Asking yourself… “Should I get an air fryer?”

If you’ve held out on the whole air fryer craze, this might change your mind.

There are many reasons NOT to buy an air fryer.

1. It’s weird to have a ugly robot humming like a vacuum cleaner and taking up counter space.
2. Yes, air fryers aren’t really pretty, and they are loud…No denying that.
3. Despite what people tell you, not ALL food can be air fried.

You can cook many things in your air fryer but it’s not a complete cooking solution. You will still need your stove and conventional oven as well as microwave, so it’s also not necessarily a space saver but it can be a handy addition to your kitchen gadgets.

It’s not that straightforward.

Let’s be honest – with a little bit of research and a lot of cherry picking, you can pretty much motivate for or against anything. This is why we won’t be telling you which decision to make.

Rather let the hundreds of online discussions help you make up your mind. Our favourites are:

Feeling air-fryer curious?

Disadvantages of air fryers

We’ll simply be giving you a bit of a breakdown on what an air fryer can do, and how it could make your life easier if you end up getting one and what responsible ownership entails.

Why air fry?

• It’s quick.
• It’s fat free. (Depending on what you are putting into it – air fryer bacon is less fatty than pan fried bacon…But it is still bacon. The health benefits come from the fact that the cooking method does not require any additional fat or oil to be added.)

Is it safe?

Well…Yes. But only if you follow the basic rules about safe appliance use.

Air fryers are electrical appliances that heat up, so there will always be the risk of an unattended air fryer falling prey to an electrical fault and causing a fire. Don’t let this put you off though! The same can be said for any of your electrical appliances from toasters to hair straighteners.

The best way to ensure this doesn’t happen to you is simple really – if you are not using it, plug it out. There can’t be an electrical fault if there isn’t electricity!

Keep it clean…

It sounds obvious, but shockingly, many people ignore this part of the process. Your air fryer is NOT self-cleaning. It’s up to you to keep it clean and free from food debris. Let the machine cool down, remove the basket and tray to wash in the conventional way and wipe out any other spills with a paper towel or soapy cloth. Keeping it clean will also significantly cut down on the potential of an accidental grease and grime fire.

Need more convincing?

What if we told you that many air fryers can happily and safely run on household battery and inverter setups – think of the load shedding dinner options you’ll have! Between a gas stove and an air fryer your mealtimes will be sorted!

We suggest you do your own research about load, capacity and what your system can deal with.

This interesting thread on My Broadband explains the ins and outs of air fryer electricity consumption and battery/inverter maintenance in depth.

Mzanzi-bonus:

There are two unexpected upsides to air fryers for South Africans.

• Dry your home-made rusks at a fraction of the cost of overnight convection oven rusk-drying. You’ll have to do it in batches, but it will be much cheaper, and your wooden spoons wont all be stuck in the oven door for the foreseeable future.
• Reheat your roadside Amagwinya’s to piping hot and deliciously crispy perfection – no more soggy microwave-magwinya’s in this household!

Maybe you already have one, maybe you received an air fryer as a gift or maybe you never want one…you do you!