Air fryers continue to enjoy massive interest as the appliance of the year that could reduce energy consumption and household bills. Retailers frequently report diminishing air fryer stocks whilst the air fryer hashtag has over 1.2 million posts on Instagram - highlighting the popularity of this once humble appliance that now enjoys superstar status.
Prices for air fryers can vary, with many costing around £100. With the cost-of-living crisis set to deepen over the coming colder months, people are looking at ways to make their money go further.
As reported by BirminghamLive, there is a new kid on the block that could rival the air fryer, and it doesn't cost hundreds of pounds either. Writer Graham Young put the £10 oven crisper basket from John Lewis through its paces and conducted a chip taste test to see how it delivered.
What is it?
The NoStick reusable 'Oven Crisper Basket' carries a Teflon label and claims to shorten cooking time. It also offers 'healthy cooking' and will see 'foods crisp fast and easy' thanks to 'optimum hot air circulation'.
Depending on your view of what constitutes 'healthy' food, it says the basket is 'ideal for the preparation of oven chips, nuggets, pizzas, onion rings and more, without having to use butter or cooking fat'. The rear label adds: 'The grill openings allow optimum hot air circulation and thanks to the perfect non-stick coating, the food will never stick to the crisper basket'.
Claims
Amongst the listed 'advantages' of using a crisper basket are these claims:
- Perfect non-stick cooking surface
- No more tossing
- Easy to clean in warm soapy water - dishwasher safe - reusable
Instructions
Use wooden or plastic utensils to avoid exposing the basket to sharp edges. Make sure you avoid contact with any flames if you have a gas cooker.
The product is said to be heat resistant up to 260C (500F). You are advised to remove the basket from the oven if it has a self-clean cycle about to begin.
Taste test
I tried the Nostik Oven Crisper basket to cook some source-unknown oven chips and coated chicken that had been stripped of their identities once bagged up in the freezer. And yes, it seemed to make everything crispier, quicker than expected.
More than a week later, McCain triple-cooked oven chips went into the basket and I tried again. Once more, the chips were done on time and were crisper than they've been before.
They were cooked at 200C for 25 minutes and were not turned. That is despite McCain's online instructions saying 'Preheat the oven to 230°C/220°C Fan/Gas Mark 8'.
For best results use a deep edged baking tray without holes and preheat the tray for 5 minutes. Spread a single layer of chips onto a baking tray and pop into the top of the oven.
Bake for 25-30 minutes, turning them every now and again until crisp and lightly golden. Opening an oven door, of course, lets the heat out.
So if that makes the basket an air fryer that isn't an air fryer, then good luck to nostik.com - especially as the basket would have been the first non-chocolate product I've ever knowingly bought that had Made in Belgium on the label.
Fuel if you think it's over
The ultimate test will be if it's still undamaged and in use in a year - always assuming of course that we can afford to put our conventional oven on in the first place. Research by Utilita in August 2022 revealed that air fryers on average were found to run at £55.91 per year, versus gas cookers at £121.06 per year and electric cookers at £335.57 per year.
I've no idea how much power my oven consumes. We don't have a smart meter and I cannot understand any of our fuel bills beyond not using the oven much, cutting back on heating, switching off all unnecessary lights and hoping for the best in the months ahead.
The usual problem of trying to cook oven chips at 220C is that you can overheat other foods (typically 180C) you were also trying to cook together in a bid to save money. But another good reason for still using a conventional oven is that it is the perfect place to warm plates up to keep your meal hot once served.
If the basket works as it appears to do, then it should pay for itself eventually. Perhaps if we eat chips more than once a fortnight, without having the bigger outlay of buying a fully-fledged air fryer we might soon get fed up with.
Rather like that seemed-like-a-good-idea toastie maker etc., languishing at the back of the cupboard. You can buy it here.
