• 2 months ago
An air fryer can cook anything, can't it? Well, just because it can doesn't mean it should. It's much better to prepare sausage in other ways, for all these reasons.
Transcript
00:00An air fryer can cook anything, can't it? Well, just because it can doesn't mean it should.
00:06It's much better to prepare sausage in other ways for all these reasons.
00:11An air fryer isn't actually a fryer, technically. It's basically a type of convection oven.
00:16A built-in fan circulates heat while keeping the temperature consistent and contained in
00:20a small space. Sausage generally needs to reach a high temperature to fully cook,
00:24as do other fatty meats, but the small space in an air fryer can cause the sausage to release
00:29excess grease. Everyday Family Cooking notes that the release of grease could also leave
00:33your air fryer smoking if the liquid comes into contact with the heating element.
00:37The publication advises,
00:38"...the more grease, the more fumes."
00:40This can especially be a problem if you poke holes in your sausages with a fork before cooking them.
00:44While doing so helps keep the casing from splitting, it also generates even more grease.
00:49So if you cook sausage in your air fryer,
00:51you could end up with a smoky kitchen and a greasy mess in the fryer itself.
00:55Why do I smell smoke? Oh my God."
01:00Air fryers are great for cooking lots of different foods, but when it comes to sausage,
01:04the old ways just work better. Pan-frying remains your best bet if you're looking to
01:08retain the umami flavor, according to premium meat supplier Tremor. That's because the meat
01:12turns a crispy, golden brown as it comes in contact with the heated pan and is repeatedly turned.
01:17The concentrated heat of an air fryer could cause the outside of the sausage to cook too quickly
01:22and leave the inner part undercooked or raw. Tremor recommends sausages be allowed to cook
01:26gently. You have far more control over the amount of heat on a stovetop.
01:30Pan-frying is especially preferable when you're starting off with frozen sausage.
01:33For either cooking method, it's going to take a little extra time to thaw the sausage in the
01:37refrigerator or microwave before cooking. But previously frozen sausage needs a little
01:42more attention and rotation, which is much easier to do in a pan than a closed air fryer.
01:47If you've got guests over or a sizable family to feed and are thinking about
01:50tossing a big batch of sausages in the air fryer, that may not be the best approach.
01:55Air fryers vary in size, but even the biggest ones have relatively small baskets, by design.
02:00Stacking a lot of sausages in such a small space will cause them to hold moisture captive,
02:04block the flow of air, and hinder their ability to cook. Sausages cook better when
02:08they are spread out so they can develop a crisp outer layer, according to My Budget Recipes.
02:13Putting a lot of sausage in an air fryer to cook at once will probably make the cook time longer,
02:17and you'll likely end up with unevenly cooked sausage anyway. Plus,
02:20you're not just going to have sausage for breakfast, right?
02:23What are you having?
02:24Scrambled eggs, turkey bacon sausage, fried egg.
02:27If you want to add eggs or veggies to the meal, you're probably going to have to break out a
02:31frying pan or griddle. While people have figured out ways to make fried eggs in an air fryer,
02:36it's not ideal. Plus, you'd have to cook everything separately.
02:39Air fryer cook times and temperatures differ for sausage, eggs, and veggies.
02:44Ever wonder why the British call sausages bangers? Well, sausages used to be made
02:48with more water and less meat, so they'd often split their casings while cooking
02:51and explode in the pan, earning them the nickname. The USDA warns that cheaper sausage
02:56still tends to come with quite a bit of water inside, making them prone to breakage.
03:00Home Kitchen Talk notes that water is actually a necessity for any sausage.
03:04It binds the meat and seasonings together, but it also creates tension inside the links.
03:08Italian Barrel explains that the highly concentrated heat of an air fryer can
03:11cause a sausage link to temporarily expand, increasing the likelihood that the casing
03:16will split. That likelihood can be reduced by, as mentioned earlier, poking holes in
03:20your sausage with a fork. But Tremor explains that it also makes juices seep out and,
03:24along with them, flavor. A damaged casing means the loss of that signature sausage
03:28snap when you bite into a link. But it also makes the fat separate,
03:31a problem that can also be caused another way.
03:35Fat is what gives sausages, and any other meats, their juiciness and flavor. But as
03:39Quiet Waters Farm notes, too high a temperature will also liquefy the fat content that has been
03:44so carefully mixed into your sausage to keep it moist and juicy. If this liquefies and leaks out,
03:48you will have a dry and crumbly result without all that flavor. Sausage needs to be cooked over
03:53high heat, but that does not mean it's meant to take on all of that heat at once, like in an air
03:57fryer. Along with losing the fat, the sausages can actually shrink and shrivel up if the outside
04:02cooks first. Air fryers are super easy to use, right? You just set a time and temperature and
04:08let it do its thing. That's indeed true for a lot of foods, but for something like sausage,
04:13it's not quite that simple. Depending on the fat content of your sausage,
04:16the required heat setting will vary, and if you're not careful, you could end up with an inedible
04:21result.
04:22Never mind.
04:23It's burnt.
04:24Everyday family cooking reminds us that an air fryer's job is not to smoke meat. This is why
04:28it is possible to cook higher-end fat meats in an air fryer, but by no means recommended.
04:33Starting at a lower temperature and increasing the heat gradually can be one way to go,
04:37though other cooking methods like pan-frying and baking can simplify things considerably.
04:42The big benefit of an air fryer is convenience, but that's not always the case.
04:46According to Simple Air Fryer, it takes up to 13 minutes to air fry Italian sausage.
04:51Chicken sausage takes up to 13 minutes to cook through in an air fryer, Craving Tasty advises.
04:56Thicker sausages will likely require a couple more minutes on top of that.
04:59Pan-frying takes about the same amount of time, Traymore notes, but you can cook more sausage
05:03at one time and won't have to wait another 15 minutes for another batch. Plus, there are all
05:08the other added benefits of pan-frying, so if you're aiming for quality, you're better off
05:12using the trusty pan. You'll end up with better sausage and won't have spent any more time making
05:17it.

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