for uploading this useful content. 👍👍
Most air fryers don't look like the one featured in this video and with our air fryer the times are less than what was shown here. We do have an convection setting on our oven but we opt for the air fryer nearly every time. The convenience of the air fryer and the quickness of it has all but made our microwave null and void 😂 Ours is also simple enough to be kid friendly and the kids will pick it over the microwave every time.
Ethan - just stumbled upon this vid while researching our convection toaster oven. Excellent analysis ! For us, we concluded there's no good reason to buy another appliance when we already have one that will do the same job. Thank you Thank you Thank you for your thorough analysis and demonstrable facts. UPDATE: Today we used our convection toaster oven to "air fry" sliced potatoes. Sliced raw potato 1/4 inch, sprinkled with kosher salt, set on a metal grid (a re-purposed steamer insert) and convection baked at 400 F for about 18 minutes, flipping half way through. Result ? Crispy, crunchy deliciousness. Garnished with Kewpie mayo.
One nice thing about having both an air fryer and a convection oven is that you can roast two dishes at two different temperatures at the same time. No need to choose between getting extra crispy potatoes and not overcooking the chicken when you can do both.
Amen, they are worth the space they take easily. Love my oven and use it a lot, However our air fryer is indispensable when I want to just throw something frozen that is normally fried or baked; in and have it come out nice and crispy without the long preheat time and getting the kitchen hot. Here in Australia ALL and I mean literally, of our starchy fluffy potatoes are bought by the restaurant and frozen food industry. You will only ever find the same waxy skinned terrible floppy frying potatoes here, doesnt matter what colour. Unless you are battering food, deep frying don't make sense here. Frozen precut is the only way to make decent chips at home here.
I recently bought an air fryer after everyone hyped them up so much. It definitely cooks things better than my oven and is significantly faster (even when not taking into consideration preheat time). Some things I use it for that I didn't consider before buying: garlic bread - mine is wrapped in foil. in my convection oven (called fan-forced here) it takes about 15 mins to preheat and then 10 - 15mins to cook. In my Air fryer it takes 5 mins to preheat and 8 - 10 mins to cook. So it's preheated and done before the convection oven has even finished preheating. It also produces a better result and it doesn't heat up my house. french toast - I will never cook french toast any other way! It cooks french toast exactly how I want it. crisp-ish eggy coating on the outside, soft squishy bread on the inside. fish and chips - I'm sure many people use an air fryer for this. I buy frozen battered fish and frozen chips and the air fryer does an awesome job. Not as good as deep fried, but definitely better than my oven, and again it's faster. Takes about 17 mins inc. preheat to get from off to done. I always preheat with mine. It has a preheat button and sets it's own preheat time based on the temp. The manual suggests using it for everything so I do and it always turns out well.
I have been a fan of convection ovens for decades. My oven does all I need, without having to buy another appliance. Not that it might be a good choice in some circumstances. For example, many people do not have a convection oven, or perhaps they only cook small quantities. This is a great channel - another good evaluation.
You really don't need it to be a set temperature in order to beat a convection oven - all you need is brute strength and a baseball bat. Perhaps this guy used his fists instead of the bat.
It appears I've stumbled into a comment section with folks in a completely different economic class than myself. Never even had a convection oven. The air fryer is way faster and better than a regular oven.
It's not really energy saving if you consider air fryers are prone to self combust and burn (watch out for your house, there's a YT video out there where it was caught on camera) and essentially die leaving plastic and electrical waste which 1. costs money and the environment to make and 2. costs money and the environment to dispose. My gifted air fryer started smoking from the top and set off my fire alarm. I quickly unplugged the damn thing and it still kept burning for a few minutes, but by this time I had put on my oven mitts and took it outside. My opinion, stick with normal convection ovens if you can. They are safer, cooks better and from what I can see, better for the environment 💪🏼
Dear RUclips, you mentioned the chicken did not fare as well as the rest of the foods. However, at marker 3:37 (or thereabouts) it looks like you sprayed your flour dipped chicken with what, I assume, is spray oil. Therein lies the problem. If you will not spray the oil the chicken will come out crisp. If you dip the chicken into baking POWDER (not soda) it will crisp very well. Works great for wings too. After making wings I brush with hot sauce and broil until browned to our liking.
Excellent video for comparison. Very well put. I have an Omni, and do like it. I mostly wanted this to reduce the heat in the kitchen during summer months. I agree with everything you have said. Yes, I do have a large convection oven and the air fryer.
This was the main reason I just bought an air fryer - to reduce heat and to be able to bring it out on the balcony so I can leave an air condition on, and don't have to open windows to get rid of the cooking smells (which is generally difficult, due to all windows on one side of the building and wind mostly blowing parallel to them... )
An air fryer is technically an impingement oven. I just bought one for $40. Much cheaper and easier to "install" than a convection oven. And, unlike most ovens, air fryers have a timer and turn off when done. Most ovens do not. The low cost and ease of use are the main advantages of an air fryer. Not to mention that I don't need a gallon of oil to cook chicken wings or onion wings or fries. An oven is gonna take at least 20 to 30 minutes for anything and pan or deep frying requires you to stand over it and at least keep an eye on it to see when it's done if not having you constantly move to food around to keep it from burning. With an air fryer, i can now have onion rings, chicken wings, fries, roasted veggies and other food like that with almost no work at all. Convenience is the main advantage of an air fryer and, unlike a microwave, an air fryer can actually cook food, anything an oven can, in less than half the time.
Exactly! The convenience is amazing. My air fryer can be controlled through an app, so I can just put the food in there, select a "recipe" in the app, which sets the time, temperature, etc. for you, press start and just wait for the food to finish. Some recipes are programmed to pause at a certain time and remind you to shake or turn the food over. We truly live in the 21st century haha.
One pro for me : It's small. If you live alone in a rented room and don't have something like small kitchen, this can help you to "fry" your food if you ever need to cook some food in that particular way.
I have a convection oven yet I blindly set it to bake based on the package directions for things like fries.... DUH! Thank you so much for this video! Can’t wait to try using the convection setting and a rack in my cookie sheet. Great info!
One of the best comparisons I've heard in a long time. You basically confirmed what I was thinking since, I already have an oven with air fryer and convection capabilities.
HW was wrong with the times for sure. It takes at minimum around 15 minutes longer than an air fryer from preheating alone as real air fryers don't require preheating at all like ovens.
I haven't been using my air fryer for much more than potatoes and chicken thighs and legs, but I do like it. My oven is a convection oven, but there's something to also consider beyond preheat time, and that's how much heat the oven generates. The chamber for even a large air fryer is much smaller than an oven. A lot of heat energy is built up into an oven that will eventually dissipate into your kitchen. With an air fryer, you're not pumping as much heat into your kitchen. In the winter, I don't mind running the oven, but in the summer? Anything that helps me not heat up the kitchen is a bonus!
Too many people are dumping all over air fryers, when if many people need a decent tabletop convection oven, they can get one with an air fryer. You can also get one with a toaster oven with a convection setting, but it's noticably harder to find a good one. To add to that, air fryer baskets can be fairly large, often allowing larger foods than you can often get from a toaster oven. Not because of a toaster ovens size, but it's shape is often very limiting. It's not that toaster ovens can't beat air fryers, but that most models are kind of crap. While even a crappy air fryer is usually decent. I've personally used a crappy and good air fryer, and crappy and good toaster oven. A crappy air fryer will beat a crappy toaster oven, but a good toaster oven beats everything.
I saw that too, even rewound vid to douvle-check what I thought I saw. He went straight for the pen and paper without an issue like one may have if truly blindfolded.
This video was the one i was looking for in terms of whether to buy an air fryer or not. It was to the point precise and just perfect. Thank you for making this ❤️❤️
The significant advantage of air fryers is the fact that they’re a lot easier to clean, more practical for everyday use, and uses a lot less energy. I’ll stick to using mine for years to come, in fact my old one just conked out after 6 years and just bought a new one by xiaomi lol.
Not in my experience, the baskets are so small I have to use >4 loads of fries and stuff to feed a family (5-7), 1500W for almost an hour. We started just running the thing outside. The oven is gas powered and much larger so it's cheaper to run.
As a matter of fact Ethan, I just baked your home made crispy French fries in an airfryer (brand: Philips) and they came out amazing and crispy AF. Your recipe was working out great. One advantage the airfryer has over a regular oven, is the frying basket. It makes it easy to toss around the fries to get them golden brown on all sides.
One big thing they missed here is that most air fryer recipes have significantly higher temps than their convection oven counterparts and therefore actually do cook quite a bit faster especially when factoring in preheating time which can be forever on older ovens. Honestly I use mine for almost everything.
This would make sense. Explains why something I put in there cooked hard. Usually takes 25-30 mins in the oven. Cooked it for about 7-11 mins in the air fryer. It wasn’t burnt, but it was hard.
@@Melissa.SimmonsYou need to adjust temps. Air Fryer is typically gonna run hotter than an oven so if it says 400°F on an oven try at least 10°F lower (at least) and definitely waaaaay less time. He is just flat out wrong on the times. Simple as that.
I loved the clip of you making notes while still blindfolded. LOL 😂 Thank you for the unbiased experiment. This video answered a lot of my questions. Well done! 👍
I LOVE my OXO Avocado slicer. As a product designer myself, I tend to be critical of every product or service that I come into contact with. This is one of the few products that I deem virtually flawless, it does what it is intended very well. In fact, I just recently moved and must have stuck it in a rando non kitchen box that won't be unpacked for a while. Having to go back to a knife and spoon sure makes me appreciate it. I dare you to try one.
Our air fryer is one of our most used appliances. We even put the toaster down into a cabinet and give the air fryer the coveted spot of being left on the bench in the corner near a power outlet.
Even though we just purchased a professional KUCT stove with convection, my teen daughter insists that we need an air fryer. Up to now, I have said no, we already have a convection oven. Also, I looked at air fryers and do not like the size look and do not want that on my new white countertops…lol…However, she didn’t believe me. I will pass this video along to her, thanks Ethan!!
We have been using a toaster convection oven for years and yes I agree with you that since we have a convection oven, there is no need to buy an air fryer, however since we are empty nesters now, we find that with the latest model of air fryer, convection oven and toaster, it is so handy cooking just for the two of us on a daily basis, and we have our convection oven for family gatherings.
Glad I came across your video, was questioning getting an air fryer, I have a convection oven and now seeing your video I no longer want to get an air fryer, thanks for the testing. great video answered my questions. It would be an extra appliance I don't need. 👍👍
I use a convection toaster oven for everything since I only cook for myself and don't like heating up my apartment. The standard oven functions as storage for pots and pans.
I thought I was the only one! And since I’m getting up in years, pans in and out of the countertop oven are just way easier than the stooping over, bending on my knees that an oven near the floor requires.
Thanks for this comparison. I've been thinking about this recently. I already have a small convection/microwave/grill and full size convection/grill oven(s) built in. It seems that the preparation, slight adjustment to cooking times and mesh-style bakeware seems to be the best option. so, if you already have a convection fan oven (especially a smaller one) then no need . However, if you're a single/couple household in a small bedsit/apartment then an air-fryer seems to be the thing to go for.
We thought about getting an air fryer but instead just got a nice convection toaster oven. Best of both worlds and more practical (more space to cook) than even a big air fryer.
Exactly why I never purchased one. Finally someone who agrees with me! I have been so so annoyed with family members who are following the Air Fryer trend. If you don't have a convection oven then ok, buy an air fryer or countertop convection oven but if you own a convection oven already then don't waste your money!
Convection ovens release a lot of heat that sits for hours on end. Air fryers release minimal amounts of heat the disappear in a few minutes. Plus, if you are cooking small amounts of food, you don’t want to be cleaning an entire oven because of it.
Great Video... I have to concur with your assessment, that one doesn't cook fast than the other... However I do own one, and it has a permanent place on my counter-top. As someone who cooks for one or two people, and have a very small kitchen... the oven would heat up the whole kitchen and then some... while the air fryer makes a minimal impact on room temperature. Thus, its great for small places, or those who don't need to cook large quantities. Thanks again for another thought provoking video !!
idk, I... well I cook for one person but I only eat once a day so I tend to cook enough for 2 at a time, so lets say I cook for 2 people and I am not remotely convinced that little air fryer would have enough space for the things I do in the oven. I mean it might do one aspect of a meal, like if I were heating up the oven simply for fries or just for the vegetables, but I don't think the one shown here at least (I don't know how big they get) would have enough space for both for 2 people. Though I have a deep fryer so if I am just looking to make fries I will usually use that (unless I'm also frying something else more important). I suppose if you don't have a deep fat fryer then it would work as a, probably healthier, alternative when there's only one thing you aren't doing on the top, but personally I really don't need another appliance, I wouldn't have anywhere to put it.
Thank you so much for this. People keep telling me to get an air fryer and I’m like what is the difference??? No one can explain it well enough to sell me on it. And you just confirmed I don’t need one and I’ve already been living the countertop oven life for years lol.
Now you can add a third choice: a combi oven. I've gotten the new Anova Precision Oven, which cooks by radiant heat, convection, and steam. It can air fry, slow cook, proof bread, and using wet bulb technology, which determines the temperature at the surface of the food, it can cook sous vide. Not to mention the advantages of being able to apply steam. Maybe not the best at any one method, but that's going to be true with any multi-use device. Though If I had it to do again I'd wait a while for the early bugs to get worked out.
I'm so glad you agreed with me on this! Bc I can do the same thing in my table top Cuisinart convection oven! This air fryer craze is for the birds! I'm lucky I inherited the Cuisinart from my aunt, and I'm going to treasure that!
I have the same model and I don't consider it a true air fryer, however it is very convenient to have. I have 4 kids, work from home, and home school. This is an appliance I feel comfortable with my older kids using to make lunch for themselves.
The biggest advantage of the air fryer is that it's a second oven that can be set to a different temperature. If you want to cook some things low & slow, and others higher & faster, that's where it's a godsend. And of course on occasions where you're cooking of one or two, it's faster & less energy.
I have a double oven but neither of them are convection, so the air fryer is amazing for quick meals or for items that I want to get pretty crispy. If I had a convection I might not bother with it but it’s great if you jus that’s a regular oven.
Ethan said that he did not need an air fryer because he had no problem deep frying food. Vegetable oils, like olive oil/sunflower oil, are healthy if you use them as a dressing to sprinkle over food once the food has finished cooking. However if you fry or deep fry with any vegetable oil, including olive oil/sunflower oil, you subject the oil to very high temperatures. The heat can change the chemical composition of the oil into a form that is more harmful in terms of conditions such as heart disease. Air frying is healthier than frying/deep frying because you are using less oil or no oil.
@@codenamepyro2350 It absolutely is an issue. Heating up vegetable oils makes them oxidize a lot and as previously stated - change chemical composition. The byproducts are actually harmful to us, poisoning our mitochondria, and other things I can't remember off the top of my head. There's been quite a few studies about it recently, it's just very uncomfortable topic for food processing industry, as the vegetable oils are basically re-processed grain waste and a lot of money has been invested into promoting them as "healthy".
@@piotr7805 Nothing I said was wrong. All deep frying isn't the main issue, it's reusing spent oil. You're going to have much worse effects by reusing oil long past its prime than worrying about rapeseed vs lard
one more pro of a air fryer is that they are easier to use than most ovens so older kids and teens can use them to make chicken nuggets, pizza rolls, and other snacks for themselves
I seriously don’t see the difference between heating, prepping ingredients, putting pan in appliance, hitting “go” for an air fryer or an oven. And while an oven is a bigger thing to clean, you’re only cleaning the pan, & I’ve seen people complain that cleaning air fryers is a little more cumbersome.
Another option is to spend ~$250 for a Breville Smart toaster oven that is a small convection oven that is top rated by America's Test Kitchen. It does so much more than an air fryer.
PS since getting the air fryer I have not used the deep fryer at all. As many of us do not have convection ovens and to get one would be a major and expensive construction job, an air fryer is a less expensive option.
Thank you sooo much for the test! And I did my own testing with and the results are aligned with what’s described here in this video. Do not buy an air fryer if you have convection baking or convection broil in your oven. The air fryer is loud, chunky, pricy, hard to clean, and takes sooo much space for something you gonna use 3-5 times a year. Such a stupid purchase I made…
My tests were completely different from this. I have a convection oven and not only does it take 3-4x longer to heat up, but also goes through a "cooling cycle" at the end wasting more power for no reason. My air fryer uses less power and heats up in 3 minutes flat. Food in the air fryer cooks in 1/3rd to 1/4th the time compared to the convection oven, and things crisp up far far more than in the oven without using the broiler. I can literally cook food in my air fryer in most cases in a quarter of the time it takes to cook in the convection oven. Which also uses far less power. In most cases I can have a dinner cooked to my liking in about ten minutes in the air fryer, and sometimes that's too long, but in the oven it can take an hour or longer for the same results. Lot of factors here... wattage, efficiency, size...
I went from a regular oven you can buy in the stores to an XL air fryer and I never looked back at the oven ever again I love my fryer faster and easier clean up but much more expensive than on oven that's for sure
great content. I've been wondering all the things you just answered. I actually do like the fact that it uses less power AND doesn't heat my whole kitchen for the next hour.
And they compare with an expensive oven. I have a piece of shit oven in my rental apartment, takes an hour to cook frozen chicken breasts and even then it's like 50/50 if its even done. The air fryer cooks them in 35 min and much tastier.
I don’t know what the price differential is, but if they’re close to the same, a toaster oven would serve more purposes if she won’t have *any* oven. I just saw an $40 2-qt air fryer on sale for $18 at Best Buy’s site today, though, so that would be a great deal if size doesn’t matter. That was what got me curious about whether there’s any appreciable difference between the air fryer/convection oven.
Thank you SO much for this excellent and expedient comparison. Had been considering an air-fryer. Already have a convection oven. I now know that I really don't need the second appliance and can start fixating on some other piece of equipment that I also probably don't need!!! Great process of comparison, excellent presentation of the findings, very personable presenting.
Thank you! I have a deep fryer and a convection/toaster oven as well as gas oven with convection. Thank you for the explanation. Great video production too.
I have a bench-top device which states in its instruction manual in different places that it is both a convection oven and an air fryer. It is a circular glass bowl of 12 litres capacity with two free-standing racks inside, one about 2 cm from the bottom, the other around 10 cm higher. It has a removable lid incorporating a fan, a 1300 watt halogen, a handle plus time & temperature dials. A separate aluminium expansion rig increases the capacity to 17 litres for cooking larger items such a whole chickens or roasting joints of meat.
Im glad you made a video to finally put it to rest. I've told people for years that "air fryers" are a waste of money. FFS you can buy a convection toaster oven that fits the same amount of food as an air fryer for like 30$
![Felix "Unfair" | [Stray Kids : SKZ-PLAYER]](http://i.ytimg.com/vi/Oswujxm2Ag0/mqdefault.jpg)
What do you all think about air fryers? If you have used one, what's your favorite thing to do in them?
not a big fan of em
@@lordofnut3272 Don't feel like dealing with an extra appliance or just wouldn't find much use for it?
@@EthanChlebowski Don't like dealing with an extra appliance.
I received one as a gift a couple years ago. It made awesome fries (from frozen) but it’s a bitch to clean and ultimately ended up in kitchen exile.
@@ClumsyCaTmeow That's probably how it would go for me if I was gifted one, I don't think I would get much use out of it.
Whoever decided to call tabletop convection ovens “air fryers” is a marketing genius.
Are they really exactly the same? I looked for a conventional toaster oven vs air fryer, but I couldn't find a video for it.
you could probably get a convection toaster oven and its the same trucking thing
Air fryer probably used a lot less energy just because it is a lot smaller
@@fozziebear411 vs. a toaster oven with convention setting?
Just get a nice convection oven. For toast and like small batches of biscuits or baked goods/ fish is amazing baked. If you are single the convection oven is your friend lol
I'd say most people factor preheating into "time to cook." For me it's the difference of waiting 15 minutes for my oven, or 2 for my airfrier.
Or just not preheating at all in the air fryer. Usually I just chuck some food in and press the button, it comes out perfect because that tiny space doesn't take nearly as long to heat compared to a whole giant oven. That, plus the food is like 2 inches away from the heat source, so it's really broiling and convection cooking at the same time.
@@ClioMioo yeah good point. I've been doing the same lately. Plus (and this is small) the oven heats up my whole kitchen whereas the air fryer doesn't.
I wonder how much money is saved on electricity over a years time when comparing preheat and cook times. I spend a lot of time waiting on my oven to preheat and I know she has to be chewing up some serious electricity doing so.
@@1bcordell Electric appliances use next to no electricity. For example even if you live where electricity is ridiculously overpriced like California, running an oven at full heat for 1 hour only costs 40 cents of electricity. Most of the world your electricity cost will be half of that. So lets say you use your oven a ridiculously high amount like 5 hours a day which only people who run a restaurant would ever get close to, you are only paying $60 in electricity per month.
So I have tested my oven and it takes around 8 minutes to reach 200C 400F and 10-12 to reach 250C 480F.
I usually preheat for 5 minutes and then put the food in.
Great video. 🙂 I am not sure if anyone has mentioned this yet but another pro of the air fryer is that when it's super hot outside in summer, it does not heat up your home like an oven does.
You could also take it outside and cook not leaving any heat in your house :)
That seems the most obvious benefit.
Oven cooking in the southern US is one of those things that doesn't really make good sense. No other culture near the tropics does that sort of thing. They all cook on stovetops. I live in Florida and that's one reason I ditched baking in favor of cuisine that doesn't use an oven. That's also why I'm interested in an air fryer (I have a counter-top convection oven, but it's only a marginal improvement).
So that's a con in the winter...
@@Flippokid Not if you live in a hot state... lol
@@raminolta not sure what you are commenting on as I don't see anything that could possibly relate to what you just said here. My comment was that if your house is hot and you don't wish to add more heat by cooking in the kitchen, an air fryer is portable and can be taken outside to do your cooking thus not making it hotter inside your house.
Preheating should really be taken into account here. I never thought I’d use an air fryer. Thought it was a pointless waste of space. But it can turn out incredibly crispy chicken nuggets in 10 minutes, less time than it takes my oven to preheat to 400.
Yeah I have kids and its helps with quick lunch chicken nuggets
Get a toaster oven.
@@vincedibona4687 Depends on the air fryer. In the video the air fryer isn't being used optimally. Using it the way he does is effectively using it like a toaster oven which you would be correct. No difference. BUT proper use of an air fryer can mean preheating takes less then a minute. A toaster oven just can't do this. With the one I have purchased, in the time I have placed the food on the rack, the air fryer is ready. Bacon takes 7 minutes TOTAL to cook including preheating, wings usually take around 19 minutes, and I consistently can shave off around 15% of cooking time for any premade food from the store. Some I have noticed I can do in half the time. Just like his deep frying videos, it matters how you use an air fryer to get the best results. Most air fryers are just rebranded toaster ovens though so research is important.
I agree, preheating time should've been included in overall cooking times. And the preheat was far too long, if not entirely unnecessary for the air fryer.
@@123321negima what air fryer do you use
air fryers are nice for reheating when you dont want to wait ages for a big oven to heat up for those two slices of pizza and you dont want that wet slimey texture you get in the microwave.
You can also reheat your pizza in a skillet on the stove; it gets nice and crispy.
i microswave it then put on skillet just to get the crisp
@@saireece4585 Yeah, the microwave starts to melt the cheese and saves time.
I use a toaster oven for that
@@LikeCakeIDo Same. It's good for reheating pizza and fries. Anything I want to stay crisp.
I live in South Korea and most apartments here don’t have an oven already installed. So, I’m going to buy an air fryer bc my microwave can’t do what an air fryer can. Still enjoyed this video!~
They also sell tabletop air convection ovens in Korea. Just read some reviews and buy the cheaper one
Yeah just like the other said. You can even get steam injection convection table top oven, if you want to be serious about your cooking
Yup, the air fryer is like the missing half brother of the microwave.
very smarter
Air fryer would probably be a better choice for Asian cuisine than a convection oven. I have a convection oven and it's really only a marginal improvement over a regular oven. It is more energy efficient and smaller, however.
Air fryers are great for people with rental homes where the oven in the house provided by the landlord and is the cheapest, crappiest oven that you are stuck with.
So are counter top convection toaster ovens.
@@stephentilley9675 yes. Mini ovens are the best. Bonus points for models that have an air fry setting
@@matthewrs7 Its not called air fry. Its called a convection setting dont fall for that marketing ploy to spend extra cash.
@@gamezahoy712 Not true.I don't know where you people get your information, but I've been using convection ovens for decades and it really isn't the same technology. My airfryer preheats in under 2 minutes, there's no way that my similarly sized convection oven would be ready to cook that quickly.
They both use convection as the primary method of transferring heat to the food, but the fans that the air fryers use are significant. Typically, you can reduce the temperature by about 50F and the cooktime by about 20% on the airfryer to get similar results to what you'd get out of a convection oven. If it were really just a marketing ploy, those settings would be much closer. On top of that, by being able to operate at a lower temperature over a shorter period of time, you're likely to save the difference in purchase price over the time you own the appliance.
@@SmallSpoonBrigade I guess you didn't watch the video, because none of what you're saying about faster or lower temp turned out to be true when he tested it
Engineer quick answer: an air fryer is a marketing term for a tabletop convection oven
Incorrect. Air fryers do not use convection. This is the single most frustrating thing when I try to sell appliances.
@@Monochromicornicopia "the movement caused within a fluid by the tendency of hotter and therefore less dense material to rise, and colder, denser material to sink under the influence of gravity, which consequently results in transfer of heat."
Constantly circulating hot air with a fan is convection
@@WolfBangAlpha You just proved yourself wrong by posting the definition of convection. Convection is moving air due to gravity. A fan spinning around pushing air is not movement due to gravity.
@@Monochromicornicopia if a fan blows hot air up, the cooler air will fall due to gravity
@@WolfBangAlpha And? You're missing the point. Convection is only due to gravity (you even posted the definition) not mechanically assisted.
It's a good comparison. I'd only say it depends on how much you typically cook. I have a friend who lives alone, she uses her air fryer virtually exclusively for her cooking. I have sons that live with me, so I need the capacity offered by a convection oven.
Can you tell me which model you have?
@@justinnguyen3906 Currently I have a Toshiba 1.5 cu ft capable of 425 F on the convection side. It's rated at 1000 watts, that's a tad light, but it's a combo micro/convection. I use it all the time, it's absolutely the best way to make garlic bread, warms meats well without the microwave drying out thing I hate. AND it does everything a micro needs to do as well. It's a replacement for the one I had that was 2 cu ft, 1400 watts, and totally awesome, but getting one that big and powerful is like $600 this one cost me around $200 on sale. it bakes very well, it cooks pizza exceptionally well, and on those occasions I need to "finish" something coming off of the grill, the ability to control the temperature to bring a hunk of meat to safe temps is a real boon. This has happened in the past where I have a thick chuck roast or big poultry quarters that are done on the outside but the inside temp isn't quite what I'm comfortable with, so I set the convection to around 200 and let it ride in there until I feel ok. My big oven could do this too, but it takes longer to heat up and because the heating elements are at the bottom then it can at times scorch the underside of whatever I'm trying to heat up.
I haven't used it for actual "air frying" as of yet, but I've done regular and sweet potato fries in the past in my old one that came out fine, as well as roasted vegetables. Various brands have either racks or pans to do that type of thing on, I tend to use the rack and put a paper plate beneath it if it's meat that will drip. I *really* favor it for cooking ANY frozen item that you would otherwise fry, like battered fish, meat pies, pierogis, chimichangas, or chicken nuggets, it heats so evenly and quickly as well.
Ok you got me talking about the damn thing sorry for the exposition here ;-)
Not a good comparison since he used an air fryer with an oven design, so of course the results are gonna be close
We have a Miele Speed Oven. It microwaves, bakes, broils, and does combinations of those. It is also convection. It cooks things anywhere from 50-75% of the stated time on a pizza, or most other baked items. It is a bit slower on the microwave, but considering all that it does, albeit expensive, we rarely use the big oven and it does an amazing job on fries, onion rings, etc.
Want one of these and a steam combination oven! I think that’s the perfect pair
I have one similar. Ninja Foodi 9 in 1.
Doesn't have the microwave function but it's a pressure cooker (with associated functions like steaming) mixed with an air fryer (again with associated functions like grill and baking/roasting)
To me, Air Fryer changed my life! As a single person living by my own thats an incredibly useful, time saving tool. I cook almost everything in it, chicken breast, bacon, vegetables, frozen bites etc.
Great for summer when you dont want to heat up your place and faster because you dont have to pre heat your machine.
Love love love it
The entire comment section: Bruh, that's Babish's royalty-free music.
Eulogy they’re not wrong, but then again, pretty much nothing on his channel is original
@@ajayparthibha5702 You made me look and I just noticed his entire style is a mishmash of other food RUclipsrs, haha.
@@ulogy As if food yt can be original :shrug:
Eulogy but honestly, i think thats why hes the best! he focuses more on the people who want the best food with the least amount of effort in the shortest amount of time. Babish and weissman just make cooking vids for entertainment like making ninja turtles pizza or making in n out better. none of that shit is actually going to apply to someones home cooking its just way too complicated and annoying to even consider making.
@@TripleEightss Might I recommend Adam Ragusea?
Good video. I got tired of using a large oven for small tasks; I live alone. I bought a Cuisinart AirFryer Toaster Oven that bakes, convection bakes, broils, convection broils, warms, toasts, and airfrys. When I make Key Lime pie or cake, I don't want the fan and when I do wings, I want the airfryer feature. Choice is a wonderful thing.
I have both. I use my Ninja pot&airfryer, bake, and more just to cook small portions: one or two pieces of chicken, a few chicken wings, or a piece of meatloaf, also to warm up 2 or 3 pieces of the bread-oven set. I reheat leftovers from restaurants, homemade food, or pizza. It works very well and the food back to life wonderful. I use my convection oven for big or large meals, which works perfectly.
I love and use both. HAPPY to have them.
I only use my big oven when making big dinners and friends or family are eating at my house. I have a family of 3 so I usually only use either my air fryer/convection oven or the stove top. It’s so much easier. I love how much faster/easier it is to clean because it’s smaller and the fact that its A LOT faster to cook in it because not much preheat time if any at all. I totally recommend them. I’ve had all of them separate but my favorite is the air fryer/oven/dehydrator/rotisserie combo.
Thank you, this was so helpful. I have been contemplating an air fryer but I have a convection oven. Your video has saved me a few bucks and reorganizing the storage cupboard above the fridge.
The one thing I love about my airfryer is the lack of having to preheat. It's convenient for putting foods in quickly to reheat them. I find that if you factor in the preheat time then they are much quicker to use. Of course they shouldn't take different amounts of time to actually cook the food, the temperature is the same. What he also didn't factor in is the cost saved not having to heat a big oven. I live alone and I find an airfryer great in that situation. You're not having to heat a big oven to cook a relatively small amount of food. Of course if you are cooking for probably more than two people, normal oven is better. I can do quick toasties and pitta bread pizzas easily. They're also great as an additional oven when cooking for an occasion such as Christmas when multiple things need oven cooking.
May I ask which brand you have. It’s confusing there’s so many different types on the market
He literally mentioned it at 6:24
@@d.f.rizaldi36 Mary Rose is literally asking Christine Haworth (OP), what brand SHE has?
You are supposed to preheat an air fryer. People seem to get away with not doing so, but perhaps that is on the smallest models.
i was planning to purchase an air fryer but i was confused as i already have a panasonic convention oven thats is working wonderfully for me....now i know i dnt need to put my money on an air fryer. thank you for uploading this useful content. 👍👍
Glad I could help!
Most air fryers don't look like the one featured in this video and with our air fryer the times are less than what was shown here. We do have an convection setting on our oven but we opt for the air fryer nearly every time. The convenience of the air fryer and the quickness of it has all but made our microwave null and void 😂 Ours is also simple enough to be kid friendly and the kids will pick it over the microwave every time.
Ethan - just stumbled upon this vid while researching our convection toaster oven. Excellent analysis ! For us, we concluded there's no good reason to buy another appliance when we already have one that will do the same job. Thank you Thank you Thank you for your thorough analysis and demonstrable facts.
UPDATE: Today we used our convection toaster oven to "air fry" sliced potatoes. Sliced raw potato 1/4 inch, sprinkled with kosher salt, set on a metal grid (a re-purposed steamer insert) and convection baked at 400 F for about 18 minutes, flipping half way through. Result ? Crispy, crunchy deliciousness. Garnished with Kewpie mayo.
One nice thing about having both an air fryer and a convection oven is that you can roast two dishes at two different temperatures at the same time. No need to choose between getting extra crispy potatoes and not overcooking the chicken when you can do both.
Amen, they are worth the space they take easily. Love my oven and use it a lot, However our air fryer is indispensable when I want to just throw something frozen that is normally fried or baked; in and have it come out nice and crispy without the long preheat time and getting the kitchen hot. Here in Australia ALL and I mean literally, of our starchy fluffy potatoes are bought by the restaurant and frozen food industry. You will only ever find the same waxy skinned terrible floppy frying potatoes here, doesnt matter what colour. Unless you are battering food, deep frying don't make sense here. Frozen precut is the only way to make decent chips at home here.
Thanks!
I recently bought an air fryer after everyone hyped them up so much. It definitely cooks things better than my oven and is significantly faster (even when not taking into consideration preheat time). Some things I use it for that I didn't consider before buying:
garlic bread - mine is wrapped in foil. in my convection oven (called fan-forced here) it takes about 15 mins to preheat and then 10 - 15mins to cook. In my Air fryer it takes 5 mins to preheat and 8 - 10 mins to cook. So it's preheated and done before the convection oven has even finished preheating. It also produces a better result and it doesn't heat up my house.
french toast - I will never cook french toast any other way! It cooks french toast exactly how I want it. crisp-ish eggy coating on the outside, soft squishy bread on the inside.
fish and chips - I'm sure many people use an air fryer for this. I buy frozen battered fish and frozen chips and the air fryer does an awesome job. Not as good as deep fried, but definitely better than my oven, and again it's faster. Takes about 17 mins inc. preheat to get from off to done.
I always preheat with mine. It has a preheat button and sets it's own preheat time based on the temp. The manual suggests using it for everything so I do and it always turns out well.
I have been a fan of convection ovens for decades. My oven does all I need, without having to buy another appliance. Not that it might be a good choice in some circumstances. For example, many people do not have a convection oven, or perhaps they only cook small quantities. This is a great channel - another good evaluation.
“It took the convection over 12 minutes to beat from 0 to 400 degrees Fahrenheit”
Must be real cold in your house.
😂
You really don't need it to be a set temperature in order to beat a convection oven - all you need is brute strength and a baseball bat. Perhaps this guy used his fists instead of the bat.
Took mine about 4 minutes.
Or there is a gap somewhere around the opening. xD that's why mine started fo suck
Crying laughing... 1) at the joke itself 2) at the people that obviously missed the joke 3) the reply about beating the oven. 🤣
It appears I've stumbled into a comment section with folks in a completely different economic class than myself. Never even had a convection oven. The air fryer is way faster and better than a regular oven.
I love the air fryer for the energy savings and the fact I can use it on my porch on blistering hot days without air conditioning.
Yeah I got gifted one and am planning on putting it in my backyard kitchen. Will be making wings, and sippin beers in the great outdoors.
It's not really energy saving if you consider air fryers are prone to self combust and burn (watch out for your house, there's a YT video out there where it was caught on camera) and essentially die leaving plastic and electrical waste which 1. costs money and the environment to make and 2. costs money and the environment to dispose.
My gifted air fryer started smoking from the top and set off my fire alarm. I quickly unplugged the damn thing and it still kept burning for a few minutes, but by this time I had put on my oven mitts and took it outside.
My opinion, stick with normal convection ovens if you can. They are safer, cooks better and from what I can see, better for the environment 💪🏼
i'm glad i watched this video. I almost bought an "air fryer" because i didn't know that my convection oven was a bigger version of it
Have you tried it ? Results ?
@@Ok-kh5qq No not yet. But i will try it this christmas
This is the exact test I was looking for, every single aspect. Thank you!!!
Copped an $8 airfryer at goodwill. Love that thing.
Thanks for making this video, I really needed a air fryer - oven review, hope you still posting, and congrats for the good quality
Glad it was helpful!
Dear RUclips, you mentioned the chicken did not fare as well as the rest of the foods. However, at marker 3:37 (or thereabouts) it looks like you sprayed your flour dipped chicken with what, I assume, is spray oil. Therein lies the problem. If you will not spray the oil the chicken will come out crisp. If you dip the chicken into baking POWDER (not soda) it will crisp very well. Works great for wings too. After making wings I brush with hot sauce and broil until browned to our liking.
Excellent video for comparison. Very well put. I have an Omni, and do like it. I mostly wanted this to reduce the heat in the kitchen during summer months. I agree with everything you have said. Yes, I do have a large convection oven and the air fryer.
This was the main reason I just bought an air fryer - to reduce heat and to be able to bring it out on the balcony so I can leave an air condition on, and don't have to open windows to get rid of the cooking smells (which is generally difficult, due to all windows on one side of the building and wind mostly blowing parallel to them... )
An air fryer is technically an impingement oven. I just bought one for $40. Much cheaper and easier to "install" than a convection oven. And, unlike most ovens, air fryers have a timer and turn off when done. Most ovens do not. The low cost and ease of use are the main advantages of an air fryer. Not to mention that I don't need a gallon of oil to cook chicken wings or onion wings or fries. An oven is gonna take at least 20 to 30 minutes for anything and pan or deep frying requires you to stand over it and at least keep an eye on it to see when it's done if not having you constantly move to food around to keep it from burning. With an air fryer, i can now have onion rings, chicken wings, fries, roasted veggies and other food like that with almost no work at all. Convenience is the main advantage of an air fryer and, unlike a microwave, an air fryer can actually cook food, anything an oven can, in less than half the time.
Exactly! The convenience is amazing. My air fryer can be controlled through an app, so I can just put the food in there, select a "recipe" in the app, which sets the time, temperature, etc. for you, press start and just wait for the food to finish. Some recipes are programmed to pause at a certain time and remind you to shake or turn the food over.
We truly live in the 21st century haha.
One pro for me : It's small. If you live alone in a rented room and don't have something like small kitchen, this can help you to "fry" your food if you ever need to cook some food in that particular way.
'Superbrain' ('advert' before the air fryer video) What a wonderful story. Thank you so much (Jim Kwik) for sharing with everyone....
I have a convection oven yet I blindly set it to bake based on the package directions for things like fries.... DUH! Thank you so much for this video! Can’t wait to try using the convection setting and a rack in my cookie sheet. Great info!
One of the best comparisons I've heard in a long time. You basically confirmed what I was thinking since, I already have an oven with air fryer and convection capabilities.
HW was wrong with the times for sure. It takes at minimum around 15 minutes longer than an air fryer from preheating alone as real air fryers don't require preheating at all like ovens.
I haven't been using my air fryer for much more than potatoes and chicken thighs and legs, but I do like it. My oven is a convection oven, but there's something to also consider beyond preheat time, and that's how much heat the oven generates. The chamber for even a large air fryer is much smaller than an oven. A lot of heat energy is built up into an oven that will eventually dissipate into your kitchen. With an air fryer, you're not pumping as much heat into your kitchen. In the winter, I don't mind running the oven, but in the summer? Anything that helps me not heat up the kitchen is a bonus!
Too many people are dumping all over air fryers, when if many people need a decent tabletop convection oven, they can get one with an air fryer. You can also get one with a toaster oven with a convection setting, but it's noticably harder to find a good one.
To add to that, air fryer baskets can be fairly large, often allowing larger foods than you can often get from a toaster oven. Not because of a toaster ovens size, but it's shape is often very limiting.
It's not that toaster ovens can't beat air fryers, but that most models are kind of crap. While even a crappy air fryer is usually decent.
I've personally used a crappy and good air fryer, and crappy and good toaster oven. A crappy air fryer will beat a crappy toaster oven, but a good toaster oven beats everything.
At 6 mins, I like how you tasted blind folded and then wrote your score with the blind fold on...HAAahhaa
I saw that too, even rewound vid to douvle-check what I thought I saw. He went straight for the pen and paper without an issue like one may have if truly blindfolded.
This video was the one i was looking for in terms of whether to buy an air fryer or not. It was to the point precise and just perfect. Thank you for making this ❤️❤️
The significant advantage of air fryers is the fact that they’re a lot easier to clean, more practical for everyday use, and uses a lot less energy.
I’ll stick to using mine for years to come, in fact my old one just conked out after 6 years and just bought a new one by xiaomi lol.
Have you received your Xiaomi one yet?
a lot of people have bad ovens with bad fans, a decent air fryer is much cheaper than a fancy new oven
Airfryer does not heat up your house like the oven does, helps in the hot summer months.
Also really really fast
@@mechanicalmonk2020 because I’d the fan!
Not in my experience, the baskets are so small I have to use >4 loads of fries and stuff to feed a family (5-7), 1500W for almost an hour. We started just running the thing outside. The oven is gas powered and much larger so it's cheaper to run.
@@leerman22 well yeah, when you’re cooking for that many people, they’re too small.
@@leerman22 ehhh trying to make food for a family of 7 with an air fryer is.... well.. I think you know.
I appreciate you answer the question in the first 10 seconds. It kept me and made me at least curious why they weren't the same.
As a matter of fact Ethan, I just baked your home made crispy French fries in an airfryer (brand: Philips) and they came out amazing and crispy AF. Your recipe was working out great. One advantage the airfryer has over a regular oven, is the frying basket. It makes it easy to toss around the fries to get them golden brown on all sides.
I have a wire basket from a pan my mom got me (I presume the pan is for conventional frying), so I’m planning to give it a try in the convection oven.
I agree. I have both and I prefer the air fryer for fries. Its basically a $100 basket
As someone who lives in an apartment without a convection oven, my air fryer is a godsend.
I like your scientific approach!!!
Turn on CC can go to 5:36 for a surprise
The best and most informative test I have ever heard. I am so glad I saw this before purchasing an air dryer.
One big thing they missed here is that most air fryer recipes have significantly higher temps than their convection oven counterparts and therefore actually do cook quite a bit faster especially when factoring in preheating time which can be forever on older ovens. Honestly I use mine for almost everything.
This would make sense. Explains why something I put in there cooked hard. Usually takes 25-30 mins in the oven. Cooked it for about 7-11 mins in the air fryer. It wasn’t burnt, but it was hard.
My oven has a max temp of 250c, but my airfryer 200c, so not the case always.
Use your what? Which one?
@@jonathanberry1111 true. My Maytag convection oven has an upper limit of 550F (287C).
@@Melissa.SimmonsYou need to adjust temps. Air Fryer is typically gonna run hotter than an oven so if it says 400°F on an oven try at least 10°F lower (at least) and definitely waaaaay less time. He is just flat out wrong on the times. Simple as that.
Making smaller portions of food is a plus in my book. If I'm living alone I don't need to heat up and clean a large oven to make like 5 nuggets.
I'm sticking with my convection toaster oven that has a drip tray and flat walls to wipe and clean.
@@practicalguy973 Isn't that pretty much a air fryer? Either way a smaller cooking station is a plus.
I loved the clip of you making notes while still blindfolded. LOL 😂 Thank you for the unbiased experiment. This video answered a lot of my questions. Well done! 👍
I have a great Breville convection oven, but people love air fryers so much that I've been tempted lately. That's for the video.
If you have the Breville smart toaster oven you have it better tbh
I LOVE my OXO Avocado slicer. As a product designer myself, I tend to be critical of every product or service that I come into contact with. This is one of the few products that I deem virtually flawless, it does what it is intended very well. In fact, I just recently moved and must have stuck it in a rando non kitchen box that won't be unpacked for a while. Having to go back to a knife and spoon sure makes me appreciate it. I dare you to try one.
That my friend is one dope blind fold.
It's a tie
Our air fryer is one of our most used appliances. We even put the toaster down into a cabinet and give the air fryer the coveted spot of being left on the bench in the corner near a power outlet.
Love the ability to take notes with the blindfold on. 😂👍
Even though we just purchased a professional KUCT stove with convection, my teen daughter insists that we need an air fryer. Up to now, I have said no, we already have a convection oven. Also, I looked at air fryers and do not like the size look and do not want that on my new white countertops…lol…However, she didn’t believe me. I will pass this video along to her, thanks Ethan!!
We have been using a toaster convection oven for years and yes I agree with you that since we have a convection oven, there is no need to buy an air fryer, however since we are empty nesters now, we find that with the latest model of air fryer, convection oven and toaster, it is so handy cooking just for the two of us on a daily basis, and we have our convection oven for family gatherings.
Glad I came across your video, was questioning getting an air fryer, I have a convection oven and now seeing your video I no longer want to get an air fryer, thanks for the testing. great video answered my questions. It would be an extra appliance I don't need. 👍👍
I use a convection toaster oven for everything since I only cook for myself and don't like heating up my apartment. The standard oven functions as storage for pots and pans.
I thought I was the only one! And since I’m getting up in years, pans in and out of the countertop oven are just way easier than the stooping over, bending on my knees that an oven near the floor requires.
7:10 and then the ad for the avocado knife. Killed me. Great video!
Thanks for this comparison. I've been thinking about this recently. I already have a small convection/microwave/grill and full size convection/grill oven(s) built in. It seems that the preparation, slight adjustment to cooking times and mesh-style bakeware seems to be the best option. so, if you already have a convection fan oven (especially a smaller one) then no need . However, if you're a single/couple household in a small bedsit/apartment then an air-fryer seems to be the thing to go for.
We thought about getting an air fryer but instead just got a nice convection toaster oven. Best of both worlds and more practical (more space to cook) than even a big air fryer.
A blindfolded test, where I also write notes at 6:05
i mean, its not difficult writing down numbers blindfolded
c'mon.. he's using a tie to blindfold. Everybody knows you can take a peek with that.
Exactly why I never purchased one. Finally someone who agrees with me! I have been so so annoyed with family members who are following the Air Fryer trend. If you don't have a convection oven then ok, buy an air fryer or countertop convection oven but if you own a convection oven already then don't waste your money!
Convection ovens release a lot of heat that sits for hours on end. Air fryers release minimal amounts of heat the disappear in a few minutes. Plus, if you are cooking small amounts of food, you don’t want to be cleaning an entire oven because of it.
Great Video... I have to concur with your assessment, that one doesn't cook fast than the other... However I do own one, and it has a permanent place on my counter-top. As someone who cooks for one or two people, and have a very small kitchen... the oven would heat up the whole kitchen and then some... while the air fryer makes a minimal impact on room temperature. Thus, its great for small places, or those who don't need to cook large quantities. Thanks again for another thought provoking video !!
Amen! Our Ninja air fryer is perfect for my wife and me who are empty-nesters.
idk, I... well I cook for one person but I only eat once a day so I tend to cook enough for 2 at a time, so lets say I cook for 2 people and I am not remotely convinced that little air fryer would have enough space for the things I do in the oven. I mean it might do one aspect of a meal, like if I were heating up the oven simply for fries or just for the vegetables, but I don't think the one shown here at least (I don't know how big they get) would have enough space for both for 2 people. Though I have a deep fryer so if I am just looking to make fries I will usually use that (unless I'm also frying something else more important).
I suppose if you don't have a deep fat fryer then it would work as a, probably healthier, alternative when there's only one thing you aren't doing on the top, but personally I really don't need another appliance, I wouldn't have anywhere to put it.
Thank you so much for this. People keep telling me to get an air fryer and I’m like what is the difference??? No one can explain it well enough to sell me on it. And you just confirmed I don’t need one and I’ve already been living the countertop oven life for years lol.
Excellent review. Now I know I don't really need one since I have a convection oven. Thank you.
Thanks, this saved me $200 as I was planning on replacing my table top oven.
Now you can add a third choice: a combi oven.
I've gotten the new Anova Precision Oven, which cooks by radiant heat, convection, and steam. It can air fry, slow cook, proof bread, and using wet bulb technology, which determines the temperature at the surface of the food, it can cook sous vide. Not to mention the advantages of being able to apply steam.
Maybe not the best at any one method, but that's going to be true with any multi-use device.
Though If I had it to do again I'd wait a while for the early bugs to get worked out.
I'm so glad you agreed with me on this! Bc I can do the same thing in my table top Cuisinart convection oven! This air fryer craze is for the birds! I'm lucky I inherited the Cuisinart from my aunt, and I'm going to treasure that!
You had me at Maillard. 🙂
I have the same model and I don't consider it a true air fryer, however it is very convenient to have. I have 4 kids, work from home, and home school. This is an appliance I feel comfortable with my older kids using to make lunch for themselves.
The biggest advantage of the air fryer is that it's a second oven that can be set to a different temperature.
If you want to cook some things low & slow, and others higher & faster, that's where it's a godsend.
And of course on occasions where you're cooking of one or two, it's faster & less energy.
I have a double oven but neither of them are convection, so the air fryer is amazing for quick meals or for items that I want to get pretty crispy. If I had a convection I might not bother with it but it’s great if you jus that’s a regular oven.
Ethan said that he did not need an air fryer because he had no problem deep frying food. Vegetable oils, like olive oil/sunflower oil, are healthy if you use them as a dressing to sprinkle over food once the food has finished cooking. However if you fry or deep fry with any vegetable oil, including olive oil/sunflower oil, you subject the oil to very high temperatures. The heat can change the chemical composition of the oil into a form that is more harmful in terms of conditions such as heart disease. Air frying is healthier than frying/deep frying because you are using less oil or no oil.
Oil breaking down is mainly an issue of reusing spent oil, not all deep frying
@@codenamepyro2350 It absolutely is an issue. Heating up vegetable oils makes them oxidize a lot and as previously stated - change chemical composition. The byproducts are actually harmful to us, poisoning our mitochondria, and other things I can't remember off the top of my head. There's been quite a few studies about it recently, it's just very uncomfortable topic for food processing industry, as the vegetable oils are basically re-processed grain waste and a lot of money has been invested into promoting them as "healthy".
@@piotr7805 Nothing I said was wrong. All deep frying isn't the main issue, it's reusing spent oil. You're going to have much worse effects by reusing oil long past its prime than worrying about rapeseed vs lard
one more pro of a air fryer is that they are easier to use than most ovens so older kids and teens can use them to make chicken nuggets, pizza rolls, and other snacks for themselves
I seriously don’t see the difference between heating, prepping ingredients, putting pan in appliance, hitting “go” for an air fryer or an oven. And while an oven is a bigger thing to clean, you’re only cleaning the pan, & I’ve seen people complain that cleaning air fryers is a little more cumbersome.
Is it though? What makes it more difficult to switch on an oven and put something in compared to an air fryer?
Another option is to spend ~$250 for a Breville Smart toaster oven that is a small convection oven that is top rated by America's Test Kitchen. It does so much more than an air fryer.
Just realized he has natural Cheetos fingers
Lol
@Gawky Ginger what’s that?
Could be eating lots of carrots. My dad turned orange when he was young and putting them in his smoothies all the time
@@thomasr1051 the most logical answer. Not the google extreme response.
Hot cheetos
Glad I came by this video. I was fixing to shell out $1000 for a convection oven with a air fryer mode. It’s almost $200 more than the one with out.
As I watch this, I am dehydrating and making beef jerky in my Chefman air fryer.
PS since getting the air fryer I have not used the deep fryer at all. As many of us do not have convection ovens and to get one would be a major and expensive construction job, an air fryer is a less expensive option.
Thank you sooo much for the test! And I did my own testing with and the results are aligned with what’s described here in this video.
Do not buy an air fryer if you have convection baking or convection broil in your oven. The air fryer is loud, chunky, pricy, hard to clean, and takes sooo much space for something you gonna use 3-5 times a year. Such a stupid purchase I made…
My tests were completely different from this. I have a convection oven and not only does it take 3-4x longer to heat up, but also goes through a "cooling cycle" at the end wasting more power for no reason. My air fryer uses less power and heats up in 3 minutes flat. Food in the air fryer cooks in 1/3rd to 1/4th the time compared to the convection oven, and things crisp up far far more than in the oven without using the broiler.
I can literally cook food in my air fryer in most cases in a quarter of the time it takes to cook in the convection oven. Which also uses far less power. In most cases I can have a dinner cooked to my liking in about ten minutes in the air fryer, and sometimes that's too long, but in the oven it can take an hour or longer for the same results.
Lot of factors here... wattage, efficiency, size...
I love my air fryer.. It heats up faster than my full size convection oven
I went from a regular oven you can buy in the stores to an XL air fryer and I never looked back at the oven ever again I love my fryer faster and easier clean up but much more expensive than on oven that's for sure
great content. I've been wondering all the things you just answered. I actually do like the fact that it uses less power AND doesn't heat my whole kitchen for the next hour.
I actually use both, but strongly prefer my air fryer. Food tastes incredible and the crunch is unbelievable!
And they compare with an expensive oven. I have a piece of shit oven in my rental apartment, takes an hour to cook frozen chicken breasts and even then it's like 50/50 if its even done. The air fryer cooks them in 35 min and much tastier.
Happy I watched this! My friend is moving in with her bf to a basement with a fridge but without an oven. I’ll get her an air fryer for a welcome gift
I don’t know what the price differential is, but if they’re close to the same, a toaster oven would serve more purposes if she won’t have *any* oven. I just saw an $40 2-qt air fryer on sale for $18 at Best Buy’s site today, though, so that would be a great deal if size doesn’t matter. That was what got me curious about whether there’s any appreciable difference between the air fryer/convection oven.
The main advantages I find with my air fryer is that is heats up much faster and because it can also act as a dehydrator (can set temp lower)
Convection oven does that too.
I like the fact you can use an airfyer on a warm day and not the oven that heats up the entire kitchen
Thank you SO much for this excellent and expedient comparison. Had been considering an air-fryer. Already have a convection oven. I now know that I really don't need the second appliance and can start fixating on some other piece of equipment that I also probably don't need!!! Great process of comparison, excellent presentation of the findings, very personable presenting.
Presentation, research, stats, and information make this video a benchmark ♥ thanks for an amazing thorough research!
please stop the babish music, its confusing my brain
It's doing the same thing to me
Babish music?
Ik it’s kinda sad find ur own style
Its probably just some stock music
Hey! Watch in buddy! That is the music Trump loves listening to!!
Thank you! I have a deep fryer and a convection/toaster oven as well as gas oven with convection. Thank you for the explanation. Great video production too.
ey, that sounds like BWB's music
I love bwb but he just uses the same blue Wednesday song in most videos lol. Love blue Wednesday too but it is funny
Or something else from the chillhop playlist. It's good music to talk over so I can't really blame him
Yeah dont think he owns it. He just uses it a lot and is more popular.
"Juparo" by Broke for Free
It’s just random royalty free music
I have a bench-top device which states in its instruction manual in different places that it is both a convection oven and an air fryer.
It is a circular glass bowl of 12 litres capacity with two free-standing racks inside, one about 2 cm from the bottom, the other around 10 cm higher. It has a removable lid incorporating a fan, a 1300 watt halogen, a handle plus time & temperature dials. A separate aluminium expansion rig increases the capacity to 17 litres for cooking larger items such a whole chickens or roasting joints of meat.
You did an amazing job with this video! Loved it!
Im glad you made a video to finally put it to rest. I've told people for years that "air fryers" are a waste of money. FFS you can buy a convection toaster oven that fits the same amount of food as an air fryer for like 30$