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Buying an air fryer

(22 Posts)
Silvershadow Mon 16-Feb-26 20:07:47

We want to get an air fryer. We are not sure which one to buy. Our daughters have got Ninjas but they are cooking for families and have large ones. There are only two of us. Do we buy a large or a smaller one? What make should we buy? Should we get a double drawer type or not? We are really confused. It will mainly be used for jacket potatoes, salmon, sausages, pizzas, roast chicken and veg to start with but I’d like to get more adventurous once we get used to it. We will still use slow cookers for casseroles and things like that.
What would others suggest regarding size, make etc?

JaneJudge Mon 16-Feb-26 20:49:27

I have got a ninja stack so you can just cook in just one drawer and it takes up less space

I didn’t want one but it’s great

Grannynannywanny Mon 16-Feb-26 20:51:54

I live alone and had a basic single drawer 4 litre capacity for a couple of years and used it daily. My son bought me a 2 drawer 9 litre Ninja air fryer a couple of months ago and I love it.

If you have the space and can afford a large one I’d recommend it. You could eg cook fish/meat in one drawer and potatoes and veg in the other and synchronise the drawers for it all to be ready together. There are lots of online video demonstrations showing their versatility.

BlueBelle Mon 16-Feb-26 21:00:27

Each to his own I own a Tower one drawer it would easily accommodate two peoples food… it was £38/£40 and I ve had it 2+ years and never touched my oven since I got it

crazyH Mon 16-Feb-26 21:07:40

I have a small one - just enough for me .

DollyD Mon 16-Feb-26 21:11:22

Same as BlueBelle, Tower £39 one drawer, had about 2 years and great for jacket spuds, chicken breasts, salmon.
I don’t think the 2 drawer would be much use for me as I wouldn’t airfry vegetables…

Grannynannywanny Mon 16-Feb-26 21:28:57

Chopped peppers, onions, courgette and tomatoes are delicious roasted in the air fryer .

Silvershadow Mon 16-Feb-26 21:30:58

I think we will have to go to John Lewis and look at them all. I guess we thought Ninja as the family all have those but we will look at Towers. My sister has a Ninja that fits under a cupboard but wishes she’d got bigger. It’s a big purchase so need to get it right. Off to John Lewis we go.

BlueBelle Mon 16-Feb-26 22:03:22

I got mine from B and M and it s been a boon John Lewis will probably not stock the cheaper ones You ll probably pay a lot more but if moneys not a problem well then that won’t mattering didn’t want to spend a lot in what might be a fad but it’s no fad I ve literally used it everyday since I had it
I do my breakfast toast in it in the morning my toaster blew and I tried it and bingo works fine
I do do vegis in it or on the hob make rolls, cheese straws, crumbles, pies, as well as my main meal

Charleygirl5 Mon 16-Feb-26 22:18:02

I have had one for at least 5 years. I bought a cheap one in case I didn't like it. Don't spend a lot of money on a Ninja. Get used to a basic one first. My first had 2 sections which I didn't like. My present one has what looks like a saucepan and I love it. I could cook a small chicken in it, but I am on my own so I cook a single piece.

They have paid for themselves because my oven hasn't been used and they are cheaper to run.

You need space for it, and they are heavy, so mine is permanently on the worktop surface. You have to protect your worktop surface and don't put it close to a wall.

nanna8 Mon 16-Feb-26 22:19:48

I’ve just bought a ninja stack because my Phillips died ( second one that did the same thing! )

Silvershadow Tue 17-Feb-26 20:51:23

We have been to Curry’s today and what a lot of choice there is. I like the Ninja stack. They say you can cook four different foods in it. My DH likes the larger wider one with the half and half feature but you can take that divider out so you could put a whole chicken in. Some of them were enormous especially the Tefal range, much too big for us. So I hope we get the Ninja stack. I’m wondering if we can use the silicone liners in it?

Grannynannywanny Tue 17-Feb-26 21:12:36

I saw a YouTube review for the large one with the removable divider. The negative seemed to be that even if you are just cooking in one side of it the entire section has to be removed for washing. Whereas if you have only used one drawer of a twin drawer air fryer then you only need to remove that drawer for washing.

JaneJudge Fri 20-Feb-26 11:59:38

I thought of this thread yesterday

Lidl have a salter one in atm that looks like a Ninja stack for £79.99 and they’ve also got a tower double type one for £69.99

Lilypops Fri 20-Feb-26 12:13:30

I have the Tower one , there’s only the two of us and it’s been a good size for us but , I thought I would like a double drawer one , I bought one from Lakeland as my daughters have the same , it came yesterday and it’s going back, I just can’t understand the instructions , or the symbols , it slightly different from previous models my daughters have , I will just stick with the basic model I have , at least I know what I am doing with it. The controls are so basic and easy ,

SuzannahClaire Fri 20-Feb-26 15:11:46

I liked my Tower one (£40) so much I bought another! I rarely use both but occasionally it’s nice to have more capacity or to cook two completely different things at the same time. A double drawer one would do the same but I wanted to try one first in case I didn’t use it.

DollyRocker Fri 20-Feb-26 15:29:40

Tower recalled my small cheapie one and replaced it with one triple the size foc! It's great being able to cook more stuff in it. Very happy with my single drawer air fryer.

DollyRocker Fri 20-Feb-26 15:40:42

On the strength of this thread I was having a Google around and found these divided silicone baskets. Thought they could be useful.

Maggymay Fri 20-Feb-26 16:13:33

I have the Ninja dual zone tonight we will be having a roast chicken and roast potatoes .
I rarely use my oven now and use it to cook lots of different foods.
Yesterday I made a lemon drizzle cake and a Bara brith .

Silvershadow Fri 20-Feb-26 17:16:41

We have bought the Ninja Stack from John Lewis. Also the silicone dishes from there. Now, it’s a learning curve for me/us. I’ll start with easy things and, hopefully, progress from there and thanks for all the advice you all gave.

TillyTrotter Wed 25-Feb-26 20:19:33

I bought the Tower 2Litre manual control model just this week and paid £24.99 from HomeSense.
It has a “saucepan” food holder with a trivet to let juices/fat drain through,
and I’m very pleased with it.
Just right for 2 people I’d say.
I cooked 6 sausages in it today and they were browned to perfection.
We had them with mash which I had previously made and just heated it in the microwave for 3 minutes.
A simple meal made in just 20 mins.
£24.99 well spent.

TillyTrotter Wed 25-Feb-26 20:22:06

Silvershadow if you want the fat to drain from meats (like sausages) don’t use the silicone lining dish unless it has holes in.