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The Instant Vortex air fryer is my all-in-one breakfast machine — and it's on sale

Nicole Lee

There are many reasons I love my air fryer — the Instant Vortex Plus 6-Quart with ClearCook and OdorErase. It's large enough to fit four chicken thighs, which cook to perfection in just 20 minutes. I especially love it for chicken wings; the results are so juicy and crispy, they rival anything from a restaurant. I also like it for reheating leftovers like fried chicken and day-old croissants; it's surprising how well the machine brings them back to their former crispness. Of course, it's also great for cooking frozen convenience foods like chicken nuggets and fries, which are ready in mere minutes. Lucky for you, this workhorse is currently on sale for $40 off.

Perhaps my favorite use for the air fryer is the most important meal of the day: Breakfast. Yes, you can use the air fryer for pretty much anything breakfast-related, including eggs!

Toast

Let's start with the most obvious use: toast. Set the temperature to around 380 degrees and then adjust the time according to your desired level of darkness. Two minutes or so is good for a light toast, while increasing the time will darken it. The beauty of an air fryer this size is that you can toast anything you like, from bread to bagels and frozen waffles, too.

Instant Vortex Plus
Cook practically anything from bacon to salmon. (Amazon)

Bacon and sausages

Next up, breakfast meats. I recommend using the air fryer for either ready-to-cook sausage links or bacon. For bacon, place two pieces of bread underneath the rack to mop up any grease and prevent the air fryer from smoking too much. Set the temperature to 350 degrees, let it preheat, and place the bacon slices on the rack. Then set the timer for about 8 to 10 minutes, checking around the five minute mark to make sure the bacon doesn't burn. Bonus: there's no grease splattered around the stove.

I also love using the Instant Vortex Plus with fully-cooked chicken apple sausages. I set the temperature to 375 degrees and the timer to around three or four minutes so that the sausage can get browned on all sides. If I'm impatient I'll bump it up to 400 degrees and cook them for only for two minutes. Since the sausages are already cooked, all you're doing is heating and browning them, so you can adjust this to your preference.

Hash browns

Frozen hash browns crisp up beautifully in the air fryer. Set it to 375 degrees, and then spread out your hash browns in a single layer on the rack. To ensure the potatoes don't stick, coat them lightly with cooking spray. Sprinkle on salt, pepper and any additional flavors like garlic powder or your favorite spice blend. Set the time to 18 minutes, carefully flip them, and then cook them for another 5 minutes or so.

Instant Vortex Plus air fryer on an orange spiral background
You can use an air fryer for more than just fries. Read on to see how you can use it for bacon, hash browns and even eggs. (Amazon)

Eggs

I bet you didn't know you could make eggs in the fryer. The only caveat is that for fried eggs, you'll need to use an additional pan that can fit inside the fryer. I like to use a ramekin, a baking dish or a small pie tin. Be sure to grease the pan either with melted butter or oil, then crack your egg or pour in your egg mixture. I should also say that depending on your pan, your eggs and your air fryer, these temperatures and times are just suggestions; be sure to check on your eggs and adjust as necessary.

For the fried egg, set the temperature to 375 degrees, and cook it for three to five minutes depending on how set you want the yolks. If you want over easy or over medium, you can flip it over around halfway through when it's set enough and have it cook a little while longer.

But my favorite way to cook eggs in the air fryer, bar none, is to "hard boil" them. Yes, you can make boiled eggs without water! Simply set the air fryer to 270 degrees, let it come to temp and place whole eggs directly from the fridge into the basket. Set the time to 10 minutes if want soft boiled, 12 minutes for medium to hard. Many recipes online suggest cooking them for 15 minutes, but that's a little too overcooked for my liking. Try out different times to see what's best for you.

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