Buzz
Over the past few years, the air fryer has become a popular fixture in kitchens everywhere. It's compact, fits easily in small spaces like my Brooklyn apartment, and is available in various price ranges without compromising on performance.
In brief, air fryers are highly effective, and their growing popularity can be attributed, in part, to the claim that they offer a healthier cooking option—since you’re air frying, not deep frying. But is air frying really a healthier way to cook? Like many things that sound too good to be true, the answer depends.
Understanding How an Air Fryer Works
If you’re unfamiliar with it, an air fryer is basically a countertop convection oven. It’s a versatile kitchen gadget that speeds up cooking while offering convenience, and it comes in a variety of fun colors and designs.
Here’s a quick rundown of how air fryers work—they use a fan to circulate hot air around your food. This fast cooking mimics the results of deep frying, but with air instead of oil. (If you’re looking for a new air fryer, check out my top three recommendations.)
Do air fryers promote healthier eating?
The term “healthy” can be a bit broad, so let’s narrow it down.
Deep frying leads to oil absorption. Whether you're deep frying (fully immersing food in hot oil) or shallow frying (with just a bit of oil), the food sits in hot fat, soaking it up. This process increases the calorie count of the food, which might not be ideal if you’re aiming for a healthier meal.
An air fryer doesn’t need excessive oil. Unlike traditional frying, which relies heavily on oil, convection cooking (closer to baking) uses hot air to cook food. You can make crispy, crunchy snacks with little to no oil in an air fryer, achieving tasty results with less added fat.
If you’re wondering if an air fryer can make crispy foods with fewer calories from added oils, the answer is yes.
Healthy eating starts with the food you choose to cook.
Does an air-fried breaded chicken nugget have fewer calories than one cooked in a deep fryer? Yes. Is it more nutritious than a kale salad? No.
So, is an air fryer the ultimate solution for healthy eating? Not exactly—it’s just an appliance. However, it could be your go-to tool for preparing more vegetables and lean meats with ease. While it might serve you well as a french fry warmer, it’s not going to pack your meals with nutrients. On the flip side, this quick-cooking gadget may reduce your reliance on take-out or fast food, allowing you to prepare a balanced meal in about 15 minutes.
Healthy eating is more about what you cook; it depends on your dietary needs and the food choices available to you. (And keep in mind, healthy eating isn't the same as dieting.)
How to make healthier meals with an air fryer
You don’t need to make drastic changes to eat healthier; small adjustments can make a big difference.
Use an oil sprayer. To lightly coat your food with oil and cover a larger area, try an oil sprayer or a pastry brush. I prefer the sprayer because it's less messy and useful for other kitchen gadgets like my waffle iron. You can find pre-filled oil spritzers in most grocery stores, or opt for refillable ones available online, like this one. Just be sure it’s pure oil in a simple sprayer—not aerosolized oil like PAM, which contains lecithin (an emulsifier) that can harm the non-stick surfaces of your cookware.
Choose whole ingredients. This is always a great approach, regardless of your cooking method. With the air fryer, even simple ingredients can yield incredible results—things you can’t achieve with steaming, boiling, or baking. A quick spritz of oil on vegetables can turn them into perfectly roasted snacks. The same goes for lean meats—add a spice rub and get a beautifully crispy, charred outside and juicy, tender inside. I’ve never enjoyed roasted pork tenderloin and broccoli more than when I cook them in the air fryer.
Cook without using oil
Here are some of my go-to air fryer recipes that need only a few ingredients and require little to no oil.
Perfectly roasted peppers
Succulent steak bites
Bacon-wrapped banana poppers
Air-fried bananas
Crispy turkey kielbasa
Roasted pork tenderloin
Lobster tail
All types of vegetable dishes
If you're looking to eat healthier, there are other factors to consider. It’s definitely possible to make better food choices without counting calories and losing weight without falling into diet culture. Think of the air fryer as a helpful tool in your kitchen, but remember—it’s not a miracle worker. You control what goes into it.
