Just a reminder - they call it an air fryer, while it’s actually a very small convection oven. It has more directional heat than actual deep fat frying, and as long as you remember that, you’ll do okay. It does cook foods much faster than a conventional oven, and if you have pre-prepped fried foods that have a good bit of oil in the breading, or similar coatings, it does a very good job of giving a final product of quality similar to a DFF.
So, pre-made cut seasoned fries, breaded frozen foods, reheated fried foods from the store, etc? Very good. Homemade options, you’ll need to add a good bit of surface fat (I use a Misto oil atomizer) to get anywhere close to the expected texture.
I still use mine more for the fast cooking/browning with less mess and heat in the house that my conventional oven, but as long as stick to the foods and techniques above, I’m pleased with the performance for quasi-fried food.
But, if you have anything with a wet, or heavy batter (tempura as an example) - nope, doesn’t do that job.
Pre-cooking the chicken at about 155 degrees in a souse vide might give you the texture you are looking for. I have never eaten chic filet so know nothing of the taste,
That’s fully cooked for chicken breast. If I’m roasting a chicken and get a temp that high, I pull it out right away and let it rest a bit, to make sure it’s safe and to keep the moisture in.
Yup.
When we were first married we tried several “fried” dishes, including pork chops. And they tasted great. But it was a lot of work, and they made a mess, and then you have all this used oil lying around. Yeah, you can strain it and re-use it, but the only thing it’s good for is frying something else.
We decided that we could get our fried food from restaurants with fryolators. We saute, simmer, roast, and do a lot of wok cooking. We don’t fry. Well, I made fried potatoes last week because I was cooking duck breasts and had the fat right there. And my husband sometimes makes latkes for the holidays. But it’s a ton of work. Even the potatoes. Parboil, slice the uncomfortably hot spuds, and then watch each slice to make sure it browns without burning. And then clean up all the splatters.
So many fast food places do a decent fried chicken sandwich…
I use a clean Pig Mat on the counter next to my stove when I cook bacon. Pig Mats are used in garages to absorb coolant and oil spills. They’re great to protect counter tops from splatter in kitchens. I reuse the mat later in my garage.
Unfortunately the stove top still needs cleaning. I wouldn’t risk covering a stove top with anything flammable.