4 Foods To Avoid Air Frying at All Costs, According to a Chef

Over the years, I’ve found that it’s finest for my must not spend money on a ton of kitchen home equipment. That’s largely as a result of I *love* the therapeutic energy of a transparent kitchen countertop… and most of my cumbersome tools finally ends up gathering mud tucked away in drawers. (Out of sight, out of thoughts.)

Nevertheless, IMHO, air fryers are value their weight in gold. They seemingly do all of it, from convection cooking and reheating meals to producing a satisfying crunchiness that I can’t wait to chew into. Further advantages of air frying “embrace lowered oil content material and sooner cooking instances in comparison with deep frying, making it a more healthy choice for a lot of dishes,” provides Corrie Duffy, an expert chef and meals blogger at Corrie Cooks.

But because the ‘80s ballad warned us, each rose has its thorn. There are some dishes which might be finest left to different cooking strategies—try the what and why on meals to keep away from air frying beneath.

4 meals to keep away from air frying

1. Battered meals

You may assume that each one normal fried fare could be match to throw into an air fryer, however Duffy says that’s not all the time the case. “Undoubtedly keep away from placing something moist or batter-covered immediately into the air fryer with out some prep. This might trigger splattering or smoking,” he warns. Furthermore, the cooked batch is unlikely to rival deep frying and pan frying. “Meals like tempura or closely battered objects can turn into too dry and lose their signature crunch in an air fryer,” Duffy provides.

2. Popcorn

Simply as moist, battered meals have the potential to trigger a security hazard when air fried, so can popcorn. “The recent air circulation can blow the kernels throughout, making it messy and probably inflicting a hearth hazard,” Duffy warns.

3. Cheese

Based on Duffy, melting cheese in an air fryer may end up in uneven cooking (and probably a giant gloppy mess). “Use a microwave or oven for even, gooey outcomes on dishes like nachos,” he suggests.

4. Uncooked meat

“Meals that require a protracted cooking time—comparable to a complete rooster or giant cuts of steak—are higher fitted to conventional roasting, grilling, or gradual cooking strategies,” Duffy explains. In case you go for air frying, you run the danger of uneven cooking and dryness.

That stated, reheating sure sorts of meat in an air fryer will get the inexperienced gentle. “It’s not solely completely doable, however truly excels relating to smaller cuts like sausage slices, meatballs, fish sticks, and popcorn rooster,” he continues. “These little bites warmth by way of tremendous rapidly, usually permitting you to skip the preheating step altogether.” Heat, crispy meals that make it into my stomach in document time? Sure, chef!

“Meals that require a protracted cooking time—comparable to a complete rooster or giant cuts of steak—are higher fitted to conventional roasting, grilling, or gradual cooking strategies.” —Corrie Duffy, chef and creator of Corrie Cooks

Meals you *may* wish to keep away from air frying, relying in your objectives

Leafy greens

I’m an enormous lover of kale in any kind. From inexperienced juices and smoothies to salads and sides, it’s all the time a staple in my dietary lineup. Whereas Duffy notes that it’s doable to make a fantastic batch of kale chips within the air fryer, different variations of my leafy inexperienced of selection get a no-go from the chef. “Delicate greens like spinach and kale can turn into too brittle in an air fryer, resulting in a much less interesting texture,” he explains.

Fruit

“Recent fruits like apples or pears might dehydrate excessively in an air fryer,” says Duffy. Except your aim is to make your individual air fryer dried fruit (which, BTW will help cut back meals waste and prevent some cash), he recommends baking or grilling fruits to yield a caramelized texture.

The takeaway

All issues thought of, air fryers are fairly genius—however they will’t do every little thing. “Whereas air frying is flexible and handy, understanding its limitations and the best-suited meals for this technique is essential,” Duffy explains. “Experimentation is essential to discovering the right steadiness of style and texture in your air-fried creations.”

When cooking meals which might be air fryer-friendly, Duffy reminds us to:

• Preheat the equipment
• Keep away from overcrowding the basket
• Shake or flip the meals midway by way of to make sure even crisping (and optimum yumminess)
• Get pleasure from!