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Finally taking the plunge on an air fryer, having missed the sales and Bf deals. It’s for 3-4 of us. Curious as to whether the dual drawer models make sense, vs the large single drawer, or the flexi drawer option, I don’t really want to buy a mid size one, then soon after go larger.
Suppose I should ask are they any good ? We had a Phillips one v.soon after they first came out a very very long time ago and it was garbage, assume they’ve moved on a wee bit since.
asda do a range that is really cheap, then there’s ninja which isn’t at all. And there’s a tonne in the middle range.
What’s the current STW approved air fryer ?
We've got a couple of ninjas. Bought as refurbs direct from shark via eBay. Were like new. Got the two draw model and it's great. Sometimes it's a bit of a squeeze but I'd be wary of a bigger one missing the fundamental benefit of an air fryer, ie the small space to heat up. Not tried any others but very happy with what we have. Oven only gets used for pizza and Christmas dinner now.
We've got a 2-drawer Ninja one. There's 3 of us - me, my Wife & a 9 year old who eats like a sparrow.
We sometimes find ourselves wishing we'd got a larger one.
I'd err towards a larger one if you have the space, rather than wish you'd gone for a larger one in 2 months time. Ours is fine, just sometimes its a bit of a pain.
Just got a ninja 2 drawer air fryer from their ebay store for 127 quid, reduced from 199
I didn't really see the point of them, which is why it's taken so long to get one, and still dont really see the point in it now after owning one for a couple of weeks.
It's slightly quicker than using an oven, so I guess you don't need to plan ahead quite so much, but apart from that it seems a bit pointless if you already have an oven.
Meh!
Ninja two drawer - we use it a LOT.
We have this model Ninja from their eBay store. Paid £126.65 as we had a bigger discount voucher. When it arrived it looks like a new one so we got lucky.
We weren't sure if we would get the use out of one, so bought a basic £25 one from Robert Dyas, thinking that if we used it, we'd get something else.
It has two dials, temperature, and timer.
It is great.
If we want more capacity then we'll probably just buy a second one.
I'm not sure what advantages a £200, multi compartment, touchscreen Ninja thing would have over one or two small cheapo ones. They'll take up the same space and given all the energy is converted to heat and air movement, they can't be any more efficient.
We bought the lakeland one, has a large dual draw, seperated using a removable partition. It's very good, but even for two (maybe greedy ppl) I find it a bit small. Comes with a three year warranty, where they offer a full refund or replacement, which I have tested and came back with a replacement unit.
and still dont really see the point in it now after owning one for a couple of weeks.
There a oven replacement, that's all.. why heat a whole oven for 'some' chips or fish fingers when you can do it cheaper/more effiently with an airfryer (ignoring the cost of the airfryer). If you use you oven fully (all the shelves) all the time, there's little no point
Another Ninja for a family of 4 - this time Flexdrawer so a big compartment that can be used as two halves. Really good for doing things like sausages or oven chips. Heats up really quickly. Apparently it's impossible to clean (according to the rest of my family) but I have no trouble doing so.
Ninja two drawer – we use it a LOT.
Forgot to say, we also bought a cheap supermarket jobby for camping - so much easier, cleaner and less meat-stinky than faffing with gas or barbeques, also handy as a third draw at home if we have the family round. 🙂
I have the Ninja 9 litre 2 draw one, can fit a large chicken in a single draw for roasting. They do offer a small 7.6 dual draw, but don't do it.
I love my airfryer was a little late to the party, but its kinda retired the oven now, I've even used it so much the chrome has worn off one of the draw handles!
The benefits for me are, no pre heat and stops when the timer ends. I hate pre warming my oven when busy and then forgetting about stuff and coming back to cremated food! Chicken either whole or in smaller portions comes out super moist and lovely (Use roast setting more then max or air fry), as does Salmon when in a tin foil parcel. I'm less convinced on joints of beef though, frozen oven chips come out lovely, but if you fill it up loads, dont bother reducing the cook time.
If it broke, would I buy another, yes ASAP!
I’m not sure what advantages a £200, multi compartment, touchscreen Ninja thing would have over one or two small cheapo ones. They’ll take up the same space and given all the energy is converted to heat and air movement, they can’t be any more efficient.
There can be a difference in efficiency, I'd imagine the cheaper ones piss out heat due to less insulation, and if they aren't cooking totally evenly then probably have poorly designed air circulation.
Which? magazine tested the (more expensive, digital) version of the cheap Daewoo one from RD, and rated it relatively poorly, citing the following:
Undercooks chips
Difficult to clean
Poor energy efficiency
Baguettes aren’t browned evenly
We've got a 2-drawer Salter fryer, quite similar to the equivalent Ninja like Tracey's but those weren't available at the time due to there being a bit of rush-buying happening in all the obvious outlets at the time. The time being when leccy costs were shooting sharply upwards, just post the Russian invasion of Ukraine.
As per pondo above, we also use it a lot, normally for doing home-made chips, or cubed potatoes (patatas bravas?), or last night some Mediterranean Roast veg. Also sausages, bacon, other small meat cuts. For two people it's perfect, but you'd not get a decent-sized chicken into either drawer, so the big oven gets exercised every week or two for that sort of thing.
The only real downside I can see is that the drawers aren't dishwasher-proof. Or so it says, I've never actually tested them - always handwash in a lot of hot soapy water. That's probably not unique to the Salter models to be fair.
Costco touch screen 6 or 7 litre jobby here - £40 with their usual 5 year warranty!
Big enough for two of us. We use it for chips, bacon, sausages, fishcakes, roasted veg, etc. but if there's more than two or three of us (or there's multiple things to cook) then the oven goes on.
I like the fact it's quick and does a great job on some stuff - plus I can hide it in a cupboard when not in use. I hate worktop clutter so if it didn't fit in a cupboard I'd not have one as I doubt they actually save that much money and there's zero chance I'd spend £200 on one [when I've already got an oven].
I hate pre warming my oven when busy and then forgetting about stuff and coming back to cremated food!
I believe most ovens have a timer now 😉
I have a Ninja Max 15 in 1 combi.
It can be used as a pressure cooker, slow cooker, air fryer, steamer and grill.
I use it all the time.
The Steam/Air fry mode cooks the best roast chicken. A whole chicken can be cooked in 30 minutes.
The remaining water makes some great gravy.
Not cheap but worth it IMO.
I believe most ovens have a timer now ?
🙂
even with timers, and notifications like ‘your cook has finished’, I still also set a timer ‘Alexa, set a [whatever] timer for x minutes’.
Our oven may have a timer but after 10y here I am no closer to working out how to use it.
Clearly I need a small child but that seems a bit of an extreme solution. Air fryer is cheaper and quieter and the timer is a simple twist knob. Mostly used for (re) heating stuff much quicker than normal oven, also far better for sausages and chicken parts with crispy skin.
Just had a couple of mince pies heated up with a cup of tea. They were basically hot in the time it took to make the tea.
We bought a new microwave recently that happens to have an airfry function*, other than doing some hash browns with it not really used it yet and not sure if the uses are a little more limited than a specific airfryer?
*We've been getting the 'you must get an airfryer' from a few friends but have up to now resisted!
Ninja Foodi FlexDrawer Dual Air Fryer 10.4L here. As the OH is a veggie it perfect for dual meals, but also when we cook a joint on sundays. Was bloody invaluable at Christmas.
Also, sisters OH works for them so I get a daft discount through her, happy to share the love if you go the Ninja way.
I like ours - it gets used pretty well much daily for everything from baking part-baked bread rolls, to frozen chips and quiches. It does a great muffin too. It just makes so much sense to switch that on over putting a big oven on – it heats up more quickly, cooks more quickly and stuff comes out well cooked. I often use it at lunchtime too – it makes a change to have a dirty fish finger sandwich over the usual ham and cheese etc. No idea what brand it is, but it was something that was promoted on Amazon before last Christmas.
As others have said though – if we have lots to cook then the oven goes on.
Bought many kitchen items over the years which end up hidden away. Our air fryer on the other hand gets used at least every day, sometimes several times. One of the best things we bought. We have solar panels and a home battery and if I watch the power usage of our electric oven against the air fryer its huge. Also quicker.
very similar to thecaptain, I have no idea how to use my oven....probably not overly difficult to learn but its never going to happen, I'm far old and set in my ways.
Ninja Air Frier here, single draw large volume one, its so easy to use. I work away from home and have a flat close to the office, essentially live like a batchelor during the week. My Air Frier has been a god send!!
As chief cook and bottle washer, I had resisted calls from friends and family to get an air fryer but after reading about them on the last thread, I succumbed to a Black Friday super deal and got the Ninja foodie.
Game changer! I really don’t know how I managed before? The oven hasn’t really been used since and I have found lots of easy recipes for quick snacks for hungry teenagers!
We have an aldi version i think was sold in various guises in most of the supermarkets. Double tray, average size etc.
At the end of the day its a small, quick oven. Anything you can do in your oven, you can do quicker and easier in the airfryer as long as it fits. My wife tends to cook meals for the whole family so it tends to be hobs blaring and oven being used 90% of the time. The 10% the air fryer is used is for burgers (Brilliant & much cleaner), chips and for me when i do my crimp-it wraps with all manner of fillings.
Its deffo a handy item but we couldnt manage without the oven so dont expect it to replace it unless you live on beige food or are single.
Oven timers difficult? You can make a post on an internet site? Jive that does not.
I've had mine a few years now, made by someone like Russell Hobbs, one of those generic toaster people anyway. I paid £18 off ebay. Its superb for some things (bacon! salmon steaks!) but probably doesn't get the full use it deserves. I should get a better one - my mate uses his Ninja for most things he would've done in the oven. My partner has a microwave that claims to have air fryer capabilities but the air fryer function seems a bit crap compared to a dedicated one.
Oven timers difficult? You can make a post on an internet site? Jive that does not.
I suppose it depends on the oven. Ours has three unlabeled, non haptic buttons. They somehow set the timer and set the clock. I'm sure I could learn but it is in no way obvious or intuitive. It is very much an afterthought feature. The air fryer has timing designed in and is easy to use. Much more like a microwave.
Oh no, I get that and I'm a geek. Oven timers are almost universally assholes.
They're up there with printers and toasters as "really, how hard should this be?" I want evenly Maillarded hot bread, a paragraph in black ink on a sheet of A4 and my oven to go 'bing' and switch off in 25 minutes but no, no-one could possibly live in such a utopia. Instead my fridge defrosts itself because I'm out of cyan.
There's an old 'classic' thread over on Mumsnet, "inanimate objects that are pricks" and oven timers solidly belong in there.
As for air fryers,
We have a Tefal ActiFry. It wasn't cheap but it's been great. If it died tomorrow I'd replace it with a Ninja.
We have the Ninja single draw, it has a removable partition which is handy and when removed, turns it in to a huge cooking area.
I think it probably gets used most week nights. Best thing we ever bought was a dedicated airfry cook book. The Jamie Oliver one that accompanied his series is really worth the money.
Yeah, I still don't know about this timers-being-tricky business. Mine goes like:
- Press button A.
- Add xyz minutes with button B.
- Walk away.
- Oven switches off after xyz minutes.
As has every oven I've owned.
Maybe I got lucky on the last lifetime's worth of ovens? But just for giggles I poked into the first Bosch (this is STW) oven manual I could find, and it said...
- Press button A.
- Add xyz minutes with
buttondial B. - Walk away.
- Oven switches off after xyz minutes.
northernremedy
Full Member
I keep looking at one of the ninja x in 1 jobs, as we also need a slow cooker!! Can’t help but feel might be a poor compromise?
I think they are, our drawer airfryer is far better than the multifunction one we bought a couple of years ago.
I keep looking at one of the ninja x in 1 jobs, as we also need a slow cooker!! Can’t help but feel might be a poor compromise?
you get less space for air-frying even though it's massive. This doesn't really bother me as I probably use the other functions more (slow cooker, roast, sauté) more and don't do a lot of chips, etc. So it depends what you cook!
Last night, after getting home late from the gym, I made dirty fries – part-cooked some chips (tossed in onion salt, chilli flakes and a little olive oil) then put them in a small tin tray and added some chopped mushrooms, baby corn, salsa, jalapenos and topped with a bit of grated cheese. Lovely.
Right, thanks for the replies
saw this from uk deals Asda George fryer
And this from Amazon Tefal fryer thing
the Asda one is almost as wide as the oven ! 50 cm wide. Nuts.
I dont want to spend loads in case this turns out to be not quite as useful as the oven is.
I dont want to spend loads in case this turns out to be not quite as useful as the oven is.
Well, it's nothing more than a small oven.
If you cook little things or one component of a meal that rattles around inside a regular sized oven on its own, then they're great. No real preheating, sensible size for smaller stuff, cheaper to run.
We use our Cosori one all the time. I had some mega chips from it last night in fact when I just wanted a portion for myself home alone.
Well, it’s nothing more than a small oven.
If you cook little things or one component of a meal that rattles around inside a regular sized oven, then they’re great.
I'd generally agree but probably go a bit further and say if you use the oven reasonably regularly then you'll use the air fryer a lot.
Heated up some leftover meatballs last night (in the microwave) but I also slathered some garlic butter on a bagel and chucked it in the air fryer for lovely crispy garlic bread. No way would I have done that previously in the oven. It was delicious btw
The risk is you buy a cheap one and it's ok but not great so you don't use it, although both those two you link to look pretty decent
I think our Cosori cost about £90, so not a cheap one, but not Ninja.
I’d generally agree but probably go a bit further and say if you use the oven reasonably regularly then you’ll use the air fryer a lot.
.... maybe, but only if this applies:
If you cook little things or one component of a meal that rattles around inside a regular sized oven on its own, then they’re great. No real preheating, sensible size for smaller stuff, cheaper to run.
They are just a small oven with the contents being closer to the fan.
They are just a small oven with the contents being closer to the fan.
Technically correct but that's like saying a toaster is just a small grill. You end up using more often and in more creative ways because it is so easy to use and you get very good results.
Not meeting the OPs requirements, but we bought https://www.sageappliances.com/en-gb/product/bov860 about 2 years ago, when it was on offer. We started with a cheap Tower single basket one, found it worked really well, donated that to one of the kids when the moved out and bought the Sage.
We barely use the cooker now (still use the hob for veg mostly). Cooked loads of different stuff using the Air Fryer mode, but also most of the other modes as well. Even the "toast" setting makes better toast than our Duallit. Bought a couple of air fry cook books and found some new recipes we like as well.
Both offspring have one of those cheap-ish £50 Tower ones now. Apparently very good for Chicken Nuggets;)
Technically correct but that’s like saying a toaster is just a small grill.
Well..... it is!
You end up using more often and in more creative ways because it is so easy to use and you get very good results.
For some things... you could also be just as creative using the oven. They're not some kind of magic and for some things they're not as good as an oven.
I like ours but it has it's place.
I believe most ovens have a timer now
But the timer doesnt actually turn off the Oven, with my Airfryer I can chuck some fish fingers in for 9mins and go get a shower and then come back down to some cooked food ready to go in a sandiwch. With the oven, it might beep when I'm in the shower still or I might not hear it and the food is getting over cooked or burnt. Its a little level of convenience for me that makes me love mine.
There a oven replacement, that’s all.. why heat a whole oven for ‘some’ chips or fish fingers when you can do it cheaper/more effiently with an airfryer (ignoring the cost of the airfryer).
I wonder how long it would take for the electricity saving to pay off the purchase price?
I tend to use our combi microwave as an oven if I don't need the space in the main oven. It's small so heats up quickly and means no need for yet another plastic gadget.
Purchased the tefal one, seemed to be the best for capacity and overall footprint.
will report back on how it performs for the next air fryer thread 🙂
also I do know how to program my oven timer and it does switch the oven off. The oven is till hot, even though the timer has finished and the oven is now off, so food can over cook if you don’t get it out pronto, but surely the same for an air fryer too.
but surely the same for an air fryer too.
Not found that to be the case. Less thermal mass and the heat is mostly transferred by the fan (which goes off after the timer). I suppose something delicate might slightly overcook but generally it just keeps things warm for a short while.
But the timer doesnt actually turn off the Oven, with my Airfryer I can chuck some fish fingers in for 9mins and go get a shower and then come back down to some cooked food ready to go in a sandiwch
It does turn off the oven..... but ovens are insulated to make them more efficient over longer cooking periods - this obvs stops them cooling down faster so the contents will keep cooking for a certain amount of time.
Your average air fryer, on the other hand, is not insulated as they're really only designed for short cooking periods (and it would add size and expense) so they cool down much quicker so the food therein stops cooking quicker.
The oven is till hot, even though the timer has finished and the oven is now off, so food can over cook if you don’t get it out pronto
Use the knowledge that the heat doesn't magically disappear immediately and switch the oven off before the 'set' cooking time but leave the food in to continue cooking?
Use the knowledge that the heat doesn’t magically disappear immediately and switch the oven off before the ‘set’ cooking time but leave the food in to continue cooking?
I don’t have any issue using my oven with, or without the timer 🙂 it was the potential for something to overcook, if you are not at one with your oven. Which I am.
I got a cheapy one from Aldi, small single drawer, 30 quid. Great for doing 2 or 3 Bratties, or a couple of salmon fillets. I'd like a bigger one though to do, erm, bigger things.