Air fryers

[Dustydog]

Are these Ninja Air fryer cheap to use because we are on a pay as go meter system

Depends on what size?

AI says wattages ranging from 1550W for smaller models like the AF100UK, up to 2470W or higher for larger dual-zone units like the Foodi MAX models.

You can easily work out the hourly rate .
Your payg meter should charge the same as the site pays

 

[Buckman]

Before we got the smaller Air Fryer for the caravan, we took the Ninja Max with us, but it is large and bulky when touring which si why we got the smaller 1500w Ninja air fryer. It was on special at the time. We took that away with us plus we had a small 2 person George Foreman grill for sausages and burgers. Did not use both at the same time and never tripped the mains.

 

[Buckman]

As we're vegetarians we have no interest in what they can do for meat cooking but there seem to be plenty of things that we like that we can do - chips for one

While there seems to be much emphasis on energy saving I'm yet to be convinced this will be significant for us. We tend to use our ovens as efficiently as possible.

I've just dug out my energy monitor so that I can have some sort of reference for when we do get one. I'll let you know the results.

They are definitely a lot cheaper to run than any oven and we have an energy "efficient" oven. Hope this will help you decide; https://www.which.co.uk/reviews/air...gy-cost-cooking-results-compared-aPpAt8D1Agy5

 

[Sam Vimes]

I've just measured them and our small oven has a max power rating of approx. 1.2Kw and the larger oven 1.8Kw. The small one takes about 20mins to come upto 200degC but from then on the thermostat cuts in and out, so its not on all the time.

The same will be true of Air Fryers presumably - once upto temperature the thermostat will cut in and out.

These are max. power figures because the oven can be used in different modes with only the top or bottom element in use.

A typical vegie pie I make will take between 20-25 mins at 200degC. Not sure how I would do that in the Air Fryer though.

Roasted veggies in the oven about 40mins.

One curious thing that strikes me about Air Fryers is that many reports say that the 'exhaust -air' can be quite hot so you need to keep them away from walls. If that's the case then thats wasted energy.

Our oven appears to be well insulated and there's little loss of heat when in use. I did have the full energy efficient reports for it but somehow they got lost.

 

[Buckman]

Remember the figures quoted for air fryer i.e. wattage are maximums and the likelihood is that you will use a lot less wattage when cooking and probably for a shorter duration at a lower temperature.

 

[Sam Vimes]

They are definitely a lot cheaper to run than any oven and we have an energy "efficient" oven. Hope this will help you decide; https://www.which.co.uk/reviews/air...gy-cost-cooking-results-compared-aPpAt8D1Agy5

I have seen that report but it doesn't meet my criteria for 'a lot cheaper'.

Of course mileage may vary but I would question some of their timings and power ratings. Apart from which you can use the conventional ovens to cook thing together that you couldn't get in an Air Fryer - Bread and Pies at the same time for instance.

 

[otherclive]

When we installed our new kitchen we got rid of an old inefficient range and bought an AEG gas cooker. It is well insulated as it can fit in between units with no air gap required. The main oven is gas, the smaller one which is the main usage one is gas, with an electric element for grilling. Overall there has been a reduction in costs compared to the old range, especially with gas being significantly cheaper than electric.

 

[borderbilly]

You sound a bit undecided on what you want, get one from asda and if it is not for you, you will not be losing much. On the other hand if you buy a ninja 🥷 you will be severly out of pocket.

 

[Buckman]

I have seen that report but it doesn't meet my criteria for 'a lot cheaper'.

Of course mileage may vary but I would question some of their timings and power ratings. Apart from which you can use the conventional ovens to cook thing together that you couldn't get in an Air Fryer - Bread and Pies at the same time for instance.

Sorry to disillusion you, but in our Ninja Max you can do both i.e. fish and chips etc at the same time. Just admit you are looking for excuses not to get one!

 

[Hutch]

We have three Air fryers, the first one is an old Tefal, which has a rotating blade to "stir" food whilst it cooks things, chips, veg even soups it says, really noisy and only one temp. Hardly ever use that now.
2nd one from Lidl, about 2 years old, smallish basket 5 litres, very versatile.
3rd one, also from Lidl, a triple shelf with rotisserie, never tried that bit. Max temp 200c much more like a small fan oven.

 

[Buckman]

We have three Air fryers, the first one is an old Tefal, which has a rotating blade to "stir" food whilst it cooks things, chips, veg even soups it says, really noisy and only one temp. Hardly ever use that now.
2nd one from Lidl, about 2 years old, smallish basket 5 litres, very versatile.
3rd one, also from Lidl, a triple shelf with rotisserie, never tried that bit. Max temp 200c much more like a small fan oven.

We have previously had appliances with rotisserie and once you have used one, you will never use it again! LOL!

 

[Sam Vimes]

Sorry to disillusion you, but in our Ninja Max you can do both i.e. fish and chips etc at the same time. Just admit you are looking for excuses not to get one!

To be honest your right - its one of those things that for quite a long while we've thought yes - no - yes - no and now its yes but I still have reservations. Many people think they're great but to use an appropriate metaphor - the proof is in the pudding.

 

[Sam Vimes]

We have previously had appliances with rotisserie and once you have used one, you will never use it again! LOL!

Sort of difficult putting lentils on a rotisserie

 

[Buckman]

To be honest your right - its one of those things that for quite a long while we've thought yes - no - yes - no and now its yes but I still have reservations. Many people think they're great but to use an appropriate metaphor - the proof is in the pudding.

Only you can eat that pudding and then make a decision whether it is good or bad!

 

[Mel]

Pedants Corner:
The proof is NOT in the pudding.
The saying is
The proof of the pudding is in the eating.

Not that this helps your airfryer decision
😀
Mel

 

[Hutch]

When we had the single drawer air fryer, we have used the floppy non stick liners to make a cake, worked ok, the mixture holds them open
.

 

[Hutch]

Tower air fryer. Banana ( large) for reference to size

 

[Buckman]

Tower air fryer. Banana ( large) for reference to sizeView attachment 9759

We initially bought a Tower from Tesco and had to return it as the handle came loose. We weren't the only ones with the same issue. No issue with a refund and then bought the small Ninja.

 

[otherclive]

We initially bought a Tower from Tesco and had to return it as the handle came loose. We weren't the only ones with the same issue. No issue with a refund and then bought the small Ninja.

Tower did not do too well on other cooking items, some of their pressure cookers had to be recalled and replaced , ours amongst them.

 

[ProfJohnL]

In terms of running costs between Air Fryer's and conventional electric ovens, Assuming the items to be heated can fit inside the air fryer in one go, there are several reasons why an Air Fryer is more energy effective.

If you compare most conventional electric caravan ovens to Air Fryers, the oven will be a physically bigger cooking volume, which automatically means it has more internal surface area than an air fryer that needs to be raised in temperature. This means there will be more surface that needs to be heated, and that uses more energy and time before you even start cooking.

There will always be some conducted heat losses through the walls of both items, This will give rise to both convection and radiative losses. However both types of heat losses are principally governed by the temperature of the surface relative to its surroundings, so heat loss is expressed as Watts per square meter per temp difference A small surface area at the cooking temperature will lose less energy than a larger surface at the same temperature, so by area alone, a conventional oven will lose more heat than the Air Fryer.

Both types of oven have to have some ventilation to prevent pressure or rarefaction differences with the ambient air. The amount of ventilation will of course be down to the design of the appliance. But with an air fryer there are often different cooking modes, some of which might use forced ventilation, and others purely passive ventilation, so its difficult to offer a generalised differentiation on this point

Most Air fryers instructions will tell you to use a lower cooking temperature than for the same job in a conventional oven, that will use less energy. They may also advise you to reduce the cooking time again saving more energy

It is impossible to be precise without specific examples, but it is my estimation that an air fryer will typically use only 60% of the energy a conventional oven would use to cook the same items.