If rustling up healthy meals with minimal effort sounds too good to be true, let us introduce you to air fryers. The kitchen gadget not only serves up fried food using little to no oil, but is reccomended as being far more cost effective compared with cookers.
Creating deliciously crispy finishes without having to resort to a deep-fat fryer, the do-it-all kitchen appliance has multiple functions, including dehydrating, roasting, rotisserie and more.
Plus, energy provider Utilita has stated air fryers are more energy-efficient than your usual cooker – which, for example, costs 87p a day to run, while an air fryer will set you back just 14p a day.
With reports the energy price cap could top £7,000 next year, it may be time to invest in one of these handy appliances for your own cooking arsenal. Luckily, Aldi is selling a multi-functional Tefal air fryer to help you make the switch.
Costing £149.99, the air fryer is admittedly more expensive than typical Aldi Specialbuys. But with nine automatic cooking functions, an accompanying free app and a touted hot-air flowing speed up to two times faster than other air fryer brands, it’s a no-brainer to invest. Here’s everything you need to know – including two more IndyBest-approved budget air fryers.
From crispy chips to breakfast hash browns, salmon, chicken, casseroles or pancakes, the low-fat Tefal fryer is your shortcut to healthier meals in less time. Said to have a hot-air flowing speed up to two times faster than other air fryer brands, there’s also an automatic stirring paddle to ensure your food is crisped to perfection on all sides.
With its 1.2kg capacity and six portion capability, there’s more than enough room to rustle up healthy meals for the entire family, while the fryer’s sleek black colourway will slot into your kitchen counter seamlessly. The addition of a transparent glass lid means you can keep an eye on progress, without interrupting your cooking, and there’s also a built-in timer function.
Though the fryer comes with recipes, you can access even more via the free ActiFry app, where you’ll find more than 100 healthy, step-by-step recipes.
With a removable pan and non-stick basket, the appliance will be breeze to clean too.
With the cost of living crisis and energy prices rising at a worrying rate, many people can benefit from a cost-effective air fryer. Research from energy-supplier Utilita and supermarket Iceland have found air fryers are significantly cheaper to run than electric ovens and, according to the same data, using an air fryer could save you roughly £285 a year.
If the Tefal air fryer is slightly out of your budget, fear not, as there are plenty of affordable options in our tried and tested round-up – including two stellar appliances under £100.
Dubbed as the best budget buy in our guide, Progress’s EK4490P air fryer was said to be a “great entry-level machine for rustling up chips without breaking the bank.” Our reviewer praised it as not taking up so little room that you can store it in the cupboard when not in use, while the curved black gloss exterior “would still look neat and slick if it was on show all the time.”
Straightforward to use, there’s a power ready indicator light, digital temperature control and seven cooking pre-sets. “We’d have no complaints with this in our kitchen,” our tester concluded.
Another more affordable option, our tester said Lakeland’s compact fryer is a “fantastic little machine for anyone with a smaller kitchen or those cooking for just one or two people.” They praised it as far smaller than most fryers and one of the quietest to operate.
“Its dinky footprint means you’ll only need to pull it out of the cupboard when it’s needed and it will save you heating a whole oven for every meal,” they said. The pre-sets include one for poultry, fresh fries or veg and frozen fries or veg, while there’s a pause button to stop cooking and check progress or give food a shake.
For more energy saving appliances, we’ve rounded up the best microwaves and slow cookers
