How Long to Cook Fresh Fish in Air Fryer

Love them or hate them, air fryers have changed how many Americans think about cooking, and you can find them just about everywhere—even in ovens. Frigidaire, Haier, and LG are just a few of the appliance brands that are making ranges with built-in air fry settings.

The first ranges with built-in air fry that we tested were Frigidaire's gas and electric models, the Frigidaire Gallery FGGH3047VF and Frigidaire Gallery FGEH3047VF. Since testing these initial built-in air fry models from Frigidaire, we've also tested the Haier QGSS740RNSS gas range, LG LREL6325F electric range, and Frigidaire Professional PCFG3078AF gas range.

For those who are intrigued in the health benefits of air fryers but don't want to clutter their countertop with another big gadget, these ovens offer a convenient compromise. But what does it mean for an oven to also be an air fryer? And does this function actually work?

How do air fry functions in ovens work?

Credit: Frigidaire

Air fry ovens are essentially convection ovens equipped with air fry trays.

All countertop air fryers—whether they look like mysterious black plastic cubes or regular toaster ovens—use the same basic technology: electric heating elements, convection fans, and frying trays or baskets. The convection fans quickly and evenly circulate hot air throughout the interior of the fryer to make your favorite foods crispy without being submerged in oil. (If you're interested in learning even more, we have more detailed explanations of how air fryers work and how they compare to baking.

Because of their convection technology, air fryers are often described as "miniature convection ovens." If we follow that logically, an air fryer the size of an oven would be just that—a convection oven. So when we talk about the air fry function on the latest Frigidaire Gallery ranges, we're really talking about a specialized convection setting designed to maximize heat circulation and crisp up your food.

The size of these ranges is important to consider. While countertop air fryers are small and can heat quickly, full ranges require longer heat times and may take longer to crisp up foods than small air fryers. So if speed is top of mind, an oven with an air fryer setting might not be as appealing as a regular countertop appliance.

How do the air fry ranges perform?

Credit: Frigidaire

We made a load of frozen French fries to test the Air Fry mode on these ranges.

Performance for these ranges was across the board, and to test we air fried and baked a lot of frozen French fries before comparing results.

We began by testing for our the Frigidaire Gallery FGGH3047VF gas range. We followed the oven manual's cooking instruction for 43 ounces of frozen French fries (Ore-Ida, in this case) on a baking sheet for 30 minutes in Air Fry mode. Then we cooked the same load of fries for the same amount of time in Standard mode.

It's worth noting that Ore-Ida gives conflicting instructions and recommends only cooking one-half to three-quarters of the bag. We opted to follow Frigidaire's instructions, however, which may have created the less-than-ideal fries.

Unsurprisingly, the 43 ounces of French fries that were cooked on Standard mode were mostly still frozen. The fries that were touching the bottom of the baking sheet (the baking sheet couldn't fit all of the fries in a single layer and were piled on top of one another in some places) were crispy on one side, but were otherwise mushy, slightly oily, and uncooked.

But when we used the Frigidaire ReadyCook Air Fry Tray and the Air Fry mode, our results were much better. Not only did all 43 ounces of frozen French fries fit onto the tray, but after 30 minutes, all of the fries that were not on the outer edge of the tray had been cooked evenly all the way through, and there was no oily residue. While the fries on the outer edge of the tray were burnt, that's a good indication that heat is flowing efficiently through your fried foods, even if it's moving a little too efficiently at the tray's edges.

After running the same tests on the electric Frigidaire Gallery FGEH3047VF, we achieved even slightly better results. The electric heat produced a more even crisp on the air fried fries, particularly when prepared with the air fry tray. We also removed the tray after just 25 minutes to prevent the outside fries from burning and found the inner fries still perfectly cooked.

Ultimately, we found that the Air Fry mode works. These ranges are too big to cook as quickly as countertop air fryers, requiring almost 30 minutes to cook fries as opposed to 15. However, their size allows them to cook a lot at once, and their air fry trays reduce crowding and uneven cooking. According to the manual, the Air Fry mode works on everything from frozen tater tots to fresh chicken wings.

More recent ranges we've tested with the built-in air fry feature include the LG LREL6325F and the Haier QGSS740RNSS. The LG's air fry mode produced perfectly crispy French fries, but we were disappointed to learn that the air fry tray is sold separately. The Haier model has a No Preheat Air Fry mode, meaning you can air fry your foods even faster.

Should I buy an air fry oven?

Credit: Frigidaire

If you want to air fry without a countertop appliance, this range might suit you.

If you're in the market for a new range and air fried foods appeal to you, these ranges are definitely worth your consideration. We were impressed by the overall performance of the gas Haier QGSS740RNSS—one of the best gas ranges we've tested)—and the air fry results of the electric LG LREL6325F point toward a well-designed oven.

If speed is your ultimate concern, we still recommend choosing a countertop air fryer or convection toaster oven. But if you're looking to simplify your kitchen and get crispy foods right from your oven, a single appliance that can do both may be the way to go.

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How Long to Cook Fresh Fish in Air Fryer

Source: https://www.reviewed.com/cooking/features/frigidaire-gallery-range-with-air-fry-heres-how-it-works

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