Air fryer hack that saves money on electricity has been revealed

As bills continue to soar, a Melbourne sustainability expert has revealed a simple switch that will save money on your rising electricity costs.

As the cost of living crisis continues, we’ve never been more aware of how much money we’re spending.

Everything from groceries, petrol and energy bills have shot up in recent months while our earnings have comparatively stayed the same, sparking concern among Australians.

While most of us have adopted cost-saving habits such as curbing takeaways and cancelling streaming subscriptions, one area you may not have considered cutting back on is your home cooking.

The cost of firing up an electric oven to cook a meal can be as high as $3.72 per day according to research by Canstar Blue.

Gas ovens come in cheaper, peaking at $2.58 per day.

Experts have revealed rising electricity and has prices are making home cooking expensive. Picture: iStock

Alan Pears, a sustainability expert at RMIT University in Melbourne, however, has revealed you can cut the cost of cooking by switching from a standard electric oven to an air fryer.

“Air fryers use half of the electricity, and you get the same result,” the senior industry fellow explained.

There are several reasons why air fryers cost less to use than an electric oven, but the main saving comes from how fast the cult kitchen appliance heats up.

“An air fryer heats up in a few minutes, much faster than a conventional oven, while drawing about two-thirds as much instantaneous power,” Mr Pears wrote in a recent piece for Renew Magazine.

“It also uses a combination of radiant heat, which is instant, and high-speed circulation of hot air.

“High air flow over food dramatically increases the rate of heat transfer to the food. Think about the ‘chill’ effect of cold, high speed winter winds in reverse.

“Fan-forced conventional ovens use this feature to some extent, but air fryers take it to another level: The higher the air speed the greater the heat flow.”

Using an air fryer instead of an oven can dramatically reduce the cost. Picture: iStock

He also explained that the “rapid crisping” effect achieved by an air fryer reduces evaporation of water from food, which saves energy as “evaporating water when roasting food can be responsible for 20 per cent of conventional oven energy consumption”.

However, Mr Pears pointed out the savings gap closes when you have to cook several batches in an air fryer, a likely logistic of feeding a group of people such as a family at one time.

He also shared a series of other “unusual” hacks to help Aussies reduce their spending on energy and food, suggesting people meal prep and cook in bulk as well as learning how to freeze food properly to avoid waste.

“Food prices are also rising by 8 per cent a year. Our shopping budget is getting more expensive even though we’re still buying the same items,” he said.

“Shop around. Have a look at prices online and work out where the cheapest place to buy an item is.

“Check the unit cost to compare the price by weight of similar products. For example, it’s much cheaper to buy some fruits and vegetables separately rather than a plastic-wrapped or pre-chopped pack.”

Originally published as Air fryer hack that saves money on electricity has been revealed