So, you’ve got a small amount of food to cook. For health reasons, you don’t want to fry it. Do you really have to heat your entire oven for healthy cooking?
Thanks to air fryers, the answer is no.
Air Fryers are little mini convection ovens that cook with little to no oil and can save you the expense and time of heating your entire oven.
But how do you go about choosing the best air fryer for you? Keep reading for my Cosori Air Fryer review.
If you want to know what I think of the Cosori Air Fryer, then I recommend this air fryer over the alternatives. It has just the right balance of value and features for me.
Contents
Things To Consider Before Buying an Air Fryer
Before turning to the meat of my Cosori Smart Air Fryer Review, let’s take a look at air fryers in general.
You’ve probably got some questions. Luckily for you, I’ve got some answers and advice on what to look for in an air fryer.
Do I Really Need an Air Fryer?
If you love crispy foods and want to use less oil and time cooking them, then yes, you do want an air fryer.
We know that deep-fried food is bad for us so cooking with less oil is important. That’s why I prefer air frying to traditional deep frying.
An air fryer is a small version of a convection oven that can bake, roast, grill, and even make cookies. Because of its size and design, you can save on energy by not heating your oven.
Air fryers use hot air circulation technology to deliver to go beyond ovens.
Ease of Use
What makes an air fryer easy to use are presets, which tell your cooker what type of food you’re cooking and work out the time and temperature setting for you.
Look for touch screen controls for greater ease of use.
Some cookers only have a temperature dial and a timer. Cooks who want more control may feel more comfortable with this simpler setup.
WiFi Technology
It’s difficult to imagine how technology will change the way kitchens look and operate. We’re now at the point where you can shout demands at appliances from where you’re reading a book or when you’re up to your elbows in dough or diapers.
The future kitchen has everything integrated for your convenience, as this video explains:
There’s air fryer technology that lets you communicate through devices like Amazon Alexa or Google Assistant. Some come with apps that you can install on your phone that let you communicate that way.
Multifunctionality
Some air fryers are very basic. But others have more functionality.
Other features to look for include pressure cooking, keep-warm function, slow cooking, steaming, yogurt making, roasting, broiling, and dehydrating.
In the end they can all make chicken fried steak, but can they make more? Do you even want them to?
Size
The optimal air fryer size is large enough to roast a small chicken. Any smaller than this, and you’re limited to only certain kinds of meals, like tater tots, fried chicken, and chicken nuggets.
You should think about the counter space it takes. In a perfect world, there’d be an air fryer with a large frying basket that took up very little counter space.
An air fryer takes up a little more than a square-foot (30 x 30 cm) of your valuable countertop space. That’s a fair amount of space, so make sure you’re going to use it often and have room for storage.
Easy To Clean
This is pretty important; frying of any type seems to create the worst cleanups. Even though you’re not adding much extra oil, your food’s naturally occurring fats can lead to a messy air fryer.
It’s the inner basket that takes the brunt of the mess. So look for baskets that are easy to remove and clean. Look for materials that are non-stick and dishwasher safe.
Safety
All kitchen appliances carry a small amount of risk. When things get hot, accidents can happen.
You want an air fryer with an automatic shut-off safety feature and over-heat protection. Also, cool-touch handles can prevent burns.
Cosori Smart WiFi Air Fryer Review
The Cosori Premium 5.8qt Smart Wifi Air Fryer ticks quite a number of the boxes for people looking for an air fryer. The Cosori air fryer 5.8 qt has the highest number of presets on the market. It promises to roast and warm all kinds of food, and there’s a handy preheat button included.
Preset buttons provide you the option to calculate the temperature needed and automatically set your timer. There’s even a shake reminder when it’s time to give your food a shake.
The Cosori has a lot of bells and whistles. It’s a very chatty device that you can talk to through your smart home devices or phone.
This 5 8 qt air fryer will please those who wish to save money. Home chefs who want that deep-fried flavor while using much less oil will also be happy.
It’s not for people who already have a convection oven in their kitchen, as they’re pretty similar.
The Cosori Premium Air Fryer is the smarter younger brother of the Cosori Original Air Fryer. The premium air fryer is slightly larger and has now added presets and connectivity to WiFi and your smartphone.
Pros
- Easy cleanup.
- Great tasting food.
- Controls are intuitive and straightforward.
- Non-stick removable square basket.
- 11 different presets.
- Preheat button.
Cons
- May create a deep-fried smell in your home.
- Basket might be difficult to clean.
- Makes loud beeping noises that you can’t turn off.
- Some reports of buttons not working.
- You can only sync it to one phone.
Cosori Smart Air Fryer Review: What Am I Getting for My Money?
Here are some of the most important features that we looked at for this Cosori Air Fryer review.
Ease of Use
The Cosori Air Fryer comes with an easy-to-use touch screen menu with 11 presets to choose from. There are programs for meat, chicken, seafood, frozen foods, french fries, pizza, and even desserts.
Customers praised the presets because they needed to think less about how to cook.
Some users report having trouble with the buttons; some say they don’t press all the time, and others mention they feel flimsy.
WiFi Technology
You can communicate with your Cosori Air Fryer through Amazon Alexa or Google Assistant and an app to program your fryer from your phone.
Many customers report difficulty in setting up these connections.
Some felt the app was asking for a lot of permission to allocate personal information. Others said the app was great, especially when the buttons stopped working on the fryer; they could still use their phone to program it.
Some customers felt that the fryer made too many alert noises while cooking.
Multifunctionality
Like most, the Cosori Air Fryer does anything that you can do in a convection oven.
Some air fryers are capable of more than that, including dehydrating fruit, baking bread, and pressure cooking.
Recipe Book Included
There are 100 recipes made specifically for this product, quite a few more than most air fryer brands provide. Customers said the air fryer recipes were useful and tasty.
It’s always great when the manufacturer takes the time to write a recipe book specifically for their product.
Sizes
The Cosori is a 5.8-quart air fryer (5.5-Liter) size, which will serve food for two to three people; this is great for couples and small families. You can roast a little chicken in this basket size.
For larger families or larger appetites, there’s a 7-quart air fryer (6.6-Liter capacity) that serves food for three to five people.
Easy To Clean
The fryer basket and pot are non-stick and easy to clean. The handle and button are cool-touch and also easy to clean.
Is the Cosori air fryer dishwasher safe? Yes. All removable parts are dishwasher safe, FDA-certified, PFOA-free, and BPA-free. Obviously you aren’t going to put the air fryer itself in the dishwasher!
Customers are divided on how easy it is to clean. Some report having to soak the basket to get the grease off, while others say it wipes off easily.
Some users mention that the non-stick coating chipped after some time.
Safety
This unit has over-heat protection and automatic shut-off. These are essential safety devices that allow you to leave the kitchen while cooking.
There’s a button guard to prevent accidental detachment; this is to keep your fingers off the hot surfaces.
Some customers had issues keeping the drawer shut. In some cases, the drawer sprung open while cooking.
What Are Some Alternatives To the Cosori Air Fryer?
Alternate Air Fryer Reviews: Ninja Pressure Cooker
This Ninja 10 in 1 Pressure Cooker and Air Fryer gives the Cosori Air Fryer a run for its money. It’s actually not an air fryer but a pressure cooker with the ability to air fry as well.
It’s higher in price, but that comes with pressure cooking functions and a stainless steel exterior. It also steams vegetables and makes yogurt.
The inner round basket is larger than the Cosori at 6.5 quarts (6.2 Liters.)
It doesn’t have WiFi or phone app capability, so you won’t have any notifications about what’s happening in your cooker. You also won’t be able to make any changes to it while sitting in another room.
The Ninja promises you’ll use 70 percent less cooking oil, while the Cosori promises 85 percent less.
Some users reported a loud humming sound while cooking. Others said it took up a lot of counter space and took a long time to learn how to use it.
This is a great kitchen appliance for people who want an all-in-one and are willing to put in a few hours to learn how to use it.
Comparison: Cosori Air Fryer vs Ninja Air Fryer
- Cosori is less expensive
- Ninja has more features
- Consori uses WiFi and smartphones for communication
- Consori has presets
- Ninja can cook larger portions of food
- Consori uses less oil to fry
- Ninja has a larger learning curve
- Cosori has more safety precautions
- Ninja makes more noise during operation
Cosori vs Dash Deluxe
The Dash Deluxe Electric Air Fryer is a simpler version of the Ninja and the Cosori.
It’s a little more affordable than the Cosori and a lot cheaper than the Ninja.
There’s less going on on the console; there are just two dials, for temperature and time, and a handle to open the drawer, that’s it. Nice and simple.
Customers found that they had to monitor cooking closely.
Some users complained about cooking odors during and after use.
It has an auto shut-off and cool-touch exterior, so it’s pretty safe; they say even for children. I don’t think I’ll let my children near it, but I’ll let you be the judge for your family.
As far as size goes, it’s directly in the middle, with Consori the smallest and Ninja the largest.
The inner cooking basket is non-stick and dishwasher safe.
This is a great product for people who don’t like dealing with technology when cooking. It couldn’t be simpler; you set the temperature and the time only.
Comparison
- Dash is simpler to use
- Cosori has WiFi and smartphone connectivity
- Cosori has 11 presets
- Dash is more affordable than Cosori
- Dash comes in five attractive colors
- Both are easy to clean
- Both can cause deep-fried odors in your home
Cosori Smart Wifi Air Fryer Review: The Verdict
If you’re looking for a way to cook with a little crisp and without using loads of oil, you’ve found your product.
But which one of the three is best?
I’d go with the Cosori. To be honest, I probably won’t use the interactive components, but I will use the presets; I think they’re a great idea. I’m also impressed with the safety features.
Cosori offer a few choices but for me the 5.8qt Smart Wifi option is one of the best Cosori air fryers. It’s the right size for a family, is easy to use and integrates well.
The Ninja is a little too much all-in-one for my taste. I’m always a little skeptical of appliances that claim to do everything, and it’s pretty expensive.
I think the Dash is a decent little kitchen appliance, but it’s too simplistic for me. I like the idea of someone else making the decisions about temperature and time for me. With the Cosori, it’s a no-brainer; I have the option to use presets or do it myself if I feel the need.
