Heard about the latest must-have kitchen gadget, the air fryer? Trying to decide if you need one in your life? Read on.

You have probably noticed a lot of people talking lately about having, or wanting, an air fryer. This countertop kitchen appliance, which no one had heard of three years ago, is suddenly everywhere. Some people are even calling it the Instant Pot of 2019. To that point, nearly 10 million air fryers were sold in the past two years. (Not quite as many as the number of Instant Pots that were sold in the same period, but not that far behind either.) And sales are only going up. According to the New York Times, air fryer sales increased 69 percent in 2018.

So, should you get on the air fryer bandwagon? What is an air fryer anyway? How does it work? Well, friends, I have spent much of 2019 doing a deep dive into the world of air fryers working on a new cookbook that will come out on December 10th — The Epic Air Fryer Cookbook available for pre-order now, thankyouverymuch. I have worked with different kinds of air fryers and cooked everything from eggs to vegetables to fish to steaks and even cookies in an air fryer. I have figured out a lot about these countertop convection ovens – because that is essentially what an air fryer is – and I am going to share it all with you. So you can decide once and for all whether or not the air fryer is for you.

What is an Air Fryer? How Does it Work?

As I mentioned, an air fryer is basically a powerful countertop convection oven. They sit on the counter and plug into the wall. To use it, you put food in the basket or tray of air fryer – which can be removed from the appliance for transferring food and for easy cleaning – and set the temperature, up to 400 degrees. The air fryer heats up very quickly and uses a strong fan to move hot air around the food so that it cooks quickly and evenly. If you spray or brush the food with oil – even just a few teaspoons or a tablespoon of oil – the fast-moving fan will circulate the tiny droplets of oil around the food which mimics, in some ways, the effects of deep-frying. This works great for, say, French fries or sweet potato fries. If your food is coated with a dry breading, it will come out browned, crispy and crunchy with a moist, juicy interior – think chicken tenders, fried green tomatoes or fried shrimp.

But the air fryer doesn’t just make fried food. It is a surprisingly versatile appliance. You can use it like an oven to bake or roast all kinds of foods, from fish and meat to eggs to vegetables to desserts. It even has some advantages over your large wall oven or range. As I mentioned, the air fryer heats up very quickly, eliminating the need for pre-heating. It also cooks food quickly – in part because of the circulating hot air. What’s more, the air fryer’s exhaust system whisks away moisture which allows it to dry out foods that naturally have a lot of moisture – like certain vegetables – and make them crispy and caramelized as opposed to soggy. The air fryer even does a great job at reheating foods, like pizza, without making them limp or rubbery like a microwave does. All this – and it won’t heat up your whole kitchen!

Sounds great, right? But what are the drawbacks? What can’t the air fryer do? Well, it can’t make soup. But you had probably figured that out already. The biggest drawback of the air fryer, in my view, is its size. Even the biggest air fryers have a capacity of only 5 to 6 quarts and it is important NOT to overcrowd the basket when cooking food so that the hot air can circulate easily. This means that you typically have to cook food in two or sometimes even three batches. I’ve had people tell me that this is their biggest frustration with the air fryer. If you have a large family or regularly cook for more than 3 or 4 people, the limited size is an important factor to consider when contemplating purchasing an air fryer.

The other drawback of the air fryer is that is doesn’t perfectly replicate the texture of fried food. The name is a bit misleading honestly. If you purchase an air fryer hoping to make healthier versions of all your deep-fried favorites, from hush puppies to doughnuts, you may be disappointed. Yes, the air fryer turns out pretty good versions of some beloved crispy, crunchy foods with a tiny amount of oil. But is it exactly like deep-fried? Of course not. In my book, Epic Air Fryer, I have recipes for air-fried foods that I think are super tasty – crisp and crunchy outside with tender, juicy or gooey insides. Think fried pickles, falafel, egg rolls, arancini, and chicken taquitos. Are they way healthier and less messy than deep-fried versions of these foods? Absolutely. But I will never promise that they taste exactly like the original, deep-fried version.

So, Bottom Line: Who Should Get an Air Fryer?

• Busy people: Wait, did you say you are busy? Me too! Do you sometimes find it hard to get dinner on the table in a timely fashion? Me too! Well, the air fryer can help with that.  Boneless, skinless chicken breasts cook in 15 to 20 minutes in the air fryer and they come out juicy and flavorful, not dry. Burgers and meatballs take only 10 to 15 minutes to cook. Fish is even quicker. Use the air fryer to roast veggies to caramelized perfection in fraction of the time it would take in the oven. You can even use the air fryer to make hands-off hot breakfasts, like French toast and Eggs in a Basket in just minutes – while you tend to other tasks. If you would like to cook at home more, but feel like you don’t have time, the air fryer may be the solution you are looking for.
• People with cabins, lake houses or vacation homes: As an electric countertop appliance, the air fryer is highly portable and easy to use – just plug it in! And, as I explain above, it is surprisingly versatile and can cook almost everything that a wall oven or range can. Thus, if you regularly rent a house for vacation, or own a cabin or lake house, an air fryer would be a terrific addition to that kitchen. You can easily transport an air fryer in the car if you want to bring it back and forth from the vacation house to your home. Or leave it at the cabin/beach house/lake house and use it in lieu of a wall oven or range. The air fryer makes yummy fish tacos, fried shrimp, hush puppies and crab cakes – just the kind of food you want to eat at the beach or by the lake!
• People who hate using their oven in warm weather: Does your oven heat up the whole kitchen – or worse, the whole house – in hot weather? Do you avoid baking or using your oven when the temperature starts to rise? If so, then an air fryer may be the solution you are looking for. As I explain above, you can do things like roast vegetables and bake biscuits as well as make crispy, crunchy air-fried treats like french fries, taquitos and fried green tomaroes in the air fryer. And I promise, it will not heat up the rest of the room or the house. The air fryer just might be your secret to staying cool in the kitchen in hot weather.
• Small families: If you regularly cook for one, two or three people, the air fryer can save you tons of time in the kitchen. You can easily make complete dinners for up to three people in the air fryer – especially if you purchase one of the large models with a basket of 5 quarts or more. In my book Epic Air Fryer, I have recipes for complete dinners like Loaded Baked Potatoes with Broccoli and Cheese, Cumin-Crusted Pork Tenderloin with Potatoes and Teriyaki Salmon and Broccoli all of which are cooked in the air fryer in under an hour. The biggest complaint about air fryers – their size – matters less when cooking for less than three people.

What do you think – is an air fryer for you? Did I answer your questions? Please let me know what intrigues you about the air fryer in the comments. I will be back with another post on how to choose the right air fryer for your family when you have decided to take the plunge!