How to choose an air fryer, coating included

"Air fryer" is a slightly misleading name. Nothing is fried. Inside the box there is a heating element and a powerful fan that drives hot air around the food at high speed. That moving air carries heat into the surface of the food much faster than still air does, which is why an air fryer browns and crisps in less time than a conventional oven, with a spoonful of oil instead of a pan of it. Think of it as a small, very efficient fan oven, and the buying decisions become easier.

Basket, oven or two drawers

Single basket. The classic design: a pull-out drawer with a perforated basket inside. Compact, quick to heat, easy to shake halfway through cooking. Best for one to three people and for chips, wings, vegetables and reheating.

Dual drawer. Two independent baskets side by side, often with a function that finishes both at the same time. Useful for families or for cooking a main and a side together. Wider on the counter.

Oven style. A small box with a door, shelves and sometimes a rotisserie. More versatile and you can see the food, but there is more to clean and it often crisps less evenly than a basket because air moves less freely around flat trays.

As a rough guide to capacity, a 3 to 4 litre basket suits one or two people, while families usually want 5 litres or more, or two drawers. Do not buy bigger than you need: a large basket takes up counter space every day and takes longer to heat, and food crisps best in a single layer with space around it anyway.

What the basket is made of

This is the part most product pages skip. Many air fryer baskets, trays and racks are made of steel or aluminised steel with a PTFE nonstick coating. Philips, one of the best-known brands, states this plainly for its own models: pans, baskets, meshes, baking trays, grilling racks and pizza plates are steel or aluminised steel, mostly coated with PTFE, while the meshes of one series use a ceramic coating and silver accessories are stainless or chrome-plated steel¹. The company says its coatings comply with food contact law, are verified by independent laboratories, and are free of PFOA, and that food contact parts contain no BPA¹.

Is that a problem? Germany's Federal Institute for Risk Assessment (BfR) says that PTFE cookware used as intended is not expected to harm health. Its warning is about overheating: PTFE begins to break down at around 360 °C, which is why an empty pan should never be left on a fierce flame². An air fryer is thermostat-controlled and runs at oven temperatures, and the BfR notes that conventional ovens reach around 250 °C at most, far below the values at which substances could be released from the coating². Follow the maker's instructions on preheating and maximum temperature, and the coating is being used as intended.

The wider question is environmental. PTFE belongs to PFAS, a class of thousands of very persistent synthetic chemicals, and the EU is assessing a broad restriction on the whole group³. If you would rather not have PFAS in your kitchen at all, there are options: models with stainless steel baskets, glass bowls, or ceramic-coated parts. Product pages are often vague, so check the manual or ask the maker two direct questions: what is the basket made of, and is it coated with anything?

Whatever you choose, treat a coated basket like a nonstick pan: soft tools, no scouring pads, and replacement when the coating flakes. Our guide to nonstick care applies almost word for word, and our article on PTFE, PFOA and PFAS explains the chemistry.

Features that matter, and those that do not

Worth having:

• A temperature range that goes low. Settings around 80 to 120 °C are useful for drying, warming and gentle reheating.
• A basket that is easy to clean. Fewer crevices, a removable crisper plate, and parts the maker says can go in the dishwasher.
• A clear, simple control panel. You will mostly use temperature and time. A dial or two big buttons beats a screen of tiny pictograms.
• A window or a quiet fan. Both are nice; check reviews for noise if the kitchen is open-plan.

Easy to skip:

• Dozens of preset programmes. Every preset is a temperature and a time you can set yourself.
• Apps and wifi. Useful to a few people, one more thing to break for everyone else.

Two things every air fryer cook should know

Golden, not brown. Acrylamide forms when starchy foods such as potatoes and bread are cooked above 120 °C with little moisture, through the same Maillard reaction that browns food⁴. The European Food Safety Authority concluded that acrylamide in food potentially increases the risk of cancer in all age groups, and that home cooking choices can make a substantial difference to how much we eat⁴. Fried potato products and coffee are the biggest sources for adults⁴. The UK Food Standards Agency's advice is simple: aim for a golden yellow colour or lighter when frying, baking, toasting or roasting starchy foods, and follow the cooking instructions on packaged chips and roast potatoes⁵. An air fryer makes it easy to overshoot, so check a minute or two early.

Brown is not the same as cooked. An air fryer can colour the outside of chicken long before the middle is safe. A digital probe thermometer settles it. The USDA's minimum internal temperatures are⁶:

Insert the thermometer into the thickest part of the food, away from bone, fat and gristle; for thin pieces, go in from the side until the tip reaches the centre⁷.

A short buying checklist

1. How many people do you usually cook for? Pick the size and the format (single, dual, oven) from that.
2. Where will it live? Measure the counter, and leave space behind it for the hot air vent.
3. What is the basket made of, and is it coated? Decide whether PTFE is fine for you or whether you want steel, glass or ceramic.
4. Can you clean it easily? Look at the basket and crisper plate, not the box.
5. Does it go low as well as high? A range from about 80 °C upwards is the most useful.
6. Do you have a thermometer? If not, buy one with the air fryer. It costs little and answers the question "is it done?" for every food you cook.

Chosen well, an air fryer becomes the appliance you use every day: reheating, roasting vegetables, crisping potatoes and cooking for one or two without heating a full oven. Chosen badly, it becomes a very large object that holds bread.