Air Fryers and Food Safety

Air fryers are kitchen appliances used for “frying” foods without cooking the food in oils. Although ovens are larger and hold more food, air fryers, which are essentially countertop convection ovens, cook food faster and consume less energy.

How They Work

After placing food into the fryer basket, the user turns on the air fryer and hot air is released through the air fryer’s heating mechanism. The food then becomes crisp due to the quick circulation of hot air. The appliance is airtight, thus keeping hot air inside, while also helping to ensure that the food is heated intensely and rapidly. Foods generally require 5 to 25 minutes of cooking at a temperature of from 350° F to 400° F.

What Can They Do?

A wide variety of foods such as chicken nuggets, meatballs, pork chops, chicken wings, and more can be cooked or heated in an air fryer. Air fryers can be used for baking, roasting, and reheating food without the food becoming soggy.

Health Benefits of Air Fryers

Nutritionists believe that cooking with air fryers may have some health benefits including:

• Air frying may preserve more nutrients than deep frying

Because air fryers use less oil than required for deep frying, cooking with an air fryer may decrease your dietary intake of trans fats that may contribute to elevated cholesterol levels, diabetes, heart disease, and some cancers.

• Air frying instead of deep frying foods such as potatoes can reduce your exposure to acrylamide, a chemical which may increase the risk of certain cancers.

Food Safety Tips to Remember While Air Frying

Air fryers generally don’t have a lot of room inside. Overcrowding the appliance can prevent enough air circulation to properly cook the food. When air frying a large amount of food, it may be best to do so in batches rather than all at once. Follow the four food safety steps to air fry safely:

• Clean — Always wash hands with soap and water for 20 seconds before and after preparing food. Clean and sanitize surfaces including the air fryer basket before and after food preparation.

• Separate — Don’t place cooked food on the same plate that previously held raw food. Raw meats, poultry, and seafood should be kept away from cooked foods or other foods that are ready to eat to prevent cross-contamination. Use separate cutting boards — one for raw meat and poultry and another for fruits and vegetables.

• Cook — Be sure not to overfill the air frying basket to avoid uneven cooking and undercooking. When available, consumers should follow the instructions on food packages to ensure food is thoroughly cooked. Cook all air fried foods to a safe minimum internal temperature and measure the temperature with a food thermometer:

• Fish is safe at 145° F.

• Whole cuts of beef, pork, veal and lamb are safe at 145° F with a 3-minute rest time.

• Ground meat products are ready to eat at 160° F.

• Poultry, including ground poultry, is safe to eat once it's reached an internal temperature of 165° F.

• Do not cook raw, stuffed breaded chicken breast products in an air fryer.

Whether you are air frying raw or pre-cooked meat, always follow the manufacturer instructions. Each air fryer will have varying cooking times due to the size and power of the appliance, but the safe internal temperature is always the same. Use a food thermometer to make sure your meat and poultry is fully cooked.

• Chill — Don’t forget about your cooked food sitting in the air fryer. Leftover foods should be refrigerated within 2 hours, otherwise they can enter the Food Danger Zone, the range of temperatures between 41° F and 135° F where foodborne illness bacteria multiply rapidly.

Are Air Fryers Safe?

The nonstick coating of the basket of some models of air fryers contain “forever chemicals” such as per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS). Exposure to high levels of these chemicals has been linked to health problems including infertility, hormone disruption, and some types of cancer including breast cancer. To reduce PFAS exposure, purchase an air fryer with a basket with stainless steel or glass coatings.

Some air fryers, because of faulty wiring, may overheat, smoke, melt, burn, or catch fire. Some people have been burned from air fryers that caught fire or overheated. The U.S. Product Safety Commission maintains a listing of air fryers that have been recalled for these problems at https://www.cpsc.gov/Recalls.

The above information is courtesy of the U.S. Department of Agriculture and the U.S. Product Safety Commission.