We use products, appliances, and various gadgets for convenience in our daily routine. Knowing the product before purchasing it can be very beneficial as it can help to know the advantages and disadvantages.
Layouts, budget, performance, style, and functions are some of the crucial factors to consider while purchasing products, appliances, and various gadgets.
Kitchen appliances such as Air fryers must be purchased considering the same rules and guidelines.
As an Air fryer plays a vital role in cooking food. Air fryers also have advantages and disadvantages that are important to know.
In short, the Air fryer is an easy to use appliance capable to cook crispy food with the use of less or no oil by ensuring user safety. However, the use of an Air fryer may lower down your progress as it has the limited cooking capability. Also, its bulky design can make it challenging to store an Air fryer.
These are just a few pros and cons of an Air fryer. There is a lot more to know below, so read till the end as together we’ll be diving deep into it.
What Is An Air Fryer?
An air fryer, like a convection oven, can bake and roast dishes, but its design allows for faster and more even cooking for extra crisp results.
The air fryer appliance, which has a heating mechanism and a fan built into the top, heats up quickly and has a rapid circulation of hot air that cooks food in the metal frying basket. Because of the concentrated heat source, the dish will have a crunchy, almost deep-fried texture as long as the air fryer is not overcrowded.
Is Using an Air Fryer Healthy?
The air fryer’s main selling point is that it produces a very crispy texture while using very little oil, making it a healthier alternative to traditional deep frying.
Simply tossing ingredients in a few teaspoons of oil (or skipping the oil entirely in some recipes) produces a delectably crunchy dish with significantly less fat and calories.
The air fryer can cook almost any solid food that would normally be deep-fried or baked. Frozen items such as chicken nuggets, mozzarella sticks, and french fries work flawlessly in the appliance.
How Does An Air Fryer Work?
When buying an air fryer, it is important to know how it works.
The upper section of an air fryer has a heating mechanism and fan. Food is placed in an air-fryer basket, and when you turn it on, the hot air rushes and circulates the food.
Due to this rapid circulation, food gets crisp much like deep-frying but without the oil.
To know more about the function of an air fryer, check out this video:
How To Use an Air Fryer?
Air fryers usually come with easy preset cooking modes such as French Fry, Shrimp, Roast, Fish, Chicken, and Cake.
Set the cooking mode and temperature according to your recipe or what you are cooking.
Don’t forget to preheat the air fryer before cooking. And do read the instruction booklet to get all the basic information and guidance.
Pros & Cons of An Air Fryer
If you own an air fryer or considering getting one. You may know that air fryers are the same as deep fryers in terms of producing output.
But that’s not all, let’s discuss the advantages and disadvantages or drawbacks of an air fryer. No matter what’s the size of an Air Fryer.
Pros of an Air Fryer
Here are some of the pros of an air fryer, based on my experience by testing and having a critical view of consumer feedback.
1. Crispy Food
If you want to enjoy crispy food but without being bothered by oil, air fryers deliver it the best.
The convection-style heating surrounds food on a rack or in a perforated basket. Eventually increasing its contact with super hot air from all sides.
The perforated basket allows oil to drip onto the pan, as a result, the food absorbs less fat and is cooked crispier and dryer.
2. Easy To Clean
Minimal effort is required to clean air fryers compared to deep fryers. Its minimum oil usage makes it easy to wash with just dishwashing soap, a soft brush, and running water.
3. Easy To Use
An air fryer is pretty much easy to use and once you are familiar with it, nothing is confusing in it.
You may throw in your frozen snacks whether it be chicken fingers, nuggets, fries, or onion rings. You just need to set the timer and mode, that’s all you need to do. You can also reheat the leftovers.
4. Healthy Meals
You can cook delicious crispy meals in an air fryer with less or no use of oil.
However, if you decide to use a little bit of oil for air frying, the amount you consume will be negligible as it drips off the food while it cooks and is collected at the bottom of the basket.
Eventually, lowering oil consumption in your meal. Less amount of oil in food also prevents serious health risks and problems.
It’s believed that an air fryer may help to lower acrylamide which is produced by oil-based high cooking.
5. Cooks Faster
Compared to toaster ovens or convection ovens, an air fryer preheats and cooks food faster.
Although preheat varies from model to model. Most ovens do not preheat as fast as air fryers.
An air fryer not only preheats faster but can cook the food faster as it is much smaller than a large oven.
Cons Of an Air Fryer
As it is with other kitchen appliances, air fryers also have several cons that need to be considered before planning to purchase them.
1. Small for Large Families
Air fryers are relatively smaller, depending on their capacity. However, if you have a large family, you might have pans, pots, or an oven.
Several medium-sized air fryers allow you to cook meals for one or two people only.
2. Comes with Short Power Cable
Short power cables are one of the drawbacks of an air fryer. It won’t create a problem if the plug is nearby the air fryer.
However, if it’s not the case, you might have to need a power plug extension.
3. Can Burn or Dry your Food
There are different types of air fryers available in the market that come with different settings, features, and modes.
The same food is cooked differently if an air fryer from a different brand is used. This means your food can possibly be burned or dried just due to the change in brand.
So, do read the booklet and suggested air fryer recipes and temperatures before cooking.
4. Noisy Fans
As air fryers use forced air, they can create noise and when living in a compact environment, it can even be disturbing for your mate.
The noise created by the air fryer fan is 65 decibels which is a bit less than the sound created by a handheld air dryer or vacuum cleaner.
So make sure to check out reviews, and product specifications or contact customer service to learn about decibel rating.
Air fryer Vs Oven: Are they the Same?
Although an Air fryer and Oven perform the same job of cooking your food. However, they are not the same and share several differences between them.
| Features | Air Fryer | Oven |
| Size | Countertop appliance that can cook one dish at a time. | Full-sized appliance with the capability to cook multiple dishes or large portions at a time. |
| Method of cooking | Circulates hot air to cook food. | Use still air to cook food or additional features such as broil, bake, and roast is used. |
| Heating | Top heating system | Top and bottom heating system |
Conclusion
Same as any other kitchen appliance, the air fryer also has several advantages and disadvantages.
- The Air fryer is an easy-to-use appliance capable to cook crispy food with the use of less or no oil by ensuring user safety.
- The use of an Air fryer may low down your progress as it has limited cooking capability.
- The air fryer cooks crispy healthy food, as it uses less oil. An air fryer cooks food comparatively faster.
- On the other hand, Air fryers are relatively smaller for large families and come with a short plug which can create problems for you.
- Using air fryers from different brands can have different temperatures that may burn or dry your food. The air fryer also creates noise which may be a bit annoying.
Other Articles
- Air Fryer Maximum Temperature (Guideline)
- Turbo Cooker Vs. Air Fryer (Considerable Differences)
- Air Fryer Vs Convection Oven (Differences explained)
- Using An Air Fryer Outdoors (The Details)