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Traditional deep fat fryers are great for achieving fast food like meals, however, they are one of the most unhealthy ways of cooking you could possibly use. If you are still craving fast food but want to be healthier then air fryers are for you. Due to the rapid heath technology, there is little need for oil cutting down the calories instantly.
This review will look over one of the cheaper air fryers on the market for those of you who are on a budget or are new to the frying world, the Dihl 3.2 litre air fryer.
Due to the use of rapid air technology, this air fryer requires less oil than other air fryers while still having the ability to produce crispy fries and chicken. For this appliance you will only need one teaspoon's worth of oil or even as little as none at all, making it the ultimate health fryer.
The minimum amount of oil used also means that you will save money in the long run as you are not having to use the large amount of oil that traditional fryers require with every use.
Dihl utilises cutting edge rapid heating technology reducing the preheating time needed when using the air fryer. This allows the air fryer to apply 360 degree heat to whatever you wish to cook without any oil needed. This not only saves you time but also saves your energy as, unlike an over, this fryer does not take a long time to heat up. Likewise, due to the cooking technique that air fryers use, the cooking time is reduced dramatically, leaving you time for more important things.
A great feature of this particular air fryer is the compact design which means that it will not take up much room in your pantry or kitchen.
However, even though there is a compact design, Dihl has not let that dent the large capacity which has stayed at 3.2 litres. This is large enough to be able t0 cook 3 servings in one go, making it the ideal fryer for small families or couples who want to try their hand at a new cooking method.
A great thing about this air fryer is the colour options. You can either get the appliance in a bright red and make it a feature of your kitchen or you can purchase it in a sleek black as to blend in with your modern kitchen if you wish to keep your fryer on the counter. This may seem like an irrelevant factor to some customers but for others who pride themselves in their kitchen, this option would mean a great deal.
Traditional fryers are notoriously difficult to clean due to the exercise use of oil. However, because this is an air fryer, things are made a little simpler. You are able to fully remove the frying basket to clean the container and you are able to wash the frying basket in the dishwasher saving you a heap of time.
As for the rest of the fryer, just get a wet cloth with some disinfectant on it and wipe it over. Because the cooking space is contained, there should be little mess on the machine itself.
Unlike other air fryers, this one does not come with any built-in functions for you to select but it does feature a digital display that tells you the temperature as well as how long is left before the timer goes off. You are able to adjust the temperature while the food is still cooking via the control pad just underneath this display.
Even though you do have to manually input how long you want the food to fry for and at what heat, there is little guesswork needed due to 6 icons that tell you how long to cook 6 of the most popular fried food and at what heat to cook them. This makes it the ideal fryer for beginners as everything you need to know is laid out before you. All you need to do is input the correct numbers via the keypad and you are good to go.
The main problem people have experience is how long it takes to cook things. While the written icons on the machine indicated that it takes between 12 - 15 minutes to fry some french fries, people customers have found that it actually takes a bit longer than this to produce the results that they want.
These customers later discovered that it took longer because they used frozen fries instead of unfrozen ones however it is these frozen ones that produced the best result. While it is not really a complaint more of a trial and error situation, it is up to you whether you want better quality fries that take longer to cook or less crispy fries that take the right amount of time to cook.
This is the ideal fryer for couples or small families who only wish to use a fryer for better chips and crispier chicken as well as other convenience foods as it will save you from heating up the whole oven and wasting a vast amount of electricity just to warm up your chicken nuggets. The 3.2 litre capacity is more than enough to do enough servings for 3 people and still have some leftover.
This is also the ideal fryer for beginners as even though you have to manually set the fryer's heat and set the time, there is not a large amount of built in programs to confuse you when all you want to do it fry some chips.
If you are a bigger family or are looking for something with more functions that you can experiment with, then try the Ninja Air Fryer that is suited for 4 - 6 people and offers a variety of functions making your cooking experience more interesting.
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