The Air Fryer Offers Flavor with a Healthier Cooking Method

The air fryer, a kitchen appliance that’s taken the world by storm, has built its popularity with the idea of healthier cooking. Who wouldn’t be interested in a machine that fries food without the added fats and calories of traditional frying?

As complex as an air fryer may seem, it’s one of the simplest and most efficient appliances to use in food preparation. These fryers add a healthy crunch to the foods that an oil fryer would leave sizzling with grease, extra calories, and saturated fats. They cook quickly, evenly, and efficiently. The benefits of air frying are numerous.

Air fryers promote delicious, healthy recipes with quick and easy cleanup. Even knowing that air fryers are a healthy and convenient alternative to traditional frying, a few questions remain: How do they work, and what can be cooked with them?

How Does an Air Fryer Work?

There are two ways to answer this question: How does an air fryer mechanically work, and how is it to be used?

Despite what the name insinuates, an air fryer works more like an oven than an oil fryer. Heated coils add heat to the cooking process. These coils are powerful and heat the entire machine. This process can be compared to a stovetop burner providing heat. The cooking happens due to the fans that evenly distribute the heat across all the food.

There are three easy steps to using an air fryer, though different models vary.

1. Preheat the air fryer. Some air fryers don’t require this step, though for many models, it is either required or recommended.
2. Place the food in the basket, and let it cook. Different foods need different temperatures and different preparation times. Decide what time and temperature best suits your food.
3. Enjoy. It’s just as easy as it sounds. 

What Can Be Cooked in an Air Fryer?

While the options for cooking in an air fryer are numerous, there are a variety of basic recipes that made the air fryer a versatile kitchen appliance. 

Traditionally deep fried foods are the first things normally thought of. These are foods like french fries, chicken nuggets, jalapeno poppers, and more. There are a handful of foods that are known specifically as fried foods. An air fryer allows for these traditional fried foods to become a little healthier.

Roasted vegetables may not be an oil fryer preference, but in an air fryer, there are more possibilities than people realize. An air fryer gives vegetables a crunch that the oven can’t.

Meat, poultry and fish are also things that can be cooked in an air fryer! People cook home-breaded chicken fingers, glazed salmon, and even steak within their air fryers. The options for air fryer recipes are endless. Food Network and many other food sites have compiled lists of these delicious possibilities.

Popular Air Fryer Models

1. Philips XL Airfryer - This fryer was named by the Chicago Tribune as the best air fryer of 2021. It is a powerful machine (1725-Watts). It features a 4-quart capacity and dishwasher safe parts. The only downside is that it’s large and uses a lot of space.
2. Instant Vortex 4-in-1 Air Fryer - This fryer was named by Food Network as the best air fryer in 2021 It is also very powerful with 1700-Watts. It features a 6-quart capacity. 
3. Ninja Air Fryer - This is a slightly smaller air fryer. It still has power (1500 watts) and a 4 quart capacity. It also is dishwasher safe and has a wide temperature range. 
4. Cosori Air Fryer Max XL - Yet another powerful item, this air fryer has a 5.8 quart capacity. It has a modern and sleek design to suit countertop design. It also has 11 modes for different styled foods. 
5. Cuisinart Air Fryer Toaster Oven - This air fryer has a large and squared design (can fit a 12-inch pizza) and it can act as both a toaster and an air fryer. On the downside, this option is more complex and difficult to understand than other options