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Vent: I just found out you're supposed to preheat an air fryer and I've been cooking everything cold for 8 months
My sister watched me throw frozen chicken strips in and asked why I never hit the preheat button - now I'm wondering how much food I've been messing up. Is preheating actually essential or is it one of those things people swear by but doesn't matter?
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uma_ellis20d ago
My buddy is a chef and he told me the real issue with cold starts is uneven cooking, not total failure. Like your chicken strips probably came out okay on the outside but might have been slightly raw in the middle sometimes. Preheating basically gets the air hot so the food starts cooking right away instead of sitting there while the air fryer warms up. For frozen stuff it matters less because they're already partly cooked, but for raw meat it's a bigger deal. The manual on my Cosori says to preheat for 3-5 minutes and I've definitely noticed crispier fries since I started doing it.
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seanjackson20d ago
Buddy of mine skipped preheating on his air fryer once and ended up with chicken that was burnt on one side and barely done on the other. He said it looked like a science experiment gone wrong. Been preheating ever since.
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