“Let’s get an air fryer,” the wife says.
We’re in the grocery store and going through the appliance aisle.
“Why do we need an air fryer?”
“I want one. They’re healthier for you than regularly frying foods.”
The fact that we’d recently gotten one for one of my step-daughters probably factors into the decision making process.
We end up getting one and follow it up with a trip to the bookstore to find a book or two on how to cook things in an air fryer.
So far, the results have been mixed. We did salmon in it one evening. I thought it came out OK, but a little dry. I’m chalking that up to learning the new device and how long things should take to prepare. The timer on our unit is analog, not digital, so getting the time exactly right is a little tricky.
We did grilled cheese sandwiches too, and they came out good.
We’ve tried chicken in it twice now and both times it left something to be desired. To be fair, the second try we were trying a recipe from the cookbook we bought and it wasn’t anything I’ve ever tried before – tandoori chicken. We didn’t have all the spices the recipe called for, so I winged it. And the chicken turned out to be partially frozen when we pulled it out to cook. That added another 15 minutes of cooking to get them thoroughly cooked. The wife thought it came out well, but I was not a fan.
I’m sure that a lot of this is just a learning curve in getting the settings right for different foods. The recipe book has a recipe for chocolate cake, chocolate chip cookies, and brownies. I’m looking forward to trying them all. 🙂
Do you have any experience using an air fryer, dear reader? If so, got any tips or good recipes to try? Leave a comment and let me know.
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Having been using an air fryer for about a year now, here are some thoughts:
Fried air is really overrated (sorry, couldn’t resist)
Yes, it will take some time, and a few burnt / undercooked meals, to get the hang of it
There should have been documentation with your purchase with some basic recipes, or at least times and temperature settings for your basic dishes
Analog timer? How very 20th century
Cook anything you want to cook. There is no wrong way
However, a commitment to eating your occasional mistakes will accelerate the development of your cooking skill