Deep fat fryers are a hated item within this reviewer’s household but can the Tefal ActiFry get chips back on the menu and only use a teaspoon of oil?
Not since Mrs. Gadget got one for her 21st birthday from prospective mother-in-law so she could cook chips for then-intended husband has a fryer so much got a look-in. But then again, the Tefal Actifry is not a deep fat fryer. Rather it is, well what do you call it?
Well it does fry chips, but it also appears to blow-dry them as well. And all with just a spoonful of oil. The unit is quite large and the “pan” can take up to 1kg of chips (enough to feed a family of four supposedly – although if you have big appetites about two). It takes around half-an-hour to cook the chips and it lets you know by sounding an alarm to tell you that its done. Although the noise of the fryer can drown out the sound of the alarm.
But chips are not the only thing it can cook. We have tried beef strips, tempura (of sorts) and we have even eaten snails cooked on the Actifry (admittedly with a lots of garlic and copious wine beforehand). It sports a mixing arm so that everything gets evenly cooked. Better still the chips only contain around three percent fat compared with deep fried or even oven chips that contain far more fats.
The viewing window means that you can keep an eye on things while it;s cooking and you can get at your food via the automatic button. After cooking, just about everything that gets dirty can be taken out and put in a dishwasher to clean up.
Overall, it’s a great concept but at around £140, a tad expensive for cooking chips if that’s all you are going to do. But if you want your chips and you don’t want to get fat, definitely something to consider.
Rating: 8/10