After testing over 50, this non-toxic air fryer is one of my favourites

I think of the Paris Rhone Air Fryer as the underdog of all models on the market. It's quietly, but very certainly, one of the best air fryers on the market. People in the know praise it for its value, ceramic (non-toxic) non-stick, and versatile pre-sets and it's easy to see why.

There's been a lot of chatter about non-toxic air fryers recently. If your non-stick isn't ceramic or stainless steel, you need to be careful about how you use it and keep an eye on its condition. If it is ceramic, like with the Paris Rhône Air Fryer

It's been over a year since I tested the Paris Rhône Air Fryer and I'm even more familiar with it now than I was then. The reason why I've gotten to know it so well is because I bought it for my brother after testing.

Specifications

Unboxing

The Paris Rhône Air Fryer comes in a dense carboard box. The simple, sturdy build is a great reflection of what this is like as an air fryer: it's a no-frills appliance that gets the job done. Taking this out of the box, lots of the rest of the packaging is polystyrene and plastic, which is great for protecting the air fryer, but not quite as effective at looking after the environment. There isn't really any sustainable way to dispose of polystyrene.

All air fryers come with some form of instructions, but I didn't expect Paris Rhône to include a magnetic guide for cooking. This is actually a really useful extra to have in your kitchen, whether you stick it on the fridge or in a drawer, it will talk you through all the different temperatures and timings for different dishes. It's a beginner's bible.

Aside from familiarising yourself with the instructions and giving the air fryer a rinse, it arrives pretty much good to go.

Who would it suit?

The Paris Rhône Air Fryer has appeal for a lot of people. There have been growing concerns about whether air fryers are toxic and, at the risk of going on a bit of a tangent, I'll give you a mini summary:

Some air fryers use plastics and artificial chemicals to make your air fryer baskets and trays non-stick, these will look like Teflon, for example. Experts have reassured me that this is totally safe to cook with as long as it isn't damaged or used with oil sprays. Both of these might cause you to ingest the non-stick, which is a forever chemical that will stay in your body. It doesn't sound great, but if you look after your air fryer, you should be fine.The good news is that doesn't apply to stainless steel and ceramic non-sticks and the Paris Rhône Air Fryer uses ceramic, so you're fine to be a little more brash with your air fryer.

People who are concerned about whether air fryers are toxic will be grateful for the Paris Rhône Air Fryer's ceramic coating, but that's not the limit of who this appeals to. The single-drawer might seem like a step back in terms of innovation, but it's actually really great for lots of people. In the most obvious sense, it means that the Paris Rhône Air Fryer is smaller, perfect for crowded, compact kitchens. Luckily, this doesn't mean skimping on capacity, because I still cooked a whole roast chicken in the Paris Rhône Air Fryer. It's a great choice for small families that are shopping on a budget.

Of course, there are other, more intuitive, spacious models, all of Ninja's best air fryers, I'm looking at you. However, these are more expensive and they're all bigger than this. So, you'll need to think about what you want in an air fryer (we have lots of advice on how to choose an air fryer), and then you'll be able to work out which is best for you.

What is it like to use?

I've already mentioned that you don't need to do any prep if you want to get cooking in the Paris Rhône Air Fryer, which is really helpful. There's no pre-heating needed, no nothing. It's a real delight. I have a standard series of tests that I put every air fryer I test through. Here's the breakdown of how the Paris Rhône performed.

Test 1: chips

I can't give any air fryer credit if it's no good with chips, so I bought some French fries (the brand is French, after all), and popped a plateful in the drawer. The pre-set suggested that the chips would need 22 minutes Paris Rhône Air Fryer at 200 degrees. That's about four minutes more than I would say the average air fryer needs, but I wanted to trust Paris Rhône, because they know the air fryer better than me.

When the alarm went off, the oven stopped cooking and I poured the chips onto a plate. A few had slipped through the basket and were sitting, raw, in the bottom, so I couldn't eat those, but the rest of them looked good. You can see that the colour isn't especially even across them all, some were soft and others were almost too crispy, even though I turned them half way through the test.

Test 2: grilled vegetables

I switch up the vegetables that I cook in air fryers, but asparagus is always a beautiful dish to try. I tossed the stems in a little bit of oil with some salt and pepper too. Then, consulting my magnetic sheet, I put them in the air fryer for 15 minutes at 180 degrees. I'd say this is about 1/3 more than I would start with, and, given that the chips were on the crispy side, I cut it down to ten minutes.

The Paris Rhône Air Fryer has lots of useful features, not just the pre-sets and timer. Another one is the viewing light, which you could manually switch on, but it will also turn on and off at twenty second intervals, so that you can keep an eye on your food.

After ten minutes, I checked the asparagus and, actually, it did need a little longer. Five minutes later, the timer went off, and the asparagus looked good. It was crispy on the outside and tender on the inside. I'd still say that it was on the crispy side, but it was great nonetheless. Plus, the non-stick had worked a treat: none of the stems had caught.

Test 3: frozen fish fingers

It's always important to check how air fryers handle frozen food, so what better way to test that than with some classic frozen fish fingers? I popped them in for twelve minutes and 180 degrees. When the air fryer beeped to say they were ready, I opened the drawer to see some steaming fish sticks. They were crispy on the outside and steaming on the inside.

Test 4: roast chicken

I wanted to see how well the Paris Rhône Air Fryer could cater to the whole family, so I bought a whole chicken. It was quite small (2.2 lbs), but it cooked right through in 40 minutes. I had to rotate it every 20 minutes to get it evenly cooked. It was crispy on the outside and tender and succulent on the inside. I don't think I could have fitted a chicken any bigger inside the drawer, but that's not too bad

Cleaning, storage, and maintenance

In terms of cleaning and maintenance, the Paris Rhône Air Fryer is simple. The drawer is dishwasher safe, so you could load it in and leave it to clean. The only thing is, it's quite bulky, so you might want to wash it by hand instead. I used warm water and Ecover, thinking that those two would be a more gentle combination. Thanks to the non-stick, it was easy to clean . The rest of the screen and exterior can be wiped with a microfibre cloth, if you get some greasy fingerprints on it, for example.

We've got a detailed step-by-step guide on how to clean an air fryer over here.

How does it compare?

The Paris Rhône Air Fryer is a brilliant basic, but if you wanted to get a little more from your air fryer, I'd recommend taking a look at the Breville Halo Flexi Oven. This isn't much bigger on the counter, but it offers two drawers for two different zones of cooking. Then, if you wanted to roast a chicken, you could remove a middle divider and turn it into one, big drawer. It comes with more versatile settings that drop the Breville into almost countertop cooker territory. It's a really neat device.

Of course, it's more expensive than the Paris Rhône Air Fryer and pre-sets are less air-fryer focused and more bigger picture. So, if you want an inexpensive model, you can't go wrong. However, if you're after an upgrade, this is a great place to start. Don't forget that the Paris Rhône Air Fryer also has that non-toxic ceramic coating, which isn't common in the air fryer community.

Should you buy it?

I love the Paris Rhône Air Fryer. So much so, it's the one that I always recommend, especially when I'm talking about non-toxic air fryers. The single zone is simple, the pre-sets are straight-forward, and, whilst it can be a little zealous when it's cooking, the results are always good. If you're not confident with that, you can always peep through the useful viewing window. If you're still not sure what you want, we've got plenty of advice on how to choose an air fryer over here.

How we test

At woman&home, we believe it's crucial to thoroughly test every air fryer we recommend. Earning your trust means maintaining it through honest, unbiased reviews.

Our testing process for air fryers begins with thorough research. When we come across an air fryer we think you'll appreciate, we bring it into our test kitchen or homes. Once we have it in hand, we subject it to a variety of tests that mimic real-world usage.

We take detailed notes on everything from the unboxing experience and first impressions to the included accessories. From there, the real testing begins. We guide you through the setup process and assess how well the air fryer cooks essentials like frozen fish sticks, fries, Mediterranean vegetables, and, if possible, a roast chicken. We also evaluate any special features, like with the Paris Rhône air fryer, where we were able to bake a cake and prepare a bean bowl. Each dish is carefully taste-tested, and we track both the time and temperature for consistency.

An air fryer should excel at handling a range of everyday tasks, as that ensures you're more likely to use it often. After completing our tests, we evaluate the overall value, versatility, and build quality of the appliance. We also compare it to other models on the market so you can make an informed decision. No detail is overlooked, and every chip is thoroughly tested. We aim to give you all the information you'll need to make a well-informed puchase.

If you want to know more, you can read our page dedicated to how we test air fryers.