An expert is warning people about using air fryers instead of ovens to cook food.
It is commonly used as a healthier alternative to deep frying, as it can produce similar crispy results without as much oil.
However, an expert has now shared a stark warning about the popular appliance…
Money Saving Expert Martin Lewis says he isn’t completely convinced by air fryers and the news has baffled some.
One person laughs: “This looks like I’m gonna spend half an hour prior to cooking doing maths and physics before deciding if I should oven, microwave or air fry my food.”
Another jokes: “I’m not listening to him on this. I’m air-frying everything. I’ll even air fry a cup of tea.”
Lewis has highlighted a potential downside to the gadget – always relying on it over an oven could cost you more.
The money-saving expert says that while the appliance is excellent for cooking ‘small things that cook quickly’, loading it with various foods could increase energy consumption and, therefore your bills.
During an appearance on This Morning, Lewis comments: “Air fryers are good for small things that cook quickly.
“If you’re gonna have to use your air fryer 15 different times for different items, generally, on energy usage, you’d be better off to use an oven. So it’s an interesting thought.”
Lewis’ opinion appears to be backed by research from Which?, which suggests huge savings can be made from using an air fryer for small amounts of food, but not bigger meals.
Steven Kipling at Which? explains: “The savings soon drop off if you have to cook in batches. And if you’ve got lots to cook you might well, as air fryers don’t have as much space as a typical oven or hob.
“So if you’re cooking a large amount of food, the oven or hob may still be the most economical choice.”
Elsewhere during his appearance on This Morning, Lewis continues: “If you’re gonna have to use your air fryer fifteen different times for different items, generally on energy usage you’d be better off to use an oven.
“If you’re doing a jacket potato for 10 minutes it’s going to be far cheaper [in the microwave] than doing a single jacket potato in an oven and keeping it on for an hour and a half.
“However, if you were doing a full roast dinner and you were cooking many of them, that is where it’s probably cheaper than putting five or six jacket potatoes in a microwave because each additional object you put in a microwave, you need to keep it on longer because a microwave just heats the individual object.”
How much your air fryer costs to use depends on its size. It’s also worth noting whether it’s a newer model, as it could be more energy efficient.
Go Compare estimates that an 800W air fryer (based on the current 24.5p kWh) costs around 9.8p per 30 minutes, £2.94 per month and £35.77 per year.
A 1400W air fryer roughly costs 17.2p per 30 minutes, £5.15 per month and £62.78 per year.
Dual air fryers, which come with two compartments, use double the energy, with some going up to 2,000W.