The new oven came this week. Whew!
But meanwhile, I am still enjoying the Air Fryer.
So I thought I’d share some recent air fryer endeavors.
I cooked the asparagus in the picture below in the microwave for about two minutes–in a glass shallow pan covered with a cloth. The chicken tenders I put into a bowl with a little melted duck fat and then coated each one with the gluten-free panko I bought and ground finer–so there is just a light coating here.
They were good–but maybe cooked just a bit too long, which made them be a bit dense. I used the roasting feature–but I think I’ll try a shorter time next (maybe 6-8 minutes, turn them over halfway) and then finish with the air broil to brown the coating. I had enough left over to top a supper salad–which I make while cooking my noon dinner.
For the next meal, I cooked the broccoli in hot water until tender–in a pot on the stove top. The cod fillet I thawed, coated with some melted ghee using a brush, then patted the top with the panko mix. I cooked on air fryer for about 10 minutes as this fillet was thick. I think I checked it at about 8 minutes.
It was flaky and DELICIOUS. This one was a win-win. Hmmm, a dollop of tartar sauce, or, for me, some homemade mayo, would be a nice addition.
I had a meeting Thursday morning, and when I got home I was so hungry. I had bought this little loin steak, so thought I’d try it in the air fryer as I was feeling lazy about the outside grill or pan-frying it. (I reheated my leftover broccoli in the microwave.) I cut up one small russet potato and did not soak it in ice water for 30 minutes, which does make the browning more even I think. I tossed the slices in a tablespoon of melted duck fat in a bowl. The potatoes cooked in under 15 minutes (I shake them every few minutes and almost burned them this time–at under 15 minutes.) And the steak cooked on roast in about 10 minutes.
The potatoes were delicious. The steak was fine, but felt a bit tough. I had enough steak to top my supper salad–which is always nice. So, steak in the air fryer works fine, but isn’t as nice as the grill.
I like asparagus roasted in the air fryer. But I don’t really like broccoli cooked that way–it is tough. Maybe if one par-boiled it until almost tender and then air broiled it? But that seems like way too much trouble.
So, the air fryer is a learning curve, but one I’m enjoying. And I’m feeling more confident with using it to its best potential. And it is so easy to clean up. There is no grease all over the stove top from pan-frying something. Yes, I could easily have fried the potatoes in a pan with some duck fat–but the air fryer does use much less fat–and the texture of the air fryer potatoes, unfortunately for my body, is awesome!
Louisa Enright's Blog 
Hi. We love our air fryer. We have a thermopen that we got as a gift for mothers/Father’s Day and it is very accurate! Our fish is never over done! Love potatoes and chicken wings also! I’m wondering why you use duck fat?
Hello Joy. Thanks for reading my blog. I use duck fat, chicken fat, beef tallow, ghee, and sometimes coconut oil as cooking fats because they are good fats, versus the bad veggie oil fats–with the exception of cold-pressed good olive oil. But olive oil is delicate and fractures easily, so I mostly use it to dress foods or to gently cook something. The meat fats, except for butter, and good coconut oil will all stand up to high temperatures without fracturing. The veggie oils have a high omega 6 (fatty acid) content, which isn’t good for us–and most are “already” rancid and toxic due to how they are processed. We need more omega 3 and less omega 6. The nutrients in animal fats are intact and supply many of the amino acids (fatty acids) we humans need. Of course, the cleaner and well treated an animal is, the better. For more information on good fats vs. bad fats, take a look at the Weston A. Price Foundation web site. Everything there can be accessed and is free. They work with biochemists who specialize in how food works in the human body, for one thing. Olive oil is a whole other subject–most of it in a grocery store has been cut with bad veggie oils ($$$$), so I buy most of mine from small vineyards. There is new information out now on the amount of good fats to eat and how to balance fats with carbs in order to be healthy. We need both, but the percentages are important. I’m just getting my head around this new information myself.
I just purchased my 3rd air fryer. I wore out 2, which were inexpensive. Neither of the first 2 lasted beyond a year. The latest one, I did a lot of research and purchased the #1 rated (Better Homes and Gardens test kitchen), Cuisinart with a nice 3 year warranty, I purchased an extended warranty as well, since this one was pricey. I cook just about everything in the air fryer. I purchased a cast iron griddle/grill pan which I use for “grilled meats”. The Cuisinart is like a small oven, has many choices of settings. So, grilled meats like steak get broiled, chicken gets roasted or baked. What I find is the temperature needs to be about 25 degrees less than you would use in the regular oven, and the timing is about 75% of what you would expect. Thermo pen is my favorite tool. Curious what brand you purchased? What I love is not heating up the big wall oven to cook small meals! I’ve been reading all your recent posts about how you are cooking using it.
Thanks so much for this information! I bought a Ninja with two drawers. I love mine too! I use it a lot. Nearly every day.