Air fryers may have been all the rage, but people have since been talking about an alternative to the viral kitchen gadget
If you’ve been on the internet lately, you’ll probably have noticed the phenomenon that is the air fryer.
The devices have featured in everything from write-ups in heritage media outlets to Warhammer 40K themed TikTok videos.
Air fryers went viral over their touted ability to be able to cook things faster than a regular oven and more healthily than frying them in fat.
Leaving aside the observation that if you’re going to eat something that’s already unhealthy you may as well make sure it tastes as delicious as possible, the devices proved enormously popular.
They were also proposed as a cheaper alternative to using a regular oven.
But now it seems the supremacy of the air fryer is being challenged by another countertop kitchen gadget.
Air fryers have proven hugely popular. (i’am / Getty)
Enter the Halogen Oven.
This is a device which uses a halogen lightbulb to cook food in a small glass bowl underneath it.
You can almost imagine it being invented by someone burning themselves on a white-hot halogen bulb and thinking ‘hang on, I can use this to cook food’ as they dunked their scorched hand in a glass bowl of iced water.
Typically the device is made up of a basket on the outside to stop you burning yourself, then a glass bowl.
This is topped with the halogen bulb itself, which switches on to raise the temperature.
It might also flash on and off to keep the temperature maintained at the desired level.
Some models can range between 60C and around 240C, or 140F and 464F.
It’s supposedly more cost effective. (tirc83 / Getty)
The devices have been suggested by many as a cheaper alternative to the air fryer.
While air fryers are popular, the most expensive models can start to get a little pricey which could undermine their status as a budget item.
Many people came out for halogen ovens as the better option.
One person said: “I treated myself to a halogen oven to help with Christmas; I only have one shelf in my oven.
“It is one million times better than the rubbish air fryer I got in the summer.”
Another advocated for the device as well, saying: “Halogen oven is better, healthier and cheaper than air fryer.”
Of course there is another alternative, which is just to use the oven which came pre-installed in your home.
Featured Image Credit: Getty stock photos
