So many people are overloading their air fryer baskets and it's killing the crunch

I kept seeing posts about soggy fries and limp chicken wings and I finally figured out the common problem. Almost everyone is cramming too much food in the basket at once. I did the same thing my first month with the air fryer thinking it was like a mini oven where you can pile stuff in. But the air needs to circulate around each piece to get that crispy outside. Last week I tried cooking just a single layer of chicken thighs with space between each one and the difference was night and day. The skin came out super crispy and the meat stayed juicy inside. Has anyone else noticed better results when they cut back on how much they put in at a time?

2 comments

2 Comments

craig.nathan19d ago

Wait, you mean people are actually piling stuff in there like it's a regular oven? I thought that was common sense, not gonna lie. My first batch of fries came out like sad little steamed potatoes because I dumped a whole bag in there like a rookie. Once I spaced them out in a single layer with gaps, they actually got that golden crunch you see in the ads. Chicken wings are the worst offenders too, I saw a buddy try to cook a whole party platter at once and they came out looking like boiled chickens that got lightly kissed by hot air.

david12319d ago

Piling food in there actually works fine if you just add a few extra minutes and shake the basket halfway through.