Best Under Counter Toaster Ovens Of 2021
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Kitchen counter space is a valuable commodity these days. With an endless amount of “stuff” to put out, it’s hard to find ways to consolidate. Under counter toaster ovens are the perfect start to getting more organized in the kitchen.
Countertop toaster ovens can take up a seriously large amount of kitchen real estate. They’re big, bulky and unfortunately very critical for most of our daily tasks. So, how do we come up with an easy fix?
We find safe ways of sticking them under our cabinets.
There are 3 common ways to safely using a toaster oven underneath our cabinets:
1) Find a Mountable toaster oven
2) Find a Short toaster Oven
3) Find a Cool Touch toaster Oven
There are still some precautions you should take before making a purchase. Proper clearance is critical to maintaining a safe spot for you and your family. To make the process easier, we’ve created an extensive guide to the 5 best under counter toaster ovens available. We’ve also included helpful tips to finding which is best for you.
Enjoy!
1) Black+Decker Spacemaker Under-Counter Toaster Oven
2) Ninja Foodi Digital Air Fry Convection Oven
5 of 5 Stars
Countertop Oven
4) Breville Compact Smart Oven
What To Look For In A Hybrid Toaster And Air Fryer Oven
Since you’re potentially going all-in on one machine, there are a few functions you want it to perform and perform well. For the purposes of this list, I took four main cooking functions into account: Air fry, broil, bake and toast. These, along with roast, are the oven duties the average home cook will rely on most. While some of these cookers sport dehydrate, proof, pizza and other niche cooking functions, most didn’t, so I stuck to testing functions that were possible across all the hybrid ovens.
Air frying: This trendy term has nothing to do with frying but rather mimics the results of deep-frying using super hot, fast-moving convection air for food that’s crispy outside and moist inside. Having an air fry function was the baseline criteria for consideration on this list. You can air fry lots of things, but chicken wings and french fries are two popular options, so I employed them for testing.
Broiling: I’m a big broiler person, especially for fish but also for things like mac and cheese, certain chicken recipes and anything else I want a crispy crust on top of. I find that ovens differ wildly in broiling ability so I wanted to see which of these ovens did it best.
Baking: Baking can mean a lot of things but when it comes to, let’s say cookies and cupcakes, consistency is key. The sign of an oven that bakes well is simple: Will it hit the temperature you set it to and then stay there consistently throughout the bake?
Ii Can I Really Toast Bread In An Air Fryer
The good news is that you can use an air fryer for toast, but there is one important proviso. When you pop your bread inside the basket, its essential to keep it fixed in place. Fail to secure your toast and it could suffer the same fate as any light ingredients with the air lifting the bread up and flipping it around inside.
If you have an air fryer/toaster oven combo, you sidestep this issue. These devices are expressly designed to toast bread. This is your best option by far if you plan to rack up toast on the regular.
For anyone not interested in one of these combo units, try using a grill pan for your air fryer rather than relying on the regular basket.
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Geek Chef Convection Air Fryer Toaster Oven
- Should you want a budget-friendly strategy, this may only be the choice for you. This is roughly half of the cost as a number of the large brands on the market but includes a lot of high ratings and positive attributes too. If you are worried about paying too much, this is a fantastic option!
- This is exceptional as its developed to have a more compact design complete but its a fairly large capacity dimension. This air fryer toaster oven may hold around 10.5 quarts, which will be quite similar to other versions. The timer is flexible and also the temperature warms up to 450 degrees.
- This operates on 1500 watts. Its strong and durable overall. Its also quite simple to operate with a few basic knobs which are clearly indicated. This air fryer toaster oven permits you to grill, air fry, roast, bake, and dehydrate all into a very simple unit. It includes a basket, a wire rack, plus a skillet.
Best Overall: Cuisinart Toa
The Cuisinart TOA-60 Convection Toaster Oven Air Fryer is a perfect choice for large families with its seven cooking functions.
Cooking Functions
You can easily choose from seven cooking functions, including air fry, convection bake, bake, convection broil, broil, warm, and toast.
Design
The air fryer measures around 15.5 x 16 x 14 inches with 21 pounds of weight.
Unfortunately, it comes with old-fashioned knobs at the top instead of a touchscreen display.
The best thing is that the oven rack and fryer basket are dishwasher safe.
Automatic Shut-off
This smart oven allows you to set the temperature along with the 0-60 timer option. The timer saves you from continuously monitoring the food progress.
It comes with an automatic shut off function to save your food from overcooking.
It also comes with an interior light so that you can easily monitor the cooking progress without opening the door.
Pros
Read Also: Instant Pot Air Fryer Dehydrator
Temperature Precision And Consistency Test
This is subtle among the most crucial functions for any oven, specifically if you prepare to do some light baking in it. If an oven cant hold a precise and constant temperature level, it makes following dishes far more tough, and youll be permanently changing and hawking your food to make certain it does not burn. I utilized thermocouples to check out the internal temperature level of the oven while it baked for 10 minutes at 350 degrees F. I had the ability to get a typical temperature reading throughout of the bake, however I likewise saw the thermometer in actual time to see just how much change took place throughout the cook.
The KitchenAid won this test with a typical reading of 350 F on the nose and with really little change. The Ninja , Cuisinart and Breville likewise succeeded, although the Breville began really hot and then returned down. The 2 last-place finishers were the Crux, which ran hot and the Calpahlon, which ran cold . Both were likewise the most irregular throughout the bakes.
A Few Thoughts On The Hybrid Ovens That Didn’t Make The Cut
The Cuisinart Digital Air Fryer Toaster Oven: This hybrid convection oven and air fryer wasn’t terrible and it certainly had one of, if not the most powerful, air fry functions. That proved to be a blessing and curse since some of the food I cooked burned on the edges and cooked unevenly — I think due in part to the high-octane super convection fan. This air fryer oven also had my least favorite interface, and I found myself mashing my fingers on the dials and buttons in frustration at times just hoping I’d get to the right setting since it never seemed to do what I wanted with ease. It’s also not cheap and thus not an oven I’d recommend.
Calphalon Precision Air Fry Oven: The Calphalon scored high marks in the toast test with an even browning, but that’s about where the accolades ended. This oven was slow to preheat, had trouble holding a consistent temperature and the air fry function was among the weakest. It also has no internal light, which most of them do. I admittedly do like the look of it and the interface is elegant and simple to use. This oven can also be had for about $150, so it is among the more budget-friendly options.
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Best Countertop Oven And Air Fryer In : Ninja Breville Kitchenaid And More
A proficient countertop toaster oven with capable air fry function is the best of both worlds, and a space-saver to boot.
Improvements to the good old-fashioned oven are never in short supply. Some innovations, like convection cooking, which debuted in 1945, are difficult to imagine living without. Others land softly with an air of frivolousness and very little impact
Smaller countertop ovens are not new, of course, and at this point neither are air fryers. What is new is a fusing of those two types of cookers into one hybrid convection oven with air fryer function, and a good one will do about as much as anything else you can buy for your kitchen. I’ve had one of these versatile hybrid ovens for about a year and find the uses for it many and the results rather delicious.
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“But I already have a solo air fryer or was thinking of getting one.” Great! Air fryers are awesome and they’re pretty cheap, too. In fact, we have a list of the best air fryers to help you choose. But the solo units have limitations and those might make a hybrid oven a better option for you. I did the calculations for myself and decided on a hybrid.
Who’s hungry?
I broiled. I baked. I judged. I ate. Here’s how the hybrid ovens performed and a few of my top picks.
Best Compact: Cuisinart Afr
Suppose youre working with limited countertop space. In that case, whether youre in an RV or an NYC apartment, this compact air fryer oven from Cuisinart will still let you air fry with ease. This sleek and stylish air fryer oven is also simple to use with its two-dial control panel. It has up to a 2.5-pound capacity, perfect for one or two people.
Recommended Reading: Instant Vortex Air Fryer Accessories
The 10 Best Air Fryer Toaster Ovens For 2021 From Consumer Reviews
by Brian HebertAug 19, 2021
Do you want to buy an air fryer toaster oven to cook healthy and delicious meals for your family? If your answer is yes , read along to find out detailed reviews about the 10 best air fryer toaster ovens Consumer Reviews for 2021.
The latest hot air circulation technology has replaced our traditional deep oil frying technique to reduce calories and fat. Not only that, you save a lot of your monthly budget present on buying cooking oil.
Is The Ninja Foodi Digital Air Fry Oven Easy To Use And Clean
The Ninja has an easy-to-use digital interface, although it does smudge.
The digital control panel on the Ninja oven is well laid out and easy to read. It interface centers around a knob that you turn to select the time and temperature for each function, and its fairly intuitive to program.
We love the fact that the oven preheats automatically and the preheat time is just one minute, so it doesnt add appreciably to the cooking time. During cooking, the product is quieter than most air fryers, and you can turn on an interior light to check on your foods progress.
The sheet pan and the air fry basket can be cleaned in the dishwasher. In the standing position, the back opens, giving you access to the inside for cleaning.
The Ninja Foodi oven comes with a very thorough and easy-to-understand owners guide, as well as a booklet that contains recipes and cooking charts for air frying and dehydrating and a leaflet with instructions on how to build a sheet pan meal. It would be helpful if there were also charts to use as guidelines for baking, air roasting, and air-broiling.
Read Also: Breville Smart Fryer Review
Calphalon Performance Air Fry Convection Oven
This air fryer oven is very similar to our runner-up Cuisinart pick. The difference is that this model combines the look and function of a toaster oven with the digital functionality of other models. It has eleven pre-programmed cooking options and a unique quartz heat technology that provides 40% more even heat than traditional tube heating elements.
Best Air Fryer Toaster Ovens Of 2021
These top-tested combo ovens can pretty much do it all.
This article was updated in October 2021 to update winners and replace any sold out or discontinued picks, including our previous Best Value pick. We also added new-comers including the Ninja Foodie Smart XL Air Fry Oven, Power XL Air Fryer Grill, June Premium Oven and the Instant Pot Omni Plus Air Fryer Toaster Oven. Our picks are still based on most recent tests led by Nicole Papantoniou, deputy director of the Good Housekeeping Institute Kitchen Appliances Lab.
Air fryer toaster ovens are truly multifunctional, combining the best of air fryers and toaster ovens most can typically bake, roast and broil in addition to air frying to make food super crispy with less oil than traditional frying methods. These do-it-all appliances offer a large cooking space on one or more racks for air frying in a single layer , and some even come with rotisserie attachment for whole chickens and other roasts. That means fresh-made chicken wings in about 20 minutes and crispy, air-fried doughnuts in less than ten.
Here are the best air fryer toaster ovens you can buy in 2021, including picks from testing and brands we trust:
- Pricey
Dials: Toaster ovens can have digital or mechanical controls. We recommend digital for more precise cooking control when it comes to setting the temperature and timer. If you don’t mind guessing, or keeping an additional timer close by, mechanical dials will save you money.
Don’t Miss: Bravo Xl Oven Reviews
What Is The Exact Model That Can Fold
Thats enough waffling on about air fryer models that DONT fold, how about the ones that do?? Well that would be called the Ninja Foodi 8-in-1 Digital Air Fryer Oven . Again, you can click the image below to go view it on Amazon. In fact, you can see the folding mechanism in action over there, well at least photos of it anyway.
Thankfully we can see this new air fryer oven in action too by visiting Ninja Kitchen over on their Youtube channel. This video shows you the folding function as well as many examples of how you could use the product, so it is a great way to see exactly what it entails. Good job Ninja Kitchen! Hopefully, I will eventually get my hands on a unit myself to do my own video and full review!
How To Use The Oster Oven With Air Fryer
The oven comes with 3 knobs function setting, temperature setting and timer/toast shade setting.
Adjust the settings by turning the knobs to the desired settings.
When the power icon located to the right of the timer setting lights up, this indicates that the appliance is plugged in. The timer is set to begin warming.
When using air frying mode, make sure the air fry basket is positioned on top of the baking pan. Excess oil drips out from the food cooking inside the basket onto the pan below.
When air frying, do take note that frozen foods and foods with a high fat content such as chicken wings or bacon do not require oil. To achieve crispy and browned results on foods such as hand-cut fries or vegetables, evenly coat food with about one tablespoon of oil
The wire rack can be used when roasting, baking or broiling.
The heating elements are located at the top and bottom of the oven.
Both the timer and temperature setting must be turned on for the oven to work.
The tempered glass door makes it easy to check on your cooking.
For best air frying results, position the air fry basket on top of the baking pan in the top rack position. For best broiling results, position the baking pan in the top rack position. For best baking results, position the baking pan in the bottom rack position. For best toast and pizza results, position the rack in the top rack position
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You Dont Need An Air Fryer You Already Own Something Better
Convection toaster ovens can do everything air fryers can doand more.
We found that pod-shaped air fryers often had more-powerful fans, but this wasnt necessarily a good thing, since they could produce dried-out foods and overcooked cakes. And the fryer baskets in pod-shaped models were too limited. Even filled to capacity, they could fit only a couple of servings of food at a time, which isnt practical for larger households. In general, we found that pod-shaped air fryers didnt cook as evenly as the toaster-oven models because their cramped interiors didnt allow heat to fully circulate around the food, even when we shook the basket periodically.
Cons Of Gourmia Airfryer
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