Ultimate Air Fryer Buying Guide: Top Models and Expert Recommendations

We're revolutionaries when it comes to kitchen electrics and cookware. The air fryer frenzy started with our launch of the T-fal ActiFry, and now, they're a mainstay in kitchens around the world. 

With their promise of less oil, crispy results, and compact designs, it can be challenging to find the best air fryer for your needs. Our latest innovation, the infrared air fryer is a game-changer. We've created a guide that breaks down common air fryer functions and features, the different formats, and why our latest launch is a stand-out that offers unparalleled results.

Understanding the Different Types of Air Fryers

Convection-Only Basket Air Fryers
The most common, and perhaps the most popular air fryers on the market are basket air fryers. These air fryers use a basket and convection heating -- a fan that circulates hot air -- to cook food. These types of air fryers typically require pre-heating and shaking the basket or flipping food to achieve optimal results that mimic classic deep fried foods.

Toaster Oven Air Fryers
Most air fryers, regardless of format, come equipped with multiple functions and settings. Toaster oven-style air fryers are often seen as all-in-one countertop appliances. They look more like a traditional toaster oven, which may have its own aesthetic appeal, and they're engineered to also have convection heating to offer the air fryer functionality. 

Toaster oven air fryers typically have a larger footprint than basket-style air fryers. The larger footprint does typically equate to larger food capacity, but it's at the expense of counter space. These models still need to pre-heat, and may also require you to flip foods for the ideal "crunch" and crispy results on foods like french fries, chicken wings. 

Infrared Air Fryers
The T-fal infrared air fryer has completely revolutionized air frying with its InfraHeat™️ technology. This means that unlike a typical air fryer, we’re able to heat food with more direct precision to serve up faster, easier, juicier results. 

Many air fryer models on the market are housed in plastic, which can create an unpleasant odor when heated and can impact the taste of food. The T-fal infrared air fryer has a durable metal housing that eliminates these unwanted odors and keeps the food smelling just as it should.

The unique carbon fiber heater rapidly reaches 750°F for restaurant-quality results at home. This innovative cooking method avoids the plastic smell and taste often associated with lower-quality models thanks to its durable metal housing.

In some ways, the infrared air fryer is the best of both formats (basket and toaster oven), because it has basket-style convenience and a wide, oven-like window with an always-on light to help visualize results in real-time.  

The infrared air fryer speeds up cooking time with its unique carbon filter, eliminating any need to pre-heat. The most popular functionality of its 7 cooking modes is the "Crispy Finish" which does exactly what its name suggests.

The current 6.3-quart capacity is spacious enough to fry an entire 3-pound chicken, but is just as practical for everyday cooking without taking up much space, and the removable tray is dishwasher safe.

Essential Features That Make the Best Air Fryers

Temperature Control and Cooking Presets
Air fryers are incredibly convenient because they offer reliable temperature control and pre-set functions that help take the guesswork out of everything from air frying, toasting, roasting, baking, and re-heating. 

Easy-Clean Components and Design
Ease of cleaning is an important consideration when buying an air fryer. While we do recommend handwashing the basket of the infrared air fryer, the removable tray is dishwasher safe. The basket is super easy to clean because it has a nonstick surface. If you're using aluminum foil in the air fryer, make sure to replace it regularly to avoid buildup of crumbs or other food residue.

Digital vs. Manual Controls
Digital controls are most common on basket-style air fryers, including our infrared air fryer. Most toaster oven-style air fryers will have manual controls in the form of knobs. The digital controls offer the most control and precision, however, manual knobs can still be effective

Features to Expect from a Good Air Fryer 

Faster Cooking Times
Cooking times will vary when using an air fryer, which is why having a visible window and exceptional heat is helpful to watch for cues of doneness. When calculating cooking times, it's important to account for pre-heating, flipping or shaking, and batch-changes. Our infrared air fryer has a unique carbon filter combined with infra-heat technology that eliminates the guesswork by removing the need to pre-heat. 

Multiple Settings and a Digital Display
In addition to a wide range of temperature settings, a high quality air fryer will also have an array of preset functions and cooking modes like roasting, toasting, and baking. The infrared air fryer has a "Crispy Finish" function that sets it apart from competitors. It adds a mere two minutes of cooking time for an incredible crisp that's comparable to deep frying results. 

These functionalities are what make air fryers so versatile; they're key to consolidating counter space and maximizing cooking results.

What Foods Cook Best in Air Fryers?

French Fry Cooking Guide
While you can absolutely cook french fries from frozen in an air fryer, the results of fresh french fries or potato wedges in the infrared air fryer are pretty incredible. The crisp texture you achieve with the standard air fry setting gets leveled up considerably by the "Crisp Finish" option. The key to getting optimal results beyond the settings themselves is to make sure you cut your potatoes evenly, pat them dry, and season them well. You can add a dusting of corn starch for even more crispy goodness. 

Vegetarian Air Fryer Ideas

While deep-fried foods like chicken tenders and wings, onion rings, and french fries have been given air-fried makeovers, there are also plenty of healthy vegetarian items that are made even tastier in the air fryer.

We recommend using the infrared air fryer to roast vegetables like: 

Eggplant for a lightened up eggplant parmesan, to bring out the deep, earthy flavor 
Cauliflower for bar food like buffalo cauliflower, or for roasted cauliflower finished with yogurt and tahini for a Mediterranean twist
Chickpeas for a crispy salad topper or healthy, savory snack