I’ve cooked my last two Christmas dinners in an air fryer and this is what I’ve learned

As a home editor and product reviewer, I often have several air fryers in my house at any one time, which is lucky since I haven’t had an oven for nearly two years now. Thankfully, I still have a hob but, in all that time, I have been preparing oven meals for me and my partner with just a dual-drawer air fryer.

That means I’ve had to weather two Christmases where I’ve cooked the majority of our festive feast in an air fryer.

Of course, cooking a traditional Christmas roast in the oven is most people’s go-to method, but if you happen to have a small oven or you want to try out the new air fryer Santa got you, I’ve got some excellent tips and tricks for you to make an air fryer Christmas work with minimal stress.

Size matters

If, like me, you’re using an air fryer – and only an air fryer – to cook most of your Christmas dinner, you’ll need a large-capacity, dual-drawer air fryer to fit enough food for two people. I use the Ninja Foodi FlexDrawer, which has a generous 10.4l capacity, but any similarly large air fryer will do.

Dual-drawer functionality is an absolute must if you’re hoping to cook the whole meal in the fryer, as you’ll want to keep your main bird – or vegetarian alternative – in one drawer and your sides in the other.

It’s also worth pointing out that if you’re planning on cooking for more than four people, a single air fryer, no matter how big, just isn’t going to cut it.

Get your timings right

Even if you have a sufficiently large air fryer, you’ll still need to do some juggling to ensure everything stays hot and is ready together, at the same time. Here are my tips:

• Parboil all your potatoes and root vegetables (such as parsnips and carrots) and leave them to sit so they’re ready for when you need them

• Dedicate one drawer of your air fryer to your bird, or other main, and start cooking this first – it will typically need the longest cooking time, plus resting time

• Partially cook your stuffing in the other drawer at the same time as your main, and remove it with about 10-15 minutes to go

• Add your potatoes and other root veggies together in the second drawer, assuming you have the space

• Once you’ve finished cooking your turkey, or similar, you can take this out to rest while you finish cooking the stuffing in the same drawer – I typically use a silicone cooking tray or baking paper so that I don’t have to wash the drawer before putting the stuffing back in

I’ve cooked a lot of roasts in my air fryer over the last two years – not just at Christmas – so I’ve had a lot of practice getting the timings right. But one thing I’ve found is that cooking the bird properly and letting it rest is the most important part. Everything else can be reheated if necessary and, in fact, most good quality air fryers will even have a specific setting for reheating. Of course, some air fryer accessories will come in handy for keeping this separate – or keeping the drawers clean so you can cook the next item without needing to wash the whole drawer.

Using an air fryer to supplement your Christmas dinner

If you’re cooking for a crowd then an air fryer is a great way to increase your cooking capacity when your oven is groaning under the weight of all those roast potatoes. I do plan on getting an oven again eventually, but I’ll still be using my air fryer alongside it when I’m cooking for friends and family in the future.

I regularly cook my roast potatoes, parsnips and carrots in my air fryer and, in my opinion, they come out just as good, if not better, than from the oven if treated correctly. The secret to really good air fryer roasties – crispy on the outside with fluffy interiors – is to parboil them and then let them dry out completely before coating them in oil. But most importantly, keep them small – the added benefit of this is that it feels like you’re getting more potatoes per plate.

Can you save money by using your air fryer to cook Christmas dinner?

It depends. If you don’t already have an air fryer then buying one to try to save money on the Christmas dinner isn’t a smart move – the money you’ll save from cooking in an air fryer, compared to a standard convection oven, isn’t going to be pounds each day, it’s more likely to be a few pence each time you use it. However, if you do already have one then consider making the switch and you might see a small saving.

That said, keep an eye on your total cooking time. If you’re planning on cooking in your air fryer for more than a couple of hours, swapping things in and out and reheating, it might actually be more economical to stick to the oven. This is because, although an air fryer heats up quicker, an oven can usually cook a lot more food at once, so it could be on for less time overall. If you’re cooking a big Christmas dinner for a large gathering, you’ll likely find the oven is cheaper.

Pros and cons of cooking your Christmas dinner in an air fryer

When all is said and done, what are the actual benefits of fixing a festive feast in the air fryer?

Benefits:

• Faster cooking times: I cooked a medium chicken in 45-50 minutes, with enough small roast potatoes for four people in 30 minutes

• Energy saving: If you’re only cooking for two or three people, an air fryer is likely to be cheaper to use than the oven

• Good results: Personally, I prefer the roast potatoes from the air fryer versus the oven

Drawbacks:

• Limited space: If you’re only using an air fryer, larger family roasts will be impossible

• Timings: It can be tricky to line up your timings if you’re moving things around and still want everything to be hot at the same time

• More effort: All that planning and coordination can be stressful if the alternative is to just stick everything in the oven

I don’t recommend buying an air fryer specifically for the holidays – an air fryer is not just for Christmas – but if you’re interested in what options are out there, you can check out our best air fryer roundup and best ninja air fryer page.