Hi,
Local charity shop has one of these: https://bonnypack.com/products/salter-10-litre-mini-toaster-oven
brand new, never used and pat-tested for £15.
It's 500w. I have a 3000w oven at home that I only use to cook burgers in.
Would an oven with 1/6th of that power be able to cook burgers or would
it just be a toy?
Thanks.
On 17/07/2025 18:41, Ottavio Caruso wrote:
Hi,
Local charity shop has one of these:
https://bonnypack.com/products/salter-10-litre-mini-toaster-oven
brand new, never used and pat-tested for £15.
It's 500w. I have a 3000w oven at home that I only use to cook burgers
in.
Would an oven with 1/6th of that power be able to cook burgers or would
it just be a toy?
Thanks.
For comparison I purchased a air fryer with a 4 litre basket. It cooks
two 1/4lb frozen burgers in 15/20 minutes @ 185C. It has a 1350W
heating element.
With the burgers on a metal rack the heating element is approx 3.5
inches away from the top of the burgers AND the air fryer is like a
fanned oven forcing the hot air around the burgers. They still have to
be turned over once.
My guess 500W is somewhat underpowered but it probably will cook your
burgers in time. Do you cook yours from frozen?
This is the model I have and it was a lot less than £50 direct from the Tower web site BUT I think I got it as end of line price as they now
have similar but different models listed.
Since buying it just after last Xmas I've used it a lot, and for fried
food, the fying pan a lot less. I tend to line the basket with
aluminium foil and use a metal rack or place the food in a silicone reusable liner (the ones with strengthening ribs are a LOT better
smoother floppy ones - the ribbed ones can be turned inside out to give
a smooth bowl.).
Note items listed below fit my air fryer which has a small 4 litre
basket.
Rack https://tinyurl.com/5n8s5fr5
Liner https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/356811590071?var=625761296586
On Thu, 17 Jul 2025 19:23:33 +0100, alan_m wrote:
On 17/07/2025 18:41, Ottavio Caruso wrote:
Hi,
Local charity shop has one of these:
https://bonnypack.com/products/salter-10-litre-mini-toaster-oven
brand new, never used and pat-tested for £15.
It's 500w. I have a 3000w oven at home that I only use to cook burgers
in.
Would an oven with 1/6th of that power be able to cook burgers or would
it just be a toy?
Thanks.
For comparison I purchased a air fryer with a 4 litre basket. It cooks
two 1/4lb frozen burgers in 15/20 minutes @ 185C. It has a 1350W
heating element.
With the burgers on a metal rack the heating element is approx 3.5
inches away from the top of the burgers AND the air fryer is like a
fanned oven forcing the hot air around the burgers. They still have to
be turned over once.
My guess 500W is somewhat underpowered but it probably will cook your
burgers in time. Do you cook yours from frozen?
This is the model I have and it was a lot less than £50 direct from the
Tower web site BUT I think I got it as end of line price as they now
have similar but different models listed.
Since buying it just after last Xmas I've used it a lot, and for fried
food, the fying pan a lot less. I tend to line the basket with
aluminium foil and use a metal rack or place the food in a silicone
reusable liner (the ones with strengthening ribs are a LOT better
smoother floppy ones - the ribbed ones can be turned inside out to give
a smooth bowl.).
Note items listed below fit my air fryer which has a small 4 litre
basket.
Rack https://tinyurl.com/5n8s5fr5
Liner https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/356811590071?var=625761296586
Isn't the secret of air fryers that they heat up much less air to do the
job. Hence the savings and speed ?
I was amused to hear the "Sliced Bread" breakdown on the BBC noting that
all the savings start to disappear when you have a large family and end
up doing multiple batches ...
With just me and SWMBO it's perfect though -
This is the model I have and it was a lot less than £50 direct from the Tower web site BUT I think I got it as end of line price as they now
have similar but different models listed.
On 17/07/2025 19:23, alan_m wrote:
This is the model I have and it was a lot less than £50 direct from
the Tower web site BUT I think I got it as end of line price as they
now have similar but different models listed.
oops, it may help if there was a link to the model
https://www.cartersdirect.co.uk/tower-t17116.html
On 18/07/2025 11:00, alan_m wrote:
On 17/07/2025 19:23, alan_m wrote:Mmm. I have been considering one, and that is about the limit of what I
This is the model I have and it was a lot less than £50 direct from
the Tower web site BUT I think I got it as end of line price as they
now have similar but different models listed.
oops, it may help if there was a link to the model
https://www.cartersdirect.co.uk/tower-t17116.html
would want to pay...
It seems that ultimately, stripped of hype, they are a small fan blown
oven, with a thermostat and a timer
£50 sounds about right
Hi,
Local charity shop has one of these: https://bonnypack.com/products/salter-10-litre-mini-toaster-oven
brand new, never used and pat-tested for £15.
It's 500w. I have a 3000w oven at home that I only use to cook burgers in.
Would an oven with 1/6th of that power be able to cook burgers or would it just be a toy?
Thanks.
On Thu, 7/17/2025 1:41 PM, Ottavio Caruso wrote:<snip>
Hi,These devices (George Foreman grill or equivalent) are in the 1200 watt
Local charity shop has one of these:
https://bonnypack.com/products/salter-10-litre-mini-toaster-oven
brand new, never used and pat-tested for £15.
It's 500w. I have a 3000w oven at home that I only use to cook burgers
in.
Would an oven with 1/6th of that power be able to cook burgers or would
it just be a toy?
Thanks.
to 1500 watt range. The heat is in closer contact to the meat, if you
close the lid, and especially if the unit heats from both sides.
On 18/07/2025 11:18, The Natural Philosopher wrote:
On 18/07/2025 11:00, alan_m wrote:
On 17/07/2025 19:23, alan_m wrote:Mmm. I have been considering one, and that is about the limit of what
This is the model I have and it was a lot less than £50 direct from
the Tower web site BUT I think I got it as end of line price as
they now have similar but different models listed.
oops, it may help if there was a link to the model
https://www.cartersdirect.co.uk/tower-t17116.html
I would want to pay...
It seems that ultimately, stripped of hype, they are a small fan blown
oven, with a thermostat and a timer
£50 sounds about right
Bigclive takes a cheap Asda one apart https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i5XCj99QICo
On 18/07/2025 09:12, Jethro_uk wrote:
On Thu, 17 Jul 2025 19:23:33 +0100, alan_m wrote:
On 17/07/2025 18:41, Ottavio Caruso wrote:Isn't the secret of air fryers that they heat up much less air to do
Hi,
Local charity shop has one of these:
https://bonnypack.com/products/salter-10-litre-mini-toaster-oven
brand new, never used and pat-tested for �15.
It's 500w. I have a 3000w oven at home that I only use to cook burgers >>>> in.
Would an oven with 1/6th of that power be able to cook burgers or would >>>> it just be a toy?
Thanks.
For comparison I purchased a air fryer with a 4 litre basket. It cooks
two 1/4lb frozen burgers in 15/20 minutes @ 185C. It has a 1350W
heating element.
With the burgers on a metal rack the heating element is approx 3.5
inches away from the top of the burgers AND the air fryer is like a
fanned oven forcing the hot air around the burgers. They still have to
be turned over once.
My guess 500W is somewhat underpowered but it probably will cook your
burgers in time. Do you cook yours from frozen?
This is the model I have and it was a lot less than �50 direct from the
Tower web site BUT I think I got it as end of line price as they now
have similar but different models listed.
Since buying it just after last Xmas I've used it a lot, and for fried
food, the fying pan a lot less. I tend to line the basket with
aluminium foil and use a metal rack or place the food in a silicone
reusable liner (the ones with strengthening ribs are a LOT better
smoother floppy ones - the ribbed ones can be turned inside out to give
a smooth bowl.).
Note items listed below fit my air fryer which has a small 4 litre
basket.
Rack https://tinyurl.com/5n8s5fr5
Liner https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/356811590071?var=625761296586
the job. Hence the savings and speed ? I was amused to hear the
"Sliced Bread" breakdown on the BBC noting that all the savings start
to disappear when you have a large family and end up doing multiple >>batches ... With just me and SWMBO it's perfect though -
II also think they are over hyped. They are great for some things but a
whole chicken is usually shown in adverts. These are a simple heating >element located just above the top of the basket with air blown over it
into a fairly small space. With a whole chicken what's more likely to
happen is the bit a fraction of an inch away from the heating element
is going to get rather burnt. It works well with chicken pieces or
anything that can placed in an even layer on a rack and so cooks
uniformly. Oven chips seem to cook a lot better but the chips from the
chip shop a three minute walk from my house taste better :) One
benefit is they drain a lot of fat away from meat and processed food
when using a shallow rack. I found a third party open rack a lot better
that the drain plate with a few holes that my air fryer came with
I agree that the best use is for meals, or part meals, for one of two
people but in this household not everything goes in it. Fresh or frozen >vegetables are still boiled in a pan. Physically high items still go in
the oven. For some items it doesn't replace the microwave. However, I
do have one of the smaller models with a single basket
In message <[email protected]>, at 10:58:23 on Fri, 18
Jul 2025, alan_m <[email protected]> remarked:
II also think they are over hyped. They are great for some things but
a whole chicken is usually shown in adverts. These are a simple
heating element located just above the top of the basket with air
blown over it into a fairly small space. With a whole chicken what's
more likely to happen is the bit a fraction of an inch away from the
heating element is going to get rather burnt. It works well with
chicken pieces or anything that can placed in an even layer on a rack
and so cooks uniformly. Oven chips seem to cook a lot better but the
chips from the chip shop a three minute walk from my house taste
better :) One benefit is they drain a lot of fat away from meat and
processed food when using a shallow rack. I found a third party open
rack a lot better that the drain plate with a few holes that my air
fryer came with
I agree that the best use is for meals, or part meals, for one of two
people but in this household not everything goes in it. Fresh or
frozen vegetables are still boiled in a pan. Physically high items
still go in the oven. For some items it doesn't replace the
microwave. However, I do have one of the smaller models with a single
basket
Air fryers are great for a couple of baked potatoes. Which also look a
bit lonely in a conventional oven.
On 19/07/2025 08:18, Roland Perry wrote:
In message <[email protected]>, at 10:58:23 on Fri, 18
Jul 2025, alan_m <[email protected]> remarked:
II also think they are over hyped. They are great for some things but
a whole chicken is usually shown in adverts. These are a simple
heating element located just above the top of the basket with air
blown over it into a fairly small space. With a whole chicken what's
more likely to happen is the bit a fraction of an inch away from the
heating element is going to get rather burnt. It works well with
chicken pieces or anything that can placed in an even layer on a
rack and so cooks uniformly. Oven chips seem to cook a lot better but
the chips from the chip shop a three minute walk from my house taste
better :) One benefit is they drain a lot of fat away from meat and
processed food when using a shallow rack. I found a third party open
rack a lot better that the drain plate with a few holes that my air
fryer came with
I agree that the best use is for meals, or part meals, for one of two
people but in this household not everything goes in it. Fresh or
frozen vegetables are still boiled in a pan. Physically high items
still go in the oven. For some items it doesn't replace the
microwave. However, I do have one of the smaller models with a
single basket
Air fryers are great for a couple of baked potatoes. Which also look a
bit lonely in a conventional oven.
*Jacket* potatoes may be cooked in a microwave. Much quicker, uses less energy, and you can eat the skin, which supposedly contains a lot of "goodness".
I don't understand that.
The crispy skin you get from oven roasting is tasty and enjoyable. The
skin on a microwaved potato might be edible, but it's far less enjoyable.
*Jacket* potatoes may be cooked in a microwave. Much quicker, uses less energy, and you can eat the skin, which supposedly contains a lot of "goodness".
Early in the season I purchased a bag of Jersey Royals that actuallyYup. Same here
tasted like I remember. A week later in the same store an identically
packed bag of the same - completely tasteless 🙁
Air fryers are great for a couple of baked potatoes. Which also look
a bit lonely in a conventional oven.
*Jacket* potatoes may be cooked in a microwave. Much quicker, uses less >energy, and you can eat the skin, which supposedly contains a lot of >"goodness".
On 19/07/2025 21:16, alan_m wrote:
Early in the season I purchased a bag of Jersey Royals that actuallyYup. Same here
tasted like I remember. A week later in the same store an identically
packed bag of the same - completely tasteless 🙁
Jersey
Royals came in small wooden crates, packed in soil. Transport cost/
disease control concerns may have impacted on this and the bagged
versions did not have the expected flavour.
I don't understand that.
The crispy skin you get from oven roasting is tasty and enjoyable. The
skin on a microwaved potato might be edible, but it's far less enjoyable.
Yup. Same here
In message <105gak0$2p9pt$[email protected]>, at 15:37:51 on Sat, 19 Jul
2025, Max Demian <[email protected]> remarked:
Air fryers are great for a couple of baked potatoes. Which also look
a bit lonely in a conventional oven.
*Jacket* potatoes may be cooked in a microwave. Much quicker, uses
less energy, and you can eat the skin, which supposedly contains a lot
of "goodness".
I find that they only work well in a microwave if you par-boil them
first. And they still take as long as in an air fryer. The latter have
their skins on too.
On 19/07/2025 15:37, Max Demian wrote:
*Jacket* potatoes may be cooked in a microwave. Much quicker, usesExcept the skins are not nice and thick like they are in an oven
less energy, and you can eat the skin, which supposedly contains a lot
of "goodness".
On 20/07/2025 07:59, Roland Perry wrote:
In message <105gak0$2p9pt$[email protected]>, at 15:37:51 on Sat, 19 Jul
2025, Max Demian <[email protected]> remarked:
Air fryers are great for a couple of baked potatoes. Which also
look
a bit lonely in a conventional oven.
*Jacket* potatoes may be cooked in a microwave. Much quicker, uses
less energy, and you can eat the skin, which supposedly contains a lot
of "goodness".
I find that they only work well in a microwave if you par-boil them
first. And they still take as long as in an air fryer. The latter have
their skins on too.
For a 300g potato, stab all over with a fork and place asymmetrically on
a plate in the microwave. Zap for 4 minutes [1]. Turn over. Zap for
another 4 minutes [1]. Leave to stand in the microwave for 2 minutes.
Cut open, break up with a fork, add salt and butter. Add grated cheese
and return to the microwave for half a minute to melt it. If you want
baked beans, you can start the heating while melting the cheese.
[1] Reduce to 3 minutes for a 200g potato.
On Sun, 20 Jul 2025 12:05:47 +0100, Max Demian wrote:
On 20/07/2025 07:59, Roland Perry wrote:
In message <105gak0$2p9pt$[email protected]>, at 15:37:51 on Sat, 19 Jul
2025, Max Demian <[email protected]> remarked:
Air fryers are great for a couple of baked potatoes. Which also
look
a bit lonely in a conventional oven.
*Jacket* potatoes may be cooked in a microwave. Much quicker, uses
less energy, and you can eat the skin, which supposedly contains a lot >>>> of "goodness".
I find that they only work well in a microwave if you par-boil them
first. And they still take as long as in an air fryer. The latter have
their skins on too.
For a 300g potato, stab all over with a fork and place asymmetrically on
a plate in the microwave. Zap for 4 minutes [1]. Turn over. Zap for
another 4 minutes [1]. Leave to stand in the microwave for 2 minutes.
Cut open, break up with a fork, add salt and butter. Add grated cheese
and return to the microwave for half a minute to melt it. If you want
baked beans, you can start the heating while melting the cheese.
[1] Reduce to 3 minutes for a 200g potato.
Alternatively do the 4 * 4 in the microwave for a nice edible potato, and then do it for another 2-4 minutes in the air fryer to crisp up the skin.
At the moment I am not bothering with the extra crisping up because they
are so nice with the skins still relatively soft.
Cheers
Dave R
My guess 500W is somewhat underpowered but it probably will cook your
burgers in time. Do you cook yours from frozen?
On 19/07/2025 22:41, The Natural Philosopher wrote:
On 19/07/2025 21:16, alan_m wrote:
Early in the season I purchased a bag of Jersey Royals that actually >>>tasted like I remember. A week later in the same store an identically >>>packed bag of the same - completely tasteless 0 >> Yup. Same here
Hmm. My family ran a fruit and veg. market stall in St. Albans.
Imported goods were obtained from local suppliers.
The first early season potatoes came from places like Egypt!
Jersey Royals came in small wooden crates, packed in soil. Transport >cost/disease control concerns may have impacted on this and the bagged >versions did not have the expected flavour.
I grow early/salad potatoes for our own use. Browsing the catalogues, I
came across a variety claimed to be comparable to the JR. Caledonian
Pearl. OK but not quite the flavour. Probably due to soil differences.
In message <[email protected]>, at 10:20:23 on Sun, 20
Jul 2025, Timatmarford <[email protected]> remarked:
On 19/07/2025 22:41, The Natural Philosopher wrote:
On 19/07/2025 21:16, alan_m wrote:
Early in the season I purchased a bag of Jersey Royals that actually
tasted like I remember. A week later in the same store an
identically packed bag of the same - completely tasteless 0 >> Yup.
Same here
Hmm. My family ran a fruit and veg. market stall in St. Albans.
Imported goods were obtained from local suppliers.
The first early season potatoes came from places like Egypt!
I have some here, which came from Cornwall.
Jersey Royals came in small wooden crates, packed in soil. Transport
cost/disease control concerns may have impacted on this and the bagged
versions did not have the expected flavour.
I grow early/salad potatoes for our own use. Browsing the catalogues,
I came across a variety claimed to be comparable to the JR. Caledonian
Pearl. OK but not quite the flavour. Probably due to soil differences.
On 22/07/2025 05:20, Roland Perry wrote:
In message <[email protected]>, at 10:20:23 on Sun, 20
Jul 2025, Timatmarford <[email protected]> remarked:
On 19/07/2025 22:41, The Natural Philosopher wrote:
On 19/07/2025 21:16, alan_m wrote:
Early in the season I purchased a bag of Jersey Royals that
actually tasted like I remember. A week later in the same store an
identically packed bag of the same - completely tasteless 0 >> Yup.
Same here
Hmm. My family ran a fruit and veg. market stall in St. Albans.
Imported goods were obtained from local suppliers.
The first early season potatoes came from places like Egypt!
I have some here, which came from Cornwall.
Jersey Royals came in small wooden crates, packed in soil. Transport
cost/disease control concerns may have impacted on this and the
bagged versions did not have the expected flavour.
I grow early/salad potatoes for our own use. Browsing the catalogues,
I came across a variety claimed to be comparable to the JR.
Caledonian Pearl. OK but not quite the flavour. Probably due to soil
differences.
So what, exactly, are "baby potatoes"? They are (more or less) like "new potatoes" but are available all the year round. They can't all be flown
in from abroad. Have they found a combination of temperature and
humidity that preserves the new crop for many months?
On 22/07/2025 05:20, Roland Perry wrote:This was 65 years ago:-)
In message <[email protected]>, at 10:20:23 on Sun, 20
Jul 2025, Timatmarford <[email protected]> remarked:
On 19/07/2025 22:41, The Natural Philosopher wrote:
On 19/07/2025 21:16, alan_m wrote:
Early in the season I purchased a bag of Jersey Royals that
actually tasted like I remember. A week later in the same store an
identically packed bag of the same - completely tasteless 0 >> Yup.
Same here
Hmm. My family ran a fruit and veg. market stall in St. Albans.
Imported goods were obtained from local suppliers.
The first early season potatoes came from places like Egypt!
I have some here, which came from Cornwall.
Jersey Royals came in small wooden crates, packed in soil. Transport
cost/disease control concerns may have impacted on this and the
bagged versions did not have the expected flavour.
I grow early/salad potatoes for our own use. Browsing the catalogues,
I came across a variety claimed to be comparable to the JR.
Caledonian Pearl. OK but not quite the flavour. Probably due to soil
differences.
So what, exactly, are "baby potatoes"? They are (more or less) like "new potatoes" but are available all the year round. They can't all be flown
in from abroad. Have they found a combination of temperature and
humidity that preserves the new crop for many months?
On 22/07/2025 12:28, Max Demian wrote:
So what, exactly, are "baby potatoes"? They are (more or less) like
"new potatoes" but are available all the year round. They can't all be
flown in from abroad. Have they found a combination of temperature and
humidity that preserves the new crop for many months?
Baby potatoes are just small potatoes - just filtered from a crop of
larger size potatoes. Most of the supermarkets seem to sell them.
They just cook faster - boiled with their skins on - after cooking I add
a knob of butter and a slight sprinkling of dried mixed herbs.
On 22/07/2025 12:28, Max Demian wrote:
On 22/07/2025 05:20, Roland Perry wrote:This was 65 years ago:-)
In message <[email protected]>, at 10:20:23 on Sun, 20
Jul 2025, Timatmarford <[email protected]> remarked:
On 19/07/2025 22:41, The Natural Philosopher wrote:
On 19/07/2025 21:16, alan_m wrote:
Early in the season I purchased a bag of Jersey Royals that
actually tasted like I remember. A week later in the same store an >>>>>> identically packed bag of the same - completely tasteless 0 >> Yup. >>>>>> Same here
Hmm. My family ran a fruit and veg. market stall in St. Albans.
Imported goods were obtained from local suppliers.
The first early season potatoes came from places like Egypt!
I have some here, which came from Cornwall.
Jersey Royals came in small wooden crates, packed in soil. Transport
cost/disease control concerns may have impacted on this and the
bagged versions did not have the expected flavour.
So what, exactly, are "baby potatoes"? They are (more or less) like "new potatoes" but are available all the year round. They can't all be flown
in from abroad. Have they found a combination of temperature and
humidity that preserves the new crop for many months?
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