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Air Fryers

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Air Fryers Overview

If you’re looking for a healthier way to enjoy your favorite finger foods in the comfort of your own home, an air-fryer is a small appliance that you may want to consider adding to your kitchen counter-top.

Most of us love fried foods like chicken wings and French fries but are also aware of the potential health hazards associated with eating them too often. So what if you could get those crispy fries without the fatty grease that typically comes along with them? Well, that’s exactly what an air fryer sets out to accomplish – “Fry” the food without soaking it in oil.

Air fryers circulate hot air around the food placed inside of them and take much less time to cook than a typical oven requires. Better yet, a half -tablespoon of oil at most is all that you’ll need to get that crisp texture you’ve come to appreciate from fried foods. An added bonus is that air fryers do not typically give off cooking odors so you don’t have to worry about your house reeking like a chip truck.

Of course, not all air fryers are created equal, so the team at Comparisons.us has done its best to make your shopping experience as easy as possible by comparing some of the most popular air fryers available on the market today. We’ve scoured the Internet for consumer reviews to come up with common Pros and Cons reported by actual purchasers of the products. We’ve provided factual product feature lists, specifications, warranty information and more, saving you the time of having to do the research yourself. Happy shopping!

What Features To Look For In An Air Fryer?

When it comes to choosing the best air fryer for you, there are many factors to consider. Knowing what features are important in an air fryer can depend on your specific needs but there are some features that deserve extra consideration before making a purchase.

Sure, you’re going to want to make sure that your kitchen outlets can support the needed wattage (most brands use between 1400 and 1800 watts) for your new air fryer to function.

Likewise, the temperature range should also be considered but you’ll find that most popular air fryer brands will be similar in this department.

After hours spent comparing many of the top air fryers on the market and reading what purchasers had to say about them, we’ve come up with a short list of the most important things to consider when purchasing an air fryer:

Basket Size

Whether you are a college student cooking only for yourself or you have a family of five to feed, the capacity of your new air fryer will be an important feature to consider. The more people you’re cooking for, the larger capacity you’ll need. Tip: look for units with twin baskets or dividers that allow for cooking two different foods simultaneously, if you’re feeding a larger group.

Cooking Presets

The best air fryer models take the guess work out of cooking and make your life a whole lot easier. Look for an air fryer that has a solid line-up of presets that allow you to set it and forget it. Tip: Not all presets are made equal. If this is an important feature for you, you may want to select a product that has this feature listed as a “Pro” under the product comparison. This means that people who have actually purchased that product have commonly listed this feature as something they love about it.

Safety

While it may seem like a given that any air fryer that you purchase will operate safely, our research tells us that some products are safer than others. This is especially a key factor to consider if you expect multiple household members to be operating your air fryer. Look for a product that boasts a well-functioning automatic shut-off feature.

Non-stick Interior

A well-made non-stick interior will not only make clean-up easier, it will prevent you from having to purchase replacement trays prematurely.

Appearance

Let’s be honest, nobody wants an eyesore sitting on their kitchen counter. There are many modern, sleek looking air fryers are the market that can be a welcome addition to your kitchen space so don’t feel compelled to opt for a giant egg-shaped unit that you’ll hide when guests come over.

What Does An Air Fryer Do?

An air fryer produces a crispy layer to your food by coating it in a small amount of oil (up to 80% less than a traditional deep fryer) and circulating hot air around the food using a built-in fan.

While the taste and consistency of foods cooked using an air fryer are not identical to that of foods cooked using traditional fried methods that use larger amounts of oil and coating batter, many people use an air fryer as a healthier alternative for cooking foods such as chicken wings, French fries and chips.

Best Air Fryer For A Large family?

If you’re going to be using your air fryer to cook for more than three people, there is one feature that you’ll want to play close attention to and that is basket capacity. In other words, how much food can the product cook at one time?

There are several high-quality air fryers on the market but many are built to cook for one or two people so be careful. Ending up with the wrong size product could make it very difficult for your family members to eat at the same time.

Look for an air fryer that can hold between 5-7 quarts of food. These products are commonly referred to as “large capacity air fryers”. Some models even come with a divider that will allow you to cook two different foods at once.

Air Fryer Recipes

To get the most out of your new Air Fryer, it helps to have a wide variety of recipes to choose from. You can only eat so many chicken wings and if you don’t know what to cook, your new air fryer will end up tucked away under your kitchen counter in no time.

The different types of dishes your air fryer can make are limited only by your imagination. From pub food to healthy vegetarian meals, to sweets and deserts, having an arsenal of great recipes can make your life easier.

While many air fryer models come with a recipe book, you’ll eventually want to experiment with other recipes not provided with your new purchase. Luckily for you, there are several air fryer cookbooks available online for a very reasonable price.

One of the more popular recipe books for air fryers actually offers 600 effortless recipes and is suitable for beginners and advanced users alike. Another one we found called The Skinnytaste Air Fryer Cookbook takes a “light on calories, big on flavor” approach.

No matter what your taste buds crave, chances are good that you’ll find delicious air fryer recipes online, helping you get the most use out of your new kitchen appliance.