Air fryers have become a common household gadget, making the cooking process a whole lot easier and leaving less things to clean around – and if you don’t own one, are you living under a rock? However, there’s still one common mistake that a lot of people make, and an expert has named how to avoid it.
Air fryer expert and cookbook author, Clare Andrews, revealed the “common blunders” that people make when using air fryers, The Mirror reported. Don’t worry, everyone has been through it – but now you’ll be able to avoid it by following a very simple instruction.
She joked: “One thing for sure, I have certainly learned my lesson the hard way! And I’m here to help you, so you don’t make the same mistakes that I did in the past.”
Clare explained that whenever cooking in an air fryer, it’s common for people to “overfill” their baskets. However, this should be avoided at all costs.
She explained that by doing so, it might cause the food to come out tasting gross with a funny texture.
“This can be a problem as air fryers rely on rapid air circulation to cook food evenly and if you overcrow the basket, that can block the hot air from reaching your food and circulating properly,” she said. “Which can lead to soggy textures and unevenly cooked food.”
It’s also very important to clean the air fryer regularly, revealing that she used to neglect the task, which is a mistake that she’ll “never make again.”
Clare shared: “As tempting as it may seem to leave it for another day, this can cause a build-up of grease and crumbs leading to burnt residues, which can cause smoke and sometimes a rather unpleasant odour.”
“This, of course, can also lead to your air fryer not performing as it should, and the longevity of your machine. If you don’t fancy cleaning every time, certain foods can be cooked in a silicone liner and even oven-proof dishes.”
The author also said to have had a “fair share of disasters” during her cooking, saying that once she had first gotten an air fryer, she experimented with different foods and recipes. She even warned people against trying to make a “version of deep-fried Mars bar,” which created a mess everywhere.
Those wanting “lovely and crispy” food from the air fryer, she explained another common mistake. She concluded: “Another frequent mistake is not shaking the basket or turning your food halfway through the cooking time. Doing this will ensure your food is lovely and crispy all over.”
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