My in-laws have two, a small barrel shaped one, and a larger one that looks like a toaster oven. They love them. He has had to quit eating anyhing greasy, for GI issues. He still likes his french fries, but now they're baked. They seem to use it almost daily, easy cleanup for small meals.

My daughter bought one for me, I tried it out and then put it away. I like my way of cooking so I gave it to my niece and her teen sons. They use it often.

Yes I have the larger Vortex Power XL and LOVE cooking with it and do so frequently. I make wings in it that turn out great. I also like using it for veggies particularly broccoli.

We have two AFs. I got a new one for Christmas and we will take the old one to the lake cabin. Along with the uses already listed, it is great for baking potatoes, reheating fried fish or anything else previously fried. Heating up any frozen food like egg rolls, tater tots, fries, chicken strips, bread of all kinds.

I've never experienced any plastic off smell from either of mine nor the food I cook in them. My old one is a Phillips with analog controls and my new one is a 5.5 qt. Ninja with digital controls.

If you were going to buy one I would recommend getting one with a solid basket like the Ninja as opposed to a wire mesh basket like our Phillips. No matter how often you wash the mesh basket, eventually the mesh gets coated with gunk. The Ninja basket is much easier to wash..

My daughter and daughter-in-law love their air fryers. I know my daughter makes roasted vegetables in hers, and steak, which she says is the best ever. Not sure what my DIL makes in hers, but I know she liked her small Dash air fryer so much that she bought a bigger one--and when the oven in her range failed she used both of them for a long time until the replacement range was delivered.

Now I have a small Dash, a Christmas gift from my daughter. It's not pink. lol I'm looking forward to trying it. I haven't had deep-fried anything in decades, so I'm not sure what I'm going to make with it, but the new cookbook I ordered came yesterday, so I'm certain I'll think of something.

Air Fry Genius, by Meredith Laurence (the Blue Jean Chef)

I do and I really like it -- I have a TFal Actifry (bought it used), and the important thing for me is that it has a paddle that rotates the food. If it doesn't do the movement (rotation or shake) for you, then it's really nothing more than a high-heat convection oven.

I use it for fries and chicken wings, but also for salmon fillets and veg (especially big pieces of veg, like broccoli and cauliflower).

I accidentally did a load of fries without adding any oil, and they came out tasty and crunchy, but a little dry.......but once we added dip (ketchup or tzadziki), they were very good.

I surprised myself when I bought the small (3.7 qt) Cosori air fryer in early summer 2021. I don't remember what inspired me to do so since I've been going the opposite direction and purging kitchen items. There are just two of us to feed. I've been pleased with the purchase. We're in Florida so I rarely use my oven to avoid adding more heat to the house (although with our current temps that's not a bad thing).

I choose to carry the fryer to the nearby screened porch and do the cooking outside. Then when cool, it comes inside for cleaning and storing. Cleaning is a snap. Wash the nonstick basket with a little soap, let dry, and it's done. I don't use it everyday so store it in the den closet (kitchen cabinet space is either too narrow or too high).

I've done pork tenderloin, chicken and fish in the fryer. Hubby commented they tasted better than when he did them on the grill (the grill was a purged item). Spraying with a little oil adds desirable crispness.

I've also read of the plastic smell but didn't notice any problem with my fryer. - June

I jumped on the bandwagon this past summer. A lot of people use it for fried foods, which I do on occasion, but it can do so much more. Cooks a lot faster than heating up the oven, and is easier to clean than my countertop oven (which I love). For that reason, I didn't want the oven-style air-fryer.

I bought the square basket because I wanted to cook more than one thing and enough for leftovers as I always do.

I also have a Ninja air fryer. I use it for everything mentioned above. I will say it makes the crispiest bacon ever, which I love.

I've been using my JCP Cooks Air Fryer. This is what the internal workings look like. I use it to make chili fries, because it's QUICK! :0) It's the perfect size to hold a soup bowl and melt cheese on top for my home made potato soup. $20 on a Black Friday sale. I keep it in a side pantry when not in use. Link to see it, it's on sale for $54

I have a dash brand also. I just got it for myself for Christmas. I use it every day!!! Love it!!

Here's a terrific snack:

Fresh asparagus, mist with olive oil and place in 400 degree air fryer for 10 mins. then flip them over and cook for another 5 or so. Nice crispy, and delicious snack!!

Our daughter has a very nice one. No idea the name brand but it does a lot. Has the door and shelves, not a basket. The problem is, it smells like chemicals, to me, when she uses it. It is horrendous. Sets my sinuses off horribly. I have to leave the room and she opens windows to air it out. No one else seems to smell it but me. It smells like tires or some chemical burning. She doesn't use it if we are visiting.

She loves hers.

I started with a small Philips air fryer and liked it so much I upgraded to the Ninja 5 in 1. I was using it to make bacon when our kids were here and told our DIL that when we go out in our motorhome I would take the 5 in 1 and buy the XL 6 in 1 for the house. My birthday was a couple weeks later and my son called and said my birthday present would be coming. Well guess what, the UPS man carried a 6 in 1 Ninja to our door. I had to buy a cart to put the extra one on but use one or both several times a week. I still use my stove top and oven but love my Ninjas

I have a Farberware Air Fryer and I love it! I use it at least 3 or 4 times a week, sometimes daily. I, too, am cooking for just myself, and refuse to heat up the oven for one serving of roasted vegetables, for example. Especially in the summertime! But this one is large enough that I can do enough for leftovers if I want to. I had been wanting an Instant Pot, not sure why I ended up with an air fryer instead, but am so glad I did. I have since gotten an Instant Pot, and very rarely use it. The oven style air fryer is much better suited to my way of cooking.

ETA: No plastic or chemical smell. The owner's manual said to heat it for so many minutes at so many degrees (I don't remember the exact numbers) before using it, which I did. Didn't have any plastic or chemical smells then, nor has it since.

Rusty

@Alisande..That looks like a great cook book. I put it on hold at the library to try it out. ♥

@Jasdip..You are the ultimate....modern day chef! Wow!

Oh..yes...forgot to mention...no plastic smell....or weirdness of any kind. It's a pretty simple little machine.

We have two, a regular one and a toaster oven/air fryer combo. I like them both, but especially the toaster oven. It also bakes beautifully and can be used in so many other ways - broil, air fry, toast of course, and dehydrate. We get a lot of use out of both of our air fryers. I also have a problem with greasy foods and the air fryer has helped, even though I still don't eat many "fried" foods.

I did get a small one that was on sale and very cheap ($20) at the hardware store. I don't recall the brand. The plastic smell was very strong, and never went away even after several uses, so I returned it.

nope

I'm baking chicken thighs in the oven right now and wish I had an air fryer to cook them in. Thanks everyone.

I have a Farberware I bought from Walmart about 3 yrs ago. It works fine. I wish I had a digital instead. I use it mostly for French fries or frozen coated fish or chicken.

I have a cosori 5.8 and use it a lot I had a dash that was tiny and not practical for 2

I went ahead and bought the same one Nicole mentioned she had. Got it on sale at JCPenney's website. I think it would be just big enough for me.

I really want to try green beans from my garden in it this Summer. I love crispy green beans from my garden but would like to use less oil.

There’s an article today in the NYT food section about air fryers. If I could link it, I would! I don’t have one…yet.

@Kathsgrdn...mine works really well...but...after looking at what everyone else has...I would have purchased the one Rusty got! For $7 more it rotates & it's digital. That would be very handy!

I spent a lot of yesterday watching videos and reading reviews. I just took the easy way out today, because JCPenney was having a sale on the one you mentioned, I just decided to give it a try. We'll see how it goes.

https://www.nytimes.com/2022/01/25/dining/air-fryer.html

Here's the link to that article.

I have a Dash Air Fryer also. Mine is turquoise color! I use it for tater tots, hamburgers and steak mostly. So thanks, Alisande, I just ordered that cookbook. I was just using the little book that came with the fryer. I'm sure I will get a lot of use out both.

Murraysmom, I bought a copy of the cookbook for my daughter-in-law too. I hope we all like them!

Cooper, thanks for the link. That's an inspiring article!

Unfortunately, it won't let me read the article without paying.

Well darn. I have a subscription but it used to be ten free articles per month.

Here is the link again. I am a subscriber , but I have never used the share feature.

https://www.nytimes.com/2022/01/25/dining/air-fryer.html

I hope this works.

Honestly , while the cookbooks are great for inspiration, I think they are a better guide for a how-to use it. Once you get the hang of it, temperature and times etc, you will be able to adapt most of your recipes to it and come up with some new ones on your own! I have an air fryer cookbook but I never cooked from it. I read it to get an idea on how to use it. I usually keep my air fryer on the highest temperature, and it works great like that for most things.

I'm always happy to have an excuse to get a new cookbook. I like to read them. I have five Instant Pot cookbooks . . . one for every time I've used the Instant Pot. lol

The NYTimes article mentions a Facebook group called Easy Air Fryer Recipes, and a blog called Air Frying Foodie. Both sound good.

Zalco, still not working but thanks for trying!

Alisande, that cracks me up. I, too, find almost any excuse to get a new cookbook. :) I just got a new one from Weight Watchers and I also just got the new Giant Fix It and Forget It crockpot cookbook. I am in heaven.

ETA I got the name wrong.

I'm on 2 air-fryer Facebook groups.

I was given one for Christmas. Still trying to figure it out. I guess the oven is actually convection since I hear a fan when baking. But the guidebook does not say "convection."

Yes, it's a small convection oven. I tried mine for the first time tonight, to make sweet potato chips. I used the mandoline to make the slices. Trouble is, I could fit only 4 at a time into the basket. They were delicious, but so are the ones I've always made in the oven. In the air fryer, they cook for about 8 minutes . . . . for every 4 chips. I did this three times, and when I saw all the slices I had left I spread them out on a cookie sheet and turned on the oven.

Still, I'm glad I broke the ice and got some experience with the air fryer. I have a question for those with more experience: When the basket has to be shaken partway through the cooking time, do you just open the drawer while the timer is running? Or do you shut off the timer, shake the basket, and start the timer again? Thanks!

I made corn tortilla chips, and I just opened the door, flipped them over, and when I shut the door it started up again (Cuisinart). Much easier to buy them in a bag, but I learned a little.

alisande - I leave mine running when I shake the basket. It only takes a couple seconds. My old one has analog controls so it doesn't shut off the fan when you open it.

@Alisande...I would have put all 12 chips in, then pulled the basket out every minute and used my lettuce tongs to flip them. This is why Rusty's air fryer is so superior to mine.....it has a rotating basket...no need to flip! ♥

Thanks, Nicole! I guess I'll get more creative as I get more comfortable with it. The recipe said the chips could be overlapped only a little bit, and I was being obedient. :-)

The new air fryer cookbook came today and I just spent a little time looking at it. The recipes are fancier than I would make but I think I can use the basics to get more out of my fryer. There are some good guides I can use too. It's always fun to get a new cookbook.

Murraysmom, I feel the same way about the book. I didn't expect the recipes to be quite so elaborate, but the book has lots of good information. Plus it's beautiful! My DIL made the Cheeseburger Slider Pockets last night. She's a vegetarian, but she said my son and grandson said they were great. She substituted ground turkey because that's what she had. I may try the sweet potato fries tonight.

PS: I did try the sweet potato fries, and they were great! I gave up on the mandoline (that's my usual response to it), and cut them by hand. Tried to make them a uniform 1/4" but I'm sure the size varied a bit. Gave them only a slight spray of oil, which didn't get all the pieces, but that was okay. I cooked them a little longer in the second stage (400º) than the 10 minutes stated in the recipe. Really enjoyed them. I'll make the rest tomorrow.

Been watching Youtube videos on what people make in their air fryers. I think the first thing I'm going to do is try and duplicate an egg/toast open faced sandwich I had in Japan. It was so good. Some Asian guy made something similar in his air fryer. I think he and his wife are Chinese because part of her taste testing after thoughts are in English and the other part sounds like Chinese to me. He never eats his own food but calls his wife to try it lol. As soon as I posted this, I thought, or maybe they are Korean as they made Korean bbq and used Kimchee and some Korean sauces?

I made toast in the air fryer this morning for my grand daughter along with her bacon and eggs (I made those is a frying pan though).

I was surprised by how nice the book is. Great pictures, too. Thanks for the initial review. I am looking forward to trying some of these things. So far I have used it for tater tots but mostly to do steak. I buy a nice steak and then cut it in two (my fryer is small) which works great for me. I have one half one night and the other half the next night. I also have gotten the ground beef that is already made into patties. They are good too. It will be fun to branch out and see what I can come up with. Thanks for sharing this.

You're very welcome! I have two of her books, and the other is equally nice. I appreciate those great pictures. I've never seen Meredith Laurence on QVC (I've never seen QVC), but I've heard she's very well liked. I'll have to see if YouTube has any of her videos. My daughter swears steak in the air fryer is the best ever. If I have some in the freezer I'll be trying it soon.

I've never seen Meredith Laurence on QVC (I've never seen QVC), but I've heard she's very well liked. I'll have to see if YouTube has any of her videos. My daughter swears steak in the air fryer is the best ever.

bjc was on qvc last wk again. she is great. you can sign up for her email recipes. i use them for ideas / tips. i don't cook much anymore but do use my af a lot. she also has online af cooking classes - free but you need to sign up for them i think, if you're on her email list you'll get one for those classes. the best is seeing photos of her 2 precious dogs in her emails - Hazel and Loulou.

i don't eat much meat but a few yrs back i did cook a steak (maybe a ribeye ?) in my pull out basket af - it was awesome. i guess i need to do that again sometime soon!

I did a little chicken in mine tonite. Very juicy and tender.