Fried food is comfort food. We all know that fried foods are not healthy and craving comfort food is a real thing. Studies have shown eating too many fried foods can lead to heart issues and obesity. If only there was a way to enjoy fried foods but in a healthier way. There is! Let us introduce you to the air fryer.
What’s an Air Fryer?
An air fryer circulates hot air around the food at a high speed. Air starts at the top and is then pushed down by a fan. That air recirculates back to the top and cooks the food (similar to a convection oven just on a smaller scale). Coating the food in minimal oil before placing into the air fryer, helps to crisp up the outside of the food but keep the inside tender. According to Philips, who claims to be the “original” air fryer, you can fry, roast, bake or grill foods in a minimal amount of time.
Benefits of an Air Fryer
-
- Healthier Cooking: If you’re looking to cut back on calories, but don’t want to lose texture or taste, add an air fryer to your kitchen gadgets. While deep frying food can use up to three cups of oil, most air fryers only use one tablespoon. Air and minimal oil are used to heat and cook the food. The outcome is crispy food with fewer calories than traditional deep frying.
-
- Time-Saving Kitchen Utensil: Oil and ovens take a while to pre-heat. An air fryer can come to temperature in minutes. Food also cooks faster in an air fryer. Homemade french fries can be cooked in 15 minutes and chicken wings take 10 minutes to crisp.
-
- Simple to Use: Most air fryers come with presets for popular dishes that let you cook by the push of a button. Since cooking is contained inside the air fryer and the temperature is automatically set, it’s safe to walk away from and not worry about grease fires.
- Easy Cleaning: When deep frying, a large quantity of oil is used. Besides the splatter while frying, after everything is cooked there is leftover oil that can be difficult (and annoying) to dispose of. Since minimal oil is used, there is no oil to get rid of. The parts of an air fryer are dishwasher safe making clean up easy.
What to Look for When Purchasing an Air Fryer
-
- Size: Air fryers come in large and small – from 2.2-quart models to 16-quart models. The bigger the air fryer the more counter space it takes up, so take that into consideration.
-
- Capacity: Some air fryers will refer to their size by the amount of food they cook or the pounds of food. If you’re only looking to cook french fries, chicken fingers, vegetables, etc, a smaller air fryer would work. But, if you’re looking to air fry a chicken, you’ll need to look at larger fryers. Your family size and the amount of food needing to be cooked will determine what size air fryer to purchase.
- Features: Every air fryer has different features. Shop around and see what work best for you. Some have more presets than others while a different models heat to different temperatures.
If you already have fallen in love with the air fryer, tell us why below!