quote:

Originally posted by wtg:
From what I just looked up, it seems that a convection oven and air fryer are pretty much the same thing.

Pretty close. Our "toaster oven" actually has three modes: bake, convection bake, and air fry (which is just super convection).

quote:

Originally posted by wtg:
edit: hmmm....Nina's observations have me reconsidering....


I think if you have and use a countertop oven, the Ninja is a reasonable alternative.

It's really an issue of personal preference. I almost never use the main oven any more ... the countertop one is better, has more functions and heats faster. Mary Anna, on the other hand, seems to prefer the main oven. It may be because she has things that require more space.

My air fryer is one of those basket types--it looks a bit like a space capsule or pod on my countertop. It also has a smaller footprint and is taller than what I've seen of the oven style ones. There's no way it would accommodate a pizza. Pizza leftovers, yes!

If my current air fryer croaks, I would definitely look at the oven style ones. I'm not sure I'd buy one, but I would research it for sure.

Quirt, do you have the Breville?

quote:

Originally posted by Steve Miller:

quote:

Originally posted by AdagioM:
I’m so jealous. There is absolutely no room in my kitchen for an air fryer.

Ditch the toaster oven. Same footprint, more functions.

I looked at the measurements for that Ninja; it’s a much bigger footprint than my toaster oven. And too big to flip up. And the cubby that the toaster oven is in is closed on 3 sides, and the cabinet above is only 14 inches above the counter. No can do.

quote:

Originally posted by wtg:
Quirt, do you have the Breville?

That's the one!

I've had multiple Breville appliances over the years, and I've never had one I disliked.

Me too. Breville rocks.

Decided to give this oven a try; it's a Prime Day deal on Amazon. Cheaper than Breville, has a footprint that's a better fit for my kitchen, and gets good reviews.

https://www.amazon.com/gp/prod...00_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

And free returns in case it doesn't work out....

So we've had the Instant Omni Plus oven for about a week. I've only used the Bake setting so far to cook a small frozen pizza, some Trader Joe's vegetable samosas, and to warm up a quiche from a local bakery. Haven't checked the temp to see if it's accurate, but everything came out perfectly so it must not be too far off.

Heats up fast, controls are easy to understand. It's not terribly noisy, and while the exterior gets warm it's not ridiculously hot. Seems to be constructed pretty well. It's nice not to have to heat up the big oven for just a few items.


It has a rotisserie and they say you can roast a 4 lb chicken in it. I'm thinking I'll try a Cornish hen or two. Also looking forward to using the broil feature on things I sous vide. The Bake setting worked great on the samosas; not sure how much better the Air Fryer setting is.

I've never dehydrated stuff, but I may give that a try, too.

A good buy for $160 (Prime Day), but I'm not sure I'd pay the regular price of $250. It's been as cheap as $150 on Amazon (just a month ago for a few days), according to camelcamelcamel, so if you are thinking about it, be sure to set a price alert to let you know if the price has dropped.

Anyway, so far, so good!

Another oven update.....

Really glad we made room for it on the counter; we've really been using this little puppy a lot. It's the cat's pajamas for cooking meals for the two of us. The outside of it gets a bit warm, but is definitely well insulated so it doesn't heat up the kitchen during the summer.

I'm still finding my way around tweaking bake times and temps for various foods. It seems to cook more quickly than my regular oven; not sure if the temp is a little high or if the fan makes things cook more quickly. I've been bumping the temp down 25 degrees and watching the bake time carefully the first couple of times I make a particular item in it.

Anyway, still so far, so (very) good!

Air fryer tips. Loved this one in particular.

quote:

Make cookies

Next time you have a cookie hankering, try this: Take your favorite chocolate chip cookie recipe, and right after you finish making the dough, scoop it into balls and put them on a tray in the freezer for half an hour. Once they’re solid, put them all in a ziplock bag, where they can stay, frozen, for several months. When you’re ready for a couple warm cookies, line your air fryer with parchment paper, and bake a couple off at 350°F for 5-6 minutes. Voilà! Freshly baked cookies whenever you want.

https://getpocket.com/explore/...source=pocket-newtab