FryDaddy Electric Deep Fryer

FryDaddy Electric Deep Fryer

The FryDaddy is perfect for someone who lives alone or with their spouse. I don’t eat much deep-fried food, but I like having this appliance in my kitchen repertoire for the options that it opens up when I’m planning a meal. This appliance earned a spot in my kitchen for its versatility – I can make restaurant quality homemade onion rings, sweet potato fries, crab rangoons, chicken wings, clam strips, churros, and mozzarella cheese sticks all with the same piece of equipment.

The FryDaddy is a very simple yet well-built appliance. We’ve had ours for over 10 years and, with no moving parts, we expect to have it for many more. The plastic strainer that came with it met its untimely demise in our dishwasher when it fell down and melted on the heating coil, but I’ve been using a metal slotted spoon ever since and actually prefer it.

The unit has some weight to it, so you’re less likely to knock it over. The power cord attaches to the base of the fryer with a magnetic connection, which is designed to quickly break free to prevent the fryer from toppling over if someone bumps the cord. Federal regulations severely limit the allowable length of power cords on appliances like deep fryers and slow cookers, so you will need to plan to use this within a foot of a counter electrical outlet. I always use mine in the driveway, so I just run a standard extension cord out to it.

Larger deep fryers with baskets that you use to drop the food are nice when you are cooking for more than a couple of people, but they take up an obscene amount of storage space. You also need to factor in the added expense of additional oil to refill the larger fryers.

Apart from taking up less room in your kitchen cabinets, another benefit of a small deep fryer like the FryDaddy is how fast it heats up to operating temperature. If I start my gas grill and plug in my FryDaddy at the same time, the oil will be up to temperature (375* for just about everything) by the time my burgers are done on the grill. I can drop in some onion rings or fries for a quick side while my burgers rest for the couple of minutes that my food is in the fryer.

Assuming that you haven’t overfilled the oil and you’re careful not to throw in food with excess ice crystals, electric deep fryers are perfectly safe to use indoors. However, I always use mine outside because it will make every room of your house smell like whatever you cooked for a day or two after. Regularly frying food indoors also causes a light film of oil that builds up incrementally on the ceiling, walls, cabinets, and appliances.

I prefer the taste of peanut oil for frying, but vegetable or canola oil are also suitable. Strain out any remaining food particles once you’re done cooking. This will help prevent the oil from taking on unwanted flavors during storage. Keep an eye on the color of the oil and replace it when it gets too dark or starts to taste off. You will need to change the oil more often if you regularly fry fish and seafood.