Having an air fryer can feel like a cheat code in the kitchen. You can cook meals in a quarter of the time it might have taken to make them on the stove or in the oven. Plus, you don’t have to fry foods in oil to get the crispiness that you’re looking for.
We bought an air fryer a few years back on Prime Day and, while it isn’t the biggest air fryer in the world, it suits our needs just fine. We frequently cook tater tots, hash browns, chicken tenders, and more in the air fryer. One of our favorite additions is putting some garbanzo beans in it and crisping them up for a salad. After you use the air fryer, the basket can get dirty, just like a pan. If I have something that’s really stuck on there, I always use this one trick to eliminate scrubbing the pan a bunch.
Air fryers are great because of the science behind them
Using them can lead to a healthier lifestyle
An air fryer is basically a convection oven that you keep on your countertop. They come in different sizes and shapes, so depending on how big they are, you might not be able to keep them on your countertop all the time. But if you do, you probably use it more and therefore will need to know all the ways you can use it.
Air fryers cut your need for oil because they are incredibly efficient. They circulate incredibly hot air quickly and rapidly in order to give your food an even cook. You can use air fryers for all kinds of settings, including roasting, baking, and reheating.
You can cook various types of foods in them and get the results you want. Air fryers can do more than a toaster oven and provide a crispier outcome than a microwave. You can cook frozen items in them as well as freshly made foods. It’s about convenience and versatility when you buy an air fryer, and most of them deliver exactly that.
There are smart air fryers that can connect to your phone to let you know when the cooking is finished. Some have more cooking options than others, so comparing the features is important before you choose one. But all of them have a basket that slides in and out to help you remove your food safely from the fryer.
You have to clean your air fryer after every use
If you don’t, the food will get stuck
While you don’t need to put a ton of oil in your air fryer to have it cook properly, you could run into the same problem that happens when you don’t put any oil in a stainless steel pan on the stove. Because the heat is turned up high, it could cause food to stick and burn onto the pan or basket.
It’s smart to spray your air fryer basket with some oil. You don’t need heavy amounts of vegetable or canola oil, which can splatter all over your kitchen and cause a mess, like you might if you were deep-frying wings in a pan. But enough to keep the food from sticking is important.
Using an oil with a higher smoke point, like grapeseed or avocado, which can be used successfully when the air fryer is circulating its hot air. Using baking sprays can contaminate your basket.
You might find that some food has become stuck in your basket. The basket typically has a non-stick coating that works for a while. But that doesn’t mean it’s perfect against all kinds of foods. After some time, the coating begins to wear. This is inevitably when your food begins to stick more.
After your meal, you must wait until your basket has cooled down before you clean it. Some air fryer baskets are dishwasher-safe, while some aren’t. Check your instruction manual to see if yours is. If you clean it right away, your basket and air fryer will work for a longer period of time. Plus, your kitchen will feel cleaner immediately.
Tackle tougher stains with a simple trick
All it takes is some powerful soap
If you notice that there is some caked-on food in your basket that you can’t get off, your first instinct might be to scrub it with a sponge. You don’t want to use an abrasive cleaning pad, as it can damage the non-stick coating of the basket.
What you should do first is use some soap like Dawn Powerwash, which sprays right onto the grime, or regular dish soap and water and fill up the bottom portion of the basket. Insert the basket back into the air fryer and turn the temperature setting to at least 350º. Turn the air fryer on for about 10 minutes.
It’s about convenience and versatility when you buy an air fryer, and most of them deliver exactly that.
By doing so, you’re in essence deglazing the basket, as liquids and thermal expansion can break down tough stains and residue. The heating of the liquid can loosen the bond the food has with the basket. Since you likely cooked in some oil or fat, that can solidify as it cools. Heating it up again can cause it to soften or liquify. Coupling that with the soap and water will lift the substance from the basket’s coating.
The heat can also start to kill bacteria and cause the metal to expand. This can help halt the sticking of future foods to the basket. If you find that the food is still stuck on there, you may have to do some scrubbing. But the reheating of the basket with some soap can make it easier to clean after.
Reheating your air fryer with some cleaning solution is a smart hack
As your air fryer is used more often, there’s bound to be residue that builds up. To break that down, you can use some soap and water and turn the air fryer back on. As it reheats, the food can be broken down more easily because its bond with the metal of the basket starts to loosen. Before you commit to scrubbing really hard to try and get stubborn food off the basket, try turning the air fryer back on first. This can be the game-changer that you’ve been looking for to ease the stress of cleaning up.
