As soon as I read “fry in two inches of oil,” a few things come to mind:
a) oil splatters all over the stove,
b) the hassle and mess of disposing of the used oil, and
c) it’s probably not the healthiest option.
We do have an air fryer, but it’s hard to believe it can really replicate the results of the original recipe.
Curious, how do y’all feel about frying in two or more inches of oil?
There is a recipe on the “Aaron and Claire” YouTube cooking channel where he makes these Breaded Potato Cheese balls. In one version he shallow fries them and in another he uses the air fryer. I (kind of) followed his directions for the air fryer. I did wet my panko bread crumbs with some vegetable oil prior to applying them to the (flour then) egg wash surface of the potato ball and placed them into my air fryer. I do turn them half way in the cooking process and feel they are very close to the deep/shallow fried version.
I really didn’t want the mess (or expense) of using all of that oil. I wipe out any excess oil from the air fryer (paper towel), a light washing and into the dishwasher for final cleaning.
If you are looking for opinions, I’d say coat whatever you want to shallow fry with a light coating of oil and try your air fryer.
I call that deep frying.
I deep fry at about that depth of oil on occasion. I do it in a deep wok or a saucepan - I use a 4qt saucepan that’s around 8 inches high - and there’s no problem with mess and splatter, although I guess there is some vaporized oil in the air around it.
Oil can usually be reused a few times. I let it cool down and filter it into a jar with disposable paper filters and a stainless steel funnel. When it needs to be disposed of, lately I’ve been using a product called FryAway to solidify it and then throw it out into the compost bin.
I deep fry now and then in a 6-quart ECI dutch oven. I don’t think the oil is quite 2" deep, but it’s a good inch and a half. The DO’s tallish sides help to contain most of the splatter. I have thought about getting a fry wall, but it seems like it’d be a PITA to clean. I’ll go through periods where I’ll fry every 10 days to two weeks, so I just leave the oil in the DO, using a mesh skimmer to get the big chunks out. When the oil gets really dirty, I use Kenji’s method of cleaning oil with gelatin (https://www.seriouseats.com/clean-cooking-oil-with-gelatin-technique). I put the disk of gelatin and chunky bits into our compost. By then, the quantity of oil in the DO is down to about a quart, so I’ll either decant the cleaned oil into a jar for future use (stir-frying, mostly) or back in the DO for more deep frying applications.
I’ve done calamari in 2 inches of oil. They come out perfectly (just tossed in seasoned cornstarch), but the oil stench does not, so I don’t fry at home anymore.
I might give it a shot again since we got a new, slightly better hood. Bc I do love me some crispy, tender calamari.
When you say “how do you feel about frying in 2” of oil" . . . what do you mean? I feel fine about it - it’s frying, it’s been done for 100s of years. Is fried the “healthiest”, probably not. Does it create waste with throwing out oil (especially if you rarely fry and so don’t re-use the oil quickly), yes. But I guess, for me, that’s just part of the fry-game and probably why I don’t do it all that often (which is probably a good thing anyway).
My limited experience with air-frying is that it isn’t the same as frying. But of course the post above feels that they can replicate it fairly well with some items. So your mileage may vary.
How are you feeling about it? Feeling like it’s too much oil? Too much waste? Not enough oil? Just anxious in general?
My problem with deep frying (or semi-shallow frying, or whatever) is the oil waste. I know it’s very possible to use dry oil multiple times, so I’ve gone to the effort to strain it through a fine mesh sieve and then a coffee filter back into the bottle ‘for next time’. And by the time ‘next time’ rolled around, the oil had obviously gone rancid.
It’s stored in a cool, dark, dry pantry away from any direct sunlight. Any tips for extending the shelf life of fry oil so it can be used more than once? Would freezing it be an option?
Yes
I avoid frying at home for all the reasons listed and mentioned. It’s a mess and a hassle and what to do with the still good oil? And how often do you deep fry something? Monthly or half yearly? In any case, 2” is deep frying and you can cook fried chicken in 2”. My grandmother and mom did all the time…and my grandmother would only do large batches because it was a mess and a hassle. She’d fry at least 3 chickens, open all the windows and cover the kitchen in butcher paper. After 3 chickens or more the oil is done.
Every few years I look at a countertop deep fryer thinking it would be great to make fresh french fries…but can’t rationalize it. Air fryers are getting better so it might be time.
