At the end of cooking the chicken was golden brown with a beautifully crisped skin and my meat probe confirmed it was thoroughly cooked through. The meat was moist, tender and succulent – a terrific result given the short cooking time. When toasting bread, two slices took a little over four minutes, I didn’t turn them during toasting and although crisped on both sides, the top was much better browned than the underside. So if you’re particular about both sides being the same color, you’ll probably need to turn the bread over mid-way through. The temperature dial is marked in 50° increments without dots in-between, so it’s not easy to be very accurate when setting the temperature. Furthermore, turning the timer dial on is how each cooking function is switched on, and though it’s a good safety feature that it automatically switches off when the timer runs out.
Even at this low price, you get a digital control panel with automatic programs. All of the accessories are dishwasher-safe but the aluminum baking pan and crumb tray may discolor. Gourmia also includes a recipe book with comprehensive cooking charts. As directed, I preheated the oven for five minutes on the bake function, then put the muffins in and set the timer for 20 minutes. They weren’t quite done when the timer went off, so I added five more minutes. Now, as you can see in the picture, the paper cases were a bit too flimsy, so they aren’t the most muffin-y shaped muffins.
We also used all of the controls to see how easy they were to navigate and how accurate the cooking guidelines were for preparing common foods such as french fries and chicken nuggets. Additionally, we compared the cooking capacity of each model, and we took note of any egregiously noisy fans or annoying beeps. After testing, we washed all of the fryer components to see how easy they were to clean. For our original guide in 2017, we ran the air fryers through a series of tests, cooking frozen and hand-cut french fries, frozen finger foods, and pork chops. In subsequent years of testing, we cooked frozen french fries, chicken tenders, and fish sticks, as well as fresh chicken wings. If it’s an appliance we use every day — like an electric kettle and pour-over glass coffee maker — we make room for it.
Its awkward, egg-like shape draws a lot of attention on a countertop, and it takes up too much space. With the exception of the Ninja (more on this in a second), there is nothing particularly unusual about caring for or cleaning these ovens. They have standard box interiors of various sizes made from stainless steel that will require regular scrubs and wipes. Each oven also cuisinart choppers has a removable, dishwasher-safe crumb tray to catch fallen fries and toasty bits. Success here depends on high heat and good fan circulation of that hot air, which, in turn, means faster cooking. The faster an air fryer cooks and the more effective the super convection is, the faster the outside skin will crisp, making it less likely the chicken will be dry inside.
For someone looking for auto settings, the more affordable Tower 10-in-1 may be more appropriate, while the Ninja Foodi Dual Zone 7.6L Air Fryer adds versatility with its two drawers. Whether you prefer plain white bread or a fat seeded bagel, the Ninja will toast them beautifully. It can also bake up biscuits and broil a few chicken breasts as well as any countertop or full-size oven. Unfortunately, it’s only middling at air frying, so it’s best for people who only occasionally fry up frozen fries or mozzarella sticks. For a top-notch air fryer that doubles as a toaster oven, the Chefman Toast-Air Touch Air Fryer is one of our top picks.
One of the things I noticed while air frying – particularly with the parboiled potatoes – was the amount of condensation that gathered on the inside of the glass. This led to some steam escaping through the sides of the oven door and small puddles of water forming on the worktop. The manual actually warns of this condensation build-up, but it doesn’t offer any fixes for it. Finally, the mechanical toaster knob is akin to the dials you find on a toaster – letting you choose a shade setting from 1 to 6 (which crucially doesn’t correspond to minutes of toasting). With Cosori’s V-Sync app and a Wi-Fi connection, you can check on food as it cooks and receive alerts on a mobile device. You can also select recipes and the app will send the temperature and time settings to your oven.
Its roughly 17 x 22 x 16 inch size seemed too large to merit space on my counter, and I couldn’t imagine myself luging it out of a cabinet to toast a bagel or air fry onion rings. However, as I tested each of its seven features, my judge-y disposition faded; every setting nailed it — from toast to French fries. Plus, I found myself using it for odd jobs like to quickly broil a cheese sandwich for my son or roast a small chicken when my oven was full of cake.
If this purchase inspires you to upgrade your kitchen in other ways, circle back to Wayfair during Way Day 2023 for up to 60 percent off cookware and bakeware and 50 percent off small appliances. One of the most annoying features of the Cuisinart Air Fryer Toaster Oven is that the accessories must all be hand washed. Considering they’re the perfect size to fit in a dishwasher, it seems crazy to me that Cuisinart didn’t make them dishwasher friendly. And in the absence of being able to clean them in the dishwasher, it would have been nice if they were non-stick. If you’re looking to clear up space and save yourself some time, don’t miss out on this deal — grab the Cuisinart Air Fryer Toaster Oven with a grill for nearly 50% off at Nordstrom Rack now before it’s too late.
We also appreciated that this model allows you to silence the beeps, which can be annoying. Unfortunately, you have to press the controls really hard in order to operate the machine, which meant we had to grip the machine with one hand to hold it still while attempting to press the buttons with the other. The Hamilton Beach 3.7 Quart/3.5 Liter Digital Air Fryer has a small, 2.5-liter round basket that, unlike our also-great pick, the Instant Mini Vortex, can barely fit a full-size meal.