Philips 5000 Series (NA555/09) Dual Basket Steam Air Fryer review: The must-have appliance for a health kick

Air frying converts will already know the value of adding an air fryer to their countertops. However, the launch of Philips’s first air fryer and steamer, the 5000 Series Dual Basket Steam Air Fryer, promises something more: even healthier low-fat and fat-free cooking.

Not only can you use it to whip up homemade chips, it’s possible to steam veggies, fish and dumplings, as well as opt for a combination of steam and air frying for succulent meats and fish. You can choose the combination option to bake bread, too.

Another benefit of the Philips 5000 Series steam function is that it allows you to steam clean the bigger pan. This means that if you don’t have a dishwasher to do the dirty work of degreasing for you – or you want to avoid clogging pipework – you can run a self-cleaning programme to loosen the mess, then simply wipe or rinse it away.

Of course, none of this would matter if it wasn’t great at cooking too and fortunately, it is. I was delighted with the delicious, crunchy chips it made in the bigger pan and the moist, tender roast chicken. In short, it’s an excellent way to improve your midweek meals.

Philips 5000 Series NA555/09 Dual Basket Steam Air Fryer review: What do you get for the money?

There are plenty of dual-drawer air fryers on the market to cater to those who wish to cook two foods at the same time. These include more premium models, such as Ninja DoubleStack XL air fryer and more value models like the Instant Vortex Plus Dual Drawer air fryer. Often, the drawers are the same size, but the Philips 5000 Series has asymmetric drawers – one larger 6l one and a smaller 3l one.

Where it really differs, though, is bringing steam to the party. This comes courtesy of an 800ml water tank that fits on top of the machine. Much like a combination steam oven, the bigger pan offers air frying by itself, steam only or a mix of the two. It uses steam to keep the contents juicy while cooking before crisping up the exterior with fanned hot air.

However, it’s worth noting that its smaller drawer isn’t plumbed in for steam. Here, your only options are air frying with its presets, which include frozen potato snacks, steak, vegetables and the curiously named “vegan”, should you want to cook some of those too (it’s actually for snacks, such as falafel).

Realistically, you’ll get more use out of the bigger pan given that it has greater capacity and functionality. Used together, the pans provide 9l of cooking capacity: enough for 300g/800g fries, 400g steamed dumplings or five chicken drumsticks in the smaller basket with a 1.2kg chicken in the bigger pan. Size-wise, the air fryer isn’t much bigger than other dual drawers, measuring 44.4 x 38.3 x 35.5cm (WDH) and weighing 8.75kg, However, unlike others, you will need to ensure that the water tank is accessible, given that it’s on the top.

Compared to some air fryers, it’s fairly high wattage at 2,750W, presumably a result of needing to make 100°C steam as well as reaching 200°C for air frying. This didn’t result in noticeably higher costs when air frying though. One hour’s usage of both pans at 200°C consumed 0.79kWh of electricity, which at a rate of 25p per unit would cost around £0.19. Running the small pan for an hour used only 0.36kWh, coming in at a more affordable £0.08.

At £250, the Philips 5000 series is at the pricier end of the air fryer scale, competing with the likes of Ninja and Tefal. There’s lots of functionality here though and it differentiates itself from Ninja with its huge steaming capabilities.

Philips 5000 Series NA555/09 Dual Basket Steam Air Fryer review: What’s it like to use?

The only instructions included with the Philips 5000 Series air fryer are pictorial, giving basic information as to which part is which. The full instructions need to be downloaded – leaving you scrolling through an endless, repetitive PDF to find what you need – and ignoring those who don’t have a device to do so. And you will need the instructions to hand – the settings are represented by icons, few of which are clear without explanation. In short, setting the air fryer is far from intuitive.

What I liked though, is that it has a “back” button, which allows you to go back without completely starting over if you’ve made an error. It also has a sync button that ensures that both drawers finish cooking at the same time. I also appreciated that there was a shake option to remind you to stir food, but you’ll have to remember to action it on some programmes.

In terms of presets, it’s fairly flexible. It can cook at temperatures as low as 40°C for up to an hour; you can’t use the 5000 for dehydrating unless you restart the programme every hour. Keen dehydraters should look elsewhere. There’s also a reheat option for the bigger pan that adds steam to prevent food drying out, as well as settings for veggies, potato and cake. Most have times and temperatures that can be toggled to suit your specific cooking needs.

Maintenance is where this air fryer really shines. Not only are both baskets dishwasher-safe, the steam cleaning programme is incredibly useful for loosening grease after cooking and it will even dry the drawer after steaming. While it would be great if it offered a more complete hygienic clean, it still made hand-washing a breeze and I suspect this setting would be handy for keeping the element clean over time. There’s also a descaling programme, which Philips advises you should run after every 10 hours of cooking.

Philips 5000 Series NA555/09 Dual Basket Steam Air Fryer review: How well does it cook?

During testing I was keen to make the most of the 5000 Series’s steam capabilities.

I started by steaming tenderstem broccoli using the steam only function in the large pan. The default setting for vegetables was 14 minutes at 100°C: the temperature isn’t adjustable. I changed the time to 10 minutes as per the cooking chart advice. The timer starts counting down straight away – there’s no preheat, making it tricky to judge how much of the 10 minutes was actually spent cooking. Its beep when finished is fairly quiet and might be easy to miss in a noisy kitchen. The broccoli, while cooked, retained some bite and required a few more minutes to soften further.

I used both drawers to air fry homemade chips next, opting for the suggested 38 minutes at 180°C in the larger basket and 200°C for 30 minutes in the smaller one, as per the instructions. I placed 300g of chipped, soaked, rinsed and dried potato tossed in a small amount of oil in the smaller drawer and 500g in the larger pan.

There was a big difference between the finished chips. Those in the smaller pan were cooked but still mostly pale, while the large pan produced some of the best chips I’ve ever made in an air fryer: well browned, crispy and crunchy throughout.

The most novel thing about the 5000 Series is its combined cooking method, which I used to roast a chicken. The suggested setting for a 1.2kg bird was 180°C for 50 to 60 minutes. As the chicken was 1.5kg, I chose the full hour. This started with steam cooking, before changing to air frying then a few switches between the two.

In the last 25 minutes, the air fryer started to produce a lot of steam at the back, making the wall beyond wet. This copious steam would be something to be aware of if you’re running it below wall cabinets or in an already humid home.

After the hour had elapsed, there was still water left in the tank. I had filled it to max before starting to cook the chicken, so this lasted well. The chicken had beautifully juicy flesh, with no pink remaining. It wasn’t overcooked, and the skin was crisp, bubbled and golden.

Philips 5000 Series NA555/09 Dual Basket Steam Air Fryer review: Should you buy it?

Given its functionality and price point, the Philips 5000 Series dual basket air fryer will appeal most to air frying fans keen to up their game with succulent meats, crispy chips and tasty veggies, as well as those looking to trim excess fat from their diet.

However, the lack of helpful instructions and less-than-intuitive controls make it not as suitable for those new to air frying. For ease of use, newbies may be better with a more straightforward model, such as Ninja’s Foodi Dual Zone Air Fryer.

The 5000 Series cooked brilliantly in its large basket, though it’s worth noting that the small pan doesn’t offer as much versatility. It feels like a missed opportunity to not be able to cook with steam in both and owners will probably use the larger pan more.

Niggles aside, the overall offering here is very good. There’s plenty of cooking space, steaming without the need for a steamer cluttering your countertops and almost effortless maintenance.