I got one recently, mainly to see if it would do a decent job on homemade falafels.

I haven't found it to be better than a convection oven* (although slightly faster, especially when taking preheating into account) on anything except reheating leftover pizza.

You can't fake fried. :)

*I'm comparing to a 24" oven, technically a "speed" oven on convection oven mode but not using the speed function (because that's another technology I have found to not be "me") so, being small, it preheats quickly compared to a normal sized oven.

Tina, I've been wondering the same thing! Seems lately everywhere I turn online there are raves and recipes, and rave recipes, for food prepared using an air fryer.

I don't ever deep fry though I saute in olive oil so its tempting. My sister has one and she...raves about how much she loves using it ;).

Interested in hearing more from those who have em.

I prefer using it in the summer rather than using my truconfection oven to keep the house from heating up. In the winter my convection oven with a basket pan works just as well.

I recently bought a Ninja AF101, which I really like. I had bought another one (costs more than the Ninja) a month ago and returned it the very next day.

We don’t eat fried foods, but I roast vegetables almost every day. It takes much longer in my convection oven and doesn’t have the same crispness. DH and I are vegetarians and I’m always trying to add egg whites or unflavored whey protein to things. That can easily turn things soggy, but in the air fryer they come out perfectly. Light and crisp without sogginess.

I just caved in to the kids last month and got one. All their friends have them. We don't really fry food either, but I guess it crisps things up instead of heating things in the microwave. I'd like to see how other people use theirs. It is convenient to put large pieces of toast, or bread that won't go conveniently in the toaster, so I guess it's doing duty like a toaster oven. I want to see what others are using theirs for.

No air fryer but I use the convection feature in my toaster oven all the time. One of my large ovens also has a convection feature. I find either of them seem to do well at crisping up veggies. You can’t use much oil though or they do seem to be too soggy. I haven’t tried batter.

I got one as a gift a couple of years ago, but I’m not a gadget person so I gave it to my daughter. She had one but it was smaller. She kept both and cooks in them all the time.

Our daughter and SIL got us the Vortex Air Fryer for Christmas. It has a rotisserie spit and basket. Although I was not in the market for an air fryer (we don't eat or enjoy much fried food), I have used it for small rotisserie chickens and they are delicious! I also use the rotisserie basket for sweet potato, turnip and parsley fries as well as really great meatballs. Still not sure I would have bought one for myself, but it is more versatile than I expected. I love trying new recipes and using new kitchen gadgets, so it has actually been quite fun for me.

ETA: meant parsnip fries, not parsley fries!

Thank you Teeda! Good to know what you are cooking in it.

I'm gonna stick my fingers in my ears and sing "lalalalalala."

I blame you guys for my immersion blender. I.do.not.need.any.more.appliances.

Ours has the spit and basket as well. It's pretty big. I'll have to try it for toast I guess. Didn't think of that. We don't fry anything here...except falafels.

I will probably end up taking ours to a friend who was also wondering about an air fryer. We'd been daring each other to get one to see what all the fuss was.

I use mine all the time. Between the air fryer & Instant Pot I hardly ever use my stove. I do Ribeyes & Salmon in the air fryer all the time. Roasted vegetables come out great too. My DD loves to make bacon in hers but bacon & eggs is about all that I still cook on the stove. I put some Marie Callenders pot pies in the AF for DH tonight. It took 35 minutes instead of the 50 minutes that it would have taken in the regular oven.

My adult kids have encouraged me to get one, but like so many here, we don’t fry foods. And, it’s just the two of us now, so I’m not cooking big batches of anything. As I’ve mentioned recently, DH and I are also heading towards vegetarianism. And, we don't eat bread, potatoes, wheat flour anything, or white rice. I also don’t want more kitchen clutter! We spent Super Bowl Sunday with friends and she had received one for Christmas. She wasn’t sure she liked it all that much, although we did put in some of the already cooked Buffalo Wings we‘d picked up on the way there. They were already crisp, so I‘m not sure what it did other than warm them. To me, it looked like a giant black and tan plastic egg on her counter. That’s something I would NOT like to look at every day, all day long! I have a double wall oven with convection option and I use convection a lot. I also have a good microwave. So, especially after seeing my friend’s new air fryer/giant egg, I’m definitely leaning away from getting one myself.

I think if my toaster gives out I might get one of those combo toaster ovens. My son sent me a picture of the air fried chicken wings he made and they looked tasty. I think his unit was around $129 its a toaster, an oven, a dehydrator and an air fryer. It also has a rotisserie for chicken but I’m thinking it would need to be a very small chicken.

edited:

it’s this one, CROWNFUL 19 Quart/18L Air Fryer Toaster Oven, Convection Roaster with Rotisserie & Dehydrator, 10-in-1 Countertop Oven, Original Recipe and 8 Accessories Included, comes in black or white.

$129 on am a z o - n

The shelf below is only 24” across to give some perspective.

Just_TerriLynn, I like that shelving unit you have. It’s perfect for the small appliances, one per shelf.

I think they made a poor choice naming it a fryer, but I guess the fried food people were their first target audience. Based on how many comments here started with we don’t fry food, they are going to have a tougher time selling them to people who might actually like a small convection oven.

Disclaimer: I don’t have one and I’ve never considered one. I’m waiting for the new marketing campaign and the rebrand to convince me I need one. 😆

Hi bpath, my son bought that stand at C b2. it is very handy in his tiny studio apartment.

We have a microwave that is also a convection oven and an oven that is also has a convection setting. I do not need another appliance! But since I havent actually fried anything in maybe 20 years, we aren’t longing for that kind of crispy food.

Thanks for all your input. I think you pretty much proved my point. Too big (I would never want that sitting on my counter) and something I would not use. I was actually not considering one, just wondered what all the hype is and if you could really cook foods that are not fried in one. We eat alot of roasted veggies, but I have no need to fry them. If you are someone who eats alot of fried chicken, fish, etc. I am told it is a healthier way to fry. KSWL said it well "we aren't longing for that kind of crispy food". The only thing I can think of that I actually fry is fresh okra a few times each year. Love it!

I guess more me I'll add it with the instapot and egg cooker. I don't need/want one.

Note to @mtnrdredux_gw but I bet you use that immersion blender. That was a necessity! LOL

I had all the same objections posted here but with the Covid, I’m cooking so much more, I got one and must say I love it for one or two people.

premade hamburger patties excellent. Keeps all the grease splatters contained and burgers stay so nice and juicy. Bacon the same. One chicken breast cut in bite size pieces, and put aside. 1/2 bag of frozen vegs dumped in and shaken in 5 minute intervals with chicken put in to reheat makes wonderful chicken and veg platter. I’ve tried Refrigerator cinnamon rolls, frozen fish filets, salmon thawed shrimp, frozen onion rings, bagged French fries or potato wedges and happy with results.

I like not heating up the oven for small portions.

I wish I knew someone who had one because I would like to play with one at least. Since I cook for 6, I figure the capacity is not enough for my brood. I have started making battered and baked buffalo cauliflower "wings" and I would love to try it for that, at least to see how it compares to baking them on a rack in the oven.