Cooking with an Air Fryer

[gfweb]

2 hours ago, Okanagancook said:

@gfweb's potato latkes which turned out really well and virtually no clean up.  We all liked the crunchy outside bits.

 

Lovely! What was your method?

[Okanagancook]

I think it is yours.  Grate potatoes, squeeze,microwave 90 seconds, salt and pepper, form into patties, spray with Pam, air fry 6 min a side.  I tried to tuck the frilly edges in so the did not burn but it’s impossible.

the middles were just done and similar texture to pan fried.  I will make these again.  Only drawback is I can only fit three in the fryer with each one weighing about 70 grams.

[gfweb]

1 hour ago, Okanagancook said:

I think it is yours.  Grate potatoes, squeeze,microwave 90 seconds, salt and pepper, form into patties, spray with Pam, air fry 6 min a side.  I tried to tuck the frilly edges in so the did not burn but it’s impossible.

the middles were just done and similar texture to pan fried.  I will make these again.  Only drawback is I can only fit three in the fryer with each one weighing about 70 grams.

Clearly you need a second unit!

[Okanagancook]

Nice try.

i would if only there was a kitchen gadget storage ‘Cloud’

the one I have is small, 8 by 7 inches.

NO!  I am not getting another, unless of course this cheap model kicks the bucket, then I could get a bigger one

how big is yours?

[gfweb]

27 minutes ago, Okanagancook said:

Nice try.

i would if only there was a kitchen gadget storage ‘Cloud’

the one I have is small, 8 by 7 inches.

NO!  I am not getting another, unless of course this cheap model kicks the bucket, then I could get a bigger one

how big is yours?

 

Roughly 12x12x21. Takes a 1/4 sheet pan easily. Bet I could get 8 latkes in it. Breville Smart Oven Air. It does lots of things but it isn't cheap. 

[JAZ]

On 4/1/2018 at 10:06 AM, gfweb said:

@Shelby@Okanagancook I'm thinking that maybe batter and air fryers don't play well together.  The batter needs the hot oil to crust-up and the hot air isn't enough of a conductor to do it.

 

Perhaps a modified schnitzel technique would work ...flour/egg wash/seasoned flour ...for onion rings

 

 

I haven't tried them in an air fryer (just got one), but my usual method for onion rings is soak in milk and egg, then toss in a combination of half rice flour and half AP flour, with 1/2 teaspoon baking powder per cup of flour. Works great in oil; maybe I'll try a few in the air fryer. If they work it would certainly avoid a big mess. 

[gfweb]

@JAZ I think the time is right for an airfryer book

[saluki]

Actually Americas Test Kitchen is working on an Air Fryer book and were looking for testers.  This month they were testing out an air fryer recipe for Air Fryer Coffee-Chipotle Rubbed Steaks.

[gfweb]

Breville air fryer wings

400F x 25 min no air then 10 min  425 air fryer

Before and after saucing

 

[ElsieD]

@gfweb  How crispy were they? I haven't tried chicken wings in my Breville yet, mainly for fear of having to clean up the mess.

[gfweb]

31 minutes ago, ElsieD said:

@gfweb  How crispy were they? I haven't tried chicken wings in my Breville yet, mainly for fear of having to clean up the mess.

 

Quite crispy, all the fat drained into the pan. The glaze, of course, decrisped them.

 

The only mess was in the 1/4  sheet pan.

[ElsieD]

6 minutes ago, gfweb said:

 

Quite crispy, all the fat drained into the pan. The glaze, of course, decrisped them.

 

The only mess was in the 1/4  sheet pan.

 

Thank you for responding.  I thought maybe you had cooked them on the wire rack shown in the picture, which is what I was thinking of doing, hence the reluctance to clean up the resulting mess, I.e. the rack.  If they were just done on the sheet pan, then cleaning up isn't a problem.

[gfweb]

36 minutes ago, ElsieD said:

 

Thank you for responding.  I thought maybe you had cooked them on the wire rack shown in the picture, which is what I was thinking of doing, hence the reluctance to clean up the resulting mess, I.e. the rack.  If they were just done on the sheet pan, then cleaning up isn't a problem.

That's what I did. Wings on rack in the pan. Wasn't messy. 

 

I also turned the wings once 

[gfweb]

I made them again tonight and needed an extra 15 minutes of 425 airfrying to get them browned-up

[Okanagancook]

When I move into my seniors living flat, I will get one!  Right now, no room and too many other toys...by then there could be an air fryer, convection steam oven.🙃

Edited July 11, 2018 by Okanagancook (log)

[Smithy]

I picked up a Holsem 3.4 quart air fryer during last week's Amazon Prime marathon. For $66 and a no-hassle 30-day return policy I figured it wasn't much of a risk. Last night was the first test. I posted more about the package size and contents here. As for the dinner itself, Chicken Kiev (from a local meat market) and Tater Tots were the first two tries. The Kiev took some 20-25 minutes at 350F to cook; then I set those into a warming oven while the Tots cooked at 400F. Although I shook the Tots in the basket once or twice, they still stuck together in the middle. More stirring, or a smaller batch, would be appropriate. These photos aren't as good as they should have been, but they're all I have left from the night except happy taste memories.

 

 

 

Tests will continue. I loved the lack of mess and lack of oil. If other results are as good this, I'll be getting rid of my garage-sale special deep fat fryer, which I very rarely use.

 

 

[Smithy]

Chicken thighs tonight. I roughly followed the instructions for chicken tenders in the cookbook provided with the air fryer. In this case, that means I followed their procedure to dredge in seasoned flour, dredge in beaten egg, dredge in seasoned bread crumbs, then cook at 320F for 15 minutes. It took more nearly 25 minutes, with a couple of turns, to get the meat cooked properly. Adjustments were expected: their recipe was for chicken (breast) tenders; mine was for whole thighs.

 

The bad news: with this setup, only 3 thighs could be accommodated, and they really crowded the cooker and needed extra turning.

 

 

The good news: with this setup, we had to practice portion control. That isn't one of our strong suits...but we were well satisfied with 1-1/2 thighs each. (We had some broccoli salad as a side, but it doesn't show up here.)

 

 

We liked the results. They were comparable to deep-fried chicken thighs from our favorite grocery delis. The deep-fat fryer is edging its way to the garage-sale box.

 

[Smithy]

Tonight I tried a recipe out of the included booklet: Accordion Potatoes. Slice the potatoes nearly (but not all the way) through. Dress with olive oil, salt and pepper; cook for a bit. Remove from heat, add chopped bacon and grated cheese, cook a few minutes longer until the stuffing is done. Serve.

 

 

There was a more-than-optimal delay between the "cook until stuffing is done" and "serve" stages, and the final result was a bit drier than I'd have liked. Nonetheless, it was good.

 

Some stuff in a counter corner has been moved or removed to make room for this fryer. It's well on its its way to earning a permanent home here.

[Shelby]

Crap.

 

You are definitely going to make me pull mine out and start using it again.

[Smithy]

41 minutes ago, Shelby said:

Crap.

 

You are definitely going to make me pull mine out and start using it again.

 

That's the plan, my friend...

[kayb]

10 hours ago, Smithy said:

Tonight I tried a recipe out of the included booklet: Accordion Potatoes. Slice the potatoes nearly (but not all the way) through. Dress with olive oil, salt and pepper; cook for a bit. Remove from heat, add chopped bacon and grated cheese, cook a few minutes longer until the stuffing is done. Serve.

 

 

There was a more-than-optimal delay between the "cook until stuffing is done" and "serve" stages, and the final result was a bit drier than I'd have liked. Nonetheless, it was good.

 

Some stuff in a counter corner has been moved or removed to make room for this fryer. It's well on its its way to earning a permanent home here.

Ahh, Hasselback potatoes! Never thought about the bacon; nice addition.

. 

Tip of the day; lay wooden chopsticks down on either side of the potato. They'll keep you from cutting all the way through.

[Smithy]

Not a great success tonight, but not a horrid mess either. I thawed some raw shell-on shrimp, peeled and (where necessary) deveined them. I tossed them with olive oil, then tossed in flour seasoned with sweet paprika, smoked paprika and hot paprika. Air-fried at 360F for 5 minutes. Stirred once during the cooking, using a set of tongs.

 

 

The shrimp meat itself was done perfectly: tender, with the toothsome snap of good plump shrimp. Once in a while the sweet flavor of the shrimp came through. Unfortunately, the coating was much too hot and much too floury. The heat overwhelmed the shrimp's delicate sweetness (next time, forget the hot paprika) and the flour gave a sensation of being dusty. The coating did not turn crisp the way it would have if I'd fried the shrimp in fat. Next time, I'll either try the spices without the flour (more nearly what the recipe booklet suggested) or I'll try the flour --> egg --> crumb coating sequence that I tried a few days ago with chicken. I'll probably try both, at different times, to see which we prefer.

 

I do like the lack of mess and the ease of cleanup with this device.

[kayb]

Dammit, Smithy, you're tempting me. Badly. 

 

I do not need another kitchen gadget. I do not need....I do not need...

[caroled]

I just had a similar conversation with @Kim Shook the other night about having no room for new kitchen toys.

[kayb]

I might as well just go on and get the thing. I know I'm going to. Why delay the inevitable?