This evening, I decided to try toad in the hole (sausages cooked in batter) in the air fryer. In theory, I could have cooked it directly in the basket but it would potentially be hard to lift out and clean up without scratching the surface and the hot air would only be coming from on top. Instead, I decided to use a couple of oval ceramic dishes although that meant I had to use both drawers.

Overall it was pretty quick and easy – about 7 minutes in total to get the sausages (chopped into sections) browned and then another 12 minutes to cook the batter. The sausages could probably have done with a few minutes on a lower heat to start rendering the fat and then a couple more minutes on a higher setting to finish off. Likewise the batter stage might have benefited from either a lower start or being covered with foil for the first stage. At the end, the top was a bit overdone while lower down was cooked but the sausages looked a bit anaemic in parts. However, the speed was good, it was quicker than using an oven and the results were amply tasty.

The other challenge was that our trays, which allow air to circulate all round the cooking food, have raised bits in the middle. That makes them easier to lift out but is a pain to balance hard bottomed cooking vessels on. I wonder if I ought to try and find something like some silicone disks to act as non-slip feet and raise them up the small distance needed? Unfortunately that isn’t a job for my 3D printer as I can’t work with materials that have enough heat resistance for the inside of an air fryer but it does look like there are some options available to purchase. I’ll keep my eyes open for a few days first though in case I’ve got anything already in my possession which might do the job.