So, I got an air fryer!
I guess it's old news but I seriously didn't know it existed a few months ago.
I love cooking and I do like fried food... so I was actually considering to get a deep fryer, but something in my conscience kept telling me "don't you dare".
So one day I just sort of stumbled upon the whole air fryer world. Suddenly I felt like I was the only without it. There was a special offer on an online store so I started doing my research.
I live in Costa Rica and I found out that there was a Facebook group here and it was all about these interesting new appliance.
So I decided to take the offer... it was affordable and the idea of being able to eat without so much fat was mind blowing.
First time I just grabbed a potato and cut it French fry style. Then I put them in my new toy but they came out like oven potato... not fries.
So I felt like I had just made a purchase I didn't quite need. And decided to sell it. I actually offered to sell it to my boss, and she was ready to buy it. Then my daughter Amanda said she wanted to try airfried chicken and some other stuff that looked great on the box.
So I gave it a second chance and I decided to keep it. I've used quite a lot by now.
My main concern was that it would be just like a small oven. I already have a big oven and it works with gas...no electricity ...and that's great for me because I'm not used to electric stoves. I do own a little electric oven that gets me out of trouble every time I run out of gas. So I thought... what If I could just get the same results with the ovens I already had? Then this would be useless.
Now, after 6 months I can tell you this:
- I enjoy using the air fryer, especially because I wouldn't start the oven for small things, like a ripe plantain, that I used to love deep fried. This is one of my favorite things to make now. Before, I just did it when I had some big pan in the oven, like a lasagna... and then I would use the extra room for a plantain. I love when it gets the brown color and sweet taste of the oven... but I don't start the oven for just one or two plantains. Well I do it all the time with my air fryer.
- I make empanadas.... and I don't worry about the oil. They do take more than 20 minutes but the are crispy and they need little oil spray to none, compared to the vulgar amount of oil used to deep fry them ... priceless.
- pork ribs, one of our favourites. My husband likes them fried but I think they are already fatty..So in my air fryer they loose some fat and still get crispy in the outside. So it's a win win.
- Frozen products... yeah! Frozen french fries are super easy to make, no oil and result is pretty similar but healthier... So I'm not a big fan of junk food, but I can now make my homemade version and treat my family without the guilty feeling. I also tried frozen waffles, good too! I want to try the corndogs, onion rings, and some other frozen products. Not a frozen meat lover...all my burguers and fried chicken are homemade.
- Speaking of fried chicken... Well it's a great thing to air fry. I have made wings, (super easy), tights (breaded or not), tenders... you name it!
- Croutons are really easy to make and super quick.
- Tortilla chips... tacos, chalupas...eggrolls, everything that requires crispy tortillas. I've even brought back to life some tortilla chips that weren't so crispy, turned out great!
- I just love the fact I don't have to be there the whole time watching the food from burning, also the oil spilling is over, no more oil burns on my skin, no more mess on my stove surface, no more smoke all over the house.
- Baking small batches is possible, though I prefer the oven for baking in general. I've made cinnamon rolls, cupcakes and cake... but I think that's just to know it's a possibility.
- Some people just go a little over the top... I mean... once I read someone was trying to do some omelette or fry an egg...and complained that it was taking too long with the air fryer! Well... use a regular non stick pan... I mean... you don't really need to do everything with it...same with cupcakes, cakes, breads... unless you just want to bake a really small batch, I don't see why not using the good old oven. However, since my oven doesn't have a broiler feature, I successfully used my air fryer to give these homemade burger buns a golden brown finish after baking them in the regular oven. (Sorry I forgot to take the pic before the first bite)
- Sets of cool accessories are available but I haven't got them yet. I would go for the ones that help you optimize the use of space, and cook more food in the same batch, like some racks.
So, not bad for the air fryer I thought was going to be useless...
I hope this article is useful or at least entertaining...Let me know if you want me to share any specific recipe or tip.
Happy cooking!
All of the pictures have been taken at home, one is the box of my airfryer, the rest are from real meals made by me using my air fryer