Are you in the Sydney appliances market for a new oven? If so, you may want to purchase a new Westinghouse AirFry oven. These ovens are becoming increasingly popular, but does that mean they are right for you? Please keep reading to learn more about these ovens, and whether or not they are the right choice for your home as in this article, we put an air-frying oven from Westinghouse to the test and look at how it works. Is it a remarkable feat of engineering or simply clever marketing? That's the question, and we will be answering the following questions.

• How does Westinghouse AirFry function work?
• How does it compare to a benchtop air fryer?
• How does AirFry mode perform?
• How easy is Westinghouse AirFry oven to clean?
• Is AirFry mode worth the money?
• What Westinghouse models have the AirFry function?
• What do we recommend in the Westinghouse AirFry range?

In the latest trend in benchtop appliances, air fryers are cooking everything from pizza to popcorn to pies, and owners seem to adore them. An air fryer provides perfect cooking by distributing hot air around the food and providing a crunchy texture without the grease and fat while being easy to clean, dishwasher-safe containers, and occupying less space than convection ovens. 

The air-fryer craze in the last few years makes it no surprise that many oven manufacturers are trying to capitalise on the trend. As a result, many more brands will release models with the added air-fry functionality. For example, the Westinghouse range of ovens features the first in-built 'AirFry' mode on the Australian market. Nevertheless, how exactly does it work, and can it perform well enough to justify any additional price it costs? 

How does Westinghouse AirFry function work?

The Westinghouse AirFry function is simply an oven setting that circulates hot, dry air using the upper heating element in combination with the rear fan-forced element of the oven. All new Westinghouse ovens with the AirFry functionality have a unique mesh AirFry tray and an aluminium tray underneath to catch any drips.

How does it compare to a benchtop air fryer?

A Westinghouse oven with the AirFry functionality might seem to have a large capacity, however, you need to keep in mind that only one AirFry tray is provided, and the food must be spread out to crisp properly. We have found that the Westinghouse's AirFry ovens have a similar capacity to some of the larger benchtop air fryers. The Westinghouse air fryer cooked most foods similarly to an average air fryer, but roasting pork took significantly longer.

While air fryers typically do not require preheating, we recommend preheating the Westinghouse oven on the AirFry function for 7-9 minutes when cooking fresh food. The oven should reach a maximum temperature of 220C in AirFry mode, which is a little hotter than most benchtop air fryers. We also found that as far as electricity consumption is concerned, Westinghouse AirFry mode is comparable to an average benchtop air fryer.

How does AirFry mode perform?

We have tested the Westinghouse WVE616SC oven and put it through its paces using the AirFry functionality which did produce well for cooking chicken wings during our test, however, doing some further research a Choice report who is Australia's leading consumer advocacy group did state that in their lab tests the AirFry mode received an overall performance score of 70%, which is decent but significantly lower than many benchtop air fryers we've tested.

How easy is Westinghouse AirFry oven to clean?

Cleaning any oven is never easy or fun, and knowing that air frying can get rather messy. We found that the Westinghouse AirFry tray can be challenging to clean due to its size and inability to fit into a standard sink. We would recommend that you consider an oven that also has the pyrolytic cleaning feature to make oven cleaning easy.

Is AirFry mode worth the money?

Suppose you’re in the market for a new electric oven and air-fried foods with added health benefits appeal to you. In that case, the Westinghouse AirFry ovens are definitely worth your consideration. You also have the added benefit of keeping your benchtop clutter-free. We were impressed by the overall performance of the Westinghouse WVE616SC, with the AirFry results pointing towards a well-designed oven.

If speed is your ultimate concern, we recommend choosing a benchtop air fryer. But if you’re looking to simplify your kitchen and get crispy foods right from your oven, a single appliance that can do both may be the way to go.

What Westinghouse models have the AirFry function?

At the moment, Westinghouse has several ovens that feature the AirFry functionality, which come in two colours: dark stainless steel and classic stainless steel. The best affordable AirFry single oven model in traditional stainless steel is the Westinghouse WVE616SC at $899.00, followed by the Westinghouse WVE617DSC in dark stainless steel. The larger 90cm wide under-bench model with AirFry and Pyrolytic Steam feature is the Westinghouse WVEP917DSC which comes in classic stainless steel. The full-size double oven, which comes in at 1083mm high, is the Westinghouse WVE636SC which also comes in traditional stainless steel. Suppose you're after a double oven in dark stainless steel. In that case, the Westinghouse WVEP627DSC is the ideal model. Finally, if you are after a single under-bench oven with a pyrolitic self-cleaning oven feature, the Westinghouse WVEP617DSC and Westinghouse WVEP617SC are ideal.

What do we recommend in the Westinghouse AirFry range?

We like and recommend the Westinghouse WVEP617SC, which comes in the traditional stainless steel and pyrolytic oven feature, which will help with keeping the oven clean by heating the oven up to 400°C-500°C and burns off baked-on residue. The process leaves just ash behind, which you can vacuum or wipe with a damp cloth. You can find the full range of Westinghouse AirFry ovens on our AirFry ovens collections page.

Do you have questions about the AirFry feature?

Our team is here to answer all your questions you may have in regards to a Westinghouse AirFry oven. The best way to contact us directly is via our online text chat feature, which can be located on the right-hand side of the page or by phone on 1300 567 637.