Air Fryer Cooking

[olbriar]

Let me know how it works. I like the looks of that over what I have.

I received the Evo mister yesterday. I filled it with hot soapy water and put a good clean on the bottle and sprayer. I am impressed with the fan spray but it might be a bit large. Spraying it in the sink it produces a nice even fan mist that a person will have to be fairly close to the food or basket to prevent over spray. It will be a learning curve to know how fast to travel across the subject as well. All a matter of familiarization. I think it will be a great tool but I have only a long line of cheap sprayers to compare it to. It's definitely an upgrade to what I've used for years.

Looks like chicken! I'd probably eat that if you didn't tell me what it was.
I was forced to eat fish on Fridays as a child.

Forced to eat anything will produce a negative attitude. I love fish but rarely had it as a child. It's availability was pretty limited in Kansas. Breaded fish sticks and shrimp was the basic choices. Both were good however back in the day. McDondalds started selling a fish burger in the mid to late sixties that was cod and very good. By the late seventies or early eighties they moved onto some other fish that wasn't nearly as tasty. There were some franchise eateries selling fish by the late sixties around here that served good cod. They degraded to the point they weren't an option as well.
With quality buying options limited, I took up fishing and spent most weekends setting lines fishing for flathead and channel cats. The cost per pound of fish was astronomical, ask my wife. However, the cats satisfied my love for fresh fish for a couple of decades. I finally had to give up the sport for lack of funds and time.
Sam's club and Costco entered the scene about that time selling fresh caught Atlantic cod.
They have been my fish fix since. Now I seek a healthier way to prepare breaded fish and I think the air fryer is the answer.
I apologize for rambling on so but I'd rather eat quality fried flathead or cod than a quality steak. I'm sorry your youth spoiled that for you.

 

[dontpanicbobby]

@olbriar Fried Catfish is what restored my faith in fish. It was made Georgia style though if that's actually a thing.

Have you tried any ribs in it? Airfry then grill them.

 

[olbriar]

@olbriar Fried Catfish is what restored my faith in fish. It was made Georgia style though if that's actually a thing.

Have you tried any ribs in it? Airfry then grill them.

Fried catfish is wonderful! My go to fry was oddly enough a spiced pancake batter. I used Harold Ensley's fish seasoning for spice. Too much of it hid the taste of the fish. It made a great fish crust.

I have not tried to cook ribs in the air fryer. The air fryer is too small for a full rack for one thing.
I normally smoke two or more racks when smoking for it's impossible to eat just a couple of smoked ribs. Ribs deserve to be smoked. I've slow baked them in the oven but they don't compare to smoked for my liking.

 

[ocnbrze]

Fried catfish is wonderful! My go to fry was oddly enough a spiced pancake batter. I used Harold Lensley's fish seasoning for spice. Too much of it hid the taste of the fish. It made a great fish crust.

I have not tried to cook ribs in the air fryer. The air fryer is too small for a full rack for one thing.
I normally smoke two or more racks when smoking for it's impossible to eat just a couple of smoked ribs. Ribs deserve to be smoked. I've slow baked them in the oven but they don't compare to smoked for my liking.

and grilling is not even close to smoking the ribs......in which i'm sorely missing out right now. nned to get into the game with a smoker.....i'm still eying the masterbuilt smoker maybe when i get my tax returns i'll use that to buy it.

 

[olbriar]

Stimulus my friend... stimulus Some things simply cry out to be smoked. As much as you enjoy cooking you will love smoking. I'm anxious for you.

 

[Unforgiven]

Ribs deserve to be smoked. I've slow baked them in the oven but they don't compare to smoked for my liking.

So this got me thinking. I'll literally be able to toss a bag of fries in the air fryer while I'm resting my ribs after a smoke and be sure to plate all at the same time.

 

[olbriar]

Fries are simply wonderful in the air fryer! That sounds like a great plan!!!!

 

[ocnbrze]

So this got me thinking. I'll literally be able to toss a bag of fries in the air fryer while I'm resting my ribs after a smoke and be sure to plate all at the same time.

Fries are simply wonderful in the air fryer! That sounds like a great plan!!!!

i like potato wedges better. i guess similar to fries, but it is thicker and can be just as crunchy.

 

[olbriar]

Now I'm hungry Tonight neither smoker or air fryer will be used. I'm making pork lo mein and fried rice. I'm using left over pork steak I smoked the other day. I sliced and diced the leftover pork and sealed it up for this cook.

I grew up on fried potatoes. They were pan fried and some kind of wonderful but less than healthy. We never did frozen potatoes... always scratch.

 

[dontpanicbobby]

Fried catfish is wonderful! My go to fry was oddly enough a spiced pancake batter. I used Harold Lensley's fish seasoning for spice. Too much of it hid the taste of the fish. It made a great fish crust.

I have not tried to cook ribs in the air fryer. The air fryer is too small for a full rack for one thing.
I normally smoke two or more racks when smoking for it's impossible to eat just a couple of smoked ribs. Ribs deserve to be smoked. I've slow baked them in the oven but they don't compare to smoked for my liking.

Well I buy fire grilled ribs sandwiches from a sub shop in a bus terminal. ARIZONA BARBECUE, Dudley now Nubian Station. I think it's more about the sauce.
Are the ribs to long or do you want to cook them all at once @olbriar? You do have cleaver, yes?

 

[Unforgiven]

Are the ribs to long or do you want to cook them all at once @olbriar?

Definitely too long and I'd say yes to the second part.

 

[Unforgiven]

Now I'm hungry Tonight neither smoker or air fryer will be used. I'm making pork lo mein and fried rice. I'm using left over pork steak I smoked the other day. I sliced and diced the leftover pork and sealed it up for this cook.

I grew up on fried potatoes. They were pan fried and some kind of wonderful but less than healthy. We never did frozen potatoes... always scratch.

Me too, I think I see some 3-2-1, homemade slaw, and fries this weekend if I can get my hands on some ribs tonight.

 

[olbriar]

Me too, I think I see some 3-2-1, homemade slaw, and fries this weekend if I can get my hands on some ribs tonight.

You've got me in the rib mood and fries mode as well. Should be a fun football weekend and with ribs and fries even better.

 

[dontpanicbobby]

OT: CHOP!

 

[olbriar]

I fried my first batch of fresh cut fries tonight. I soaked them for an hour in cold water then dried and sprayed the fries with avocado oil. I was led to believe I was looking at a 12-15 minute cook but I pulled them after 18 minutes. They could have cooked a couple of minutes more but my burger was ready to eat. Next time I'll try ramping up the temp or increase the time. I fried them at 400° this time. They were completely cooked through but weren't all that crispy.

 

[olbriar]

I realize this morning that I messed up my french fry cook last night. Per air fryer instructions the fry basket should always be used sitting on top of the cooking drip tray. When putting the cleaned basket back into the fryer this morning I see that I cooked my fries with the basket on the rack instead.
So don't use my cooking times as a fry reference. The suggested cook time might be far closer to accurate if I had cooked them like I was supposed to.

 

[ocnbrze]

so i found that i can get soggy hours old fries crispy and that was to air fry them for 5 minutes or so depending on how soggy and old they were.

 

[olbriar]

so i found that i can get soggy hours old fries crispy and that was to air fry them for 5 minutes or so depending on how soggy and old they were.

I read that on the net. Actually it said that you could get McDonald's fries done to perfection.
I was thinking about KFC. We have one in town and their chicken is never quite done. I quit buying it years ago. When I had kids at home and they insisted on KFC, I'd buy a bucket and put them on the smoker. They would take on some smoke and I'd get them done. I think an air fryer would do the same.. and faster.

 

[ocnbrze]

I read that on the net. Actually it said that you could get McDonald's fries done to perfection.
I was thinking about KFC. We have one in town and their chicken is never quite done. I quit buying it years ago. When I had kids at home and they insisted on KFC, I'd buy a bucket and put them on the smoker. They would take on some smoke and I'd get them done. I think an air fryer would do the same.. and faster.

so we had Japanese food yesterday. and today i had some leftover tempura that was totally soggy and gross. i popped it in the air fryer and i had crispy tempura for lunch today.....first time trying that and it will most likely not be the last.

i never tried Mickey D's fries in the air fryer as most of the time they are all gone so there was no need to air fry it.....LOL its probably my main fastfood addiction....their fries. plus i think they are usually pretty crispy anyways.

 

[olbriar]

so we had Japanese food yesterday. and today i had some leftover tempura that was totally soggy and gross. i popped it in the air fryer and i had crispy tempura for lunch today.....first time trying that and it will most likely not be the last.

i never tried Mickey D's fries in the air fryer as most of the time they are all gone so there was no need to air fry it.....LOL its probably my main fastfood addiction....their fries. plus i think they are usually pretty crispy anyways.

The air fryer might well be the best tool for leftovers.
We rarely do fast food. McDonalds is likely on a less than once every two year schedule. I was once a big fan of their fries until they made them healthier. We have two stores in town and neither one cooks their fries any where close to crisp. They are soggy and limp when you first get them. Take them home to eat and they are uneatable. The air fryer to the rescue.

 

[olbriar]

Tonight I'm doing boneless skinless thighs in the air fryer. I plan to rub them with an Italian seasoning and a dust of lemon pepper and paprika. I plan to pat the thighs dry and then mist with avocado oil. I'll then apply my rub and fry for 12-15 minutes at 375° flipping half way through the cook. If the boneless skinless thighs turn out like I want, I see a garlic chicken in my future. I might try my bacon wrapped jalapeno stuffed thighs too.

 

[olbriar]

The chicken thighs turned out great! I ended up with more lemon pepper and less Italian seasoning for rub. I'm no longer afraid of boneless skinless thighs in the air fryer. I fried seven thighs but two flew out of the basket faster than I could get my phone out of my pocket.

 

[olbriar]

In an attempt to learn more about my air fryer I cooked frozen pizza tonight. Keep in mind that I've never eaten a frozen pizza in my life until now. I bought Tombstone frozen pizzas that were three for ten bucks. The store had many to choose from and not knowing I went with Tombstone. I'd enjoy recommendations for I'll be buying more pies. I used to make pizzas from scratch years ago but finally drifted into the groove of ordering. What I most frequently buy costs $30 delivered. It's a better pie but I don't think it is ten times better. The air fryer did a great job cooking the pizza. The preset temp and time, 400° and 10 minutes respectively, was just a little long or hot. Pulling the pizza at nine minutes seemed just right for me. Please school me up on the best frozen pizza. I'll definitely be doing more pies at home.

 

[Unforgiven]

OK, this air fryer thing is amazing. I'll skip some of the other meal shortcuts that I've used it for and go to what I made for dinner tonight. Bone in pork chops. I spritzed with maybe 1/2 tbsp of olive oil and dusted with fresh ground pepper and kosher salt. Preheated to 400 and cooked for 9ish minutes. Instant read thermometer between 160 - 174 between the chops and they were juicy, full of flavor, and perfect. Mind you my previous method of cooking them was with a stick of butter and several cloves of garlic in a cast iron skillet and they still taste better from here. I'll probably incorporate some fresh garlic in the future, but this was an experiment.

Spoiler: Prepped

Spoiler: Cooked

 

[Unforgiven]

In an attempt to learn more about my air fryer I cooked frozen pizza tonight. Keep in mind that I've never eaten a frozen pizza in my life until now. I bought Tombstone frozen pizzas that were three for ten bucks. The store had many to choose from and not knowing I went with Tombstone. I'd enjoy recommendations for I'll be buying more pies. I used to make pizzas from scratch years ago but finally drifted into the groove of ordering. What I most frequently buy costs $30 delivered. It's a better pie but I don't think it is ten times better. The air fryer did a great job cooking the pizza. The preset temp and time, 400° and 10 minutes respectively, was just a little long or hot. Pulling the pizza at nine minutes seemed just right for me. Please school me up on the best frozen pizza. I'll definitely be doing more pies at home.

Home cooked pizza's for me lately have been homemade in cast iron. I even purchased 14" cast iron pizza pans. That said, I'm partial do DiGiorno frozen pizzas. I'm not sure why, maybe it's variety or price. I like the rising crust.