However, it is pretty special because it steams as well as air fries. The functions are a little awkward: even with the instructions, I struggled to find the compartment you have to fill with water (it’s on top, by the way). It also leaked the first couple of times I used the air fryer. I found that the end results were crispy, but more similar to a convection oven than the two air fryers above. Chips were decent, but didn’t quite have that deep-fried crunch. However, sausages, fish fingers and roasted veg were all cooked to perfection in less than half the time it would take in the oven (with a teaspoon of oil, or less). The basket automatically rotates inside the fryer, so you get even results, and it has a clear lid so you can see the progress of your food as it cooks. It’s controlled via a semi-smart LED timer. Once finished, the removable bowl is easy to clean and dishwasher safe.

Anything from a few sprays to two tablespoons of oil is perfectly adequate for air fryer cooking, though the latter is only necessary for breaded or battered foods. Excess oil in an air fryer will drop through the grate onto the bottom of the air fryer, burn, and smoke. Some recipes may even need no oil at all, but it’s always worth a few light sprays to prevent food from drying. Are air fryers toxic? What we wanted to know is whether they actually work – because, for every air-fryer super fan, there is a critic who says they cook unevenly, have a small capacity and produce dry, slightly rubbery results. As with all cookware, you’re advised to keep your air fryer clean using non-scratch tools to avoid the build-up of burnt oil and starchy foods, the smoke from which can be harmful. They almost always come with a basket or drawer to hold the food you’re cooking, a timer and pre-programmed settings for different foods. Depending on your budget, they’ll be controlled with either manual buttons or a touchscreen display. All other things being equal, it is still cheaper to cook with gas, which at the time of writing cost 10p per kiloWatt hour, although the size and age of your gas oven may make still make it less efficient than the best modern air fryers.We cooked the same food in each model: chips, roasted vegetables, sausages and fish fingers. We were looking for tasty, healthy, appetising results (everything took a little experimentation to get right) but we also wanted to see how easy each machine is to use, how much space it takes up, how much it costs to run and how easy it is to clean. It is true that thermoplastic coatings can still release harmful compounds when heated to very high temperatures of 260C or above, but air fryers don’t reach temperatures that high. If you’re dead set against thermoplastics, consider an air fryer that uses ceramic cooking surfaces, such as the Ninja AF100 above. Deliciously Crunchy: This air fryer delivers the same crunchy taste as fried food, but with little to no oil Yes. “Air fryers require less oil compared to deep fat frying or pan frying and so help reduce the calorie content of the overall meal; it’s definitely a healthier way to cook whilst preserving taste and texture,” confirms nutritionist Jenna Hope. It’s also markedly less messy than regular frying. Programmes: air fryer, Speedi meals, steam bake, steam, grill, steam air fry, bake/roast, dehydrate, sear/sauté, slow cook

Having tested quite a few bulky and heavy air fryers, this made for a refreshing change. There are no smart apps to contend with or confusing control panels to conquer, either. It has a 1.2kg capacity, so there’s space for six portions of food. The noise while it’s operating is similar to that of a hairdryer, so I don’t think it could be described as ‘quiet’; but in relative terms, it was again best in test. It may look a little like a spaceship (and take up just as much workspace), but this Tefal air fryer performed best in my tests. It heats up in minutes; chips were crisp on the outside and fluffy in the middle with just a small amount of oil (from a pre-portioned scoop), sausages and fish fingers were perfectly cooked, and even my “roasted” vegetables were fairly tasty. The reason it’s not further up this list is because it’s actually a little overwhelming. If you’ve got a small kitchen and no oven (trust me, it happens), the Ninja Speedi would be the best buy ever. But personally, I’d always rather bake in an oven and grill on the hob or my George Foreman. It’s also quite difficult to get used to what you can put where. Though the Speedi does come with a recipe book, it’s limited and after a few goes you’re left to your own devices.Then there’s the convection technology, which ensures the heat and vapourised oil is very evenly distributed to every part of your food. Taken together, these features mean that air fryers can typically save you around 30 minutes in cooking time. A meal cooked for an hour in a typical 2,000 Watt electric oven would use two kiloWatt hours of energy – but if you could cook the same meal in half an hour in a 1,000 Watt air fryer, it would use just half a kiloWatt hour. The aluminium and plastic Cosori Lite comes ‘truffle grey’ and a ‘milk white’, both with a stylish orange trim. The overall feel is premium. It has rounded corners and its basket opens and closes smoothly, without sliding out too fast like some air fryers can.