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Using Cooking appliances to make life easier VV's Bucket List

Air Fryer & Crock Pot

Due to my chronic condition, I am always looking for ways to simplify my life. In the end, it's all about embracing life's twists and turns and making the most of them.

Cooking requires a lot of physical and mental energy, and if you don't have enough of either, it can be difficult to complete any task.

The lack of energy makes it hard to follow a recipe and measure ingredients, making cooking a tasty meal challenging and sometimes impossible.

The Air fryer

Air fryers are designed to be user-friendly, even when you're not feeling well.

With simple controls and pre-set cooking functions, you can quickly and effortlessly prepare meals without having to spend too much time in the kitchen. This convenience is especially valuable when you're feeling weak or fatigued.

An air fryer is essentially the healthier version of the deep fat fryer, a grill, or a small oven.

Instead of cooking food by submerging it in hot oil, the air fryer cooks by using air alone - or, if you like, just a tablespoon of oil.

As the air circulates around the food, it creates the tasty, crispy texture you get from traditional deep-fat-fried foods but with a lot fewer calories.

After extensive research, my top choices for air fryers were Ninja, Cosori, and Philips. I decided to go with the Philips Essential XL and have not regret it!

Philips Essential XL

Sometimes I am too tired to cook, so I eat food I can put together fast and without major effort.

Sandwiches and frozen dishes are quick, easy to prepare, and don't require cooking, but they are not the best for your health.

My air fryer has made life so much easier. I can cook healthy meals in minutes, and without having to stand for too long or use too much oil. The food comes out perfectly crisp every time, and it's so easy to clean and maintain.

The air fryer isn't just for frying; it’s also an incredibly handy tool to replace roasting in the oven or cooking on the stove with minimum or no oil/fat.

As it is easy to clean and also enables me to cook meals more efficiently, I cook complete meals often, which has improved my eating habits.

Once you set the timer and temperature, the air fryer will automatically cook the food and turn itself off when it's done. This means you don't have to watch it or worry about the food burning.

One of the options I was considering is the Cosori Air Fryer.

However, it's worth noting that in the beginning of 2023, the company recalled two million units due to reports of the fryers short-circuiting, smoking, and catching fire.

I have been using my Phillips Air Fryer for almost a year and have not experienced any malfunctions or potential dangers, yipee!

The Crock Pot

My choice was the Crockpot™ Express 6-Qt Pressure Cooker, Black Stainless Steel

Just like the Air fryer, the Crock Pot sits on your countertop and saves you from having the stovetop or oven on all afternoon. It's easy to clean and can cook up enough food for a whole crew all in one pot.

Undoubtedly, air fryers and Crock Pots are ideal kitchen appliances for anyone. But especially for those who are ill, elderly, or suffer from chronic conditions and are in need of a quick, easy, and convenient way to cook.

The Air Fryer and Crock Pot have almost completely eliminated the need to use the stovetop or oven;

My cooking style has changed a great deal since I began using them. I’m amazed at how efficient they are as they allow me to put all the ingredients in one pot, set the timer, and walk away from the kitchen.

You don't have to keep checking on the food, and the food comes out perfectly cooked every time.

The Crock Pot cooks meals up to 70% faster than a conventional oven, saving energy and money, and has 13 cooking options, including fast and slow cooking, brown/sauté, simmer steam, and more.

It includes a progress bar to monitor pressurization and preheat status.

For added control, the delay start feature lets you choose when you want cooking to begin. This multi-cooker has a 6-quart capacity that feeds seven people, making it perfect for preparing larger meals.

After you finish cooking, the removable nonstick cooking pot can go right into the dishwasher for quick and easy cleanup.

Whether you use it as a pressure cooker, rice cooker, slow cooker, steamer, or more, the Crockpot Express makes one-pot cooking more convenient than ever before.

The Crockpot uses a sealed lid to trap the steam, creating a pressure cooker environment. The sealed lid helps to retain moisture, resulting in a more flavorful meal.

In order to achieve the proper pressure, the Crock-Pot always require some type of liquid in it.

To cook a meal, there must be enough liquid in the pot to boil.

One cup of liquid (water, chicken stock, wine, etc.) is usually sufficient to build pressure successfully, however I like to use a cup and a half.

Crock Pot Express is a multi-cookers; you can sauté, pressure cook, and even slow cook all in the same pot, delivering that all-day simmered flavor in a fraction of the time, yielding tender meats, flavorful stews, perfect rice, soups, delicious desserts, and more.

MEAT/POULTRY, BEANS/CHILI, RICE/GRAINS, YOGURT, DESSERT, SOUP/STEW, BROWN/SEAR, SAUTÉ, etc.

The Crock Pot and Air Fryer have brought oil-free frying and quick cooking into everyday homes.

Here's a handy FAQ on these popular and (for some) confusing cooking appliances.

The Crock Pot is more functional than a slow cooker, and a rice cooker combined because it can also pressure cook. You can cook things astonishingly fast in the pressure cooker setting, even notoriously slow-cooking or labor-intensive foods, such as risotto and brisket.

When you’re shopping for your first Crock Pot there are two main brands Crock Pot and Instant Pot; the dizzying array of these models can be a real source of confusion.

The air fryer is used to make fried foods such as meat, spring rolls, salmon, pastries, potato chips, etc. Without or with minimal oil.

It works by circulating hot air around the food to produce a crunchy, crispy exterior. This also results in a chemical reaction known as the Maillard reaction.