Review of Philips Air Fryer | My experience in cooking a variety of dishes in the air fryer | Recipe for Onion Pakoda in Air fryer
Are you in a dilemma whether to invest in an air fryer? Are you thinking if it is worth the extra gadget on your already crowded kitchen counter? Whenever the air fryers go on big sales, I am often asked this question – should I get an air fryer? Is it worth it for my family?
Here’s the deal…
I totally understand where you are coming from and have struggled with the same thoughts myself. I go through the same questions before buying any new gadget in my kitchen and it is such a temptation alright. I promise you after reading my long post, regarding my experience in cooking with the air fryer, you will be able to come to a decision.
When I first heard the term ‘air fryer’ over a year ago, I actually laughed out loud, full of skepticism. Can one actually fry in air?? Yes, the term is slightly misleading. Here’s what an air fryer really is. It is built like a small oven, that quickly bakes things to a crisp, giving it a fried feel, both to look at and to taste. It wouldn’t be wrong to call it an oven on steroids, given its performance.
There are plenty of airfryer reviews all over the internet, so I am going to focus on some questions my blog followers asked me on Facebook and of course the results of my experiments, cooking a variety of things using the air fryer, which I feel will be of great use to you in understanding if this is a worthwhile buy for your family.
Does the air fryer occupy too much space?
It’s reasonably a small machine, occupying roughly 3/4th the space of a small microwave or so, but it is quite heavy so you cannot keep it on top of a microwave or oven. Mounting it on a higher shelf is also difficult as you need to be able to easily remove the basket, shake up the contents and put it back while it is air frying. Also, if you need to use it on a regular basis, it is pointless storing it away inside one of the cabinets, because then it becomes really cumbersome to pull out and use. So you need to make sure you have a small dry spot on your kitchen counter with access to a power source
Does the air fryer cause loss of nutrients?
When vegetables are cooked at high temperatures, there is a loss of heat labile vitamins. But when you consider the same vegetables being fried in oil at temperatures around 175-190°C, it will cause the same loss of vitamins and nutrients, plus not to mention adding hundreds of calories from the oil itself. Also heating oil to smoking point while making deep fried food also releases chemicals harmful to health in the long run, not to mention the health hazards of reheating the same oil to fry. Give that the cooking period is very short, rarely over 10-15 minutes, it is a safer bet than prolonged cooking on high heat in stove top
Does the air fryer make really good fries?
To most people, the air fryer is associated with fries. Especially parents with young kids, the fries are a big draw, especially when we don’t want to take them to a certain fast food chain, to get them a highly processed meal. Let me tell you a secret, I have never ever made fries at home, of the deep fried variety, that is. But did i like the air fryer effect? You bet I did. I used fresh potatoes, and not the frozen sticks variety. Peeled, and cut into sticks, soaked in salted water (this is to get the excess starch out), dried them thoroughly on a towel, tossed in 1 tsp oil per potato, and then put them in the preheated air fryer for 10 minutes. Sprinkle of salt when they are out, the result was magic. Golden and crunchy on the outside and soft inside, I for one, felt they were as good as the fast food outlet variety, but made straight from a potato and not from something sitting in the deep freezer for ages. I haven’t tried wedges, potato skins etc. but I do mean to keep trying newer recipes, which you can catch on my Facebook or Twitter. Hear the crunch of the fries in this Instagram Video
Ok, I’m sold on the fries. WHAT ELSE can i make in the air fryer?
Crispy veggies:** I tried making crispy karela (bittergourd) with good success, so I am quite sure other veggies like Bhindi (okra), Tendli (Ivy gourd) can be used similarly to get crispy results with just 1-2 tsp of oil
My experience: I parboiled some of the homegrown small karelas in salted water. Drained them and throughly dried on a towel. Cut into long slices after discarding seeds, tossed in spices (except salt) and a little gram flour, put in a single layer in the basket in a preheated airfryer. In around 10 minutes, they were done to a crisp. I was very happy with the end result in this case
Updated on 13 July, 2015:
Recipe for Karela chips in Airfryer
Sliced lengthwise and deseeded the baby bitter gourds. Marinate them in salt for 2 hours. Wash and dry them on kitchen towels. Preheat airfryer at 200 celsius. Toss the the bittergourd slices in 1 tsp oil and place them in basket. Set timer at 12 minutes and remove when shrivellled, somewhat browned and crisp. Dust with chaat masala or spice of choice
Potato and other starchy veggies:Â Â You can make the typical Tambrahm potato / colocassia (seppankizhangu) / vazhakka (plantain) crispy roast by par boiling, dicing, coating in spices and 1 tsp oil and then air frying to a crisp texture.
Seppankizhangu Roast in Air Fryer:Â Â I tried the colocassia roast. Boiled and peeled colocassia cut into a dice, tossed in spices, bit of rice flour and salt, in the air fryer for 10 minutes with a couple of tosses at regular intervals. Quite happy with the result here. For a traditional touch, you can do a tadka of curry leaves, red chillies, udad dal in oil after removing from the air fryer into a bowl
You can make crispy chips with many vegetables in the air fryer. Check out these addictive Beetroot Chips
Roasting/grilling veggies for pasta or salad
 Eggplant, bell pepper, zucchini etc can be tossed in some olive oil, garlic and herbs and roasted in this to perfection, and then tossed in a pasta or a salad
Toss eggplant and zucchini in oil with garlic and herbs (no salt, as this will leech out all the water and make it soggy), and put in air fryer for 5-7 minutes as you just want them roasted and not crisp. Used it as a sandwich filling with a pesto spread, it turns out delicious
Check this out: Roasted fig salad (roasted in air fryer)
 Can I make a pizza in the Air Fryer
Since this is like a smaller oven, that heats up very quickly, a variety of breads can be baked in the air fryer and that includes pizzas.
Check this out: Naan Pizza in Air fryer
Calzone made in Philips Air Fryer
My experience: I tried both pizza and calzone from scratch and got fantastic results. Here’s where it scores over a regular oven. It goes from room temperature to 200 C in less than 4 minutes and the pizza is done in 5-7 minutes, depending on the thickness, as against 25 minutes or so in the oven
The size being a restriction, you can only make small sized personal pizzas in this, but the advantage
is each can have their own topping and it is ready in 5 minutes. You can also use readymade pizza base. {this also answers the question, how is the air fryer better than an oven, asked by a few people}
Can I make Onion Pakodas in Air fryer
This is everyone’s favourite question! Â A very thin drippy batter pakoda will not work in this, but anything coated with a dryer batter works. But I found the results to be around 75% of the fried taste and texture. May be the next time, I shall try with lesser thickness, so it crisps up further. If you will be using the pakodas for kadhi or some other recipe, then it will work very well. You can also make some tasty and healthy snacks such as my hugely popular recipe – Crispy Broccoli in air fryer.
By popular demand, I’ve shared the detailed recipe for onion pakoda in air fryer below.
Baking cakes and muffins in air fryer
Keep individuals cake / muffin tins in the lower compartment. Preheat to the required temperature, which is very quick and then bake for the time given in the recipe. I have baked both sweet and savoury muffins.
Check this out for your little ones: Eggless Chocochip MuffinsÂ
Can I fry papads in air fryer?
I realised that papads don’t work in this. I coated papad with a thin layer of oil and kept in preheated airfryer, while checking in 30 second, it was no longer in the basket. It had flown up, due to the air blast and gotten stuck to the heating coils, getting nearly burnt. Because of the high volume of hot air blasted, anything as light as a papad cannot stay put in the basket and therefore not possible to air-fry it.
Is it difficult to clean the air fryer?
It’s quite easy to keep it clean. When using wetter food, line the basket with foil or parchment, but taking care that the edges are open for air flow. For dry stuff like fries this is not required. Both the wire basket and the metal basket containing it can be removed and washed with gentle detergent or in dish washer. The wire mesh in basket can be scrubbed using a small brush to unclog food from the gaps
It’s great if you need to provide constant snacks for your growing kids, this appliance does make it easy to alternate between fresh fruits, veggies and the ‘fried’ fun stuff. One does need to remember however that just because it is air fried, you cannot have a bucket of fries and then expect not to gain weight. It is a good substitute for the occasional fried foods, but eating larger portions because it is not deep fried in oil, is quite the losing proposition. Otherwise, it is a fun gadget to have around and you can experiment with different recipes on your own as you get used to it. The gadget does come with a recipe booklet with many Indian recipes included.
Buy the Philips Airfryer on Amazon:
Philips Viva Collection HD9220 Air Fryer BLACK
Philips Viva Collection HD9220 Air Fryer WHITE
Onion Pakoda in Air fryer
Ingredients
- 1 cup besan (gram flour)
- 2 onions medium , peeled and thinly sliced
- 1 tbsp coriander seeds of crushed
- 1 tsp methi of kasoori
- 1 tsp red chilli powder
- 3/4 tsp salt
- 1/4 tsp turmeric powder
- 1/4 tsp baking soda
- optional coriander leaves Finely chopped ,
Instructions
- In a large bowl, mix all the ingredients well and leave it covered for 5 minutes. The onions will release some of the moisture due to the salt, use that to bring it together into a dough, using a few sprinkles of water as required. Don't make it too wet or it may not crisp up.
- Make bite sized pakodas by pressing it into logs in your slightly oiled palm.
- Preheat the air fryer at 200 C by turning the timer to 5 minutes, but the machine is preheated when the indicator light goes off.
- Place a sheet of parchment or lightly oiled aluminium foil on the basket, but leaving some part of the edge open. This is optional, but just makes the cleaning easier. Place pakodas in a single layer and air fry for 5 minutes. After this, you can remove the basket, turn them around to the other side or give it a shake and keep for 5 more minutes, until all sides are golden brown.
- Serve immediately with green chutney / tamarind chutney or ketchup. You can also use these to make Pakoda Kadhi or in a Moar Kozhambu.
- Verdict: The colour turned beautifully golden, and it had a crunch on the outside. The inside of the pakoda was well cooked. But I guess the highlight of the pakoda is the juiciness that comes from deep frying and this will take some getting used to, otherwise for the 2 tsp oil used, it was really delicious!.
Notes
Want to browse through all my Air fryer recipes? I have a collection of them right here.
At last a detailed review that makes sense. Was in two minds whether to buy it or not.Will be a perfect gift for Diwali.PS: The disclaimer sealed the deal. I’m getting this.
Interesting. Someone in a facebook group that I am a member of claimed that the taste of potatoes cooked in an air-fryer could not be compared to a fried potato chip.
Sorry I don’t agree with the cleaning part . How do you clean the upper part ? It’s highly inefficient when it comes to cleaning .
Sorry, I didn’t understand what upper part? You mean the coils? I’m sorry I didn’t get around to cleaning that – would appreciate if you are more specific about this, so i can check for myself. Thank you for taking time to leave a comment.
I didn’t try making a chip, but fries, wedges and South indian style aloo roast, all A1 🙂
If an air fryer soon ended up in my kitchen, i will have to blame you!
I have been toying with the idea of buying an air fryer because the kids love fried stuff and I get tensed while deep frying… your review is making me consider my decision again… Thank you for the straightforward review…
Thanks for the very level-headed and useful review Nandita, I have been contemplating this one for ages now!
Hi, thanks for sharing. I would like to try it. Is it possible to make it without eggs?
Thank you for taking time to read and share, VIdya 🙂
Glad you found it useful. Always good to take an informed decision 🙂
Thank you, Rafeeda, for taking time to read and comment.
HAHA gladly!
That’s a useful review. Thanks. My only doubt is about electricity consumption. Will it be a drain there?
I loved this review. I was very keen on an unbiased review of the product. It does seem like a good buy to have. Any idea about non-veg items?
Very useful and timely review. Would never have considered an air fryer if not for this review. Would you mind sharing the model no of the fryer you used.
I appreciated this article. I’ve been wanting to get started with it. but thought it was a little over my head. I now see how easy it is, so thanks again!
There is an App available for both android & ios. Download and enjoy how to cook more recipes
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This is a great review! Thanks for putting it up :-)A question – I have a built-in oven. Is there anything the air fryer can do that I cannot do in an oven? Putting it another way, will an air fryer be better in deep/shallow frying with less oil than the oven?
That’s nice!! Thanks for the ideas. private chef in austin
I am glad that I found your post whileSearching for informative posts on Indian recipes. I am a foodie and loved Indian spicy food. Thanks for sharing such a great post. I’ll try to do in my home kitchen and I will tell you the result of the food after eating. town car service charlotte
Hi Nandita, I got one of these for Diwali this year and i totally agree with your verdict on French fries , i was impressed with the taste,however i felt they would get soggy very fast,nevertheless,tasted good. I also made paneer tikka taking the recipe from one of the blogs and was really happy with the results.The other day i tried frying babycorn manchurian in it and like u mentioned because of a runny batter i was really struggling to finish cooking them in it.Thank you for some of the tips like lining the meshed container with aluminium foil and for the ideas regarding where all we could use the airfryer in our daily ccoking.I was planning to roast a papad n see but now that you mentioned i will refrain from trying that. Overall a good review and quite heplful for people who plan to buy it and also for ones( like me) who have just got one:-)
Hi, just to let you know that I made ‘fried rotli’ by putting a tiny bit of oil on the rotli, placing it in the air fryer basket and then putting a small glass bowl on top to hold the rotli down in the basket – it worked and may also work for papad. I only put some oil on the rotli as I don’t put any ghee on them so if you put ghee on them, it may be worth cooking them as they are in the air fryer.
excellent tip, thanks!
Hello Nandita, I just bought the Oster airfryer, which works on heat supplied by a halogen source. Unlike the Philips and Kenstars airfryer, which are ovens with a fan that blows the hot air onto the food item. The endproduct is crisp without being too dry. Made kachoris, samosas, chaklis with whole wheat and bran. Each of these was surprisingly tasty . Minus the mess and the worry about what to do with the used oil. Plan to make a deconstructed form of baingan bhartha.
thanks for a detailed review.it was v. helpful. recently bought one. waiting for more recipes………
I would like to know what you think about using amul cheese spread…i know it has salt but i dont get britannia cream cheese out here.
I’ve been very curious about this as week. Have you tried anything carnivorous on this like fried chicken or kebabs?
Oh wow! I really didn’t think you could do so much with the air-fryer! Thanks for the review… It should help convince Hubby! 🙂
I tried Hanumar Vadai. It turned out absolutely crunchy and tasty. Also tried Dal Vada & Seppankizhandu roast. Awesome!
Please let me know how you made Hanuamar vadai with the air fryer.
I would love that recipe.3
never tried Hanuman vadai – how do you make that?
Urad dal vada! Ground coarse with very little water and with usual spices except black pepper instead of green chillies. I think the the thick and coarse batter will work in air fryer.
great idea, thanks Buvana
Thank you for the wonderful review. Iam planning to have my husband buy me this for my birthday next week :-). Would you tell me of you have used it for anything beyond what you mention above? I want to know if this is a practical gadget for someone like me that uses convection oven almost for every meal. The capacity sounds so less,I wonder if it is practical.we are only a family of three though.thanks a bunch.
The Airfryer is fantastic with a quick, easy 2 person meal and plus cooking was much healthier.
you will get this at luxury hotels in mumbai
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Okay, I am sold! My grandparents taught me to cook karela in butter, obviously not the healthiest recipe. When I saw your karela chips I am sold! Then you really pushed me over the edge with the mention of bhindi (another of our favorites) and the onion pakodas. Thank you for the wonderful review and recipes!
We bought one after reading your review !!
i have been thinking of buying it for a very long time but was not sure if its going to be of any other use apart from frozen snacks. onion pakoda recipe has made me change my mind. going to buy one very soon.
I own a Philips AirFryer and use it often to enjoy French Fries, Fried Plantains, Chicken Wings, Chicken Fried Steak, Homemade Sweet Potato Tater Tots, you name it! IT’S AMAZING! Everybody should have one! Just saying…
You can see here: What is an air fryer? How does an air fryer work? – http://airfryerreviews.com/oil-less-fryer/
Hi! Can one of you pls let me know the difference between the 2 models…the black and white one…. One is the 9220, other is the 9220/53. Thank you 🙂
Bought an air fryer today. Loved your post .. 🙂
Hi Nandita! I bought a pigeon airfryer a few months ago. I tried onion pakodas on it. Somehow, ended up with dry outer crust that gets burnt while the inside portion of the dough still feels half cooked when eaten. And this happened to almost all the recipes I tried on the airfryer. What could be the reason?
Yummy 🙂 I tried this Onion Pakoda recipe in my Philips Viva Collection HD9220 Air Fryer. The Pakodas are very crispy outside and tender on the inside with all the stuffing. Keep posting more recipes.
http://kitchenarena.in/best-air-fryers/
Hi nandita.. Thanks for detail explaination. Planning to buy one.
Thank you , very useful
glad you liked it
I would like to know what you think about using amul cheese spread…i know it has salt but i dont get britannia cream cheese out here.
ALl cheese spreads have excess salt, key is to use in moderation 🙂
I have been thinking of buying it for a very long time but was not sure if it’s going to be of any other use apart from frozen snacks. onion pakoda recipe has made me change my mind. going to buy one very soon.
I would like to know what you think about using Amul cheese spread…I know it has salt but I don’t get Britannia cream cheese out here.