Once started, the air fryer enters preheat mode for 3 to 4 minutes, at which point it beeps at you to add food. I found preheating unnecessary — I put the food in and started cooking right away, subtracting 3 minutes from my cooking time since the timer doesn’t count down until after the unit preheats. Emitting a cheerful jingle, the air fryer indicated a few minutes before the end of the cooking cycle that it was time to give the basked a shake, which I dutifully obeyed. Once the time had elapsed, the air fryer automatically switched off – and I was greeted with perfectly crisp and fluffy fries cooked just to my liking, alongside a moist, flavorful fillet of salmon. Having mostly tested larger air fryers, and as a single-person household, in particular, I was delighted to have the instant pot duo nova Slim at my disposal.
For the easiest cleaning, look for nonstick baskets and air fryers with parts that are all dishwasher-safe. It’s usually fairly easy to wash the parts by hand or stick them in the dishwasher (if they fit), but if ease of cleaning is at the top of your list, nonstick is the way to go. Rotisserie racks and models with lots of accessories can be tricky to take apart/put back together, which will also add to your cleanup time. Air fryers come in many shapes and sizes, with capacities ranging from 2 quarts to 10 or more.
Keen to put the Plus through its paces, we trialled it over the course of a month to prepare a range of everyday foods. Get the best value on product protection including fast repairs or replacements.
The Vortex Plus is currently retailing for $20 more than the Vortex. Our air fryer uses the basket method to cook while the 10-quart one uses racks or a rotating barrel or a rotisserie attachment for a whole chicken. It’s much more of a “mini convection oven” than just an air fryer. The Instant™ Vortex® Mini is fast, versatile, compact, and convenient, so you can make all your favorite fried sides and snacks with less of the oil and none of the mess. This small air fryer is available in 4 colors and features EvenCrisp™ technology for crispy, tender results every time.
Truthfully, we’ve never contacted Instant™ support for this air fryer because it has not given us issues. There are a few things that we have found didn’t work out as well in the air fryer – or at least in this air fryer. We also made a frozen chicken breast and it turned out the same, just with slightly longer cooking time. Some – like this 8-quart moosoo air fryer Vortex® – have dual-zone, meaning you can cook two different things in different temperature zones for different times. With a larger capacity, this might be ideal for a larger family than ours (two people). This means that we might miss the commands of the air fryer but we are attentive people when we air fry so this has never been an issue.