Instant Vortex Plus 6-in-1 Air Fryer with ClearCook review Along with Ninja, Instant is one of the brands that dominates the air fryer market. And the new Instant Vortex Plus 6-in-1 Air Fryer with ClearCook is one of three new Vortex Plus models they have recently launched. It features a viewing window not seen on previous Instant air fryers, but does it deserve a spot in our guide to the best air fryers? At £119.99 this is the cheapest of the newly launched trio, partly because it lacks the OdourErase air filter feature seen on the next model up. Nevertheless, this is a great price for such a good quality air fryer. This sleek black air fryer has a capacity of almost six litres which is enough for up to six portions depending on what you’re cooking, so it’s great for families. I enjoyed everything about this easy-to-use appliance, it was fantastically fast at crisping and browning everything I made in it. What’s more, in addition to air frying it can also roast, bake, reheat, grill, and dehydrate, making it a pretty useful addition to your kitchen. Ideal Home rated: 5 out of 5 stars Reasons to buy: Viewing window and internal light Removable tray insert Good capacity Touch control panel Useful range of functions Dishwasher safe basket and cooking try Reasons to avoid: Instruction manual lacks advice on cook times Quite bulky Instant Vortex Plus Air Fryer with ClearCook Specs Material: Plastic Colour: Black Capacity: 5.7 litres Modes: Air fry, roast, bake, reheat, grill, dehydrate Weight: 5.15kg Power: 1700W Size: 33 x 30 x 37.9cm (h x w x d) Unboxing The Instant Vortex Plus 6-in-1 Air Fryer with ClearCook comes in a chunky box, but it’s not very heavy and there’s a handle on top which means it’s easy to move into the kitchen ready for unboxing. Upon opening the box I discovered one of my pet hates – polystyrene. Two large polystyrene inserts hold the fryer in position inside the box, but with so many appliance manufacturers phasing out this hard-to-recycle packaging, it’s frustrating to see it here. Once on the kitchen worktop I’m immediately impressed with the sleek and minimal exterior of the air fryer. It has a smart combination of shiny and matte black finishes, and I don’t feel the need to hide it away in a cupboard. The viewing window on the front of the drawer doesn’t allow you to see inside unless the internal light is switched on, this ensures it looks neat and streamlined when it’s switched off. Additionally, the touch screen control panel remains completely black when switched off, so the only visible control is the silver dial. The small instruction manual contains the necessary information on how to operate the air fryer, but I would have liked some guidance on cooking times and temperatures for common everyday foods. If you’re new to air frying this information would provide a useful starting point. Having said this, there are air fryer recipes on the Instant Brands app, lots of them are American recipes, but they’ll give you an idea of general cook times. Using the Instant Vortex Plus 6-in-1 Air Fryer with ClearCook It really couldn’t be easier to use this air fryer. I like the angled control panel, which means I don’t have to stand on tiptoes to see the menu. Once switched on, the controls illuminate, and the cooking modes are displayed. After selecting a cooking mode, it’s just a case of pressing the time/temp button and spinning the dial for quick adjustment of these settings. Plus, it remembers the last time and temperature settings you used, which is handy if you regularly cook the same foods. There is an audible beep when you’re pressing the controls, I didn’t find it annoying but it can be switched off if you prefer. When you start a cooking mode the air fryer automatically begins preheating and then the display tells you to ‘add food’ once it’s hot enough. Another feature I liked was the reminder to turn food part way through cooking. The basket has a chunky handle and pulls out with ease. The perforated cooking tray slots into the basket and is held in place with grippy rubberised sections on each of the four sides, this means it doesn’t fall out when you tip food out of the basket. Not only does it allow air to circulate around your food for great crispy results, but excess oil drips through the tray into the basket underneath, giving you even healthier meals. I like that it’s removable though, so you can get it out of the way if you’re using the air fryer to bake foods like bread and cakes. Cooking bacon This air fryer cooked bacon with impressive speed. Admittedly I wasn’t looking for super crispy results since I was cooking back bacon. However, with the air fryer set to 190oC the bacon was cooked in just six minutes, the fatty rind down the side of each rasher had started to render and crisp. I cut this part off before eating, but if you want it super crisped it might require a couple more minutes. I also timed the preheat stage which took around 2 ½ minutes – just enough time to get the bacon out of the fridge, open it up and grab a pair of tongs. I love that there’s no grease splatter to clean up afterwards like there is when frying bacon. And also found it reassuring how much fat dripped into the base of the drawer, rather than ending up on my plate. For foods like bacon that cook so quickly, the viewing window is a great feature so you can cook it to perfection without opening the drawer every minute to check on progress. Heating frozen food Frozen breaded chicken goujons crisped up a treat in the air fryer. The packaging said they would take 20 minutes in an oven set to 200oC so I stuck…

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