Jason Donnelly
How Does an Air Fryer Work?
Like a convection oven, air fryers circulate hot air at a very high speed.
You determine the temperature and time your food is cooked.
Credit:Jason Donnelly
This technique results in fried foods that require little to no added fat or oils.
Air fryers are great for reheating leftovers, especially fried foods.
Instead, cook wet battered foods in atraditional deep fryer.
Kale and Other Leafy Greens
It’s possible to successfully cook kale in an air fryer.
This might leave you with some crispy veggie chips and other shriveled-up leaves.
You might have more success making leafy veggie chips in the oven.
Liquids
When liquids are heated, they release steam, which can damage your air fryer.
Do not add liquids to the basket to poach, braise, orboil foods.
Use the stovetop for those cooking methods.
We also recommend avoiding cooking overly saucy food in the air fryer.
But anything traditionally cooked in boiling waterlike pasta, quinoa, and ricedoesnt fare well in the fryer.
Cooking raw grains in the fryer doesnt work since they need to absorb water as they cook.
Instead, use the classic stovetop method for making pasta, rice, oatmeal, and other grains.
You could also end up with a bunch of unpopped kernels since popcorn does best at high heat.
It can also burn and stick to the basket, making an unpleasant mess.
Use the stovetop or a slow cooker if you gotta melt cheese for a dip or fondue.
They also can make a big mess if theyre not cooked properly.
If you’re hoping toroast a whole chickenor bone-in beef roast, opt for the oven instead.
Bacon
Some cooks swear by air fryer bacon, but it’s best to avoid this method.
The reason why you should never cook bacon in your air fryer is because bacon is a high-fat food.
There areplenty of other optionsfor cooking crispy, delicious bacon.
Your stovetop, microwave, oven, and even the grill are all better choices.
Monitoring the bacon as it cooks and flipping it when needed is also easier.
Frequently Asked Questions
Yes.
However, you should never let the foil touch the heating element.
A paper towel could catch on fire inside of an air fryer.
It’s safer to line your air fryer with aluminum foil or parchment paper.
The main difference is its size.
Since the latter is larger, it allows you to cook more food at once.
