The Actifry & AirFryer Thread - Merged

Seve OB

Je_suis_Jean wrote: »

Hi all,

Looking to get an AirFryer for family (2 adults and 2 teenage kids) use.

I spotted the Tefal ActiFry Family Express XL Low Fat Healthy Fryer, 1.5 kg on offer on Amazon last week for £115 https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B00QVKMPDS/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o04_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1 and ordered it but it arrived damaged so has been shipped back for a refund. Went to re-order it and it's not £150

Didn't spot this thread until today so looking for a steer on A) what model AirFryer to get and any current bargain alerts.

Thanks in advance.

can you not just get amazon to replace it?

CDBWhoop

I've been after a Philips 9240 for a while and jumped on the lightning deal last week. Fast forward a week and while I was on the fence before, 20 minutes after unboxing I'm a believer

It couldn't have been easier, plugged it in, filled the basket with the meagre contents of the freezer - two types of fries from Super Value straight cut deep fry chips and the local butchers Belgian over chips, Lutosa. 8 minutes from cold @200c the another 8 after a good shake and they were ready. Beautiful crispy and light chips, really really tasty, went down a treat with the little ones. Next in were Green Isle spicy wedges. A few shakes and some extra minutes were called for but they came out perfectly.

Totally impressed with the speed and results and looking forward to the next batch of tasty results.

P.s. cheers for the heads up bargain alert op!

54and56

Seve OB wrote: »

can you not just get amazon to replace it?

Na, it was a warehouse deal so no joy I'm afraid.

Seve OB

In my actifry I always like to chop up the spuds in little squares and throw in some carrots. But the deal clencher is instead of oil, throw in a spoon of duck fat

tharmor

Je_suis_Jean wrote:

and ordered it but it arrived damaged so has been shipped back for a refund. Went to re-order it and it's not £150

Je_suis_Jean wrote:

I spotted the Tefal ActiFry Family Express XL Low Fat Healthy Fryer, 1.5 kg on offer on Amazon last week for £115

You should have asked for replacement at same price....even i think the journey thru europe is resulting in damaged boxes units...my basket does not fit entirely and leaves a bit of gap..not a big issue but u can see it ..

Glen_Quagmire

witnessmenow wrote:

Nachos: We really like these as a snack/treat, we used to do it in the oven but this is much handier. We get a small ceramic dish, layer salted Tortilla chips then apply a layer of grated cheese (we use the cheddar & mozzarella mix, but anything will work) and repeat. From cold it takes 4-5 mins to cook (keep an eye on it cause the top layer can burn pretty easily, if this happens just remove the top layer and eat whats underneath!). To remove the dish from the fryer i use a big metal spoon to pry it up and an oven glove to take it out.

Great shout about the nachos, I will be trying that one the weekend with a cold one!

flangemeistro

Glen_Quagmire wrote: »

witnessmenow wrote:

Nachos: We really like these as a snack/treat, we used to do it in the oven but this is much handier. We get a small ceramic dish, layer salted Tortilla chips then apply a layer of grated cheese (we use the cheddar & mozzarella mix, but anything will work) and repeat. From cold it takes 4-5 mins to cook (keep an eye on it cause the top layer can burn pretty easily, if this happens just remove the top layer and eat whats underneath!). To remove the dish from the fryer i use a big metal spoon to pry it up and an oven glove to take it out.

Great shout about the nachos, I will be trying that one the weekend with a cold one!

Correct me if I'm wrong but I'm almost certain the Airfryer won't operate properly if it's cold.

Cheshire Cat

I'm pretty sure he means a cold beer to go with the nachos!

witnessmenow

Glen_Quagmire wrote: »

Great shout about the nachos, I will be trying that one the weekend with a cold one!

Awesome, let us know how it goes!

I'd like to be a bit more adventurous and add jalepenos and refired beans but my girlfriend prefers them plain. Also don't forget the salsa for dipping!

Doge

Our kitchen has been undergoing renovations a few weeks now with no power out there so the analog Airfryer I bought in a lightning deal back in December has been an absolute god send!
We have been using that and the cheapest steamer sold in Argos for every meal so far. I also managed to get a portable gas camping stove for £9.99 from the UK so that will be used for a fry up at the weekend.

So the lesson here is, if youre going to be renovating a kitchen be sure to buy an air fryer!

The_Conductor

Halfords have a camping stove kit with a gas cannister on special- if anyone is interested.

Thargor

Well, after 2 years of searching for the perfect Airfryer chips it turns out Tesco Own Brand fries for 95c were one of the best options all along:

http://www.tesco.ie/groceries/Product/Details/?id=282266887

Season the crap out of them with salt and a bit of pepper, give them a good shake, cook on 190 until golden and dry and they're near perfect imitations of McDonalds fries at home. Dont brown them or overcook though by even a minute or its like eating kindling.

UsedToWait

UsedToWait wrote: »

Tried these, but far too chunky for my taste.. for those who like a skinny chip, I can't recommend these highly enough - 95c a bag too - absolute bargain..



http://www.tesco.ie/groceries/Product/Details/?id=282266887

5 mins / shake / 5 mins and you're sorted

(+/- 1 or 2 mins depending on how many you're cooking)

Thargor wrote: »

Well, after 2 years of searching for the perfect Airfryer chips it turns out Tesco Own Brand fries for 95c were one of the best options all along:

http://www.tesco.ie/groceries/Product/Details/?id=282266887

Season the crap out of them with salt and a bit of pepper, give them a good shake, cook on 190 until golden and dry and they're near perfect imitations of McDonalds fries at home. Dont brown them or overcook though by even a minute or its like eating kindling.

You could have shortened your search by a couple of weeks by following this thread :pac:
I go at 200c, 5 mins, shake and 5 mins (+/- 1 or 2 mins for larger / smaller amounts) - they're fab tho'

Thargor

Ha, maybe I had a vague memory of your post when I saw them and put them in my trolley because tbh I never touch Tesco own brand, its 99% pure crap.

UsedToWait

Thargor wrote: »

Ha, maybe I had a vague memory of your post when I saw them and put them in my trolley because tbh I never touch Tesco own brand, its 99% pure crap.

I'd be the same - tried these originally cos.. well.. they're 95c

Aldi's skinny fries are an acceptable alternative if you're not heading to Tesco
- about 88% as nice, roughly..

Green Isle's skinny fries are greasy muck and to be avoided!

Casey78

Thargor wrote: »

Well, after 2 years of searching for the perfect Airfryer chips it turns out Tesco Own Brand fries for 95c were one of the best options all along:

http://www.tesco.ie/groceries/Product/Details/?id=282266887

Season the crap out of them with salt and a bit of pepper, give them a good shake, cook on 190 until golden and dry and they're near perfect imitations of McDonalds fries at home. Dont brown them or overcook though by even a minute or its like eating kindling.

How long @ 190? 8-9 mins?

Thargor

Yeah about that but your results may vary as per the other guy doing them at 200, just don't brown or burn them and they're perfect, season them in the fryer aswell.

cj maxx

Does anyone rate this,towert17005. ,3.2l air fryer . £55 on Amazon

danjo-xx

cjmc wrote: »

Does anyone rate this,towert17005. ,3.2l air fryer . £55 on Amazon

Linky https://www.amazon.co.uk/s/ref=nb_sb_noss?url=search-alias%3Daps&field-keywords=tower+17005&rh=i%3Aaps%2Ck%3Atower+17005

54and56

danjo-xx wrote: »

Linky https://www.amazon.co.uk/s/ref=nb_sb_noss?url=search-alias%3Daps&field-keywords=tower+17005&rh=i%3Aaps%2Ck%3Atower+17005

Does no one have an opinion on this? I'm in the market for a good quality family size air fryer but I'm struggling to understand why I should pay the guts of €200 for a Tefal when I can get something like the one linked to above for less than half that.

Help?

EagererBeaver

Je_suis_Jean wrote: »

Does no one have an opinion on this? I'm in the market for a good quality family size air fryer but I'm struggling to understand why I should pay the guts of €200 for a Tefal when I can get something like the one linked to above for less than half that.

Help?

How many regular posters on this thread do you think have one of these? On Amazon there are 154 reviews and it's rated 4 out of 5. More likely to be a better source of information.

The_Conductor

Je_suis_Jean wrote: »

Does no one have an opinion on this? I'm in the market for a good quality family size air fryer but I'm struggling to understand why I should pay the guts of €200 for a Tefal when I can get something like the one linked to above for less than half that.

Help?

40 minutes to cook a basket of chips? (according to a response from the main UK distributor on Amazon) Its half the power of the Philips one- and operation is clunky as hell. Its a reasonable size- the same as the larger Philips- however, you really do get what you pay for.

Even Dunnes Stores have more powerful manual Tefals for only 15 quid more than this- which would be significantly better buys.

The low wattage of this- given its large capacity- simply doesn't add up- if you're doing a larger batch of chips for the family- it'll take you over 3 times longer in this- than it would in the Philips...........

harr

The_Conductor wrote: »

40 minutes to cook a basket of chips? (according to a response from the main UK distributor on Amazon) Its half the power of the Philips one- and operation is clunky as hell. Its a reasonable size- the same as the larger Philips- however, you really do get what you pay for.

Even Dunnes Stores have more powerful manual Tefals for only 15 quid more than this- which would be significantly better buys.

The low wattage of this- given its large capacity- simply doesn't add up- if you're doing a larger batch of chips for the family- it'll take you over 3 times longer in this- than it would in the Philips...........

Sounds way underpowered for its size...I have the larger Phillips which I use daily...a family member was impressed with mine so went and got a cheaper version but same size as my Phillip's and it's a piece of crap..chips take an age and chicken breast nearly takes an hour to cook..
You really do get what you pay for..

54and56

EagererBeaver wrote: »

How many regular posters on this thread do you think have one of these? On Amazon there are 154 reviews and it's rated 4 out of 5. More likely to be a better source of information.

Thanks, the issue I have with Amazon reviews is that they tend to be in isolation i.e. people can be thrilled with the performance because it's the only air fryer they've ever used and therefore can't judge it's performance in relation to the best preforming alternatives.

That and the fact so many reviews these days are from people who received a free product in exchange for their "honest" review :rolleyes:

54and56

harr wrote: »

Sounds way underpowered for its size...I have the larger Phillips which I use daily...a family member was impressed with mine so went and got a cheaper version but same size as my Phillip's and it's a piece of crap..chips take an age and chicken breast nearly takes an hour to cook..
You really do get what you pay for..

Thanks Harr, this is exactly what I'm trying to figure out.

Basically, wattage relative to size is king??

This review http://bestreviews.com/best-air-fryers makes the Philips HD9220/26 the top model currently available.

The closest I can find on Amazon.co.uk is the HD9220/20 model https://www.amazon.co.uk/Philips-HD9220-20-Healthier-Airfryer/dp/B0042EU3A2/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1474103955&sr=8-1&keywords=philips+HD9220%2F26 for £99 but it was previously for sale for £69.

Either way It's too small for my needs, I'm looking for an XL size air fryer.

These two seem to be the best XL fryers I can find on Amazon but they're expensive

1. Tefal 1500 Watt ActiFry Express XL - https://www.amazon.co.uk/Tefal-ActiFry-Family-Express-Healthy/dp/B00QVKMPDS/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1474105371&sr=8-1&keywords=XL+air+fryer for £143

2. Philips 2100 Watt XL Fryer - https://www.amazon.co.uk/Philips-HD9240-90-Collection-Airfryer/dp/B00BS97UUA/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1474105495&sr=8-2&keywords=XL+air+fryer for £210.

I like the look of the Tefal but the Philips seems to have higher performance with an extra 600 Watts.

Both are more expensive than I was hoping to pay :-(

The_Conductor

Dunnes *had* (no idea if its still in stock) the Tefal on offer over the summer.

54and56

The_Conductor wrote: »

Dunnes *had* (no idea if its still in stock) the Tefal on offer over the summer.

Had a mooch around Dunnes Beacon store yesterday evening as it happens (looking for something else) and didn't notice any air fryers for sale. I'll check again though.

Thanks for the tip.

I think I like the look of the Tefal with the viewing window but not sure how functional it would actually be i.e. does it steam up during cooking thus rendering it useless?

arian

According to Camelcamelcamel, that Tefal's been down to £105 (Nov 2015), and the Philips £120 (March 2016). Those prices didn't last long and they were a while ago. However, if you've got the patience prolly worth setting up alerts on the Cameliser at around £120 and £180 respectively.

Can't post links, but it's a dotcom that starts uk.camelcamelcamel

54and56

arian wrote: »

According to Camelcamelcamel, that Tefal's been down to £105 (Nov 2015), and the Philips £120 (March 2016). Those prices didn't last long and they were a while ago. However, if you've got the patience prolly worth setting up alerts on the Cameliser at around £120 and £180 respectively.

Can't post links, but it's a dotcom that starts uk.camelcamelcamel

Thanks Arian, the Philips for £120 again would be a no brainer.

The URL for tracking the Amazon UK is http://uk.camelcamelcamel.com

I've set up an account and will try to wait patiently for one of the rare flash sales of these two items.

Thanks again.

Kat1170

Keep a close eye on here as well, the 1 hour Flash Sales don't always appear on Camelcamelcamel.