Día Prime de Amazon Aún no ha salido, pero está a punto de salir. Mientras esperamos el 16 de julio, se avecinan algunas ofertas anticipadas. Por ejemplo, la freidora de aire Breville Smart Oven Pro 25 por ciento de descuento, lo que redujo el costo a $300. Este es el mejor precio que hemos visto en todo el año en este modelo en particular.
Prevemente
Eso es un 25 por ciento de descuento y es el mejor precio que hemos visto en todo el año.
Esta no es la típica combinación de freidora y horno. Lo hemos incluido en nuestra lista de los mejores. Las mejores freidoras de aire Por muy buenas razones. Se trata de un dispositivo enorme, de más de un pie cúbico de tamaño, lo que conlleva ventajas y desventajas. La desventaja es que es grande y ocupará mucho espacio en la cocina. En el lado positivo, este electrodoméstico puede cocinar un pavo entero o acomodar una olla de cinco cuartos con facilidad. Es mejor pensar en él como un segundo horno principal y será especialmente útil durante las vacaciones.
Aparte del tamaño, este dispositivo tiene enormes capacidades. Prepara los ingredientes de forma crujiente y tiene muchas ventajas más allá de freír al aire. Incluye una variedad de modos de cocción, que incluyen asado, parrilla, horneado, pizza e incluso deshidratado. Es una ventanilla única para cocinar. En total, existen 13 de estos modos de cocción.
Un extraño inconveniente de este dispositivo es que no ofrece ninguna conectividad de aplicaciones ni ninguna función inteligente. Esto es extraño porque la palabra inteligente está en su nombre. Otro inconveniente es el alto precio, pero $300 es mucho mejor que $400, especialmente si tienes una familia numerosa y hambrienta.
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Hash browns don’t always get enough credit for just how versatile they can be. They’re a rare food that can be easily enjoyed at breakfast, lunch and dinner, or even as a snack. I’ve tried various different ways to air fryer a potato but in all my years testing the best air fryers, I’ve never tried to make air fryer hash browns – until now.
Inspired by the classic McDonald’s hash browns, this recipe uses just three main ingredients and air fries in 20 mins. Below, I show how easy and cheap it is to make your own hash browns at home, no matter what time of day you want to enjoy them.
A quick note to American readers: these are what we’d call hash browns in Britain – namely, a grated potato mix that’s molded into a puck shape and fried (or in this case, air fried). Traditionally, we’d eat these for breakfast, but really they’re delicious any time.
Air fryer hash browns
The air fryer hash browns recipe I have followed is from @chef_bimecruz via his TikTok channel. It’s already been watched by 390k people, and counting.
This recipe is super simple and you can use any type of potato. My favorite are russets but any starchy potato, like a maris piper or King Edward if you’re in the UK, will also work well.
White potatoes
1 Tbsp Cornstarch
1 small egg, or vegan alternative (whisked)
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp pepper
Garlic powder (optional)
(Image credit: Future)
To make air fryer hash browns you will need the following:
Air fryer hash browns: method
Step 1: Peel the potatoes and add them to a pot of water.
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Step 2: Bring the water to the boil and boil for seven minutes.
Step 3: Remove them from the water and leave them to cool slightly.
(Image credit: Future)
Step 4: Once cooled, grate the potatoes into a medium-sized bowl.
Step 5: Add the whisk and cornstarch and mix well. The mixture should be sticky enough to form into balls. If the mixture is too wet, add small amounts of cornstarch and mix until it comes together.
(Image credit: Future)
Step 6: Make small balls of hash brown mixture and flatten into your desired shape and thickness. The thinner the hash browns, the crunchier they’ll be.
(Image credit: Future)
Step 6: Set the air fryer to 375°F / 190°C and cook the hash browns for 20 minutes.
Step 7: After 10 minutes, flip the hash browns over.
(Image credit: Future)
Step 8: Once the 20 minutes are up, check the hash browns are cooked all the way through and serve.
If the hash browns are thick, the potato can take a little longer to soften in the center. If this happens, you may need to return them to the air fryer for an five extra minutes at a time until you’re happy with them.
Air fryer hash browns: verdict
For someone who loves hash browns at any time of day, at any time of year, I’m surprised it’s taken me this long to try making air fryer hash browns at home. But I’m so glad I did because these are almost close to perfect.
Boiling the potatoes at the beginning not only speeds up the air fryer cooking time, but as they cool the potato becomes starchy and sticky. This helps the hash browns keep their shape.
The original recipe added garlic powder but I’m a traditionalist and prefer them with just salt and pepper. I also like them when they’re thin and crispy, although my children like them thicker so it depends on your personal tastes.
Granted they don’t taste exactly like McDonald’s hash browns because they haven’t been deep fried, but they’re remarkably close.
(Image credit: Future)
Air fryer deals
If you’re wondering whether to buy an air fryer, you may want to read our article to decide whether air fryers are worth it? And if you do decide to go for it, here are the best deals on our top-rated air fryers:
The Ninja Double Stack air fryer demonstrates once again that the brand is king of convection cooking, offering blazing cooking speeds in a clever form factor that serves to address the needs of smaller households and keen cooks the world over. Without a doubt, it’s one of the best air fryers I’ve ever used – and I’ve used a fair few at this point.
Shopping for the perfect air fryer can leave you feeling a bit like Goldilocks, and especially if counter space is at a premium in your kitchen. A two-drawer model like the Instant Vortex 9-quart Air Fryer with VersaZone technology might be perfect for the number of mouths you typically have to feed, but these are typically behemoths. Alternatively, you could opt for one of the best small air fryers, but then these often have a meager, sometimes single-portion only capacity.
It’s been my perennial issue as a single-person household that regularly has guests. My kitchen is fairly compact, so I’ve been incredibly limited for space when I’ve tested larger models like the Ninja Foodi FlexBasket Dual Air Fryer. That’s why since I learned about the Ninja Double Stack air fryer – styled as the DoubleStack in the US – I’ve been itching to get my hands on it.
(Image credit: Future)
As the name suggests, the Ninja Double Stack air fryer stacks its two cooking drawers stop one another instead of side by side, as we tend to see in dual-basket air fryers. Instead of a top- or front-mounted dashboard, a small panel juts out to the right side of the device, hosting all the functions and controls you’ll need to operate the Double Stack. Plus, Ninja has even thrown in two extra racks, which can be slotted in above the main crisper plate, giving you bonus surface area to cook with – though the grill spacing makes these far better for larger food items.
Just like other products in the Ninja line, I saw great results from the Double Stack air fryer, from delicious fluffy fries to perfectly crispy chicken and succulent salmon. It should be no surprise, but I was concerned before trying the device that the cooking quality may have been compromised by the new design. Thankfully, there were no cooking compromises that I could detect. The only real down-side is the price, which is on the high side for a dual-basket air fryer – but for those who need to protect their previous counter space, it’s well worth the extra cost. Here’s my full review.
Ninja Double Stack air fryer review: price & availability
List price: XL (8.3qt / 9.5L): $229.99 / £269.99 / AU TBC
Availability: UK and US – Australia TBC
At time of writing, the Ninja Double Stack is available in the UK and US. In its XL 8.3qt / 9.5L capacity, it has a list price of $229.99 / £269.99. Availability and pricing in Australia is TBC. There should also be a standard, 6.7qt / 7.6L model to go alongside the XL model reviewed here, but since the devices were first announced earlier this year, we haven’t heard anything about it.
The Double Stack XL is a fair bit more expensive than comparable double-drawer air fryers like the Instant Vortex 9-quart air fryer, which costs $199.95 / £199.99 / AU$399, but for the price difference, you get an as of writing one-of-a-kind device offering superior performance and maximum air frying potential.
It comes with two non-stick, dishwasher-safe drawers and crisper plates, two stainless steel racks and a recipe guide.
Value for money score: 4.5 out of 5
Ninja Double Stack air fryer specs
Swipe to scroll horizontally
Dimensions (H x W x D)
XL version: 15.1 x 11 x 18.5in / 38.5cm x 28cm x 47cm
Capacity
XL version: 8.3qt / 9.5L
Cooking modes
Air Fry, Max Crisp, Roast, Bake, Dehydrate, Reheat
Weight
22.7lb / 10.3kg
Dishwasher safe baskets?
Yes
Product code
US: SL401 / UK: SL400UK / AU: TBC
Ninja Double Stack air fryer review: design
Space-efficient design, with two drawers stacked vertically
Side-mounted dashboard
Two extra stainless steel racks doubles the cooking space
For anyone with a smaller kitchen or who prefers a more compact setup, the Ninja Double Stack is a revelation. It’s the first air fryer to stack two drawers vertically to optimize counter space, and the inclusion of its two stainless steel racks doubles the surface area available for cooking. The air fryer is available in one colorway; a sophisticated slate gray shell, with ridged silver handles. It’s simple and subtle, and I personally prefer that to the glossy black cladding many air fryers opt for.
(Image credit: Future)
To account for those who might have lower-hanging cabinets, the controls for the Double Stack are mounted to the right of the air fryer, which does add 2in / 5cm to the overall width. However, it’s fairly unobtrusive, and unless you plan on having the right side of the air fryer flush to the wall shouldn’t pose a problem (reminder that you should be leaving at least 5 inches of space around an air fryer if you don’t want to make one of the biggest mistakes of air fryer cooking).
The side panel offers all the usual Ninja air fryer features. There’s a screen at the top which shows the timer for each drawer as well as the temperature setting. Beneath are numbered buttons to individually control each drawer, as well as a list of the six presets for air frying, roasting, max crisp, reheating, baking and dehydrating. Each setting has a light indicator next to it to show which mode is currently selected, and you can tweak the settings using the temperature and time buttons in tandem with the roller dial. Lastly, you’ll find the Double Stack Pro, Sync and Match buttons above the power and stop / start buttons.
(Image credit: Future)
Its two dishwasher-friendly 5qt / 4.75L baskets have individual handles, so you can fully manage each drawer independently. However, if you’re using the two stainless steel trays on top of the base crisper plates, it might be a little more annoying to flip and adjust your food mid-cooking cycle. Ninja has made efforts to ease this slight drawback by adding handles to the trays, making them nice and easy to quickly remove.
It’s worth noting that the back of the baskets each have a grate with fairly large holes, so it’s not suitable for cooking high volumes of liquid – we recommend against cooking these kinds of dishes in an air fryer instead of one of the best instant pots, regardless, but some users do like to break convention. These holes also mean that if you shake particularly oily, batter-laden or otherwise messy foods, some liquid may splash behind the baskets onto the back of the air fryer. It’s a very small issue judging by my testing so far, so long as you keep on top of cleaning the Double Stack.
Ninja Double Stack air fryer review: performance
Same fantastic performance as other Ninja air fryers
Perfectly crisp chicken wings and fluffy fries
Time and effort-saving Sync and Match settings
Before I tested the Ninja Double Stack air fryer, I was a little dubious about how its performance would hold up against other Ninja models I’ve tested. Surely, there would be a compromise to vertically stacking the drawers, otherwise, it would have been done far sooner, right?
Thankfully that doesn’t seem to be the case with the Double Stack. Everything I cooked came out just as good as I’d expected, with perfectly crispy chicken wings without the need for a drop of oil, and gorgeous fluffy fries with the perfect amount of bite. There was a small degree of unevenness; fries towards the back of the basket cooked ever so slightly faster than the front, but it was to such a small degree I don’t think most users would notice.
(Image credit: Future)
The Double Stack offers six cooking modes – Air Fry, Max Crisp, Roast, Bake, Dehydrate, and Reheat – all of which work just as well as in other Ninja air fryers. The different modes all have different temperature and time limits, but the Double Stack can reach temperatures of 450F / 240C and cook for up to an hour. It doesn’t require pre-heating, meaning you can get straight to cooking.
Food cooked on the stainless steel trays seems to fare just as well, though you do lose the benefit of the crisp trays’ surface area. For some foods, that’s a benefit; you don’t always want foods to cook via contact as well as convection, which was definitely the case for the chicken wings I cooked across both types of trays.
(Image credit: Future)
You’ll also have to think about the overall temperature setting of each basket and put foods with like-for-like cooking times and temperatures in each basket, or open up the trays to add in food later. This can be slightly annoying at times; I had to strategically plan how I cooked four tapas dishes to make sure I’d optimized both the strengths and weaknesses of both types of tray, as well as the cooking times and temperatures of each dish. It’d still opt for this rather than heating up a whole oven, though.
(Image credit: Future)
In case you’re new to the world of Ninja air fryers, it’s worth highlighting the Sync and Match cooking modes, which work to ensure your food all comes out at the same time. Simply select your cooking mode, set your time and, if you’re synchronizing the two baskets, select the cooking times for each, and you’re all set.
Unlike other dual-drawer models I’ve tested, including Ninja’s Instant Vortex 9-quart air fryer, there’s virtually no heat leakage between the two trays, which is excellent news if you’re working with very precise foods or just don’t want to waste energy by passively heating two areas when you only need one.
(Image credit: Future)
On the down-side, you can’t cook larger foods like pizzas or whole chickens in the Double Stack like you can in wider air fryers with larger cooking cavities. It’s the natural trade-off with its smaller footprint, and there are plenty of options that do cater to that need, if that’s your priority. While Ninja claims the XL model I tested can feed eight people, I’d say that’s a little ambitious unless you’re padding out the meal with non-air fryer foods too.
Performance score: 5 out of 5
Should I buy the Ninja Double Stack air fryer?
Buy it if…
Don’t buy it if…
Ninja Double Stack air fryer: alternatives to consider
Swipe to scroll horizontally
Header Cell – Column 0
Ninja Double Stack XL
Ninja Foodi FlexBasket Dual Air Fryer
Instant Vortex 9-quart Air Fryer with VersaZone Technology
Price:
$229.99 / £269.99 / AU TBC
$199 / £270 / AU$599.99
$199.95 / £199.99 / AU$399
Dimensions (h x w x d):
XL: 15.1 x 11 x 18.5in / 38.5 x 28 x 47cm
12.9 x 19.5 x 12.4in / 32.7 x 49.6 x 31.6cm
15.9 x 12.5 x 15.1in / 40.3 x 31.7 x 38.4cm
Capacity:
XL: 8.3qt / 9.5L
9.15qt / 10.4L
7.5qt / 8.5L
Weight:
22.7lb / 10.3kg
20.8lb / 9.3kg
15.7lb / 7kg
Dishwasher-safe baskets?
Yes
Yes
Yes
How I tested the Ninja Double Stack air fryer
I used the Ninja Double Stack air fryer for two weeks
I used it to cook all of my meals, including chicken wings, fries and salmon
I also tested the different cooking functions
I used the Ninja Double Stack air fryer as my main countertop cooker for two weeks, using it to cook everything from fries to chicken wings, salmon and even cauliflower cheese. I evaluated how each food item cooked across all four trays, using different settings to see how well each function performed. I assessed how succulent meat and fish were after cooking against how well the outside crisped, as well as the evenness of the browning, and how well fries managed to retain their internal fluffiness while still achieving crispy skin.
In addition to the cooking, I evaluated how easy maintenance was; is it easy to clean the baskets and trays both with and without a dishwasher, are there any extra considerations for cleaning, and how easy is the device to actually operate.
I’ve been testing air fryers for two years, and in that time I’ve tried everything from premium to affordable, single-serve to full family models. This experience combined with my love of food and cooking help to inform my findings in every review.
I’m a huge fan of shrimp and always order them if they’re on a menu, but I’ve always assumed they’d be too difficult to cook at home. Especially because I like them to be soft, succulent and full of flavor, and I didn’t trust my cooking skills to achieve that.
However, while testing the best air fryers, I recently discovered an air fryer shrimp recipe that not only looked simple enough for even my often-questionable skills, but was packed full of spices and flavor.
Below, I show how to make breaded shrimp at home – the best part is that they take just 10 minutes in the air fryer. Quick, easy and delicious.
Air fryer shrimp
The air fryer shrimp recipe I have followed is from @chefgenevieve – aka Genevieve LaMonaca – via her TikTok channel. It’s already been watched by 386k people, and counting.
I don’t like a lot of spice so I used smoky paprika for my air fryer shrimp. You can dial up the heat by swapping it for hot paprika in the breadcrumb mixture, or use any herbs or spices you want.
Similarly, any breadcrumbs will work, but Panko breadcrumbs give the shrimp a nice crunch.
(Image credit: Future)
To make air fryer shrimp you will need the following equipment:
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Air fryer shrimp: method
Step 1: Whisk the eggs into your first bowl. Add flour to the second bowl, and in the third bowl, add the breadcrumbs.
Step 2: Add the spices and seasoning to the breadcrumbs and mix well.
(Image credit: Future)
Step 3: Dip the shrimp in the flour, then into the egg. Finally coat each shrimp with breadcrumbs. You can use your fingers or the back of a fork to press the crumbs onto the shrimp.
I recommend coating each shrimp individually, or in small groups, to avoid creating a soggy mess and to guarantee you get better coverage.
Image 1 of 3
Tap the arrows to scroll through the coating process(Image credit: Future)
Tap the arrows to scroll through the coating process(Image credit: Future)
Tap the arrows to scroll through the coating process(Image credit: Future)
Step 4: Place the shrimp in a row in your air fryer basket.
Step 5: Set the air fryer to 375°F / 190°C and cook the shrimp for 10 minutes.
(Image credit: Future)
Step 6: After 5 minutes, flip each shrimp over. This is where a pair of tongs comes in useful.
Step 7: Once cooked, remove from the air fryer and serve.
The original video added a Bang Bang sauce to the shrimp after the first five minutes, but I prefer to dip my shrimp straight into sweet chilli dipping sauce once cooked.
Air fryer shrimp: verdict
These air fryer shrimp are delicious. Not only are they soft, succulent and perfectly cooked but the breadcrumbs add texture, and the different spices add a huge hit of flavor.
My Panko breadcrumbs were a little uneven in shape and size and, while this didn’t impact the taste, it did make the coverage a little patchy so they could have looked prettier.
This didn’t seem to put my friends off from devouring the lot though, and one even asked where I’d bought them from. High praise indeed.
(Image credit: Future)
If you’re still sitting on the fence and wondering whether to buy an air fryer, you may want to read our article to decide whether air fryers are worth it?
Air fryer deals
If you’re yet to take the plunge and buy yourself an air fryer, or are looking to upgrade, check out our top-rated air fryers below, all available to buy now for the best prices.
More complicated was ginger soy fish which steamed, half submerged in a mix of lime, soy sauce, and sesame oil. The recipe instructs you to put a shallow bowl small enough to cook the fish inside the cooking basket. It also needs to be large enough to hold the fish, and your fingers will thank you for figuring out how to extract the hot dish before you hit the Start button. That said, it made for a surprisingly quick and lovely meal.
Mess of Both Worlds
Next came combo cooking, where I was hoping to get a bit of the best of both worlds: Steaming for tender interiors, then a hot blast to crisp the exterior. I learned quickly that using combo mode meant it would only steam, then cook. Programming it felt like trying to figure out a Konami code. The touchscreen controls look sleek but are a complicated jumble best overcome with brute memorization. Adding time at the end of cooking (steam or combo) means you have to reset the temperature, which defaults to 370 degrees at the end of every cycle. Then you punch in the extra time.
You’re either beholden to GoWise’s recipes or laboriously experimenting with times and temperatures cribbed from them if you want to cook something else. I came to wish that the book was titled 100 Basic Recipes, with times and temperatures and charts. I would happily take a basic instruction manual in exchange for GoWise’s mediocre or strange takes on broccoli—blasted, but counterproductively coated with yogurt—or Italian stuffed peppers with “low-carb marinara sauce,” whatever that is.
I made stuffed mushrooms, a throwback hors d’oeuvre, stuffed with three cheeses folded into cream cheese with Worcestershire sauce and garlic, which I kinda just wanted to slather on my Triscuits. After eight minutes of steam and another eight with a 400-degree blast of hot air, they came out well. There’s not much to not like if you’re a fan of cheese and mushrooms, but the mushroom caps were a bit waterlogged. I wish I’d preblasted them before adding the filling, but that seems to go against the simplified ethos of air fryer cooking.
Perhaps the best combo-mode success came with honey-soy chicken thighs. After muddling my way through the poorly written recipe and stealing a few techniques and cooking temperatures from other recipes, they came out exceedingly well. They were tender and moist, with a crispy flavorful exterior, perhaps the best thing I made in the GoWise.
As with all smart kitchen appliances with apps, I was skeptical of GoWise’s. Not to gloat or anything, but my opinion did not change here. I cringed when I noticed more one-star than five-star reviews in the app store, and little in between. The featured review happened to mention the biscuit recipe was “wrong.” I pulled up the app, figuring the company must have corrected whatever it was by now, but no. The ingredients do not call for butter, but the first line of the procedure does. Due diligence done, I deleted the app.
Modern Conveniences
Despite this, I enjoyed my time with the GoWise. It cooked well enough and is pleasingly quiet. I love that the basket and tray are dishwasher-safe. No need to muck up that simplified ethos with five minutes of standing over the sink scrubbing out crusty bits! Though there were plenty of duds, I appreciated that it comes with 100 recipes, especially the ones that help users take advantage of the steaming and combo-cooking functions. I would have been much more interested in the whole thing if I could have controlled the heat during the steam cycle. You can do a lot of interesting stuff in a “regular” steam oven, but pegging the temperature at 212 really hamstrings the fun you could have with it.
Photograph: Amazon
The bigger problem with this air fryer is shared with all dedicated air fryers: They only do one thing (or, in this case, two), take up a ton of counter space, and have surprisingly little space for cooking. If you like air frying, use the convection setting you may have on the built-in oven you already own, or make sure the next built-in you buy has it.
If you really want a countertop air fryer, get the toaster-oven style, so you can air fry, bake, broil, or toast, with a more ample space. (Yes, the toaster-oven style has an even larger footprint, can be harder to clean, and takes a little longer to heat up, but still.) If you’re convinced you want a stand-alone air fryer, the GoWise is OK. The company should first sunset the app as an act of mercy. Just grab a copy of Air Fryer Perfection instead of the company’s recipe book and have some fun.
Instant Vortex 9-quart Air Fryer with VersaZone Technology: One-minute review
Instant has long been a leader in the air fryer space and its latest model, the Vortex 9-quart Air Fryer with VersaZone Technology (also called Vortex Plus VersaZone Air Fyer 8.5L in the UK and Vortex Plus Versazone XXL Air Fryer 8.5L in Australia) aims to make air frying even more versatile, thanks to a large capacity basket that can be divided into two separate sections.
A large 9-quart / 8.5L basket makes it an obvious choice for families, with plenty of capacity to comfortably feed four, but singles and couples will also appreciate the compartments – which are 4.5q / 4.25L each – to cook mains and sides in one go. Moreover, the intuitive cooking programs ensure everything finishes cooking at the same time.
I found Instant’s latest air fryer a joy to use and it made me fall in love with cooking again. It does most of the grunt work for you with consistently good results… just as long as you know how to use some of the dedicated programs. I had to go through a bit of trial and error with my first few cooking sessions, but once I learnt them, there was no stopping me.
The expansive cooking basket does mean it’s a physically imposing air fryer of course, so if you lack kitchen counter space or don’t have much in the way of storage, you may struggle to find a proper home for it. I do think it’s attractive though, as much as an air fryer can be, so I had no issue leaving it on my kitchen counter. If you do need to store it away, I found it to be relatively lightweight, so moving it in and out of cupboards shouldn’t prove too much of an issue.
Instant Vortex 9-quart Air Fryer with VersaZone Technology: Price & availability
List price: $199.95 / £199.99 / AU$399
Available directly from Instant Brands and third-party retailers
Regular sales and bundles
Considering its size and raft of features, the Instant Vortex 9-quart Air Fryer with VersaZone Technology is competitively priced in my opinion, especially when compared to its closest rival in the Ninja Foodi FlexBasket 11qt / 10.4L dual air fryer. It’s available directly from Instant in the UK and Australia along with a host of third-party retailers. While it is listed on the US website, you’re not able to buy it directly. Instead you can find it from retailers such as Walmart.
It was launched in July 2023 and, since then, has gotten some discounts – directly from Instant and at third-party retailers. The offers tend to change, but if this air fryer is of interest, I’d recommend waiting to pick it up during a big sale like Black Friday, which makes it even better value than it already is.
Instant Vortex 9-quart Air Fryer with VersaZone Technology: Design
One 9qt / 8.5L basket that can be divided into two zones
Large enough for a family of four
Simple touchscreen and manual controls
(Image credit: Future)
The Instant Vortex VersaZone is a large machine, make no mistake, although with its dimensions coming in at 15.9 x 12.5 x 15.1in / 40.3 x 31.7 x 38.4cm, it is smaller than its Ninja competitor. However, the Ninja Foodi FlexBasket does have a larger capacity for the individual compartments to justify its size. The VersaZone is lighter too, tipping the scales at 7kg, meaning most people shouldn’t have too much of a problem manoeuvring it around their kitchen.
You do of course need to factor in extra space for airflow at the rear, as well as in the front so you can actually open the basket to get your food in for cooking. I was able to find a perfect permanent spot for it in my kitchen, but those with smaller counters and who are limited on space may have to carefully consider if this is the best air fryer for you.
I feel the Instant Vortex VersaZone to be quite an attractive air fryer – as attractive as air fryers can be anyway – employing just a single physical button in the form of a control dial on its front surface. All other controls are handled via a touch-sensitive panel on the front. When not in use, all you see is the shiny black top section, the basket handles and the silver control dial. This, coupled with the angled design of the top section, make it a slick-looking machine, and certainly helps to disguise its size compared to if it was a large black box.
(Image credit: Future)
Do note that the shiny nature of the top section does mean the Instant Vortex VersaZone is a serious fingerprint magnet. When you’ve been handling food before putting it into the cooking basket and using the touch control panel, you’ll soon find it builds up a large fingerprint collection, so you’ll be spending a lot of time keeping it clean.
The main basket has a removable tray and a divider, the latter fitting into the former to split the compartment into two equally sized cooking sections. There are some rubber grips on the cooking tray and divider that help them to stay in place during cooking, but they do provide a fair amount of friction, so be prepared to use a little more force than you may have initially assumed to get them into place.
The air frying basket, cooking tray and divider are all dishwasher safe, making clean-up relatively easy. However, if you don’t have a dishwasher, then you’ll need to factor in the sink space required to wash the whole basket.
Instant Vortex 9-quart Air Fryer with VersaZone Technology: Performance
Large basket makes cooking a meal a breeze
Good results achievable once you learn the functions
Pre-heating times can be annoying
The Instant Vortex 9-quart Air Fryer with VersaZone Technology can air fry (obviously), roast, bake, grill, dehydrate and reheat various foods. Each program has its own default settings, including the minimum and maximum temperatures they reach. The grill program reaches the highest maximum temperature of 450°F / 232°C for a maximum of one hour. Air fry, roast and bake can all reach a high of 401°F / 205°C for an hour also.
Anytime you wish to use the Instant Vortex 9-quart Air Fryer with VersaZone Technology, it needs to spend a few minutes preheating before it notifies you when to add food. While I can appreciate this is needed, it became increasingly annoying that the air fryer needed to preheat when I went to make a second dish immediately after a cooking program had finished. I found this a bit strange, since the cooking basket would surely have still been hot. I also noticed the preheating time for the second cooking session wasn’t that much quicker than the initial preheat from cold.
The Instant Vortex 9-quart Air Fryer with VersaZone Technology also has SyncCook and SyncFinish modes to help streamline your cooking and to ensure certain dishes don’t go cold while you wait for something else to cook. SyncCook allows you to use both cooking compartments and have them cook with the same time and temperature settings. SyncFinish is used when you have two separate dishes on either side of the divider that require different cooking times, but you want them to finish at the same time.
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(Image credit: Future)
(Image credit: Future)
(Image credit: Future)
(Image credit: Future)
I used the SyncFinish mode the most, as I would cook a chicken breast or a piece of salmon, for example, on one side and some green beans or asparagus on the other. Setting up SyncFinish is simple: a quick double press of the control dial puts it into dual cooking mode and from here you can adjust the time and temperature individually for both sides. Once you’ve made your adjustments, just press the SyncFinish button, followed by Start, and you’re away. The side with the shortest time will remain on hold while the other preheats and begins cooking. The Instant Vortex 9-quart Air Fryer with VersaZone Technology will then begin preheating the second cooking section so that it’s ready to begin cooking when the time remaining aligns on both sides.
(Image credit: Future)
The aforementioned chicken breast came out juicy and tender, while the salmon was buttery soft and fell apart when I cut into it with a fork. I did have a few teething problems when cooking some hand-cut sweet potato wedges however. I hoped they would come out crispy but, upon my first try, they did seem a little raw still. I put this down to both shortening the cooking time I would normally use for an oven, and the wedges themselves being relatively thick in size.
Throwing some chicken tenders into the basket also proved successful. What was especially handy (and as I’ve been noticing more and more with food packets lately) is that they had specific air frying instructions on the pack. I followed these to a tee and the results were sublime. They were hot, the breadcrumbs had a great crisp to them and they were juicy inside.
It did take me a bit of time to adjust to cooking with an air fryer compared to a conventional oven or frying pan, predominantly with cooking times as opposed to temperatures. I had expected the Instant Vortex VersaZone to cook food slightly quicker than the old-school method but, in reality, it took the same amount of time or occasionally longer. I found this to be a fair compromise as the cooking results were superb.
I also tried out the bake function to make some chocolate chip cookies. I loved the fact the basket was big enough to cook what most people would call a batch, but what I would call a single serving. I’ve made these cookies before, using a fan-forced oven to bake. I followed the same recipe, cooking time and temperature using the bake function on the Instant Vortex VersaZone air fryer but found they came out slightly under baked. If I were to bake them again, I would keep the temperature the same but leave them in for a few minutes longer.
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(Image credit: Future)
My batch of cookies needed a bit longer to bake compared to a fan-forced oven(Image credit: Future)
The only niggle I found with the SyncFinish and SyncCook functions were that they won’t allow you to change temperatures and cooking times midway through the program. During an instance when I was cooking a chicken breast on one side and broccoli in the other, I wanted to adjust the temperature of the meat, but with the SyncFinish function activated, this wasn’t possible. You first have to cancel the program, make your adjustments and then start it again – this also causes the air fryer to preheat again.
My advice here would be to make sure you know the exact temperature and time you want before pressing the all-important start button.
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How I tested the Instant Vortex 9-quart Air Fryer with VersaZone Technology
Used air fry, roast and bake presets
Cooked salmon, chicken, fries and vegetables
I used both the dual zone and the large single basket
I used the Instant Vortex VersaZone air fryer to cook a variety of food. I would most often cook some meat or fish in one side of the basket and some accompanying vegetables or potatoes in the other. I also attempted to bake some cookies. This allowed me to test the various synchronised cooking functions of the air fryer, as well as determining how well it actually cooked food.
I also used it for more basic cooking tasks, such as air frying hash browns or fries for a quick hot snack.
I’ve made many, many chicken dishes in my air fryer over the years, plus the occasional burger or steak, but I can count on one hand the number of times I’ve made air fryer pork chops.
This is largely because my family aren’t huge fans of pork, but in all my years testing the best air fryers I’ve also rarely seen a pork chop dish that excited me enough to give it a try. That was until I discovered this Vietnamese pork chop recipe.
Below, I show how to make salty, soft and succulent pork chops that are not only full of flavor but are easy to make.
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Air fryer pork chops
The air fryer pork recipe I have followed is from @groovyfoodiess – aka Sarah Banh – via her TikTok channel. It’s been watched by 1.5 million people, and counting.
My take on these air fryer pork chops varies slightly from Sarah’s original recipe, because I don’t like lemongrass and I try to reduce the amount of salt I consume.
The full list of original ingredients is below, but I like to swap dark soy for light soy, and I find the use of both oyster sauce and fish sauce makes the chops too fishy for my liking.
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4-5 medium sized pork chops (2.5 lbs)
3 tbsp fish sauce
1 tbsp dark soy sauce
2 tbsp soy sauce
1.5 tbsp honey
1.5 tbsp sugar
3 tbsp lemongrass, minced
2 tbsp garlic, minced
1 whole onion, minced
1 tbsp oyster sauce
(Image credit: Future)
To make air fryer pork chops you will need the following:
Air fryer pork chop method
Step 1: Lightly tenderize the pork chops using a rolling pin or the blunt end of a knife.
Step 2: Cut criss-cross lines into the flesh of the pork chop, to help the marinade get deep into the meat.
(Image credit: Future)
Step 3: Cut larger slits into the pork chop fat to prevent the edges from curling up during cooking.
Step 4: Add all of the marinade ingredients into a bowl and combine with pork. For the best flavor, leave the meat to soak in the marinade overnight.
(Image credit: Future)
Step 5: Pre-heat your air fryer to 400°F / 200°C for five minutes.
Step 6: Add your pork chops and cook at 400°F / 200°C for 9-12 minutes, depending on the thickness of your chops.
(Image credit: Future)
Step 7: After 3-6 minutes, turn the pork chops over and continue cooking.
Step 8: Once the cooking time has finished, check the chops are cooked all the way through. If they’re not fully cooked, or they’re not as crispy as you like, return them to the air fryer until you’re happy with the results.
Air fryer pork chops verdict
Pork chops are never my go-to meat or protein of choice because I rarely know what to do with them and I find them a bit boring. This recipe has completely changed my mind. Not only is this an easy recipe to master, because you just throw all of the ingredients in a single bowl and mix, but the flavor of the marinade combined with soft, succulent meat make the chops super moreish.
I’ve made these pork chops at least once a week since I discovered the recipe and I’m yet to get bored of them. They’re my latest obsession.
(Image credit: Future)
If you’re still sitting on the fence and wondering whether to buy an air fryer, you may want to read our article to decide whether air fryers are worth it?
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Breville
Breville’s Smart Oven Air Fryer Pro allows you to cook almost anything you want. It has 13 cooking settings, ranging from typical ones like broil, bake and warm to more specific options like cookies, proof and dehydrate. Taking up one cubic foot of space, the Smart Oven Air Fryer Pro is basically a second oven that can make perfectly crispy fries. In fact, it’s so big you could fit a 14-pound turkey, 9×13 sheets or a Dutch Oven inside it.
Worth noting: Despite having the title “Smart Oven,” Breville’s Air Fryer Pro, it’s not smart in the way most things these days are. Breville’s Joule Smart Oven Air Fryer Pro is the one to go with if you want an actual “smart” device — as in one that can talk to Alexa. It will notify you when your food is done and offer guided recipes in an app, among other perks. Plus, it’s also 20 percent off right now, down to $440 from $550.
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See more of today’s best deals from Walmart’s sale below, and keep in mind that these are limited-time offers, so you should take advantage now before it’s too late.
