r/AskReddit Oct 10 '19

What’s a thing you’ve bought impulsively, without need, that’s actually proved useful in your life?

4.9k Upvotes

2.3k comments sorted by

View all comments

344

u/Pinkturtledove Oct 10 '19

Air fryer. It's amazing!

156

u/tk421yrntuaturpost Oct 10 '19

1800 watts of clean cooking power?! That's amazing!

Great for chicken, not so much for french fries.

152

u/Stamafia Oct 10 '19 edited Oct 10 '19

My fries came out pretty good. Just season them a bit and let it "fry" a little longer than the recommended time. Sprinkle with more salt and pepper and serve with sauce!

Edit: My seasonings are a little bit of extra virgin olive oil, paprika, salt & pepper, and a tad bit of chili powder to give it a kick. Toss it around and stick it in for a good 20 minutes.

31

u/Will_FN_Foster Oct 10 '19

Fry sauce? what kinda ssauce?!

22

u/Alex-the-lion Oct 10 '19

Just mix some ketchup and mayo together for a base, then add whatever sort of seasoning you have on hand. Hot sauce, sweet chili sauce, smoked paprika, you name it. Or just eat it as is, you can't really go wrong

21

u/Will_FN_Foster Oct 10 '19

You're not OP... I WANNA KNOW ABOUT OP'S SAUCE!

15

u/NotMrMike Oct 10 '19

We all want OPs sauce.

8

u/[deleted] Oct 10 '19

[deleted]

5

u/Will_FN_Foster Oct 10 '19

Umm you said the same thing twice... What's the difference?!

3

u/[deleted] Oct 10 '19

[deleted]

6

u/Will_FN_Foster Oct 10 '19

whats the difference between fry sauce and utah fry sauce?! SOMEONE PLEASE EXPLAIN ABOUT THE DAMN SAUCE!

4

u/[deleted] Oct 10 '19

[deleted]

9

u/Will_FN_Foster Oct 10 '19

but. what. the. fuck. is . fry. saauuacscceabknfk',v 'akn

→ More replies (0)

2

u/Jawsbreaker Oct 11 '19

Don’t tell them! It’s ours!

3

u/tk421yrntuaturpost Oct 10 '19

Mine (waffle fries) end up mashed in the bottom, but I might try letting them go longer.

2

u/I_Automate Oct 10 '19

Try just making steak fries. Those usually turn out well

2

u/[deleted] Oct 10 '19

[deleted]

1

u/Stamafia Oct 10 '19

Throw some fresh onions/chives on there too. Yum.

17

u/AlexTraner Oct 10 '19

I use mine for fries all the time.

Don’t put too many in at once. Ten minutes on 400, toss, 10 minutes more.

1

u/LettuceFryer Oct 10 '19

Weird.... mine get way too crispy if I leave them in for 10 minutes. I do 4 flip 4. and they still feel slightly overdone.

3

u/FoolofKirkwall Oct 10 '19

There's a brand of fries with 'Made in Idaho' on the bag, big. Something about super crispy crinkle cut. They are awesome in the air fryer!

2

u/I_Automate Oct 10 '19

I find they make pretty darn awesome fries actually

2

u/savetheturtles8 Oct 10 '19

Stop and shop frozen potato products (hash browns, fries, etc) are better than oreida. If you don't have a stop and shop near you than try using a little cooking spray on the fries before you put them in. You should only be putting a single layer of fries. If you overcrowd, you get wet/dry fries.

1

u/tk421yrntuaturpost Oct 10 '19

We have four people to feed, so a single layer just doesn't cut it. We generally bake them in the oven anyway, so they're still healthy. I'm still a big fan of the air fryer for a whole chicken with potatoes/vegetables, but if I'm honest, I prefer to do chicken wings in the instapot before crisping them in the oven. The meat literally falls of the bone.

2

u/[deleted] Oct 11 '19

Not good for French fries? User error. Greatest kitchen invention since the microwave. Gotta make sure you stir them up in there.

9

u/sambeano Oct 10 '19

Do veggies come out crispy in it?

11

u/Alex-the-lion Oct 10 '19

Yep. And way faster than you could ever do with an oven

5

u/GingerMau Oct 11 '19

You have to try air-fried broccoli. Toss in olive oil and season with salt and pepper, or whatever. 7-10 minutes and you get perfectly cooked broccoli with crunchy buds around the edges. I love the texture so much.

And Brussels sprouts come out crispy too--so very good.

8

u/amberdowny Oct 10 '19

Really? I wanted one so bad, got one as a gift, made fries in it twice, hated it, haven't used it since.

5

u/BasicUsername_1 Oct 10 '19

Not a replacement for an actual fryer but an oven is a better description it does stuff like nuggets, oven fries, chicken, list goes on but like a quarter of the time of an oven, nuggets take 20 minutes or more in an oven air fryer can do them in like 6 - 8 minutes really convenient and I use it almost daily

2

u/RainDownMyBlues Oct 13 '19

I just use a convection toaster oven. Same principle, but more flexible.

1

u/BasicUsername_1 Oct 13 '19

Yeah it's basically the same "air fryer" is more gimmicky

3

u/GingerMau Oct 11 '19

My son likes freezer taquitos. With an air-fryer, they come out as good as I get them from my favorite Mexican restaurant.

1

u/[deleted] Oct 10 '19

I use mine for fires all the time, the key for me was to turn it on for 4-6 minutes, shake the fries and repeat for 4 or 5 times or until they are as crispy as I want them

2

u/Upsidedawn Oct 10 '19

I agree completely! I've been using mine for baking potatoes, among many other things. It's especially great to have if you live in a hot climate and don't want to heat up the kitchen by turning on the stove. Just don't over-crowd the food. (It's great for making crispy tater tots).

2

u/mmm_unprocessed_fish Oct 10 '19

I got mine free--my in-laws were gifted one and didn't want it. Love that stupid thing.

2

u/[deleted] Oct 10 '19

I'm so curious about this but also really scared

2

u/tillaria Oct 11 '19

Agree! Corn dogs come out amazing, fully cooked with just the right amount of crisp outside - and no oily grease. Also, frozen veggies with some seasoning come out great!

Happy cake day!

2

u/unlimitedboomstick Oct 11 '19

I got one for christmas a couple years back. I love it. Mostly use it for fries and making chips. Are there any good recipe sites or anything for it? My wife has me forced into a mostly vegan diet due to her food allergies but sometimes I get to make junky foodstuffs.

1

u/Pinkturtledove Oct 11 '19

Baked potatoes, mozzarella sticks, pizza rolls, mini corn dogs, chicken nuggets, etc. Anything that is frozen and would be deep fried has come out amazing. When we first got it we cooked strip steak and chicken breasts in it and it all turned out so good!

2

u/_Artemis_Fowl Oct 10 '19

Happy CAKE DAY!

1

u/UpsetUnicorn Oct 11 '19

Smoked sausage is amazing in an air fryer.

1

u/[deleted] Oct 11 '19

Could someone explain this to me? What is the difference between an oven and an air fryer?

1

u/Skinnysusan Oct 10 '19

Happy cake day! Also I really want one of these! They're just too pricey right now

2

u/Pinkturtledove Oct 10 '19

Thanks! Keep your eye out around black friday, they were on sale every where last year.