Air fryers....... how do you clean yours?

[Drago]

It's a mild oxalic acid solution, superb for removing minor rusting from chrome.

 

[screenman]

What do you spray it with - congealed fat is notoriously difficult to get off???

Cadac BBQ cleaner.

 

[Conrad_K]

The instructions that came with mine said it didn't need to be cleaned since the hot air would keep it sterile. Which would be true, except it doesn't address the problem of sterile Burnt Crunchy Bits becoming hosts for air-borne bacteria over time and starting to smell.

I've compromised by wiping mine out with paper towels to take care of loose debris, and "preheating" to sterilize anything hiding in the internal airways before using it.

 

[ebikeerwidnes]

The instructions that came with mine said it didn't need to be cleaned since the hot air would keep it sterile. Which would be true, except it doesn't address the problem of sterile Burnt Crunchy Bits becoming hosts for air-borne bacteria over time and starting to smell.

I've compromised by wiping mine out with paper towels to take care of loose debris, and "preheating" to sterilize anything hiding in the internal airways before using it.

Yes - it is the smell that my wife complains about

She has a very sensitive sense of taste and smell - which cause all sort of problems
and stale/rancid fat is one of her pet hates!!!

 

[Electric_Andy]

Old fat does smell but I don't always bother. As our AF was a cheap one, and 3 years old, we now sometimes put the whole tray in the dishwasher. It hasn't done it any harm!

 

[ebikeerwidnes]

Old fat does smell but I don't always bother. As our AF was a cheap one, and 3 years old, we now sometimes put the whole tray in the dishwasher. It hasn't done it any harm!

Yes - but there is also old fat up around teh element where it has evaporated or floated upwards as aerosol particles and then condensed

I have not yet come across an air fryer that is designed to make cleaning this easy
normally seems to involved fiddling and an old toothbrush - sometime the toothbrush needs to be gently bent to allow it to get access

If the elements could be easily removed then it would be MUCH easier!

 

[presta]

I've never felt any urge to buy one, primarily because this problem seemed completely predictable.

 

[Conrad_K]

The "hot air popcorn poppers" in the 1970s had the same problem, which is one reason why they went away.

And then there were the "Fry Baby" and "Fry Daddy", which were single-serving or double-serving deep fryers. Which wasn't an entirely bad idea, except they had large labels warning you never to get them wet, which meant it was nearly impossible to clean one.

 

[Gwylan]

Thanks.
Never heard of that barkeepers friend. Been on their website and it tells me there are no stockists near me.
The Screw fix ione seems to be sold by the gallon.

Re the Screwfix stuff, you dilute it (a lot) keep it in and old spray bottle.
It's great, lasts a long time and save you a fortune.

 

[Gwylan]

I've only ever cleaned the pan end of the affair.
Never bothered looking at the fan side.
Have a silicone liner that fits, that goes in the dishwasher.

 

[Jameshow]

What do you spray it with - congealed fat is notoriously difficult to get off???

Try WD40!

 

[Gwylan]

Try WD40!

Well Gaffer tape won't work so it must be WD40

 

[cougie uk]

I've never felt any urge to buy one, primarily because this problem seemed completely predictable.

It's just a smaller fan oven. You'd get the same issues with the oven and for me it's a lot easier cleaning an air fryer than it is an oven ?

 

[Adam.1918]

For non-fatty foods, we use silicone liners, which can be cleaned easily.

For fatty foods, they would hold the grease in contact with the food (not nice), so we just let the grease fall to the bottom and wash it all.

 

[ebikeerwidnes]

For non-fatty foods, we use silicone liners, which can be cleaned easily.

For fatty foods, they would hold the grease in contact with the food (not nice), so we just let the grease fall to the bottom and wash it all.

I have silicone liners which came with racks to go inside them to hold the food away from the fat

work well - but they do reduce the available size of the container so I still use the whole thing

mine you - our baskets came with "crisper trays" in each which taht holes in them to allow the fat to drip through so they work the same - just no so easy to clean!