You might be surprised about the ways I use an Air Fryer, but hey, it’s tasty and saves money. Let me fill you in on all my secrets…

Matt and the boys surprised me with an Air Fryer last Christmas. But the truth is, I’m pretty sure they all wanted it for themselves and well, it was for sure a win-win Christmas gift!

I’ve made delicious Garlic Butter Shrimp in it and will never turn back. I love roasting green beans in it and will share those simple instructions soon. But can I confess how we mostly use the Air Fryer at our house?

French. Fries.

From a bag. At the store. The good kind. As in, the name brand fries because our store brand doesn’t taste nearly as good.

Wait, but Laura, don’t you make homemade fries?

Yes, I did. Past tense, at least for now. I barely have time to scrub a potato, so I do not have time (or arms) to cut potatoes into fries.

Ore Ida fries in the Air Fryer – the crinkle kind because THOSE ARE THE BEST – are so delicious and fun. We have them every Friday night and have obviously dubbed it “French Fry Friday.” We eat chicken strips and fries and watch a movie to celebrate the week. And about those chicken strips?

Those come out of a bag too. I don’t even feel guilty about this. We throw those into the air fryer with our fries. On Fridays. Before our movie night.

If I have a few extra minutes and two or even one arm to work with, I’ll steam a veggie to go with our meal. Otherwise we all grab some fruit and call it a night.

This saves money, how?

Well, how much money do you spend when you’re too tired to cook and you go through the drive-through for chicken strips and fries for your crew?

We almost never eat out, but a few weeks ago we went through a fast-food drive-through because they were giving a percentage of sales to our local school for a fundraiser. We headed that way to show our support and to give me a night off, but shucks if we didn’t sink $30 into that meal – and the receipt was only that low because only half of us were home that night.

What I throw into my air fryer – which tastes just as good and is slightly healthier than fast-food restaurants – costs around $10 for six of us to eat our fill.

What if your Air Fryer took the place of eating out?

Sure, my Ore Ida fries and Dino Nuggets or Bagged Chicken Strips are not the healthiest things I put on our table. But it’s still a step healthier than regular-fried food at fast-food restaurants.

And the money-saving aspect is huge!

Beyond that, the fun food we cook in our Air Fryer gives us that “we just had a treat” feeling that we can get when we go out to eat.

So now you know. I keep some frozen treats like fries and nuggets on hand to throw in my Air Fryer to help me survive this busy season in life. It saves big bucks compared to eating out and it’s a lot of fun too!

Thought you’d like to know, just in case you want to put an Air Fryer on your Christmas wish-list this year. :)

P.S. I have this Air Fryer and we’ve been very happy with it!