I bought one of these from Woot around Christmas time. It is the first fryer we’ve owned, so I don’t have much to compare it to. I like how the fryer can be disassembled and all parts are dishwasher-safe (except the heating elements).
One complaint: The hooks on the basket used to hang it from the bowl when loading/unloading food don’t seem to grab onto the glass bowl very tightly. We’ve had the basket fall abruptly into the hot oil while loading it causing the hot oil to splash out. It’s happened twice, once to me and once to my wife. No one was hurt, but it could have been bad. Now we make sure we hold on to the basket handle with one hand while carefully dropping the food into the basket to make sure it doesn’t happen again.
FYI: cast iron dutch oven also works great for frying foods. Granted, you have to add your own fryer thermometer. However, you can get as hot as you want, with the oil and your stove being the only limitations.
You avoid buying a uni-tasker and you don’t have to worry about the cast iron breaking down. Also, it makes a handy dandy weapon.
I agree that it is a unitasker, but the advantage of this over the plain cast iron dutch oven and stove top is that it regulates the temperature automatically.
Also, you may have noticed that in at least one episode of Good Eats, Alton does use a similar fryer.
I’d also like to put in my 2 cents for palm and coconut oils in cooking, deep frying in particular. Widely used in SE Asia, both of these are vastly superior to the refined junk we use here in the US.
Just wanted to add to my previous comment that there does exist organic/cold-pressed varieties of the “modern” oils which are a better option than the cheaply-produced industrial varieties.
I’m curious if anyone has tried deep frying with coconut oil, which is supposed to be one of the healthiest oils. If so, can you share what you deep fried and what the result was? Did you use a virgin coconut oil or refined?
What happens if you accidentally splash cold water onto the glass whilst it is hot. Just how much thermal stress can the glass bowl take before it cracks or worse shatters?
I’ve never had a fryer before, is it possible to reuse the grease a few times? I would think a closed top device would be better if that’s the case, as i could see myself blowing a lot of money on oil in the future
Woo! We’re going to take over the food world. Good catch on Alton using a fryer. I forgot about that.
I’m not sure that automatic temperature regulation is that special. When I fry manually, I up the temperature before I put the food in. Between the cast iron and the temporary compensation, I don’t have much heat loss.
The use of glass also concerns me. I’m pretty klutzy. Now, I’ve accidentally banged against my cast iron. Other than a “youch” from the heat of the pan, I barely moved it. On the other hand, I can tell you about the number of glass items I’ve broken over the years. Knocking over a combination of glass plus hot oil equals a call to 911. That searing combination of hot oil and glass shards can hardly be offset by any insurance, private or government.
Short answer: Yes it’s biodegradable, but no you can’t just pour it into a compost.
Long answer: In general it’s best to avoid putting fats and oils into compost. There are a multiple reasons why. It tends to create odors. Makes the pile much more likely to attract pests. Also, dramatically slows down the composting process. A significant amount of oil would basically bring your pile to standstill. That being said, if you have a large pile, and a steady source of other really good additives, a small amount of vegatable oil won’t really hurt your pile. If you do put it in, make sure to spread it out, don’t dump it in one place.
YEP. Even Alton uses a dedicated fryer. He has a whole episode about junk foods (look for the episode with corn dogs) and he gives recommendations about what deep fryer to buy.
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