What makes a good deep fryer

What's more, the high-tech appliance pushes heat upwards, creating a protective "cool zone" at the bottom of the fryer that traps food debris.

Along with cutting down on cleaning time, this keeps the oil cleaner so that you can safely reuse it. It has "many pre-programmed settings or, you can go manual," they continued. I'm accustomed to commercial fryers and large volumes.

The end results coming from this fryer are no different. Recovery time between batches is good as well. Perfect for home use. While fried food may smell like heaven when you're hungry, the lingering odor of grease is much less enjoyable. T-fal's deep fryer is specially designed to avoid this problem with a unique activated charcoal filtration system that reduces odors by 74 percent, according to the brand. Along with a convenient anti-fog window on its lid so that you can easily see how your food is coming along, the fryer gives you the option to lower the basket into the hot oil with the lid already on to avoid potential splashes and burns.

More than shoppers have given the odor-free appliance a five-star rating, with many raving about how easy it is to clean. Definitely worth the price. While most large fryers can be a hassle to store, Presto's dual fryer eliminates this problem with a space-saving design that allows you to store the frying baskets and heating conduit within the main compartment.

The double-basket fryer can conveniently cook up to 5 pounds of food at once, and the stainless steel walls and dishwasher-safe frying baskets make cleanup a breeze. This handy appliance has earned nearly 4, reviews from customers who say it's a "must-have," a "nice large fryer," and the "best fryer for the price.

I needed something that was small and compact, that could be stored when not in use. At the same time it needs to be able to make 30 to 40 dozens of donuts in one day, per month.

This fryer did the trick. By Nina Huang Updated October 11, Each product we feature has been independently selected and reviewed by our editorial team. If you make a purchase using the links included, we may earn commission. This may seem like a long time, but the manual is very specific about heating the oil slowly. This propane-fueled machine delivered excellent results.

Cleanup is more difficult, but for large quantity frying nothing else came close. For all of the food tests, the oil temperature dropped at most 15 degrees, but it rapidly regained heat in a little over four minutes, which is much faster than any of the electric fryers we tested.

The only test that was less successful was the chicken tenders. Although they cooked in a remarkable one minute and 18 seconds, the interiors were slightly underdone.

The Bayou Classic comes equipped with a rather cumbersome drain hose for draining and recycling the oil, which still needs to be filtered and funneled into a suitable storage container. Also, the Bayou Classic is somewhat difficult to clean due to its size.

These are minor quibbles on a generally superior product. The Bayou Classic is a great choice for someone who needs to fry large quantities of food and has the extra yard space to store this unit. The fryer only requires five cups of oil, and the basket, once inserted, tilts downward and revolves, presumably so that the food fries evenly. Unfortunately, despite its stylish design it was the most aesthetically pleasing of all the fryers , we needed to constantly turn the food to ensure uniform cooking.

Even with watts, the unit simply did not get hot enough, which resulted in soggy and oil-laden chicken and fries. In keeping with its thoughtful physical design, the DeLonghi is equipped with a built-in oil drainage pipe. The Hamilton Beach Electric Deep Fryer comes with three baskets; one large and two small, which enables you to fry two types of food simultaneously, for example, fries and onion rings. However, the food capacity in the small baskets does not come close to suggestions in the instruction manual.

We fried one pound of fresh and frozen fries, dividing them into equal portions into the small baskets. The manual suggests 18 ounces per basket; however, the Hamilton Beach struggled to cook eight ounces in each basket and the fries emerged crispy but oily. The thin aluminum casing buckles easily when the enameled oil pot is inserted into it. We can conjecture that the reason this fryer is unable to heat up and maintain optimal heat is because of its flimsy outer casing.

Despite this cool-touch feature, results were mixed. Heating and reheating times were 15 to 20 minutes longer than other competitors. As home cooks, we have some general options about electric deep fryers we can use. We wanted to focus on countertop models, meant to be used inside your kitchen.

There are many larger, gas-powered deep fryers available that are meant to be used only outside. We only tested one just to give some context, but it was not the focus of our test. Even when sticking to indoor kitchen counter-sized models, the machine size and oil capacities varied a lot. We found fryers that ranged between four and 16 cups of oil capacity so we wanted to test the whole range of that. You could always check the temperature of the oil as we did by using our top pick infrared thermometer or the best instant-read thermometer.

There are, however, deep fryers that have adjustable temperature settings and a built-in thermostat. We scoured hundreds of individual reviews to discover what features were important to home cooks, and what made good or bad units. Many brands produced multiple deep fryer models, so we avoided doubling up unless it had some unique features warranting testing like the two Presto units we tested. Luckily, there were many models to choose from and we avoided anything with an average rating less than four stars, or units with an abnormally high proportion of one and two-star reviews.

Since the deep fryers we tested had varying capacities for oil and food, before testing we needed to calculate a ratio of how much oil to food would be equitable across the board for all of the fryers. Our test food was frozen French fries, fresh French fries, raw chicken wings, and battered chicken tenders. Although the Fry Daddy manual claims to have a four-cup maximum food capacity, the amount of food that actually fit into its oil pot and could be submerged in oil was substantially less: Four ounces of frozen or fresh French fries, 10 ounces of raw chicken wings and eight ounces of chicken tenders.

The chicken tenders were dredged in flour, then dipped in an egg-milk wash, and finished with Panko bread crumbs. We began timing the instant the food was submerged in oil. In most cases, cooking times were either considerably longer or shorter than the times recommended in the instruction manuals. For the fresh French fries, we used the double-fry method. When ready to re-use, simply slide out the drawer and transfer to the oil container. The oil container, lid and basket are dishwasher safe, which make the whole cooking process that much easier.

This 4. Use the large basket to fry up a large batch of fries at once, or either of the two smaller ones for a smaller quantity.

You can even cook two different foods at once. The viewing window is large and centered over the center of the appliance for an optimal look inside, while the LCD screen keeps track of the time and temperature during cooking.

Product Reviews. Home Ideas. United States. Type keyword s to search. Today's Top Stories. The Rise of the Cleanfluencer. A few questions to think about include: How often will you be deep frying? Advertisement - Continue Reading Below.

Presto amazon. Breville amazon. Cuisinart amazon. Many customers find the performance great for the price and appreciate features that add convenience like the easy draining system. Others complain about durability issues and the oil not getting hot enough for their needs. King Kooker sells a range of propane deep fryers and associated accessories. If frying turkeys or chickens is a top priority for you, their frying products are made with this use top of mind. Reviewers praise their deep fryers for being great for the price, easy to assemble, and producing great food.

Presto makes a few models of electric deep fryers that get solid reviews from customers. Customers praise how well their fryers work for the price and say they like the special features the different models come with. T-Fal sells electric deep fryers in a number of types and sizes. Reviewers are largely happy with their T-Fal deep fryers, finding them easy to use and easy to clean. The food comes out tasty and customers like the features that their models come with. Delicious fried snacks and the perfect fried turkey could all be in your future.

Why leave the fried food to restaurants when you can bring it into your parties and make snacks that are a hit with your guests every time. Whatever model of deep fryer you go with, make a point of being careful and putting safety first. As long as you follow instructions and best safety practices, you can enjoy the tasty results of deep-frying with minimal risks. Kristen Hicks is a copywriter and lifelong learner that turns her curiosity toward exploring a number of interesting and educational subjects for CompactAppliance.

She lives in Austin, TX with an excitable dog, an ever-growing book collection, and a usually well-stocked wine rack. You can find her on Twitter at atxcopywriter.

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