My cousin's tip about preheating the air fryer totally backfired on me

So my cousin, who acts like an air fryer expert, insisted I always preheat mine for 5 minutes before adding food. I followed his advice for weeks, but my chicken wings kept coming out dry on the outside and undercooked near the bone. Finally last Tuesday I got fed up and just tossed the wings in cold with a light oil spray. They came out way juicier and actually cooked through in the same time, maybe 18 minutes at 380. I think preheating was just scorching the exterior before the inside had a chance. Has anyone else found that skipping preheat works better for certain foods, or is my cousin just wrong about everything?

2 comments

2 Comments

spencerl321mo ago

Nah preheating is key though. Your cousin might be onto something if you're cooking stuff like frozen fries or breaded items where you need that initial blast to get the crunch. Maybe your chicken wings needed a lower temp for longer instead of skipping the preheat.

betty_reed611mo ago

Preheating gets a lot of hype but honestly it's not always necessary for things like chicken wings or thicker cuts of meat. In my experience, tossing wings into a cold oven and letting them come up to temp gradually gives you way more control over the moisture inside. The fat renders slower so you don't end up with dry meat and a burnt outside. I've had better luck with that approach than the preheat blast, even for breaded stuff if you use a light coating. Maybe @spencerl32's cousin has a method that's been working for them on a gas oven that runs hot, where skipping preheat avoids hot spots. Your mileage may vary but I'd argue staying flexible with preheating is more practical than treating it like a hard rule.

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