5 Mistakes to Avoid While Cooking With an Air Fryer

Tried cooking some crispy potato fries with your new air fryer but ended up with soggy pieces of potato? An air fryer comes with the promise of cooking with less oil and delivering extra crispy food. However, if you don’t know how to use an air fryer properly your dish may not turn out as crispy as you’d like. Common mistakes people make are using lightweight foods, not cutting them to the right size and using the wrong amount of oil.

 Here are a few mistakes people make while cooking with an air fryer and how you can avoid them.

1. Filling the Basket with Too Much Food

Overcrowding your air fryer’s basket with too much food is like filling your washing machine with too many dirty clothes and expecting them all to be equally clean. If you put too much food in the basket, you are not providing enough space for the heat to spread evenly and cook your food. As a result, some pieces will be overcooked, perfectly cooked or undercooked. One air fryer tip to ensure that your food cooks evenly is to look for a line in your basket which indicates its maximum capacity and stick to that measurement. Crompton’s air fryer with a large basket which allows you to cook more food at once.

2. Cutting Foods in Wrong Sizes

Whether it is meat or vegetable, you need to avoid cutting them too small or too big. The problem that arises with small pieces of food is that they could fall in the gaps of the basket which could then burn on the coil below. On the other hand, if you cut your food into big chunks while using an air fryer there are chances that it could be crisp on the outside but undercooked on the inside. 

3. Trying to Cook Foods with a Wet Surface

Foods which are coated with a marinade, dressing or batter are not suitable while using an air fryer as it can potentially damage the system. These wet substances can drip through the basket and fall onto the coil which can cause it to smoke. In addition, you may not end up with the crunchy and crispy food you wanted. A few air fryer tips are making sure you pat your meat dry with a paper towel and coat your foods with a dry coating like breadcrumbs. 

4. Skipping Preheating

Preheating an air fryer is as important as preheating an oven. The main purpose behind preheating is to allow the heat to spread around the basket evenly before you add the food. This ensures that your food will be evenly cooked.

5. Not Using the Right Amount of Oil

Among all the air fryer uses, incorporating oil-free cooking is definitely the biggest benefit. However, a minimal amount of oil is still necessary to make sure your food doesn’t get burned. Most recipes require hardly a teaspoon or a light spray of oil for proper cooking. If you add extra oil while cooking it could result in soggy food which defeats the purpose of oil-free cooking. 

6. Not Cleaning the Air Fryer

Cleaning the air fryer after every use is important to prevent a build-up of grease and any leftover food crumbs. Remove the basket and tray, wash them in warm soapy water, and wipe the interior with a damp cloth or sponge. Make sure you dry all parts thoroughly before reassembling and storing the air fryer.

Air fryer uses are not limited to cooking healthy french fries with minimal oil. The benefits of air fryer are immense. Along with learning how to use an air fryer, there is a range of different recipes you can experiment with like chicken wings, crispy chickpeas, doughnuts, etc. So gather your favourite recipes and make the best use of your air fryer by avoiding these common mistakes.