Unless you have been living under a rock for the last two years I’m sure you have heard from friends and family or online about air fryers and how awesome they are. But what is an air fryer really? How does it fry food without using scorching hot fat laden oil? Is it really as healthy as they claim it is or Is it a gimmick? Does it make healthy delicious oil free fried foods like everyone claims or is it all a scam? So many questions, not so many answers out there, well fear not the team at Uber Appliance is here to answer those questions with the help of our engineers, manufacturing team and our awesome fans.

Traditional Deep Frying – Convection Heat Transfer with Oil 

Credit: Chicago-Tribune.com

Traditional deep frying uses a large quantity of oil that is heated to a certain temperature between 150 degrees and 400 degrees. When the oil reaches the desired temperature and you place the cold food in the oil, the food is fully surrounded by hot oil. The hot oil completes a heat transfer process from the hot oil to the cold food and the oil brings the food to the average temperature of the oil bath through a heat transfer process called convection heat transfer.

The benefit of deep frying food compared to heating something in the oven or searing it on a pan on the stove top is that the oil completely covers the food and the oil is at a uniform temperature in a small container.

When you place food in the oven or on a stove top the food is not being uniformly heated, the pan side where the food is resting is at a high temperature while the air exposed side of the food is at a lower temperature which is why you have to flip the food over. In the oven it is a bit more uniform but given which end of the oven is providing the heat (lower rack or broiler) the temperature is slightly higher on one end vs the other which provides an inconsistent cooking temperature throughout the process.

Air Frying – Convection Heat Transfer with Air

Air Frying is very similar to Deep frying except there is no need for a heat transfer medium such as oil, cutting out excess calories and artery clogging fats. Air Fryers have a heating element above the air fryer basket where it brings the temperature of the air in the confined space up to the desired cooking temperature. The real magic for the air fryer is in the fan above the heating element and the aerodynamic design of the basket allowing the air to continuously circulate ensuring that the air temperature remains consistent throughout the cooking process. Many air fryers have a heat shield right below the heating element to prevent the broiling effect that a traditional oven has.

Once the air fryer air had reached the desired cooking temperature as you place the cold food the circulating hot air continuously coats your food and the heat transfer process occurs exactly as it does with traditional deep frying, except here no oil medium is required. The use of air instead of oil cuts down significantly on the added fats when frying foods, the food is cooked in an identical matter and still tastes just as delicious. The advantage of the air fryer is the ability to cook so many things that you cannot traditionally deep fry.

Not only this, air fryers can cook items that are traditionally cooked in the oven much more evenly and at a huge electric bill cost savings as the space is limited only to the food you are cooking instead of the whole oven which in our experience is never full of food that needs to be cooked. Most of us only cook a small size item in a huge oven, that extra space still needs to be heated and is a waste of electricity.

To Sum It all up

Is an air fryer just a gimmick? Does it really fry healthy delicious food without oil?

In our opinion the air fryer is absolutely not a gimmick, the science behind it is tremendous it is really an engineering marvel in its own way. Air Fryers really do cook delicious healthy food without the need for any fatty oil. Air Fryers are far superior to traditional deep fryers in every way, no mess with oil and grease splattering all over your kitchen, your house will not smell of fried foods, it is much safer, no need to worry about burning yourself or loved ones with scorching hot oil. Save on your electric bill by using an air fryer instead of an oven, the small compact size can still cook a full meal for a family without using your full size oven. The clean up of an air fryer is way easier, just follow our tips here or simply put the dishwasher safe basket and pan in the dishwasher and you’re done!

Where can I find the best air fryer?

Uber Appliance offers one of the best air fryers on the market today, our Uber Air Fryer XL is perfect for any family with its roomy 5 quart basket you can air fry a whole chicken. The dishwasher safe basket and grease separator with non stick coating make cleaning a breeze just wipe it down with a damp soapy microfiber towel and toss it in the dish washer.

The Uber Air Fryer XL features an easy to use touch display for temperature and time setting with temperatures ranging from 150F to 400F, the digital display also has several pre-set cooking temperature and time to perfectly cook chicken, steak, fries, wings and so much more with a single press of a button. Every Uber Air Fryer XL Comes with a free recipe book so that you can explore tasty meals as soon as you get it with plenty more recipe’s on our site.

The Uber Air Fryer XL’s plastic is pre-vented from the factory which eliminates any plastic smell or taste in your foods from the first use. This is one of the biggest complaint from air fryer users and at Uber Appliance we listen to our customer’s feedback and strive to provide the best experience from the first use!

Last but not least buy from Uber Appliance with confidence, we guarantee the quality of our air fryers with our “love it or leave it” 30 day free returns and free exchanges warranty. Our Uber Air Fryer comes standard with a 1 year warranty against any manufacturers defects and we offer extended warranties for up to 2 years. We have been in business for the last 5 years and we have a reputation to protect which is why we place our customers first, our friendly Customer Service Rep Jennifer is available via email 24/7 to answer any questions you might have!