Advertisement
If you have a new account but are having problems posting or verifying your account, please email us on hello@boards.ie for help. Thanks :)
Hello all! Please ensure that you are posting a new thread or question in the appropriate forum. The Feedback forum is overwhelmed with questions that are having to be moved elsewhere. If you need help to verify your account contact hello@boards.ie

The Actifry & AirFryer Thread - Merged

  • 08-05-2011 9:00pm
    #1
    Registered Users Posts: 5,377 ✭✭✭Warper


    Just seen this advertised and available in Harvey Norman for €169.

    http://www.harveynorman.ie/philips-airfryer.html

    Its a deep fat fryer but with no oil and uses hot air? Anyone have one or heard of these as they seem handy as cleaning the deep fat fryer is just head-wrecking.


«13456758

Comments

  • Registered Users Posts: 14,905 ✭✭✭✭CJhaughey


    LOL at the Scottish presenter on the video.
    Airfried mars bars anyone?


  • Registered Users Posts: 768 ✭✭✭Uncle_moe


    seen these in arnotts and was very interested to know what they're like. Sounds great but I wonder could it be anywhere near as good as deep frying. If it is then its got to be the way of the future


  • Registered Users Posts: 440 ✭✭biddywiddy


    This looks similar to the Tefal Actifry. I have one of those and it's the business for cooking chips and potatoes. Haven't tried much else in it though.


  • Registered Users Posts: 5,377 ✭✭✭Warper


    Just cleaned out my Deep-dat fryer today and its a stinking job. Though if this thing can only cook chips and chicken nuggets its probably not worth it. If it cooked sausages as well it nearly would be


  • Registered Users Posts: 4,780 ✭✭✭JohnK


    Interesting product, although I really do have too many bloody things lying around the kitchen at this point.

    Looking into it a bit though you do actually need some oil for chips, but its only a small amount and its to coat the chips prior to cooking them. And it seems you can cook all sorts of things including chicken, steaks and brownies (:confused:) A bit more info here and here.

    Warper, it cooks sausage rolls so I'd imagine it'd do sausages too.

    Edit: Actually, reading a review on Amazon it seems they recommend you dont try and cook sausages or high fat foods


  • Advertisement
  • Registered Users Posts: 32,370 ✭✭✭✭rubadub


    Got this in an email today
    An Invitation from Powercity to see the NEW Philips Air Fryer in action
    with special promotional price in store on the day.
    image_static.php?name=loyaltyvoucher


  • Registered Users Posts: 70 ✭✭beerpong


    Cooks saugages, my mate has one they're quality


  • Registered Users Posts: 13,016 ✭✭✭✭vibe666


    the thing that worries me is that they're probably (at least i assume) going to be rotating around or something to 'toss' the food as it's cooking.

    i imagine this is fine for chips and nuggets etc. but if you wanted to batter something yourself (fish, onion rings etc.) or cook more delicate stuff, it wouldn't work.

    mind you, i'm a little puzzled about the sausage rolls thing, how the feck would it cook those?


  • Registered Users Posts: 3 JoanyM


    I got an air fryer yesterday and cooked quorn rasher, sausage, mushrooms and tomatoe in it in 7 minutes. The quorn sausage was frozen so I put that in first for 3 mins having first sprayed it with Frylite 1 cal spray and then I put the rest in for 4 mins. I also cooked two slices of 'fried bread' in it. I sprayed the bread on both sides with the oil spray and cooked it in 3 mins. Everything was really nice. Does anyone know if you can use small roasting bags in these things?


  • Closed Accounts Posts: 89 ✭✭rupamede


    I want to get one of them healthy fryers but not sure which to get. Could someone please advise? Thanks. R


  • Advertisement
  • Registered Users Posts: 1,101 ✭✭✭Antibac


    Have the teal actifry. Good for sausages and chips but not great for breaded stuff


  • Registered Users Posts: 768 ✭✭✭Uncle_moe


    had a tasting thing on in Arnotts last week, it was terrible, food was soggy. I don't know how its called a firyer when it doesn't fry at all. It's basically a small portable fan oven. You cannot do with this what you could do with a deep fat fryer. Waste of money I say.


  • Registered Users Posts: 3 JoanyM


    rupamede wrote: »
    I want to get one of them healthy fryers but not sure which to get. Could someone please advise? Thanks. R


    Having used the Philips Air Fryer for nearly 4 months now I can honestly say its great. It is fast and clean and cooks skinny french fries perfectly. A portion for one person takes 7 mins on max temperature and for double that time for 3 to 4 portions. Breadcrumbed and battered foods are very nice as are non-coated such as fish and chicken portions. My family call it the idiot-prooof machine as it is so easy to use. I saw recently that they are selling them in Dunnes now for €169 which is same price I paid in DID Electric


  • Closed Accounts Posts: 89 ✭✭rupamede


    Antibac wrote: »
    Have the teal actifry. Good for sausages and chips but not great for breaded stuff

    Thanks, I did get the Tefal one.


  • Closed Accounts Posts: 267 ✭✭esharknz


    Antibac wrote: »
    Have the teal actifry. Good for sausages and chips but not great for breaded stuff

    Great for a load of other things too :) Love the risotto recipe and a modified version of the spaghetti bolognese.


  • Closed Accounts Posts: 89 ✭✭rupamede


    JoanyM wrote: »
    Having used the Philips Air Fryer for nearly 4 months now I can honestly say its great. It is fast and clean and cooks skinny french fries perfectly. A portion for one person takes 7 mins on max temperature and for double that time for 3 to 4 portions. Breadcrumbed and battered foods are very nice as are non-coated such as fish and chicken portions. My family call it the idiot-prooof machine as it is so easy to use. I saw recently that they are selling them in Dunnes now for €169 which is same price I paid in DID Electric

    I ended up getting the Actify and am happy with it. Cooks a nice portion of any type of chips in 27 min and more. I still have to cook scampi in the old oven but the Actifry cooks the chicken nuggets perfectly. Also, you can cook many other things in it like proper meals, it comes with a cook book. I did not buy the Philips Air Fryer because having examined it I felt that it is just a portable fan oven. You can do much more with the Tefal Actifry.


  • Registered Users Posts: 38,920 ✭✭✭✭Mellor


    rupamede wrote: »
    I did not buy the Philips Air Fryer because having examined it I felt that it is just a portable fan oven. You can do much more with the Tefal Actifry.

    Are they not pretty much the exact same?


  • Registered Users Posts: 6,125 ✭✭✭beer enigma


    I know a few people on here have bought either the Phillips Airfryer or the Tefal Actifry over the past couple of years and just wondering how with benefit of hindsight are they performing for you ?

    Thinking of buying one, but interested in any limitations on them, are they still as good as you first thought or are they in the back of the cupboard ?

    Thanks


  • Registered Users Posts: 32,370 ✭✭✭✭rubadub


    I would be interested too. A good hypothetical question is, "if it broke would you buy it again" -and I do not mean to factor in the likelihood of it breaking again! -or would you buy something else, like a halogen oven?

    Thing is if people fork out money they might not want to admit its not all that great, and might just use it to feel they are getting value.


  • Registered Users Posts: 23,212 ✭✭✭✭Tom Dunne


    In short: couldn't live without it.

    Possibly one of the best gadgets I have bought, use it practically every day, for a range of dinners (and the occasional breakfast/lunch).


  • Advertisement
  • Registered Users Posts: 6,125 ✭✭✭beer enigma


    Tom Dunne wrote: »
    In short: couldn't live without it.

    Possibly one of the best gadgets I have bought, use it practically every day, for a range of dinners (and the occasional breakfast/lunch).

    which one do you have ?

    Can it cope with things like spring rolls or tempura prawn where the coating is loose/liquid


  • Registered Users Posts: 23,212 ✭✭✭✭Tom Dunne


    Andip wrote: »
    which one do you have ?

    Can it cope with things like spring rolls or tempura prawn where the coating is loose/liquid

    I have the Phillips.

    Spring rolls would be fine, not sure about tempura prawn. The nearest thing I did was boneless buffalo wings (coated chicken chunks - egg, breadcrumbs). No problems at all.


  • Registered Users Posts: 6,125 ✭✭✭beer enigma


    Tom Dunne wrote: »
    I have the Phillips.

    Spring rolls would be fine, not sure about tempura prawn. The nearest thing I did was boneless buffalo wings (coated chicken chunks - egg, breadcrumbs). No problems at all.

    Thanks I guess i was concerned that the coating would be knocked off as my understanding is that the inside rotates and turns the food but if egg and breadcrumbs stay on then it's unfounded


  • Registered Users Posts: 13,016 ✭✭✭✭vibe666


    if it's just chips i'd say the actifry will do a better job as it's turning them over the whole time, but for most other things, i'd go with the phillips air fryer.

    this is as someone with a bit of experience of both who has an actifry at home and who has used the air fryer at the mother in laws a good few times.

    the actifry does a great job of chips (spud or other veg chips), but you really do need the right sort of spuds to get the most from it imho. it also does wicked crisps if you throw in leftover (clean) potato peelings, although they need to be hand cut peelings for it to work properly.

    i've tried a stir fry in it as it seemed like a good idea at the time, but it was a disaster and haven't bothered since.

    thick skinned sausages are grand in it too, but if they're in any way delicate at least one will end up bursting and make a mess of the inside. and you can forget pudding or anything with a coating as they get slowly smashed to bits.

    if i was getting an actifry again, i'd get the 'plus' sized 1.2kg model at least though as the regular 1kg one is just a tad too small for family needs as it is. actually, i'd get the 1.5kg family sized one if i could justify the price, but it's way too expensive for what it does and you could almost buy two 1.2kg ones for the regular price of one 1.5kg one.

    the plus model is on special in argos right now for around the same price you'd normally pay for the regular one (just under €160). they also seem to have the regular sized 800g airfryer for under €135 which seems like a good deal too and even the 1.5kg actifry is down to €240 which compared to the normal price of almost €300 is a bit of a bargain, but still too expensive inho.

    in short, if you're in the market for one, now is a good time to buy at argos. :)

    actually, if i was getting an actifry again, i think i'd get an airfryer instead, but that's because it it better suited to what we cook most. if you were much more of the chippy persuasion, i'd go for the actifry every time. :)


  • Registered Users Posts: 23,212 ✭✭✭✭Tom Dunne


    Andip wrote: »
    Thanks I guess i was concerned that the coating would be knocked off as my understanding is that the inside rotates and turns the food but if egg and breadcrumbs stay on then it's unfounded

    There's no moving parts in the model I have. This is it:
    seduce_airfryer.png

    You literally drop food into a basket (much like you would in a deep-fat fryer), click it in, and away she goes. The only concern really would be drips from the batter, but I don't think that would be a major issue if you had the fryer hot enough prior to putting them in.


  • Registered Users Posts: 6,125 ✭✭✭beer enigma


    Tom Dunne wrote: »
    There's no moving parts in the model I have. This is it:
    seduce_airfryer.png

    You literally drop food into a basket (much like you would in a deep-fat fryer), click it in, and away she goes. The only concern really would be drips from the batter, but I don't think that would be a major issue if you had the fryer hot enough prior to putting them in.

    Ok so it's the actifry that rotates. .. must have a closer look at them as im not a huge chip guy and the airfryer looks fairly handy


  • Registered Users Posts: 21,401 ✭✭✭✭Alun


    I'm at a loss then to understand what makes the Airfryer any different to an ordinary fan oven? I'd imagines that the stirrer in the Actifry was there to ensure that the relatively small amount of oil used was distributed evenly over all the product being fried, but if that's not there how is this achieved?


  • Registered Users Posts: 13,016 ✭✭✭✭vibe666


    As far as I know, it's fine with lots of great and a very strong fan in a similar way to the actifry, just without a paddle to stir it.


  • Registered Users Posts: 6,827 ✭✭✭fred funk }{


    Best thing I have bought in years. We use it several times a day.

    We use it to cook almost everything, bread, chicken, roast potatoes, toasted sambos, even the kids make there own home made chips in it.

    I have the Philips one and couldn't fault it at all, worth every cent.


  • Advertisement
  • Registered Users Posts: 4,818 ✭✭✭Bateman


    I have the Philips one and decided at the last minute last night to take it out and use it for chicken wings instead of deep-frying.

    Nothing can fully replicate deep-frying but the end product is/was more than good enough considering you have the bonus of no mess like when deep frying (I don't have a deep fat frier so have to fill a wok with oil whenever I deep fry).

    I haven't got the knack of making decent chips in it yet though.


Advertisement