— Use air fryer for small batches, snacks, frozen foods, reheating, or for crispy finish when you don’t need much capacity.
— Use oven for larger quantities, baking, roasting, dishes requiring gentle heating, or when you want to cook multiple items at once.
Don’t Overfill / Ensure Airflow
— Make sure that food isn’t crowding the basket; leave space so air circulates. Overcrowded baskets reduce crispness and increase cooking time. Groceries
Woman & Home
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— Grease buildup, food residue, dirty heating elements increase risk of smoke, fire, reduced performance. Experts recommend light cleaning after every use, and deep cleaning regularly.
JOE.co.uk
— Follow safety instructions (leave space around device, don’t cover vents, avoid plugging into overloaded extension cords).
Electrical Safety First
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— Because air fryers cook faster and more intensely near the heating element, you often need to reduce temperature (by ~10‑20°C / 25‑50°F) and check food earlier. Recipes designed for ovens need adaptation.
Cookology
Choose Quality Appliances
— Buy air fryers with good safety certifications, good build quality, reliable fans, good non‑stick surfaces. Cheaper models may have higher risk.
Kitchen Advising
+1Kitchen supplies
Specific Cases / Examples of Where Things Go Wrong
To illustrate, here are real or hypothetical examples where using an air fryer in place of an oven leads to problems.
Batch‑cooking root vegetables for a large family: If you try to roast a full tray of potatoes, carrots, etc., in an air fryer basket, you’ll either overload (poor airflow → soggy / uneven) or have to do several batches. Multiple rounds reduce the time advantage, maybe even costing more energy/hassle than using an oven with a convection setting.
Baking cakes / bread: Trying to bake a tall cake in an air fryer may result in crust overcooking, center undercooking, shape limitations. Ovens are better for stable surrounding heat.
Cooking for multiple people / dinner events: If you need to cook meats, side dishes, vegetables simultaneously, the oven allows layering and multiple racks; air fryer is usually single basket, limited space.
Safety issue from prolonged, frequent use: If an air fryer is used day after day without cleaning, with grease buildup, or overheating, there’s risk of damage, fire hazards, or reduction of appliance lifespan.
Energy cost miscalculations: Some users assume the air fryer is always “cheaper”, but wattage and usage patterns (how long, how many batches) matter. For example, a high‑wattage air fryer left on for long times or used for large loads can draw as much power as an oven. Martin Lewis’s warnings illustrate that in some cases, it’s more cost effective to use the oven once than multiple air fryer uses.
JOE.co.uk
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