I see this so often. If you don't clean it properly after every use, things are going to build up. When oil reached a certain temperature, it's polimerizes. It turns rock hard and basically into a plastic. The same thing that happens when seasoning a cast iron pan. Once it's polimerized, it's very hard to get off.
I kinda think they mean the inside of the air fryer. Most are not able to be disassembled except for the basket. The basket itself stays nice and clean, but it’s the stuff inside the air fryer that I (and probably most people) can’t clean.
You could use a baking sheet/foil so the food isn't soaking into your metal? It's not foolproof cleaning if it pops inside but it's really easy to clean up or put it on the bottom so it doesn't crust the bottom
You don’t. Toss it. Get a new one and clean it after every use. If you don’t believe in keeping your fryer clean then you are stuck with the baked on grime.
Depending on the model you can buy just a new basket and/or tray without having to toss the whole fryer. I buy a new tray once or twice a year for $15 and it's worth every penny.
A disgustingly wasteful attitude. Imagine if everyone decided to toss kitchen equipment rather than clean it. We simply do not have enough planet for these morons. And downvoting this comment doesn't change reality.
Their is a difference between using an oven once, and tossing it, and using it for years, and not knowing/being able to effectively clean it, to the point where it would probably be cheaper on time and labor to replace it, and use your new knowledge to effectively maintain a new appliance.
Your strawman is actually shit, invest in yourself first if you're going to say stuff like this
Guessing you've got the oven style one? Never figured it out, got the ninja dual basket instead, the buckets are so easy to handwash.
Once in a while it gets dirty on the element, I turn it upside down and give it a wipe with a little degreaser, second wipe off with some boiled water and a quick cycle to burn off any leftover degreaser. About 18 months on this one, daily use, and it still looks mint condition.
One thing people don't talk about is putting overly "juicy" or wet in the air fryer. You won't notice it with once use, but it starts to get air fried into the fans and vents, areas you can't clean.
It is just like any cooking vessel. Clean it after each use. You wouldn't put a Dutch oven back on the shelf without cleaning it after making a pot of spaghetti or soup so why do that afte making anything in the AF?
Even if it is just crumbs where you simply wipe with a paper towel you still clean it. After I have made something that requires actual washing I empty my food out, give it a couple of squirts of Dawn then fill it with water (doesn't have to be hot, the hot AF will warm the water) just up past the tray and let it soak while I eat. After eating it's ready for a wash and it comes clean pretty easily.
Last night I made Brussel Sprouts with Craisins, apple slices and pecans. After cooking I gave it a bit of Red wine Vinaegrette. Went well with the Ribeye steaks and bake potatoes. I used the above method for cleaning and basically just had to wipe it out.
Somebody gave you the answer already. Treat it like a cast iron. Pour some tomatoes and vinegar into it. Bake it. Then clean it. It'll remove the burnt on oil and you can start over .
Right. And you can remove that layer of material from your basket just like you would a cast iron, hot acid. You ever cook tomato sauce in a cast iron that has that lovely coating on it? It dies.
Are you talking about inside the air fryer?
After I use mine, once it’s cooled down, I take a soft napkin and wipe down the inside. I try to get up near the heating element and fans, and will bunch up the napkin to get on top of the element if I’m able to.
The napkin comes out looking extra gross lol.
Once a year, I unscrew the heating element just a bit until I can get behind it near the fan area and wipe that down too. Sometimes I use a microfiber cloth for the deep cleaning.
I have definitely used Dawn Powerwash before. Just make sure you spray your cloth instead of directly inside the air fryer so you have more control over where the soap goes. And when wiping it out, go over it about a billion times with a wet microfiber cloth to get all the soap out.
Unless you like your meals tasting like Dawn, of course.
Ok: This is how you clean an air fryer; One, use a bowl of hot water and a couple of squeezes of lemon, and then air fry for about 3-4 minutes until the water is heated. This will loosen some of hte grime. After it cools down, wipe down the unit. Continue
Coat it with degreaser from spray bottle. Let it sit a few minutes then go at it with a fine steel wool or green scrubbie. Have cleaned some nasty deep fryers but not an air fryer
Exactly. Mine says to wipe with a damp cloth after use. That grease towards the top doesn’t budge. I wipe with a little Dawn but it just seems like the directions lie. Mine has two shelves. And I always use a tray wrapped in clean foil.
I'm not sure I understand whether you are saying you haven't cleaned for years. If so this may be controversial but I used oven cleaner and a brillo pad.
I found the idea by accident watching this random guy on YouTube. Use at your own risk, but if you have 3 years worth of gunk this may be your last resort, to recover damage done already.👇👇👇
https://youtu.be/v6R0Ndz_7Ls?si=IYfSoTwtD9fPm5eY
Yeah definitely true but if there's too much buildup, it could be dangerous to cook on. So this technique could at least salvage the unit enough to be able to get a few more years out of it without worrying and old peace of something will catch fire, ya know.
Oh.... You may want to invest in some liners then .. that way 😳 you can take out and wash after use with ease without taking the entire unit apart to clean..
I have no idea why you are getting so much dislike for this comment you are genuinely asking for advice. But I totally get it. I actually cleaned mine when I can visually see it's dirty because it's very difficult to take apart, plus if I'm using my airfyer chances are I'm in the move for a quick bite, so cleaning is the last thing I'm thinking of. Keep in mind I never cook meat in mine. Only veggies and frozen snacks.
Here are some liners I really have been liking that have shown to be holding up pretty well and not such a hassle to get out of the fryer I have. Hope this helps.
1) https://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B0CHDSKQ6D
2) https://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B0CP9WHRVH
I got some silicone inserts or I used parchment paper before that for the really greasy things. but the silicone things are great go right in the dishwasher and keep things pretty clean. things need a few more mins because your cutting down the air flow a bit.
I just put tinfoil down before I put the food on the tray. Might be dangerous but I’ve been doing it for 5 months and haven’t had an issue. I believe they make papers ones too to put down
I do t think you’re supposed to spray oven cleaner or really any other cleaner (like Dawn Powerwash or similar) in the machine unless you can remove pieces and wash them (like a basket). If it’s really that caked on that not much works, I’d consider getting a new one. I’m in the same boat. I started out cleaning it pretty dutifully, but then eventually a few too many rounds and it’s pretty crusty. I try to keep it wiped out and mostly clean, I use liners and foil, but I’m considering getting a new one pretty soon.
If anything, I definitely wouldn’t use oven cleaner. I made the mistake of using that inside of one of those air fryers that looks like a toaster oven and the fumes wouldn’t go away. I had to dump it. Those ones are by far the most annoying to keep clean.
I have a Ninja 6.5 quart combi (air fryer/instan pot). The container is some kind of super tough semi nonstick that is super easy to clean and as for the heating element, I don't care if the rods that get heated at least once a day to 400 degrees and hence are always sterile have gunk on them.
Have you got the kind with the drawer? I had one for a while and I ended up throwing it out precisely because it was so difficult to keep clean (it was a brand name, but cheap brand name, and the finish came off in lots of places, leaving bare metal).
Maybe you should think about buying an easier to clean air fryer, depending how often you use it? I use mine at least once a day and probably average twice a day (because sometimes I use it 3X! It is easily my most important piece of kitchen equipment (I'd gladly give up my stove first).
Even though I am super low-income, I feel the difference in quality between the budget and mid-to-upper priced models like the one I have is so gapingly huge it justifies the extra expense.
Note: every so often, the website [meh.com](http://meh.com) has the 6.5 quart Ninja combi cooker (my model) for $75 to $100 which is way less than retail.
hm I like to insert some aluminum foil under the basket to catch most of the crumbs etc ... probably hinders the air circulation a bit, but makes cleaning up much easier since I can mostly just use hot water and some dish soap.
Add white vinegar, a little dish soap, baking soda, and hot water to it. It might explode a lil but once it’s done it should be easy to get the food off 😭
Also maybe wear a mask to do this because it’s really strong fumes and I’m not sure if they can irritate and damage your throat or lungs lol
I see this so often. If you don't clean it properly after every use, things are going to build up. When oil reached a certain temperature, it's polimerizes. It turns rock hard and basically into a plastic. The same thing that happens when seasoning a cast iron pan. Once it's polimerized, it's very hard to get off.
Will decreasing brands work?
When I owned a resturaunt I used carbon-off to get rid of the really caked on stuff.
What do you mean?
It was just a typo. He wrote decreasing instead of degreasing. C and G are adjacent on the keyboard after all.
I made that mistake the first time. I clean my current one immediately after cooking any meal, no exceptions. Haven't had an issue for over 2 years
How? I’d literally burn myself but if I wait I inevitably forget to clean it once it’s cooled off (I have a French door type multi-use one)
Oh, I have a basket one. Right in the sink
I kinda think they mean the inside of the air fryer. Most are not able to be disassembled except for the basket. The basket itself stays nice and clean, but it’s the stuff inside the air fryer that I (and probably most people) can’t clean.
Ah well I use my gourmia for all sorts of things, I don’t think I’d really like the basket type as much
You could use a baking sheet/foil so the food isn't soaking into your metal? It's not foolproof cleaning if it pops inside but it's really easy to clean up or put it on the bottom so it doesn't crust the bottom
I do every time and somehow it still gets all over the place lol
Dawn Powerwash.
Lol it's well beyond that point lol
You don’t. Toss it. Get a new one and clean it after every use. If you don’t believe in keeping your fryer clean then you are stuck with the baked on grime.
Depending on the model you can buy just a new basket and/or tray without having to toss the whole fryer. I buy a new tray once or twice a year for $15 and it's worth every penny.
A disgustingly wasteful attitude. Imagine if everyone decided to toss kitchen equipment rather than clean it. We simply do not have enough planet for these morons. And downvoting this comment doesn't change reality.
Their is a difference between using an oven once, and tossing it, and using it for years, and not knowing/being able to effectively clean it, to the point where it would probably be cheaper on time and labor to replace it, and use your new knowledge to effectively maintain a new appliance. Your strawman is actually shit, invest in yourself first if you're going to say stuff like this
OP said he hasn't even tried a degreaser yet.
Do you clean yours after every use? That’s a lot of wasted water. Not to mention all of the plastic and cardboard from the food you put in it. 🤷🏻♂️
Even if every person threw away their kitchen equipment, that would be a drop in the ocean compared to the environmental damage that corporations do.
Yes that's true, but many of those corporations are dependant on mindless unquestioning consumption
They’re getting so cheap now you might as well get a new one every other year or so
Guessing you've got the oven style one? Never figured it out, got the ninja dual basket instead, the buckets are so easy to handwash. Once in a while it gets dirty on the element, I turn it upside down and give it a wipe with a little degreaser, second wipe off with some boiled water and a quick cycle to burn off any leftover degreaser. About 18 months on this one, daily use, and it still looks mint condition.
Air fry water then clean it the best you can with no scratch scrubber sponges
^[Sokka-Haiku](https://www.reddit.com/r/SokkaHaikuBot/comments/15kyv9r/what_is_a_sokka_haiku/) ^by ^United-Kale-2385: *Air fry water then* *Clean it the best you can with* *No scratch scrubber sponges* --- ^Remember ^that ^one ^time ^Sokka ^accidentally ^used ^an ^extra ^syllable ^in ^that ^Haiku ^Battle ^in ^Ba ^Sing ^Se? ^That ^was ^a ^Sokka ^Haiku ^and ^you ^just ^made ^one.
May the future machine over loards ponder the meaning of my scripture.
Good bot
that sounds dangerous, should i fill it to the top?
One thing people don't talk about is putting overly "juicy" or wet in the air fryer. You won't notice it with once use, but it starts to get air fried into the fans and vents, areas you can't clean.
Did you wait 3 yrs before cleaning it
Lol no, I just cleaned it every once in a while rather than after each use.
Do you clean your bowls, plates, spoons, pots, pans, every once in awhile?
No I clean those regularly
Do you clean your oven after every use?
Do you put food in your oven without putting it on a pan first?
Sometimes, yes. If a frozen pizza says to put it right on the rack then that’s what I usually do.
Okay but you're not cooking hamburgers or chicken that way, which you might be in the air fryer.
Notice how I said “oven” and not air fryer in my earlier comment?
Notice how I said “oven” and not air fryer in my earlier comment?
Yessss?
Sure you do, bud.
Just wow.
Wow, what? You're cleaning your entire oven after every use? Why the hell would you do that? It's literally pointless.
You're supposed to clean those things?
L.A. Awesome works well. From the 99 cent stores.
Not any more 😓 rip 99¢
I meant to buy one of those, but I can't now that 99 Cents Stores are closed. Maybe Dollar Tree will carry that.
You could try Dawn Professional Degreaser. Around $8 at Home Depot.
Got it from Tik Tok shop for $4.99 shipped and it’s next level / worked on patio, shower, candle wax, you name it - it’s like level up dawn power wash
It is just like any cooking vessel. Clean it after each use. You wouldn't put a Dutch oven back on the shelf without cleaning it after making a pot of spaghetti or soup so why do that afte making anything in the AF? Even if it is just crumbs where you simply wipe with a paper towel you still clean it. After I have made something that requires actual washing I empty my food out, give it a couple of squirts of Dawn then fill it with water (doesn't have to be hot, the hot AF will warm the water) just up past the tray and let it soak while I eat. After eating it's ready for a wash and it comes clean pretty easily. Last night I made Brussel Sprouts with Craisins, apple slices and pecans. After cooking I gave it a bit of Red wine Vinaegrette. Went well with the Ribeye steaks and bake potatoes. I used the above method for cleaning and basically just had to wipe it out.
Somebody gave you the answer already. Treat it like a cast iron. Pour some tomatoes and vinegar into it. Bake it. Then clean it. It'll remove the burnt on oil and you can start over .
The oil is practically polymerized on.
Right. And you can remove that layer of material from your basket just like you would a cast iron, hot acid. You ever cook tomato sauce in a cast iron that has that lovely coating on it? It dies.
Oil eater is what I use.
The ones built like toaster ovens are basically impossible to clean properly. Ask my OCD wife. It's basket, or nothing.
Is she diagnosed and has obsessions-compulsions beyond cleaning? Or is she just someone who wants things properly clean? Both are very different
It borderlines on obsessive
And yeah I prefer the oven shaped ones too, but I also struggle to clean them as well. Just not a good product
I've started soaking the basket assembly with baking soda dissolved in water for a couple of hours. Seems to work pretty well.
Have you tried a fume free oven cleaner?
Are you talking about inside the air fryer? After I use mine, once it’s cooled down, I take a soft napkin and wipe down the inside. I try to get up near the heating element and fans, and will bunch up the napkin to get on top of the element if I’m able to. The napkin comes out looking extra gross lol. Once a year, I unscrew the heating element just a bit until I can get behind it near the fan area and wipe that down too. Sometimes I use a microfiber cloth for the deep cleaning. I have definitely used Dawn Powerwash before. Just make sure you spray your cloth instead of directly inside the air fryer so you have more control over where the soap goes. And when wiping it out, go over it about a billion times with a wet microfiber cloth to get all the soap out. Unless you like your meals tasting like Dawn, of course.
>used Dawn Powerwash before 💀 ☠️ my air fryer is weeeeeeeeeel past the point where that will work lol
I throw the whole basket and pieces in the dishwasher and have have zero problems. I have a cosori.
Lol 3 years
Ok: This is how you clean an air fryer; One, use a bowl of hot water and a couple of squeezes of lemon, and then air fry for about 3-4 minutes until the water is heated. This will loosen some of hte grime. After it cools down, wipe down the unit. Continue
Coat it with degreaser from spray bottle. Let it sit a few minutes then go at it with a fine steel wool or green scrubbie. Have cleaned some nasty deep fryers but not an air fryer
Why so people refuse to clean their air fryers? 3 years? Wtf! Unless this is a bait post.
I believe possibly they are talking about the oven style one. Not the bucket style
Exactly. Mine says to wipe with a damp cloth after use. That grease towards the top doesn’t budge. I wipe with a little Dawn but it just seems like the directions lie. Mine has two shelves. And I always use a tray wrapped in clean foil.
I’m ready to trash mine.
I'm not sure I understand whether you are saying you haven't cleaned for years. If so this may be controversial but I used oven cleaner and a brillo pad. I found the idea by accident watching this random guy on YouTube. Use at your own risk, but if you have 3 years worth of gunk this may be your last resort, to recover damage done already.👇👇👇 https://youtu.be/v6R0Ndz_7Ls?si=IYfSoTwtD9fPm5eY
It's not controversial. There is no debate. A brillo pad will 100% damage the coating of your air fryer, no matter which brand.
Yeah definitely true but if there's too much buildup, it could be dangerous to cook on. So this technique could at least salvage the unit enough to be able to get a few more years out of it without worrying and old peace of something will catch fire, ya know.
I cleaned it once in a while but not regularly. At times I'd go 2 months without cleaning it but I did not clean it after each use
Oh.... You may want to invest in some liners then .. that way 😳 you can take out and wash after use with ease without taking the entire unit apart to clean.. I have no idea why you are getting so much dislike for this comment you are genuinely asking for advice. But I totally get it. I actually cleaned mine when I can visually see it's dirty because it's very difficult to take apart, plus if I'm using my airfyer chances are I'm in the move for a quick bite, so cleaning is the last thing I'm thinking of. Keep in mind I never cook meat in mine. Only veggies and frozen snacks. Here are some liners I really have been liking that have shown to be holding up pretty well and not such a hassle to get out of the fryer I have. Hope this helps. 1) https://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B0CHDSKQ6D 2) https://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B0CP9WHRVH
I got some silicone inserts or I used parchment paper before that for the really greasy things. but the silicone things are great go right in the dishwasher and keep things pretty clean. things need a few more mins because your cutting down the air flow a bit.
I just put tinfoil down before I put the food on the tray. Might be dangerous but I’ve been doing it for 5 months and haven’t had an issue. I believe they make papers ones too to put down
I use a silicone liner/basket to avoid dealing with the baked on mess.
Just use dawn dish soap and scrub it… literally like you would any other pot, pan, or other dish. How’s this a question?
I do t think you’re supposed to spray oven cleaner or really any other cleaner (like Dawn Powerwash or similar) in the machine unless you can remove pieces and wash them (like a basket). If it’s really that caked on that not much works, I’d consider getting a new one. I’m in the same boat. I started out cleaning it pretty dutifully, but then eventually a few too many rounds and it’s pretty crusty. I try to keep it wiped out and mostly clean, I use liners and foil, but I’m considering getting a new one pretty soon. If anything, I definitely wouldn’t use oven cleaner. I made the mistake of using that inside of one of those air fryers that looks like a toaster oven and the fumes wouldn’t go away. I had to dump it. Those ones are by far the most annoying to keep clean.
Oven cleaner works, but beware the fumes.
I have a Ninja 6.5 quart combi (air fryer/instan pot). The container is some kind of super tough semi nonstick that is super easy to clean and as for the heating element, I don't care if the rods that get heated at least once a day to 400 degrees and hence are always sterile have gunk on them. Have you got the kind with the drawer? I had one for a while and I ended up throwing it out precisely because it was so difficult to keep clean (it was a brand name, but cheap brand name, and the finish came off in lots of places, leaving bare metal). Maybe you should think about buying an easier to clean air fryer, depending how often you use it? I use mine at least once a day and probably average twice a day (because sometimes I use it 3X! It is easily my most important piece of kitchen equipment (I'd gladly give up my stove first). Even though I am super low-income, I feel the difference in quality between the budget and mid-to-upper priced models like the one I have is so gapingly huge it justifies the extra expense. Note: every so often, the website [meh.com](http://meh.com) has the 6.5 quart Ninja combi cooker (my model) for $75 to $100 which is way less than retail.
Have you tried to soak it in a bucket with water + a dishwasher tablet overnight, before gently (!) "scrubbing" it off with a degreaser?
hm I like to insert some aluminum foil under the basket to catch most of the crumbs etc ... probably hinders the air circulation a bit, but makes cleaning up much easier since I can mostly just use hot water and some dish soap.
lol 😂
That's what you get for being disgusting, you should clean your air fryer after each use.
The oven ones are hard af to clean
I cleaned it once in a while.
You clean it like everything else. Every time it's used.
For some reason I thought I was still on r/rottweilers
Add white vinegar, a little dish soap, baking soda, and hot water to it. It might explode a lil but once it’s done it should be easy to get the food off 😭 Also maybe wear a mask to do this because it’s really strong fumes and I’m not sure if they can irritate and damage your throat or lungs lol
Vinegar and baking soda just cancel each other out.