Tuesday, June 2, 2020
O.k., for those of you wondering… I returned my sister in law’s Ninja Air Fryer (not the Ninja Foodi). I had fun playing around with it and found it best for frozen foods and takeout leftovers. I am not going to be purchasing one at this time for a couple of reasons – I don’t have the counter space or under counter space now. It is a bit hard to clean. It is not really big enough for meals for a family of four and things would have to be cooked in two batches. We are planning a kitchen renovation after our bathrooms get renovated. Yes, we move slowly around here, but that’s the way it is. When my kitchen is destroyed I may buy something like this to use in my dining room – I have heard to set up a makeshift kitchen during renos. I asked on the blog and on Facebook for opinions on the air fryer and what people cook in them. One comment was that your normal oven has a convection feature and it works the same way. Melanie Shankle of Big Mama Blog and Big Boo podcast was also recently discussing this topic, by the way. See what the Pandemic does to people?
I have a convection bake and a convection roast on my oven. I have also got a proofing bread feature that I ignored for the 20 years I have had this oven and a probe feature which frankly, scares me a little. What on Earth? The word “probe” is right up there with “moist” and “satchel” for me. My sweet little boy Mason used to come home from school and yell “My satchel (his backpack) is moist!”
I have gotten by just fine for twenty years with only using bake and broil. I don’t even use the oven light. I once tried self clean and it scared me. My husband cleans the oven every now and again.
Anyway, let’s learn about convection… That may be the most boring statement I have ever written!
The difference in convection is that is has a fan and exhaust that helps food cook quicker and more evenly. It cooks 25% faster and it’s better at browning food.
You should use convection for: roasting, baking pies and pastries, making lots of cookies all at once (no need for rotation), cooking covered dishes, and toasting and dehydrating.
You should not use convection for: custards and flans, souffles, breads, or cakes.
I decided to try my convection roast setting for some zucchini and potatoes. I was a bit scared, but here we go…
I knew I need to space them out on a cookie sheet for even cooking. By the way, I have three of these jellyroll pans/cookie sheet with edges. I have one that is half the size. I use these all the time and love them. I put EVOO on the pan and then used salt, pepper, and cajun spices.
I normally would roast at 375 or 400 so I set to 350 because you need to go down by 25 degrees.
After only 20 minutes, this is what I got. I think next time I will broil for the last two minutes to get even more crispy.
Verdict: I would say that is pretty good for 20 minutes! I plan to experiment further with my convection feature.
It only took 20 years for me to discover this option on my oven, guys!
Have you convected? What do you know that I don’t know?
Amy
Coffee and Cocktails at the Casa 
I have used the convection feature on my oven in the past but don’t really bother with it much – just seemed okay to me. When we renovated our kitchen we got a microwave that doubles as an oven too. It is terrific and has a speed bake feature – we can bake potatoes in it (without piercing them) and they turn out perfectly.
We borrowed an air fryer from my mom for summer while the boys are home. They like making fries and chicken tenders in it. Last night I made salmon in it and it worked very well.
I’m still not interested in owning one, they are so darn big. I am thinking of the Ninja Foodi since it could replace my crock pot as well as do all the other cool things!
xo,
Kellyann
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That’s an idea for our renovation – I didn’t know they made microwaves that had that! I never did try salmon in it but it was too small for even a decent piece of salmon!
I’m still interested in looking at the Foodi when we renovate.
Thanks for the tips!
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I feel the same way about the air fryers and instant pots. They seem so big and bulky, and I’m not sure how often I would use them. I need to check out the convection feature!
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I know! I am not big on extra appliances. My boys are going to same college but living in different dorms – haven’t talked about it on blog yet because I struggle with how much to share – but the college has same colors as their high school! I still haven’t planned a date for their party yet but I need to and I need to buy decor. I think I’m going to do a candy bar with ring pops for class rings, tootsie rolls for diplomas, smarties, dum dums – check it out on Pinterest- tons of ideas!
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I just bought a convection microwave that is being delivered Thursday. I’m so excited to try it! I wanted a double oven range but they are so expensive and then the salesman told me about the convection microwave that is basically another oven, so I’m going that route. And my new range has a steam cleaning oven feature that sounds nice.
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I am definitely telling my husband about this option for our new kitchen! It’s been so long since I’ve shopped for kitchen appliances – I feel very uninformed. So exciting that you have that coming! Let me know how you like it! Oh, read the manual – I have decided I’m always reading manuals from now on – lol!
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I’ve never tried any oven features besides bake! 😂maybe broil once!
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Haha! Glad I’m not the only!
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Your new deck is gorgeous and the railing is the perfect finishing touch! Love reading about how you are “getting back to normal”, it’s so different for everyone.
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Thank you so much Sophie! I love reading about people in other states and how they are proceeding. Thanks for commenting!
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My oven has preset things like pizza etc that automatically cook on convection so I usually only use convection when I use one of those preset selections.
Our oven heating element died right at the beginning of the quarantine so I bought a toaster oven to tide us over while we waited for the oven to be fixed. The toaster oven has all the same oven features like broiler bake etc. I don’t love having Another appliance on the counter, so we moved it to the garage and actually use it a fair amount when I don’t wanna heat up the oven. You might like something like that when your boys go to college and it’s just you and your husband.
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That’s cool – just like the microwave presets. Do you have to get a whole new oven? That’s what I was thinking too is that I might like something like this for cooking for two. It’s going to be so weird!
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Love convection!
That actually saved me when I was baking at altitude in CO/WY. It is so much easier than converting ingredients/degrees with electric.
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That is interesting! I always joke about baking brownies at Machu Picchu with my students and they don’t get it. You know, high altitude directions on the back of brownie mixes? I try, at least, right?
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We have the probe feature at our lake house and it is amazing! We use it on Christmas and during the holidays when we cook prime rib or turkey. You plug the probe into your oven and then place it in your meat. You set the temperature on the probe to the temperature you want your meat to be cooked at and the oven automatically turns off when the meat reaches the set temperature. We love it!
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I will have to find my probe. I think I know where it is! I am learning lots of new things at home during the pandemic so that can be my next thing! Haha! Thank you!
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