For someone not needing to fry enormous amounts at one time, this little machine is ideal. It requires only a very small amount of vegetable oil. I've used it to fry chicken wings, quickly, to do french fries and onion rings, to do other smaller chicken parts, and it works beautifully. There is no thermostat; you just plug it in, wait 10 minutes, and the temp is 375. Having such a small amount of grease, it recovers heat more quickly than an electric skillet.

When you are through, if you plan to reuse the grease you can simply let the machine cool, snap the plastic top on, the put the whole thing in the fridge. I don't fry that often, and when I do, I tend to fry a lot, so usually I just discard the oil. Such a small amount is used (usually no more than 3 cups starting out) that I don't feel bad about discarding the oil.

The sides on this appliance are quite high, and splatter around the machine has never been a problem. I used common sense, though, when I fry, whether it's here or on the stove.

I'm sure the all-enclosed auto-fryers that are out on the market are nice, and if I fried a lot I'd probably get one. However, I only fry once or twice a month, and for that, this little machine is perfect. I'd recommend one to anyone--durable, simple, and does exactly what it's designed for!

115 of 118 found the following review helpful:

Good for my frying needs  Mar 26, 2002
By shoe lover
I fry things about 1-2 times a week, and I liked my fried things to be very crispy yet not laden with oil. I wanted something that would truly get to a hotter frying temperature, to make my frying quicker and more "healthful"...(healthy frying....is that an oxymoron or what?) Because I don't fry THAT often, I just needed something simple.

I like this fryer because the heat-up time is very quick, and there is much less splatter then if you were frying in a pot. When I fry, I usually do your typical fried foods: fries, onion rings, wontons, etc. I have not tried to do anything else in it yet.

If the oil is fairly clean after I use it, I will put it in the refridgerator, but not keep more than a week. This is a very simple fryer. If you are a more heavy-duty fryer, then you might want to look into a fancier one. The exterior is not cool-touch, and there is no basket. If you only do small batches of things, and don't really fry that much, or even if you do, then this will be a great fryer for you.

87 of 88 found the following review helpful:

The Pros and Cons  Feb 07, 2009
By B. Hoelscher
After spending more money on 2 faulty deep fryers (Rival is hit-or-miss for quality), I've finally settled on this little beauty.

Pros:
1.) Cheap and simple, a very compact and minimalist package overall. It is nothing more than a steel bucket with a heating element underneath.

2.) Fries at 350 degrees, 25 short of "ideal" but safe for cooking with lard and lower smoke point oil. Try lard if you never have, you can still get it in supermarkets.

3.) Milled steel bucket, cast aluminum base. Inside has a permanent synthetic non-stick surface. Clean up and changing oil is simple.

Cons:
1.) This fryer isn't for families with young children or dumb people. Hot oil is always dangerous to work around and this unit is a STEEL BUCKET FULL OF OIL. The outside is hot. The inside is hot. It's hot.

2.) Doesn't have a lid to stop the occasional spatter.

3.) The bottom and healing element are shielded, but it will still warm up your synthetic countertop. I have mine on an old wooden cutting board to avoid warping the plastic.

62 of 64 found the following review helpful:

Simple to Use  Aug 31, 2001
By Meg Burger
This machine is really easy to use...I fried dough to make funnel cake and donuts, and it was simple. All you have to do is put in your oil, heat it up, and add the dough. The number of things you can fry is endless. My personal favorites are the funnel cake, chicken tenders, and french fries. Depending on what you are making, cooking time can vary from mere minutes to a half hour. Experiment, create your own recipes, it's easy.

One word of advice is to make sure to clean the fryer and change the oil regularly. Nothing is worse than frying with old oil. Keep the fryer very clean! Enjoy!

43 of 45 found the following review helpful:

Too small and broke down quickly  Jul 08, 2009
By Ace
The fryer is very small, so as you cook subsequent batches, the previous batches gets cold. It's very basic: no temperature control, no indicator light for when it has reached the correct temperature, no basket (just a wide slotted spoon) and no insulation, so you do have to be careful around it. That would have all been OK for the occasional deep fryer user like myself except for something so basic, you would think there wouldn't be much that could go wrong with it. However I only used it about 10 times before it stopped working completely.

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