My wife is starting to save Black Friday ads for air fryers. I anticipate our main use (with some luck) will be for walleye and crappie. Having never used one of these air fryers, I’m hoping to get some advice:
1. How well do air fryers work for battered / shorelunch style fish?
2. Are there any key features or size you’d recommend?
3. Any specific make / unit?
We use the air fryer more than any other appliance. Works great with frozen breaded food like fish, chicken tenders. Best tater tots ever! Braised brussel sprouts turned out good. And yes fresh, breaded walleye. I think we have a basic model not the top end.
I have some brand xl and love it. I made thick cut pork chops a couple days ago and they were delicious. I bet fish would be awesome
We have one but only used it a few times and not all impressed with the flavor of fish cooked in it. Might have more to learn but fish out of my Baby Frydaddy is much better using pure Peanut oil.
I find that the air fryer is the best way to re-heat food that you want to be crispy. The best way to cook it initially is to deep fry it. Fish, Fries, Tater tots – all come out perfect in around 3 minutes from hot oil (I use vegetable oil and an oil thermometer and keep it between 375 and 400 degrees F). Had a family fish fry last weekend, and the everyone remarked how good the fish and fries were – crispy outside, tender inside. Air fryers are great for re-heating, and they do a pretty good job on some frozen foods, but not near as good as deep frying IMO.
If you have a convection oven it will do the same thing as an air fryer without having another appliance on the counter. IMO the only thing they are good for is frozen processed food.
i’ve personally have never had any type of food, yet, out of an air fryer. there seems to be a lot of mixed comments on them.
would i try food out of one, yes, but at this point i wont go out and spend money on one, at least till i try someone elses.
maybe i’m old fashioned, but fish swimming in hot oil is going to be hard for me to change. i use canola oil for my deep frying!!!!!
I’ve tried to do fish a few times in The air fryer. I haven’t figured it out yet and usually end up overcooking and drying the fish out. The other issue is you need to lay the filets flat and can’t stack them. Doesn’t allow for cooking more than a few pieces at a time.
The air fryer is great for fries, tots, onion rings. It’s also great for reheating left over. I reheated a tater tot hotdish in it…amazing. Reheating pizza and fries are awesome. We keep a lot more leftovers because of it.
So, if you plan to only use for fish I wouldn’t do it. If you plan on other stuff it’s worth it.
I took ours back. I will say it was mostly that it just didn’t hold much. By the time my food was cooked the French fries were cold. I don’t remember being impressed by flavor.
I appreciate all the insight crew. Sounds like using these things for fish fry is less than ideal.
Sounds like a good’ol deep fryer is going to be added to my Santa wish list!
I appreciate all the insight crew. Sounds like using these things for fish fry is less than ideal.
Sounds like a good’ol deep fryer is going to be added to my Santa wish list!
That’s exactly the route I went!
Never had fish in an air fryer. I’ll 2nd what Bearcat said about pork. Have did pork chops and pork loin. Delicious!! 
The air fryer is great for fries, tots, onion rings. It’s also great for reheating left over. I reheated a tater tot hotdish in it…amazing. Reheating pizza and fries are awesome. We keep a lot more leftovers because of it.
So, if you plan to only use for fish I wouldn’t do it. If you plan on other stuff it’s worth it.
Precisely. I love my air fryer for frozen breaded stuff, reheating fries so theyre crisp and hot in 2 minutes, reheating pizza is otherworldly… drool
I appreciate all the insight crew. Sounds like using these things for fish fry is less than ideal.
Sounds like a good’ol deep fryer is going to be added to my Santa wish list!
A large cast iron dutch oven and a bucket of beef tallow. Best deep fried food period.
An air fryer is a convection oven. You simply cannot replicate deep fried food if that’s your intent.
Another option would be a Frying Saucer. Uses minimal oil and clean up is a breeze.
I’ve done walleye a few times in ours and they’ve turned it pretty good. Instead of a traditional shore lunch breading, i just used flour, milk, and panko bread crumbs. Seasoning well is key and breaking the filets down to consistent sizes. I think i do mine at 400 for 10-12 minutes, flip half way until the middle reads 140 degrees. The thing i really liked was that they really tasted fried without having any oil taste or stinking up the house with oil smell
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My wife picked one up and I think it is a waste of countertop space. I only use it for reheating leftovers and tots. It did a good job reheating fish. It is too small for doing a meal. My wife and son use it a lot for quick snacks and loves it.
I have one and have not tried fresh fish in it (seems too small and messy). As others said there are tons of other things they are great for and we use it alot.
We got rid of our instapot and got the ninja air fry/instapot combo. It is worth checking out a cookbook to see the range of things you can make.
My exp is air fryers are fantastic for frozen foods/snacks/apps as well as great for reheating leftovers
I tried cooking fresh fish in it one time…never again. Id take a fry pan over that any day of the week when it comes to my walleye
Air fryers arent intended to produce flavor they are intended to cook something crispy with no added fat. If you are looking for some flavor addition you are looking at it all wrong.
Air fryers are fantastic for most things you would deep fry but I would never do fish in there unless it was reheating it.
They have their limitations which is certainly how much in you can fit in there. I made 2 pounds of wings in ours yesterday (this is about max it would hold) and they are the crispiest wings I have ever cooked and I have done them in the oven, deep fryer, smoker, etc.
My kids use it all the time, its quick and easy.
Air fryers arent intended to produce flavor they are intended to cook something crispy with no added fat. If you are looking for some flavor addition you are looking at it all wrong.
Air fryers are fantastic for most things you would deep fry but I would never do fish in there unless it was reheating it.
They have their limitations which is certainly how much in you can fit in there. I made 2 pounds of wings in ours yesterday (this is about max it would hold) and they are the crispiest wings I have ever cooked and I have done them in the oven, deep fryer, smoker, etc.
My kids use it all the time, its quick and easy.
I’ll always fry my fish in oil but as far as wings you nailed it, they’re the best way to cook them!
Another option would be a Frying Saucer. Uses minimal oil and clean up is a breeze.
I would never put fish in an air fryer with the exception of salmon and lake trout.
I’m a frying saucer fan. Food stays hot on the outside ring and I can clean up faster then you can eat the fish or whatever I cooked in it with 4 paper towels.
Like everything else, they took a jump in price. Frying Saucer
PS FW just took her air fryer back. Took too long to clean up.
PS FW just took her air fryer back. Took too long to clean up.
You’re supposed to clean them? LOL
My exp is air fryers are fantastic for frozen foods/snacks/apps as well as great for reheating leftovers
I tried cooking fresh fish in it one time…never again. Id take a fry pan over that any day of the week when it comes to my walleye
Agree. Fish and Wings make a stinking mess.
-J.
Agree. Fish and Wings make a stinking mess.
-J.
In an air fryer? What kind of air fryer do you have? We have an instapot vortex and its basically got 3 trays. 2 cooking trays and one grease trap on the bottom. Super easy to clean out. I dont cook wings in there with sauce on them already that would be a disaster. Sauce afterwards otherwise the sauce will get burned on and the wings wont be crispy.
What kind of air fryer do you have?
This one:
-J.
That does appear more involved to clean. Ours has non stick coating on all the racks and you can just wipe it out if its still warm or rinse with warm water.
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