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Air Fryers - Anyone out there have one?


HanShotFirst

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Anyone out there have an air fryer? If so, do they really work or are they just another oversized kitchen "gadget" you have no room for? Do the fries get crispy? I won't eat soggy fries. Can you cook other foods in them? Any other pros and cons?

 

Now that both Kohl's and Penney's have one in their ads it is on my radar as a possible gift for my parents and maybe myself.

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I just bought one off QVC. The reviews are kind of mixed on it because the drawer was getting stuck on a few people but others says that they cooked the food great. Crispy and best fries ever. The one I bought has the larger basket so you can cook for a family ( whole chicken ) versus the smaller basket for 1 or 2 people. It will be my first one as well so I hop it works great. 

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I have one, and I really like it.  That being said, my son will not eat french fries I make in it. He wants his fries, well, fried.  I've made steak in the air fryer, and it turned out really great.  Mostly, I use it for pre-packaged frozen food like mini-tacos, fish sticks, that kind of thing. Depending on what I'm cooking, I might spray olive oil on it before I put it in the fryer.

 

I ordered the larger one from QVC for my mom for Christmas.  

 

I would recommend looking up The Blue Jean Chef on YouTube for other Air Fryer ideas.  You can see some of her recipes at http://www.meredithlaurence.com/my-recipes/air-fryer-recipes/  (she also has videos on her facebook page).

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I will be very curious to see what others have to say.  The Philips brand seems to get the best reviews by far, but is also the most expensive.  I have seen the one in the Kohls' and JCP ad, but can't find any reviews.  I was thinking of getting one by Avalon Bay.  It seems get really good reviews on Amazon.

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I LOVE my airfryer! I've had it about 6 months and use it a lot! I bought the CooksEssential 1500 from qvc. It has pre-set buttons for French fries, chicken, steak, and fish along with regular digital timer and heat controls. I love how French fries and onion rings come out. I originally bought it because my husband wanted to eat healthier. He loves steak and chicken fixed in it. I would definitely recommend one. Just make sure you get a good one. QVC now has one with 6 Pre-set and the regular timer, and heat control. http://www.qvc.com/Ships-1116-CooksEssentials-53qt-Digital-Air-Fryer-w6-Presets.product.K45537.html?sc=SRCH

 

Kayray I considered the Philips too but I decided to give the one I bought a chance first because it was on sale for $99.99 plus shipping at the time and if I wasn't happy I would just send it back and get the Philips. Personally I don't see how the philips would be worth the price difference.

Edited by Kim3498
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I am new to these, but have the oil-less turkey fryer. We love it, but have not attempted anything other than a turkey breast and a baking chicken yet. Both came out crispy and delicious. I am planning to use it at Best Buy since this runs on propane. I know that those smaller units are different, so making French fries in a smaller unit sounds intriguing.

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If space is a concern and you have an over the range microwave then I suggest considering a microwave/convection oven combo.  When our microwave died last year after considering all the options I got a Samsung microwave with the convection oven feature.  I think it was about $239.  One of the features is "slim fry" which is a special tray that is place on top of a stand so that the tray is near the top of the microwave and it crisps the frozen french fries without using any oil so I imagine this is the same as air frying.  We've had it for almost a year now and was worth the purchase.  I haven't tried using it with any meat but reading the other posts I'm going to test it out.

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If space is a concern and you have an over the range microwave then I suggest considering a microwave/convection oven combo.  When our microwave died last year after considering all the options I got a Samsung microwave with the convection oven feature.  I think it was about $239.  One of the features is "slim fry" which is a special tray that is place on top of a stand so that the tray is near the top of the microwave and it crisps the frozen french fries without using any oil so I imagine this is the same as air frying.  We've had it for almost a year now and was worth the purchase.  I haven't tried using it with any meat but reading the other posts I'm going to test it out.

Better watch it with Samsung and Fry lately :)

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I have one and love it. I do hate that its so large and takes up so much room though. I've made fries (perfect), chicken fingers, pizza, all kinds of things and still have many I want to try.  

I got mine from QVC but not the model they are advertising right now. I have never had problems with my drawer or anything; looks like its a design flaw in the new model. This is the one I have I do kind of wish the basket was a little bigger sometimes I have to do two batches of things https://www.qvc.com/CooksEssentials-1500W-Digital-Air-Fryer-with-Presets-%26-Grill-Rack.product.K43756.html?productNumber=K43756&storeId=10251&catalogId=10151&langId=-1&partNumber=K43756&upsh=1&TZ=EST

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I have one and love it. I do hate that its so large and takes up so much room though. I've made fries (perfect), chicken fingers, pizza, all kinds of things and still have many I want to try.  

I got mine from QVC but not the model they are advertising right now. I have never had problems with my drawer or anything; looks like its a design flaw in the new model. This is the one I have I do kind of wish the basket was a little bigger sometimes I have to do two batches of things https://www.qvc.com/CooksEssentials-1500W-Digital-Air-Fryer-with-Presets-%26-Grill-Rack.product.K43756.html?productNumber=K43756&storeId=10251&catalogId=10151&langId=-1&partNumber=K43756&upsh=1&TZ=EST

That's the one I have too.    I forgot to mention pizza!  Left over pizza heats up so much better in the AF than the microwave.  BUT, you can only do one slice at a time.

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We bought a Paula Deen one on Evine, 3.5 qt 1400W, and it works great for 2 people.  Then we bought the 5.8 quart 1700W Cooks Companion one, and love that one even more to handle larger batches of food.  French fries, frozen onion rings, corn dogs, pretzels, pork chops, chicken legs, and all frozen appetizers are all really quick and good in the AF.  We plan on cooking a turkey breast in it for Thanksgiving, on the demo show they said it should only take about an hour to cook.  It's fast, good, healthier (really just a 'kiss' of oil on the food for full flavor for me), and easy to clean.  It's nice to not heat up the whole house and still have hot food in the summer.  Absolutely no regrets with these new small appliances.

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I'm going to try to get this one. May get the one at Kohl's (if it is available early online that is) so I have one if Walmart fails me.

Yeah I'm thinking the same thing...

I know I love my Foreman grill and this seems like another great gadget for when I want some relatively hands-off easier cooking. Living by myself, I don't often want to go through the production of cooking from scratch, even though I know I should. Too often fall back on take out stuff that, while tasty, can't be all that awesome for my long term health. lol

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Yeah I'm thinking the same thing...

I know I love my Foreman grill and this seems like another great gadget for when I want some relatively hands-off easier cooking. Living by myself, I don't often want to go through the production of cooking from scratch, even though I know I should. Too often fall back on take out stuff that, while tasty, can't be all that awesome for my long term health. lol

I've learned if it takes like it's going to kill you it's probably good for you. If it tastes good it's probably going to kill you.

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I have the big boss one. It was $70 or so on Groupon. It works well enough but, calling it a fryer is a bit much. It's more of a convection oven from what I can tell. You still have to flip stuff to get all around crispy. Size could also be q issue for some it is pretty big. Probably about the size of a bigger oil fryer. I like mine more for reheating than for cooking.
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For anyone interested, one of Best Buy's Deals of the Day is the Bella air fryer. $49.99 with no mail-in rebate involved unlike Kohl's and Penney's. Using my $15 reward certificate takes it down to practically the same price as the one in the Walmart ad without the hassle of going to Walmart or a probable WM website crash next week. So, another big thing marked off my list before BF. :)

 

Thank you Best Buy!

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Wow thanks for all the responses to this.  I may have to consider getting one now.  I thought it was just for foods that you normally would have deep fried. Like cod or flounder.  Then you guys started listing steak and pizza.  Thank you

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yes i have a phillips air fryer xl and i absolutely love it! i have had it since last Christmas! i would advise to get the bigger xl version if you have a family. those little ones will barely hold anything. i have cook everything from steaks to grill cheese sandwiches in mine! it is great for heating up foods quickly! i heated to some breadsticks with cheese the other night in 5 minutes tasted like fresh from pizza place!

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