How to Season an Instant Vortex Air Fryer? (The COMPLETE Guide!)
Are you looking to season an Instant Vortex Air Fryer? If so, then this article is for you. After reading this guide, you will be able to learn everything about seasoning your Instant Vortex Air Fryer!
Ready? Let’s go!
Do you need to season an Instant Vortex air fryer?
If you’ve never used an air fryer before, you may be curious about whether or not seasoning is necessary. In a word, yeah!
By seasoning your air fryer, you may make the basket non-stick and prevent food from becoming stuck in it.
Don’t forget, adding an extra layer of seasoning to your instant Vortex air fryer is like adding another layer of body armor to protect it from damage.
It may also contribute to better food taste depending on what type of oil you use.
How to season your Instant Vortex air fryer?
Step 1: You will need cooking oil and a paper towel
It’s important to have your oil and paper towel ready before you begin seasoning your Instant Vortex air fryer.
Canola oil is a fantastic substitute for those who are allergic to nuts, while peanut oil is a good option if you do not have any nut allergies. Refined coconut oil is a popular choice for those who want more subtle flavors.
Step 2: Clean and dry your air fryer basket
The next thing to do is to thoroughly clean the basket of your air fryer.
Food residue and any oil or lubricants used in production should be cleaned off before use.
You should thoroughly clean the basket and whatever accessories it comes in.
Make sure the basket is completely dry before seasoning it with oil, since any moisture will prevent the oil from locking itself onto the material.
Step 3: Preheat the basket to 400 degrees Fahrenheit for 5 minutes
The next step is to heat the basket to 400 degrees for 5 minutes. By doing so, the deeper pores will open and it will expand ever-so-slightly, allowing oil to penetrate deeper, bonding tightly to the metal surface.
Step 4: Spread oil all over the Instant Vortex air fryer basket
The next step is to spread a thin coating of oil evenly over the air fryer basket using a paper towel.
Fold up the paper towel a few times and dab it into the oil. Then, brush it across every inch (top and bottom) of the heat-exposed parts of the basket.
It is recommended that you use oven mitts or safety gloves to avoid burning your hands on the hot air fryer basket.
Step 5: Put the basket back into the air fryer and cook it for another 3 minutes
Return the basket to the air fryer and keep the temperature at 400 degrees Fahrenheit for an additional 3 minutes.
This will aid in allowing the oil to penetrate the air fryer, hardening and sealing the oil to the surface of the basket.
Step 6: Repeat the process 3 to 4 more times
If one layer is sufficient, no more layers are required. However, I recommend you repeat the process more than once to add more protection to your basket.
If you want your air fryer to be very non-stick and your coating to be thick enough to handle most meals, you may repeat steps 3-5 many times.
This will help build up the layers of seasoning and will help guarantee that the air fryer basket will be fully resistant to sticks and to anything soaking into it.
Does the Instant Vortex air fryer come with non-stick?
A non-stick coating, often sprayed on, is included with most modern Instant Vortex air fryers, making it easier to remove food from the basket after frying.
This is a conventional nonstick coating, like that found on most cooking utensils. It’s OK, but it wears out over time and becomes ruined if you use the incorrect tools on it.
Adding your own seasoning will make it even less likely to adhere to the pan and reduce the amount of grime that accumulates in the air fryer.
What is the non-stick coating made of in an Instant Vortex air fryer?
The Instant Vortex air fryer’s basket has a ceramic non-stick covering comprised of PTFE (polytetrafluoroethylene), sometimes known as Teflon.
This coating is normal for air fryer baskets and is what you can expect to see on the baskets of most air fryers.
Although PTFE or Teflon is often applied as a coating, there are variants available with a ceramic coating that does not include PTFE if that is what you choose.
It has been said that Teflon could potentially harm you if you ingest it. This is another great reason why seasoning your air fryer and creating a barrier between your food and the Teflon material may be a huge health benefit.
Benefits of seasoning your Instant Vortex air fryer
Here are some of the most compelling arguments for why you must immediately begin seasoning your Instant Vortex air fryer.
It has three primary benefits.
Greasing the frying basket with oil before adding the cheese will potentially help it slide off the basket and make cleaning that much simpler.
However, if you want the extra advantage of non-stick, you should season your Instant Vortex air fryer with numerous layers. Every added layer improves the non-stick potential. I always recommend at least 3 to 4 coats.
Second, it safeguards your Instant Vortex air fryer’s manufactured non-stick coating. Your Instant Vortex air fryer has a non-stick coating, as I’ve described previously.
The air fryer’s non-stick coating will wear off after some time. One day, it might even wind up on your plate.
A protective coating of seasoning on top of the non-stick coating substance will extend its useful life and is completely safe to eat in case of accidental ingestion. In fact, it’s just cooking oil!
As stated previously, most non-stick coatings on air fryers are made of Teflon, and seasoning your basket can prevent it from peeling off and being accidentally ingested.
Finally, it aids in maintaining a clean and flawless basket. Food can’t make direct contact with the metal. Therefore, seasoning the basket may reduce the likelihood of rust, corrosion, and stains.
The Instant Vortex air fryer will benefit from this in the long run. Just trust me on this!
Disadvantages of seasoning your Instant Vortex air fryer
The fact that you have to put in more effort to season your Instant Vortex air fryer is one of the main drawbacks.
While an oil layer provides all the advantages of a secure basket, it must be maintained constantly.
If you accidentally scrape it off with a fork, you’ll have to reapply a few layers. If you heat up your air fryer too high, you’ll have to reapply a few layers. If it’s been several months since you’ve seasoned your air fryer, you’ll have to reapply a few layers. Even soaps and detergents that are considered too hard are a threat to the protective film.
Therefore, you should take care while cleaning the basket of your Instant Vortex air fryer. The oil layer may be mistakenly stripped away if you use strong chemicals or an abrasive sponge.
Don’t even think of putting your basket in the dishwasher. The coating is almost certain to come off in there.
Having an oil coating that emits odors and smoke is another problem with seasoning your air fryer. Air fryers may be turned up to temperatures beyond 500 degrees Fahrenheit, although doing so may cause the oil to smoke.
When oil reaches its smoke point, it begins to chemically degrade and emit smoke. When it comes to heat, various kinds of oil have varied heat tolerances.
To prevent this, it’s best to use an oil with a high smoke point.
Refined coconut oil, which has a smoke point of roughly 400 degrees Fahrenheit, is the oil I’d go for.
What happens if you don’t season your Instant Vortex air fryer?
There is a considerable probability that your food may cling to your air fryer basket if you don’t season it beforehand.
It will ruin the flavor, make the food soggy instead of crispy, and may even harm your air fryer if you try to scrape and scrub off the stuck-on food.
When an air fryer has not been seasoned, cleaning may be more of a hassle, and you may even have to deal with a broken basket that makes it difficult to prepare food.
Damage and scratches may be inflicted on your Instant Vortex air fryer if it hasn’t been pre-seasoned, as can happen if you slam a metal utensil against the sides of the basket.
The extreme heat generated by an air fryer may eventually remove the paint from your basket, which compromises the basket’s natural non-stick coating.
Even the harsh chemicals and detergents we use every day may damage your protective film, leaving it vulnerable to rust and corrosion. In order to avoid damaging your basket, it’s important to use non-abrasive cleaners when cleaning a seasoned air fryer.
Fortunately, if you have your seasoning right, you will not have to use too many tactics to get rid of food from a previous meal. The food should slide right off with little effort.
In addition, if you are concerned about Teflon leaking into your meal, a coating of seasoning may prevent Teflon from getting into contact with your food at any point.
How often should you season your Instant Vortex air fryer?
You should only need to re-season the basket with a few layers 2 or 3 times a year if you use your Instant Vortex air fryer regularly.
But be sure to give your basket a gentle and thorough cleaning after each use.
A more robust and long-lasting cover for your Instant Vortex air fryer basket is a multilayer one.
If you are the kind of person who uses your air fryer almost every day like me, then you’ll likely have to re-season many more times a year.
To get the most out of your seasoning, I suggest seasoning your basket three or four times in succession.
In my situation, I season my air fryer as often as every two months because I’m always using it daily – sometimes twice a day!
When should you re-season your Instant Vortex air fryer?
- When you accidentally scratch your seasoned layer off
- When you haven’t seasoned your basket in more than 6 months
- When you first take your air fryer out of the box
- When you accidentally washed your air fryer in the dishwasher
- When you accidentally burned your food in the air fryer
- When you are using extreme heat to cook (over 450 degrees Fahrenheit)
You should consider re-seasoning your Instant Vortex air fryer basket whenever you accidentally scratch the surface of the layer.
From time to time, before and after cooking, take a really hard look at the inside surface of your basket.
Sometimes it may be due to you pressing down on the sponge too hard, utensils scraping on it, or the cooking temperature being too high.
A properly seasoned surface should look shiny. It should also have a slightly darker brown or black color.
If you see any areas or spots on the surface of your basket that seem dull and even feel rough, then it might be time to re-season your air fryer.
Chances are that those areas are without a well-seasoned layer.
Do you still need oil after seasoning an Instant Vortex air fryer?
Adding extra oil to your air fryer meal isn’t so necessary if you’re using the oil to prevent the food from sticking.
Adding oil to food can have enhanced non-sticking benefits, but food can benefit from oils by adding flavor as well.
Oil can also help create that crispy outer crust in what’s known as the Maillard reaction.
What kind of oil should you use to season your Instant Vortex air fryer?
1. Refined coconut oil
In order to get the most protection and the least tainted flavor out of your Instant Vortex air fryer, refined coconut oil is your best bet.
It can tolerate high temperatures (about 400 degrees Fahrenheit) without catching fire.
As an added bonus, refined coconut oil has no discernible flavor and won’t change the way your meal tastes.
It is also the most popular oil to use for greasing and seasoning your air fryer basket.
2. Grapeseed oil
We recommend using grapeseed oil as a healthy alternative to oil. Grapeseed oil contains vitamin E and is naturally high in antioxidants. It’s also a lightweight oil with a neutral taste and aroma, so it won’t affect the taste of your food.
Grapeseed oil has a smoke point of up to 420 degrees Fahrenheit.
3. Extra virgin olive oil
Extra Virgin Olive Oil (EVOO) is one of the healthiest oil you can use to season your Instant Vortex air fryer.
This type of oil is high in monounsaturated fats, which are known to be heart-healthy and can help in lowering the body’s total cholesterol levels.
Additionally, extra virgin olive oil contains antioxidants that can help protect your cells from damage.
The only drawback is that extra virgin olive oil has a smoke point of about 350 degrees Fahrenheit, so it’s a bit trickier when dealing with cooking temperatures in your Instant Vortex air fryer.
4. Vegetable oil
Vegetable oil is ideal for flavoring your Instant Vortex air fryer.
Vegetable oil is safer than other oils since its smoke point is higher than average (about 400 degrees Fahrenheit).
Vegetable oil is a neutral oil and won’t change the taste of your dish in any way. It’s standard oil that doesn’t break the bank. Plus, it’s also widely available everywhere!
5. Canola oil
Canola oil has a high smoke point (between 375 and 450 degrees Fahrenheit), which means it can withstand high temperatures without burning.
It’s obviously one of the oils in this list with the highest smoke point. This makes it ideal for seasoning your air fryer.
Canola oil is also a healthy option, as it is low in saturated fat and high in monounsaturated fat.
How to carefully clean a seasoned Instant Vortex air fryer?
After you have seasoned your air fryer it is important to learn how to properly clean it so that you do not remove the seasoning when you are cleaning it.
For the most part, if you did clean it properly you are not going to have to do a ton of scrubbing to remove anything from the basket.
It is easy enough to remove the food from the basket if you have it seasoned well, so, at the most, you should be able to clean it with warm, soapy water and a soft sponge.
Can you put a seasoned Instant Vortex air fryer in the dishwasher?
The dishwasher is not the best place to clean your air fryer’s basket after you’ve seasoned it.
In fact, it’s not even recommended to clean your air fryer basket in a dishwasher to begin with.
Even if the company gives you the OK, claiming that the Instant Vortex air fryer parts are dishwasher-safe, putting the basket into the dishwasher will only shorten the longevity of your air fryer.
To begin with, the chemicals from the detergent, the high heat, the extremely hot water, and the jets will all be violently detrimental to a well-used basket in the dishwasher, not to mention the seasoning layer on top of it.
Don’t forget, there are other pieces of cookware and utensils inside the dishwasher as well. If any of these other pieces bang into your basket, it could damage it as well.
However, if you want to start over and reapply your seasoning from scratch, using this method might work well. You can quickly and simply get rid of your seasoning. A dishwasher is an excellent choice if you want to get rid of the seasoning you’ve already applied and maybe apply it again.
You should wash it by hand if you merely want to clean it so you can reuse it.
I know it’s easy to throw it in the dishwasher, but only do so if you don’t care about ruining the Teflon or ceramic covering.
Is it too late to season your Instant Vortex air fryer?
If you didn’t season your Instant Vortex air fryer before your first use, you can still season it now and enjoy all the benefits of seasoning your Instant Vortex air fryer.
In fact, it’s never too late unless your Instant Vortex’s basket is so worn that the paint inside has already begun to chip and peel off.
One thing you should do is to make sure you thoroughly clean and remove any debris, including rust and corrosion, that might have ended up on the surface of your air fryer basket.
If there is any type of rust or corrosion on your air fryer basket, then we recommend using a combination of natural ingredients such as mixtures of baking soda, lemon, and vinegar.
Using these natural ingredients will not only be effective against corrosion but will also help protect the manufactured non-stick coating that is already on your Instant Vortex air fryer basket.
Also, make sure your Instant Vortex air fryer basket is completely dry before attempting to season it for the first time.
When it comes to the peeling of the paint or non-stick coating, the only solution may be to apply a strong layer of seasoning to your basket. However, you’ll have to determine whether or not how much damage or how much peeling is going on. If the non-stick coating on your basket is pretty much flaking off, then it might be beyond seasoning and beyond repair.
To season your Instant Vortex air fryer, simply coat the inside of the basket with cooking oil. Then, run the air fryer on its highest setting for about 30 minutes.
Allow the basket to cool completely before using it. Seasoning your Instant Vortex air fryer is easy and only takes a few minutes.
It’s worth it to do this step so that you can enjoy all the deliciousness that comes with air frying!
Should you still use parchment paper after seasoning your Instant Vortex air fryer?
You can use parchment paper to help make sure that your food is really not going to stick in any way, but if you have seasoned it properly, you are not going to have to worry about anything sticking and you can just go right ahead and cook in your air fryer with ease.
Safety precautions you need to follow when seasoning your Instant Vortex air fryer
There are some safety things that you need to keep in mind when working on seasoning your air fryer basket.
First, the basket is going to be very hot. You need gloves or a pot holder to help keep your hands from getting burned.
Hot oil and hot metal can quickly burn you.
You also need to keep in mind that if you use an oil that has a low burn point, you may end up having smoke which can be bad for you to breathe and can also make your smoke detectors go off.
Make sure you protect your hands and stay close during the seasoning process.
Does seasoning your Instant Vortex air fryer affect your food?
There’s some debate on how different types of oil affect the outcome of the meal.
Even though this may be true, the general consensus is that seasoning is not going to change the flavor or the texture of your food in the air fryer.
This is because the seasoning is baked on and is actually almost sealed to the air fryer, so it is not going to come off on your food if you have done it properly.
What’s the best temperature to season your Instant Vortex air fryer
The most popular temperature to season your Instant Vortex air fryer basket is usually a round 375 to 400 degrees Fahrenheit.
Most experts will usually recommend 400 degrees Fahrenheit to be the standard.
However, it’s not always that simple. The temperature you should keep your seasoning to should also depend strongly on the type of oil you’re using as well.
If you’re choosing to go with refined coconut oil, then 400 degrees Fahrenheit should be perfectly fine to season your air fryer.
However, oils like regular olive oil wouldn’t be able to withstand temperatures of 400 degrees Fahrenheit for very long since their smoke point is closer to 375 degrees Fahrenheit.
Neglecting these smoke points will end up in disaster if your oil begins to burn.
In this situation, what you want to do is lower the temperature to 350 degrees Fahrenheit and increase the cooking time by a few minutes.
The goal is to create a slippery layer of waxy and slippery oil on the surface of your Instant Vortex air fryer basket. And the only way to do something like this is to use high heat.
But if the type of oil you’re using cannot tolerate heat levels beyond 350 degrees Fahrenheit, then I recommend lowering the temperature to 350 degrees Fahrenheit and adding an extra 2 minutes to the cooking process.
How long should you leave your Instant Vortex air fryer on to season it?
The first thing you’ll have to do is make sure you pre-heat your Instant Vortex air fryer basket before spreading oil all over it.
Generally speaking, you’ll want to set it at 400 degrees Fahrenheit for about 5 minutes.
Once your Instant Vortex air fryer basket is at temperature and ready for seasoning, you’ll want to leave it in the air fryer for about 3 minutes.
Don’t forget to adjust the temperature and time according to the smoke point of the oil.
After three minutes, you can take it out, spread more oil onto the basket’s surface, and put it back into the air fryer for an additional three minutes to create a second layer.
I recommend you repeat this process up to four times to create a thick non-stick outer layer on your Instant Vortex air fryer basket.
Other ways to prevent food from sticking to the Instant Vortex air fryer?
Aluminum foil
Aluminum foil is an option, but it might not be the best. Aluminum foil is going to get hot in the air fryer, which means it is going to change the temperature while the food is cooking.
This also means that if you are wrapping your food in foil or you have lined the basket in foil, your food may burn.
Another thing to keep in mind is that aluminum can block the airflow, which might result in food that is not perfectly crispy. So, you can use foil, but be careful.
Parchment paper
You can also use parchment paper.
This is a great option as it is not going to change the heat of the air fryer or how fast the food cooks, and it is not going to really make a huge difference in the overall airflow.
You can cut the parchment to fit the basket, or just to fit under the food.
Disposable paper liners
One of the best options for your air fryer is to use paper liners that are designed to work with the air fryer.
These liners are going to be designed with the air fryer in mind and are going to be great if you want a liner that is easy to use and that is not going to damage the air fryer.
Disposable paper liners are becoming more popular among air fryer users. In conjunction with a well-seasoned basket, this will almost guarantee no food gets stuck to your air fryer.
Silicon baking mat
If you are environmentally conscious, you can use a reusable silicone baking mat instead.
These are, again, not the best because they do block the airflow.
If you are using a mat, you want to make sure you use a very small one that does not block the airflow to the food.
The benefit here is that silicone baking mats are highly resistant to heat.
The material is also non-stick and durable, meaning you can easily wash and scrub any remaining food from the mat by hand or in the dishwasher.
You’ll be able to reuse this over and over again and never have to pay for replacements unless it gets damaged.
Spray oil
PAM and other cooking sprays use a substance called lecithin. Even though lecithin is safe to use on most cookware, it has the undesirable property of sticking to a nonstick coating.
It clings so strongly that it accumulates and becomes very difficult to remove, damaging the cooking surface and making food stick to it over time.
I recommend purchasing an oil mister, which is basically like a regular bottle spray that is built for oils. You can add in your own oil and spray as you please.
If you want to keep the coating that the air fryer came with, you might want to avoid using spray oil. If you season it properly, you can avoid using any sort of oil or any other non-stick items to keep food from sticking.
Can you preheat a seasoned Instant Vortex air fryer?
You can preheat an Instant Vortex air fryer that has seasoning on it.
The seasoning is going to be baked on and is going to be semi-permanent. In most cases, the seasoning is not going to come off unless you are intentional in taking it off.
You can use this seasoning to keep the food from sticking, and your air fryer is going to be easy to use. You should not have to worry much about it if you have done it right.
As long as you don’t preheat your Instant Vortex using extremely high heat (beyond 450 degrees Fahrenheit), your seasoned layer won’t burn off.
If you have not done your seasoning properly or you only have a single thin layer of seasoning on your basket, you may have to deal with reapplying the season. For the most part, it is going to be fine.
What temperature is too hot for a seasoned Instant Vortex air fryer?
The maximum temperature you can cook a seasoned Instant Vortex air fryer at would largely be determined by the type of oil you used to season your basket.
With that being said, the maximum temperature that you should set your Instant Vortex air fryer to is probably going to range around 350 to 400 degrees Fahrenheit for most types of popular cooking oils.
Going beyond 450 degrees is probably going to be OK a few times, but doing it often may require that you re-season your basket more often as well.
It’s true that the seasoning on the surface of your air fryer is more tolerant of higher temperatures, but it may not last long under heat that surpasses its designated smoke point.
Remember, the smoke point of an oil is the temperature at which its quality begins to deteriorate, denature, and burst into smoke. At this temperature, the chemical bonds inside the oil begin to break apart, resulting in terrible fumes that may engulf your kitchen.
Your seasoning efforts on your basket’s surface will be wasted if the oil you’re using to season it is burned off in the process. Plus, your kitchen will have an acrid, pungent smell lasting for hours.
You don’t want your oil to vaporize and leave the surface of your Instant Vortex air fryer basket. Before reaching the smoke point of your oil, you want it to dry and adhere to the basket’s surface.
I recommend that you maintain a temperature just below the smoke point to ensure complete polymerization and solidification of your oil onto the surface.
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