Cooking with an Air Fryer

[mgaretz]

So mixed success.  I decided to use a simple spice dusting with some peanut oil on some fresh, bone-in chicken thighs, and use the thermometer probe.  But when the probe said they were done, they were still uncooked in the middle.  That could be my probe placement or the fact they they were pretty thin or both.  But after another 5 minutes on Hi (no probe, but checked with the latest ThermoWorks ThermaPen instant read thermometer), they were perfectly cooked with crispy skin and maybe just  a little too charred.

 

No discernable smoke and clean-up was relatively easy.

 

Tonight I will try some salmon and will report back.

 

 

[mgaretz]

Salmon - just plain, no seasoning or oil before putting on the grill.  Grill set to Max, no probe.  Set it for 8 minutes but after flipping at 4 minutes it appeared that if I let it go another 4 it would be overcooked.  So I let it go another two and took a temperature measurement - love the new Thermapen with the 1 second read! It was 132F so I pulled it.  We both liked it a lot!  Flaky but not dried out.

 

Burgers tonight!

 

 

 

[Anna N]

 Not particularly revelatory but still very good. Shake n bake chicken thigh. 380°F x 20 minutes. 

[mgaretz]

Burgers on the Ninja Foodi Grill.  These were the 1/3 lb Angus chuck frozen patties from Costco.  Cooked from frozen on Medium for 8 minutes, flipped half-way through.  (Cooked to medium rare.) Came out very good.

 

 

[palo]

9 minutes ago, mgaretz said:

Burgers on the Ninja Foodi Grill.  These were the 1/3 lb Angus chuck frozen patties from Costco.  Cooked from frozen on Medium for 8 minutes, flipped half-way through.  (Cooked to medium rare.) Came out very good.

 

 

Maybe it's just me but a frozen burger cooked to medium rare seems unhealthy - it's just a thing about frozen, premade burgers (with all their "ingredients") as opposed to homemade burgers (even frozen)

 

p

[Anna N]

1 hour ago, palo said:

with all their "ingredients")

There are many reasons why some of us choose to purchase frozen burgers.

 

The ingredients in my frozen burgers are listed as beef, water, salt, herbs and spices. That sounds just about what would appear in ones I might make myself. 
Here.

[palo]

1 hour ago, Anna N said:

There are many reasons why some of us choose to purchase frozen burgers.

 

The ingredients in my frozen burgers are listed as beef, water, salt, herbs and spices. That sounds just about what would appear in ones I might make myself. 
Here.

No qualms about frozen burgers - it's my "go to" - just the doneness it was cooked at

 

p

[mgaretz]

Thick boneless pork chop, cooked with the pork preset and probe to Med. Rare (130F), flipped when it told me, and rested as it also told me (for 5 minutes).  Also marinated some squash in peanut oil, balsamic and soy sauce while the grill was pre-heating, so not that long.  Put them on along with the chop and rotated when I rotated the chop.  Both came out very well - the chop was nice and juicy and not over-cooked. Ditto the squash.

 

 

 

[gfweb]

9 hours ago, mgaretz said:

Thick boneless pork chop, cooked with the pork preset and probe to Med. Rare (130F), flipped when it told me, and rested as it also told me (for 5 minutes).  Also marinated some squash in peanut oil, balsamic and soy sauce while the grill was pre-heating, so not that long.  Put them on along with the chop and rotated when I rotated the chop.  Both came out very well - the chop was nice and juicy and not over-cooked. Ditto the squash.

 

 

 

 

I confess I'm put off by the non-linear grill marks.  Looks like it was clawed 😉 .

 

So you have the BSOA and the ninja.  Any comparisons?

 

[Anna N]

So I feel forced to ask the question – – – does this appliance when used as a grill belong in the air fryer topic? I guess I will need to track down a video of it in use!

[mgaretz]

3 hours ago, Anna N said:

So I feel forced to ask the question – – – does this appliance when used as a grill belong in the air fryer topic? I guess I will need to track down a video of it in use!

 

You are probably right.  I have one more grill test to do tonight (steak) and then on to some air fryer mode tests.

[ElsieD]

4 minutes ago, mgaretz said:

 

You are probably right.  I have one more grill test to do tonight (steak) and then on to some air fryer mode tests.

 

I'm keen to read about how it compares to the air fryer function in the BSOA.

[palo]

4 hours ago, ElsieD said:

 

I'm keen to read about how it compares to the air fryer function in the BSOA.

Or a dedicated Air Fryer

 

p

[Anna N]

I am not usually a fan of ketchup (except on toast) but I am a huge fan of McDonald’s hashbrowns. These supermarket hashbrowns were reasonable but did not measure up to McD‘s. 10 minutes at 400°F (no additional oil) and I had something to eat. 
As an aside not all Mc D’s hashbrowns measure up either. When they are good they are ethereal. 

 

[FauxPas]

@Anna N, have you tried cooking sausages in the air fryer yet? That was the thing that put my friend over the top. Or do you like sausages? 

[Anna N]

19 minutes ago, FauxPas said:

@Anna N, have you tried cooking sausages in the air fryer yet? That was the thing that put my friend over the top. Or do you like sausages? 

I do like sausages and I don’t think I have cooked them in the air fryer yet. Thanks I will add them to my next shopping list. 

[rotuts]

Currently @ Amazon 

 

the 

 

https://www.amazon.com/COSORI-Electric-Reminder-Touchscreen-Certified/dp/B07GJBBGHG/ref=sr_1_5?dchild=1&keywords=air+fryer&qid=1628876213&sr=8-5

 

is $ 120.  ist 5.8 qts

 

there is a newer ( ? ) model :

 

https://www.amazon.com/COSORI-1700-Watt-Cookbook-One-Touchscreen-Customizable-dp-B085W3GN5J/dp/B085W3GN5J/ref=dp_ob_title_kitchen

 

and its 20 USD cheaper

 

the instaPot :

 

https://www.amazon.com/Instant-Vortex-Plus-Air-Fryer/dp/B07VHFMZHJ/ref=sxin_14?asc_contentid=amzn1.osa.4bdba462-0e0f-4a9e-af62-42925fb0a817.ATVPDKIKX0DER.en_US&asc_contenttype=article&ascsubtag=amzn1.osa.4bdba462-0e0f-4a9e-af62-42925fb0a817.ATVPDKIKX0DER.en_US&creativeASIN=B07VHFMZHJ&cv_ct_cx=air+fryer&cv_ct_id=amzn1.osa.4bdba462-0e0f-4a9e-af62-42925fb0a817.ATVPDKIKX0DER.en_US&cv_ct_pg=search&cv_ct_we=asin&cv_ct_wn=osp-single-source-earns-comm&dchild=1&keywords=air+fryer&linkCode=oas&pd_rd_i=B07VHFMZHJ&pd_rd_r=e8615f5d-53f2-46cb-b841-203dd67ed90c&pd_rd_w=6xkGD&pd_rd_wg=PqZ7U&pf_rd_p=8065c57d-81c6-4bce-844a-e686936787b8&pf_rd_r=GQR1F54EHA1ZZHMQ1RAD&qid=1628876213&sr=1-1-64f3a41a-73ca-403a-923c-8152c45485fe&tag=atkamznsearch-20

 

wow  , thank god for Copy & Paste

 

they look almost identical.

 

Ideas pro and con ?  there seems to be a 3.7 qt Cosri , but its hard to find.

 

and I hace a question :

 

Ive seen videos for both via Amazon.

 

when you air fry , are the items to be fried

 

above the bottom  of the pan 

 

ie that's what the did is for ?

 

 

 

 

[Anna N]

On 8/12/2021 at 9:12 AM, gfweb said:

I confess I'm put off by the non-linear grill marks.  Looks like it was clawed 😉 .

I, too, wondered about the grill marks but after watching a couple of videos I now understand why they appear the way they do. The grill “ribs” form a circular pattern on the grill. There is no possibility of getting the usual diamond pattern that I can see. 

[Anna N]

17 minutes ago, rotuts said:

Ideas pro and con ?  there seems to be a 3.7 qt Cosri , but its hard to find.

 

and I hace a question :

 

Ive seen videos for both via Amazon.

 

when you air fry , are the items to be fried

 

above the bottom  of the pan 

 

ie that's what the did is for ?

 

I am not sure that anyone would be lucky enough to have all of these and hence do a comparison. I have the Cosoori (the first one that you linked to). 
I am not 100% sure that I understand your question. There is a removable basket and a drawer. Between the removable (perforated) basket and the drawer is the space where oil collects so your food is not sitting in a pool of oil. You cannot use the basket without the drawer or vice versa. At least that is the situation with the unit that I have and with the previous unit that I had.

The fan and the heating element are housed above the drawer in what one might consider the lid I suppose. 

Edited August 13, 2021 by Anna N
To add perforated for clarity. (log)

[rotuts]

@Anna N 

 

thanks.  

 

that's what I wanted to know.

 

I assume you have the larger   6 qt   ( 5.7 )

 

Im wondering if the space savings and wt 

 

might make the 3.7 qt more attreraqctive for

 

occasional use ;  Tots , Fryes ( Fz and from scratch )

 

chicken wings.  

[Anna N]

9 minutes ago, rotuts said:

@Anna N 

 

thanks.  

 

that's what I wanted to know.

 

I assume you have the larger   6 qt   ( 5.7 )

 

Im wondering if the space savings and wt 

 

might make the 3.7 qt more attreraqctive for

 

occasional use ;  Tots , Fryes ( Fz and from scratch )

 

chicken wings.  

Here’s the thing. In order for things to cook all the way through and brown properly they need to be spread out. If you only want 4 french fries at a time like @Shelby, the smaller unit would work fine but if you wanted a decent serving the larger unit will do the job.  

[rotuts]

thanks again.

 

as I thought :

 

the pics  ( @ amazon and elsewhere )

 

and on the vids

 

of  ' full baskets '

Edited August 13, 2021 by rotuts (log)

[Anna N]

 

I must say that this was rather good. A frozen burger and some sliced mushrooms all cooked together at 380°F for about 15 minutes. I sprayed the mushrooms with some oil but did nothing to the burger. But before I removed everything for service I dropped some butter in there and did a quick toss. 

[mgaretz]

1 hour ago, Anna N said:

I am not sure that anyone would be lucky enough to have all of these and hence do a comparison. I have the Cosoori (the first one that you linked to). 
I am not 100% sure that I understand your question. There is a removable basket and a drawer. Between the removable (perforated) basket and the drawer is the space where oil collects so your food is not sitting in a pool of oil. You cannot use the basket without the drawer or vice versa. At least that is the situation with the unit that I have and with the previous unit that I had.

The fan and the heating element are housed above the drawer in what one might consider the lid I suppose. 

 

Actually there is a video I watched yesterday that compares the Cosori, Instant Pot and Ninja Grills.  

 

[mgaretz]

My last grill test for this thread.  Steak, cooked with the probe to Rare 2 (110F) with a 5 minute rest, in which it rose to 132F. It came out OK, certainly edible and not overcooked, but I prefer SV and then a sear, so that's the way I will likely continue to make my steaks.