Air-fryer enthusiasm dwindling? These five recipes will make you dust off your kitchen gadgets

Writer Silvano Franco has created recipes that will have you dusting off appliances you banished to the back of the cupboard - Andrew Crowley
This might come as a surprise to those of us who use our air fryers religiously, but recent research from Material Focus, the not-for-profit organisation behind the nationwide Recycle Your Electricals campaign, suggests that Britain’s enthusiasm for the magic machine is already waning. There are an estimated 20.9 million air fryers in households across the UK, but reports show that more than 2 million of them are no longer being used or have already been thrown away.
Mine is used daily, but I can think of a few kitchen gadgets that were bought with enthusiasm only to be shoved to the back of the cupboard – or even banished to the shed – never to see the light of day again.
While you might not be convinced to dust off your multi-layer vegetable hydrator or pricey masticating juicer, there are five fantastic appliances that I think do deserve a second chance to shine – and here are the recipes to celebrate their return to the kitchen.
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- Air fryer: Crispy belly pork
- Mini waffle maker: Crispy ‘sushi’ waffles
- Pasta maker: Handmade ricotta ravioli
- Pressure cooker: Chicken and chorizo risotto
- Soup maker: Simple pea and watercress soup
Air fryer
The air fryer sees daily usage in my kitchen, particularly for cooking small portions of food, such as a batch of crispy fish fingers for a quick sandwich or an individual pie straight from the freezer, or for reheating a lone slice of leftover pizza.
If your enthusiasm for it has dwindled, let me remind you that, despite the small cooking area, an air fryer can be really useful when cooking for the whole family, too. As well as being quicker, it’s far more energy-efficient than turning on the oven just to cook a single dish and it’s suitable for much more than just crisping up oven chips. It’s also great for baking and roasting, with single-drawer models generally able to accommodate a medium-sized whole chicken or smaller joints such as this cracking crispy belly pork.
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Mini waffle maker
Have you had your fill of Korean-style croffles (croissant waffles) and keto-friendly chaffles (cheese waffles) and now relegated the cute electric mini waffle maker that TikTok made you buy to the back of the cupboard? Then crispy sushi waffles are the reason to save it from a trip to the charity shop.

This compact piece of kit can turn out sweet and savoury creations - Andrew Crowley
Cooking portions of cooked rice in a mini waffle maker is a truly brilliant way to use up leftovers and the method comes into its own when you’re looking for a quick lunch that’s not just another sarnie. The resulting crunchy rice waffle makes a fabulous base for anything you fancy, from the sushi-style fillings used here to egg mayo or any of your usual sandwich fillings and toast toppings.
You can cook a rice waffle (riffle?) for anything from 5 to 15 minutes and while it won’t change much in appearance, it will evolve from crispy with a soft centre to super-crunchy depending on how long you cook it. Personally, I’m all for a tooth-cracking texture.
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Pasta machine
I’m a keen pasta maker, but the shape passed down to me and the one I make most often is cavatelli, which, like my family, hails from Puglia and is shaped with just the fingertips. So while my pasta maker doesn’t make an appearance very often, it is essential when sheets of pasta are called for to make lasagne or filled shapes such as tortellini or the exquisitely simple ravioli shared below.

Dust the surface with semolina to prevent the pasta from sticking and to add a little extra bite - Andrew Crowley
When I do make the effort to get my machine out, it’s so rewarding to watch a small ball of dough magically extend along the kitchen counter, inevitably leaving me asking myself why I don’t use my pasta machine more often. A rolling pin can do the job but it’s very difficult to achieve the same even thinness as with a machine.
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Pressure cooker
As time-and-energy-saving devices go, the pressure cooker is high up on the list. Whether old-school stovetop or high-tech electrical, it works by using a tight seal which allows high-pressure steam to build up during cooking, raising the temperature inside the pot to above the boiling point of water. This speeds up the cooking time, rapidly tenderising cheaper cuts of meat and ingredients such as dried beans and pulses.

Let the pressure cooker do the work for this easy risotto - Andrew Crowley
Most machines have a sauté function, which is worth using for browning off meat or softening onions before the lid is locked on. While I mostly use mine for its time-saving benefits, pressure cookers are also terrific at cooking rice. The cooking time might not be any quicker but the results are perfect and fluffy every time with no sticking. It gives wonderfully creamy results when making risotto and without the need for any laborious stirring.
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Soup maker
I’m a real fan of the soup maker and find it a life-saver when working from home. They’re a brilliant way to transform a few bits and bobs from the fridge into a filling meal without requiring much effort. Once the ingredients are loaded into the jug, you’re free to get on with work or pop to the shops while lunch is being taken care of as most models will flip into “keep warm” mode until you’re ready to serve up.

A pea and watercress soup in the making - Andrew Crowley
While some soup makers offer a sauté function for softening onions and garlic, the surface area is usually too small to be practical. Using a frying pan first sort of defeats the object, so I tend to opt for throw-it-all-in soup recipes. My preference is for the smooth setting (rather than chunky), which means you don’t need to worry about how roughly you chop the vegetables before adding to the jug as they’ll end up blitzed into a velvety-purée anyway.
Texture-wise I’d always recommend adding a thickening ingredient such as a couple of cubed potatoes, some leftover cooked rice or a couple of slices of bread to give some body to the finished soup.
As soup makers vary in capacity, you may need to slightly tweak the quantities given below to ensure the liquid doesn’t go above the maximum level on your machine. And one last tip, always use hot stock so the machine reaches cooking temperature as quickly as possible.
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