Gransnet forums

AIBU

Air Fryers

(71 Posts)
Happypie Sun 09-Jan-22 18:12:14

I enjoy cooking and use my hob on a daily basis and use the oven several times a week, even if it’s only to bake two jacket potatoes or a handful of chips. I was considering buying an Air Fryer to save money on oven use, but …..
AIBU to say that even a very good air fryer would join all the other kitchen gadgets at the back of the cupboard, such as a slow cooker, deep fat fryer, sandwich toaster, food mixer, juicer, waffle maker bread maker etc. Or would it be a case of ‘how have I ever managed without one of these before?’

Blondiescot Wed 16-Feb-22 17:03:47

AreWeThereYet

Blondiescot I just cooked my haggis in my Ninja - very late Burns night ??

A haggis is for life, not just for Burns Night! wink

AreWeThereYet Wed 16-Feb-22 16:42:49

Blondiescot I just cooked my haggis in my Ninja - very late Burns night ??

Granniesunite Wed 16-Feb-22 15:57:05

Thanks Mini Moon. Going to try it out this evening.?

MiniMoon Wed 16-Feb-22 15:44:23

Yes you can. Frozen chips too.

Granniesunite Wed 16-Feb-22 15:32:51

Can I use an Air Frier to cook frozen fish???

NanaAng14 Mon 17-Jan-22 09:52:51

My friend does baking in her air fryer and says its perfect for part cooked crusty rolls , heating pies etc. - it's basically a mini fan oven .

Franbern Mon 17-Jan-22 09:06:49

dahdoo, yes to mince pies. Sadly, no longer make christmas cake as so few eat it. But, yes -if I did I would definitely do it in my combi. AND.....it would probably take less time that it did in my old fan oven.

I do not have a Air fryer - try not to eat ANY fried foods due to continual battle with weight. Do not think a combi microwave would substitute for that machine for doing home made chips, etc with such a small amount of oil. HOWEVER, they do a great job with good quality frozen chips sweet potato chips. Perfect for roasting also. Done some lovely roasties and yorkies in mine

hanamark Mon 17-Jan-22 04:08:07

Message deleted by Gransnet. Here's a link to our Talk guidelines.

dahdoo Sun 16-Jan-22 16:57:49

Sorry-new here. Maybe my previous should have been addressed to Franbern

dahdoo Sun 16-Jan-22 16:53:48

Wicklowwinnie-did you make a Christmas cake or mince pies in your combi? It sounds terrific.

dahdoo Sun 16-Jan-22 16:48:44

I have only been aware of air fryers for a short while so not looked into them yet. So they do more than fry? And you can bake in them too? Has anybody tried -cakes & things like crumbles-or am I being silly?

Franbern Sun 16-Jan-22 16:35:10

wicklowwinnie I have had my combination microwave for over two years. Do not even have a full-sized oven in my kitchen. I love it and it works brilliantly for any sort of baking etc. The grills on most of these are their weakest point, gave up trying to use mine and purchased a small George Foreman grill, which I use on the rare occasions I need to grill anything.

For everything else, the combi will do it brilliantly. I have baked bread, quiche, cheesecake, all manner of pastries and sponges, meringues, as well as cooking salmon (usually wrap this in foil), and chicken , etc and casseroles. Indeed, I have got rid of my large, halogen cooker as have no need of it now.

I found that I needed to stop using my 12-bun cake tins. Could get these in, but needed to turn off the turntable and had, then to remember to turn them around half-way through Purchased 6-bun ones and these work perfectly, with turntable still going round giving even backing. Due to smaller space, I have found that all baking times have been reduced from my old fan oven, so it takes little more time to bake two lots of these buns (in sixes) as opposed to one lot in 12.

Do not be afraid of this machine. Remember that when using in Microwave mode, all usual rules of microwaves are still there regarding no metal, etc. When using in Combination mode, they do not, it is just a small, fast-cooking oven. Pre-heating, even for the most delicate of cakes is no more than a couple of minutes.

I am planning to have my kitchen a complete overhaul sometime this year. I will have a full-size fan oven put in - but that is thinking ahead as to when my children will need to sell the flat when I die - I will have, above that oven, a place to put in my combi-microwave. Will probably use the main oven as a good storage place for cooking utensils.

All if this is for me living by myself - would work just as well with a couple. Obviously, if anyone is still needing to cook for a family, then a full sized oven is important.

Blondiescot Sun 16-Jan-22 15:41:33

M0nica

Blondiescot I have a 40 year old slow cooker that used to belong to my aunt, that long and slow cooks meat, which I prefer, and rice is cooked in the microwave.

Foodi also does slow cooking.

M0nica Sun 16-Jan-22 15:36:12

Blondiescot I have a 40 year old slow cooker that used to belong to my aunt, that long and slow cooks meat, which I prefer, and rice is cooked in the microwave.

Kamiso Sun 16-Jan-22 13:31:09

I am about to donate my air fryer to a local charity. It’s a cheap basic one and there’s no room for it in our new kitchen.

Blondiescot Sun 16-Jan-22 13:22:02

M0nica

This thread plus some googling I have done has convinced me that actually my airfryer is of very little use to me beyond reheating chips and cooking pommes parmentier.

I rarely cook lumps of food, I do not cook chicken breasts, steaks etc. We eat a lot of 'made' dishes, casseroles and stews pasta and rice dishes that need to be in a dish and in an oven and so on. My cooker has a griddle and sausages and bacon go on there. just as easy as using an airfryer.

I am rather glad that the one I bought is quite small and ideal for its limited uses.

That's where my Ninja Foodi comes into its own. Casseroles, stews, pasta and rice dishes can be made in a fraction of the time it would take in a conventional oven. I know they're not for everyone, but I've found mine to be extremely useful and very time-saving.

wicklowwinnie Sun 16-Jan-22 13:19:13

I have just purchased a combination microwave which includes grill and convection oven, plus the ordinary microwave.
Any advice please?
I have been told the convection oven is similar to an air fryer!
Many thanks.

M0nica Sun 16-Jan-22 12:22:50

This thread plus some googling I have done has convinced me that actually my airfryer is of very little use to me beyond reheating chips and cooking pommes parmentier.

I rarely cook lumps of food, I do not cook chicken breasts, steaks etc. We eat a lot of 'made' dishes, casseroles and stews pasta and rice dishes that need to be in a dish and in an oven and so on. My cooker has a griddle and sausages and bacon go on there. just as easy as using an airfryer.

I am rather glad that the one I bought is quite small and ideal for its limited uses.

Grannynannywanny Sun 16-Jan-22 07:46:40

Shandy57 that’s a good tip thank you!

Shandy57 Sat 15-Jan-22 23:19:53

Grannynannywanny I use mine on top of the electric hob, underneath the extractor fan.

Grannynannywanny Sat 15-Jan-22 21:45:47

I’ve been deliberating over getting one as well. I had finally decided to get one this week until I read a post saying they shouldn’t be placed on a work top area that has a cupboard above it. That’s pretty much all of my kitchen so I’m disappointed I won’t be buying one after all.

Doodledog Sat 15-Jan-22 21:35:26

Hetty58

I just love my Ninja air fryer. It's on the worktop, ready to use, never in a cupboard.

I have an Instantpot duo too - which is brilliant - so hardly ever use the oven. I gave away the sandwich toaster (use the Ninja, easy to clean) but I've kept my other slow cooker. With that and the Instantpot I can have two pre-cooked dishes keeping warm for guests.

This is interesting, as I have an Instant pot (and a slow cooker), which has put me off getting a Ninja, as I thought the Ninja would make the Instant pot redundant. Do you still use both, other than to keep food warm? I would also want to keep the Ninja out (the IP is on top of the freezer, but easily accessible) but don't they take up a lot of worktop space? I have been talking myself in and out of getting one for ages.

Hetty58 Sat 15-Jan-22 21:02:30

(I think the 'air fryer' name puts some people off. Really, they're a compact fan oven, very good for crisping and grilling.)

Hetty58 Sat 15-Jan-22 20:47:13

I just love my Ninja air fryer. It's on the worktop, ready to use, never in a cupboard.

I have an Instantpot duo too - which is brilliant - so hardly ever use the oven. I gave away the sandwich toaster (use the Ninja, easy to clean) but I've kept my other slow cooker. With that and the Instantpot I can have two pre-cooked dishes keeping warm for guests.

NanaAng14 Sat 15-Jan-22 20:27:36

Use mine at least 3 or 4 times a week , much more economical to use than bigger oven . The model I have was inexpensive and i've had it about 2 years - money well spent . Just ' boiled' eggs in it today - place eggs in , close drawer for about 12 mins - very nice .