Air Fryer Tips For Beginners Follow To Cook Like A Pro [2023]
If you want to make the most out of your appliance, check our best air fryer tips for beginners and cook enjoyable recipes at home.
Buying an air fryer and using it is not a big deal! Still, there are some things that every newbie should take care of to cook food properly and save the unit from damage. Don’t miss our top picks for the best 10 quart air fryer, the best air fryer grill combo, and the best air fryer for baking.
Air Fryer Tips For Beginners Follow To Cook Like A Pro [2023]
We are beginning with a short video related to air fryer mistakes:
Here are some useful air fryer tips and tricks for newcomers. Hope you are going to love them. Without further ado, let’s get started:
Avoid Overcrowding the Basket
Despite all the space they hog in your kitchen, air fryers are not very spacious from the inside. Whenever using the air fryer for cooking food, don’t overcrowd the basket.
You might be tempted to add a few handfuls of fries or a couple of chicken wings just because you saw it in the image on the air fryer box. But we learned from our experience that these images are often misleading.
Overcrowding will impede even heat circulation, and you won’t get evenly cooked crispy food. Always place the food in a single layer with a little space between the food contents.
Don’t Pull Out Basket/Drawer Unnecessarily
It is okay to pull out the drawer to shake the basket’s contents during cooking or when cleaning the air fryer. But avoid pulling out the drawer and the basket needlessly.
Keeping the air fryer basket or drawer on the shelf will tempt you to use it for other purposes. However, unnecessary use will damage the air fryer basket coating.
Also, more dust will reach the fan and the heating element when the drawer compartment is exposed.
Choose Right Temperature and Time Settings
The air fryer instruction manual often mentions the right temperature/time settings for cooking various foods. You can try them or stick to the recipes from dependable sources. Choosing the right temperature and timer is necessary to avoid overcooked and burnt food.
Handle the Basket with Care
There is a release button on the air fryer handle. Press the button to take the basket out. Don’t use any steel or metal spatula to take the food out; metal can destroy the non-stick coating on the basket. Instead, use a silicone spatula and tongs to add and remove food.
Avoid Using Oil Sprays
Oil sprays such as PAM have additives that can damage the non-stick coating on the accessories by causing peeling. Therefore, always prefer an oil mister over using packaged oil sprays. Or, you can brush oil on the food surface.
Shake the Food Halfway Through the Timer
When cooking small pieces such as Brussels sprouts, French fries, wings, broccoli, etc., shake the food items midway through the timer to cook it evenly from all sides.
Frequent shaking also gives your food even browning from all sides.
For larger food items such as whole chicken, steaks, breaded fish filets, salmon, etc., turn the sides/rotate the food to cook it from all sides.
Not shaking is not detrimental, but you won’t be able to achieve the oh-so-similar-to-fried-food result.
Don’t Put Wet Food in the Air Fryer
Moisture kills the crispiness of the food. So, don’t put wet food in the unit as it will produce steam, and you won’t get the desired results. Pat dry the food with a paper towel before adding it to the air fryer basket.
Don’t Put Too Much Oil
Use a light hand when using oil in the air fryer. Remember that your air fryer does not cook food like a deep fryer, so putting oil in an air fryer is not necessary.
You can only add a few spoons to enhance the food’s taste.
Also, do not cook excessively fatty food in the unit, as it causes excessive splatters and messes up the whole unit.
Use Oil with a High Smoke Point
Don’t use oil with a low smoke point as it will produce smoke at a higher temperature. For instance, instead of using coconut oil with a smoke point above 350F, use avocado oil with a 570F smoke point.
Don’t Put Anything at the Back of the Air Fryer
Most air fryers have a heat vent at the back. The air fryer releases hot air through this vent and regulates the unit’s internal temperature. Don’t put anything at the back of the air fryer as it can obscure the heat vent and overheat your air fryer.
Don’t Touch the Unit While Cooking
When cooking food, an air fryer often gets hot from the outside, especially from the back. Therefore, avoid touching the unit with bare hands.
Put Cardboard Under the Air Fryer
Even if your kitchen counter is made with heat-resistant material, there is nothing wrong with being more careful.
Put a piece of cardboard under the air fryer to protect the countertop from its heat.
Also, don’t put the hot basket on the counter. Place a pot holder or a piece of cardboard over the counter before placing the hot basket
Use a Toothpick to Hold Lighter Food Items
Since an air fryer blows hot air at high speed, lighter objects such as toasts, broccoli, etc. may fly around in the air fryer basket.
Use a toothpick or a utensil such as a fork to hold the item down. But make sure to remove the utensil with a non-stick tong before flipping over the air fryer basket.
Preheat your Air Fryer
We did not preheat our air fryer during our first few cooking attempts. The air fryer manual also did not specify the need for preheating.
But when we tried cooking after preheating, we realized that it is a much better way to cook your food perfectly. So, preheat your air fryer even if the manual does not mention it specifically.
Don’t Dump the Air Fryer Content into a Bowl
During cooking, oil collects under the crisper plate. When you flip the air fryer to put the cooked food into a bowl, all this oil and grease comes along. Therefore, take the food out with a spatula or tongs.
What should I make first in my air fryer?
French fries are often the first thing people make after bringing an air fryer home. Making French fries is not much of a chore and can easily become a regular occurrence once you make them in an air fryer.
What is the trick to using an air fryer?
The trick for using an air fryer is adding a few spoons of water under the crisper plate to catch food particles and drippings. It also makes cleanup after cooking in it much easier.
Wrapping Up!
These helpful advice for beginners using an air fryer can increase its useful life and help you get full use out of it. The above-mentioned essential cooking Tips for using an air fryer will help you avoid commonly made air fryer mistakes.
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