Nigella Lawson champions this simple underrated air fryer - it’s the best £100 you’ll spend

I’ll admit it, until Nigella Lawson gushed about this Cosori TurboBlaze 6L Air Fryer, it wasn’t really on my radar. Without a glass cooking window and flexible design, it looks almost too basic to get really excited about.

However, if the goddess of baking says it’s greater than good enough, it has to be at least considered as one of the best air fryers on the market, so I've been busy putting it up against my favourite models from Ninja, Philips, and Cosori's other models too.

Now, one month later, alongside eating all the food that I cooked in this air fryer, I’m eating my words too. The simple appearance is deceptive, because this is a sharp, sensitive piece of kit. It cooked chips evenly and to perfection, made pizza like one of the best pizza ovens, and even polished off my cookie test without a crumb out of place. Simply put, this is pretty perfect.

Cosori TurboBlaze 6L Air Fryer review

• Dimensions: 40D x 30W x 30.1H centimetres
• Weight: 6 kgs
• Capacity: 6L
• Temperature range: 30-230°
• Material: stainless steel
• Power: 1725 watts
• Pre-sets: Air Fry, Roast, Grill, Frozen, Reheat, Preheat, Proof, Bake, Dehydrate & Keep Warm

Who would the Cosori TurboBlaze 6L Air Fryer suit?

The Cosori TurboBlaze 6L Air Fryer has some impressive credentials, making it a brilliant choice for plenty of kitchens and cooking styles, but there are three key features that really stand out for me: the compact and competent technology, non-toxic coating, and affordable price tag.

One of the reasons that I was surprised Nigella Lawson used this air fryer was because it's so small. Whilst there are 5L air fryers, a 6L model is still small when you think that Ninja makes ones with up to 20L. However, with the way that air fryers are heading, I love what a pocket rocket this is. I could fit 16 fish fingers inside and easily feed two people without needing to clear the counters. And, importantly, the smaller size didn't result in a technological compromise: this cooked evenly, thoroughly and quickly too.

The non-toxic coating on the Cosori TurboBlaze 6L Air Fryer is always worth shouting about. It doesn't come with any compromises, as even when I burnt food (my fault), the burn could slide off the sides without scratching. It's nice to know that you're cooking with ceramics rather than nasty chemicals.

The last element that I really love is the price tag. Whilst plenty of air fryers are getting more expensive, this sits comfortably under £150 and is often reduced to less than £100, making it an affordable, but still robust appliance to have in your kitchen.

Unboxing the Cosori TurboBlaze 6L Air Fryer

The first part of my experience with the Cosori TurboBlaze 6L Air Fryer is mixed. Almost everything about the Cosori TurboBlaze 6L Air Fryer is perfect, so stick with me. The box is compact and lightweight, which is brilliant. Cosori packages the air fryer securely, sends special pamphlets for helping you to cook different foods, and includes a recipe book for extra inspiration. That's another big tick from me.

There’s just one niggle that I have to mention The air fryer comes in a lot of polystyrene. Ten years ago, that probably wouldn't have even had a mention, but plenty of brands have proven that you can package air fryers sustainably, so I have to mention it here. Especially, because you'll probably wonder why I didn't give Nigella's air fryer a full five star review after having such a wonderful experience with it. This is the only place I had to dock some points.

What is the Cosori TurboBlaze 6L Air Fryer like to use?

The Cosori TurboBlaze 6L Air Fryer is really simple to use. The drawer has a special button that locks the air fryer drawer into place. It’s not a particularly common feature, but it’s one that I really like: it keeps the air fryer drawer into place secure from little hands and adds another level of security to your cooking’s there’s also something mentally soothing about the analogue feel of locking and unlocking a drawer.

On the touchscreen display are all the different settings spanning from air frying to baking, roasting, and reheating. You can also use it for slower tasks, including proofing bread dough and dehydrating vegetables. The time and temperature can be adjusted too, time in minute increments and temperature in five degree jumps. It’s as sensitive as you would need any air fryer to be. The final cherry on top of the functions is how clear all the settings and adjustments are. Some touchscreens struggle if your hands are greasy, or if you need to wear glasses, but this is a clear and sensitive display.

Can the Cosori TurboBlaze 6L Air Fryer cook chips well?

My first test for the air fryer is cooking a tray of chips. I know, it’s not Nigella levels of glamour, but it’s a really great way to get a visual indicator of how evenly an air fryer cooks across the drawer.

I hand cut some potato chips, tossed them in oil and salt and loaded them into the air fryer at 170 degrees. My chips were done in 17 minutes, with beautiful golden skins, fluffy centres and an even colour across the drawer. I'd usually expect an air fryer to need up to 20 minutes, so this is an impressive result for the little Cosori TurboBlaze 6L Air Fryer.

Can the Cosori TurboBlaze 6L Air Fryer cook frozen food?

I moved on to cooking from frozen to see how well the Cosori TurboBlaze 6L Air Fryer could handle a speedy mid-week meal. I managed to pack 16 fish fingers into the drawer, which is a remarkable amount of space if you’ve got a family to feed. I'd be tempted to half and half the drawer with frozen fish fingers and frozen chips. You could certainly fill two plates with one basket-full of food.

After 15 minutes, the fish fingers were perfect. As with the chips, these cooked evenly and beautifully across the drawer, with a great crisp and crunch on the outside and a beautifully moist flakiness inside. I couldn't ask for more.

Can the Cosori TurboBlaze 6L Air Fryer grill vegetables?

I always like to run a grill test with Mediterranean vegetables, because it shows off how well an air fryer can handle high heat and quick tasks. The tray of veggies, as with the chips and frozen food, cooked wonderfully. I had wonderful crispy tips at the ends of my onion slices, beautiful golden bubbles on the pepper, and sweet, tender textures across the board. All that was achieved in 12 minutes of grilling, which is super speedy.

Can the Cosori TurboBlaze 6L Air Fryer cook a meal?

I always like to try cooking something a little different in each air fryer, so I made a grain salad with tofu goujons, which uses a few different features. The grains needed vegetables to be grilled, rice to be cooked in the very base of the air fryer, and then a final crisp for the goujons. The Cosori TurboBlaze 6L Air Fryer made it really easy to first cook the rice, then switch to grilling, and then air frying. It was easy to clean between tasks, and made beautiful rice, tender vegetables, and crispy goujons. It's a testament to this air fryer's versatility.

Can the Cosori TurboBlaze 6L Air Fryer reheat?

A reheat setting is extremely handy on any air fryer, but these are some of the most temperamental features across the board. Luckily, the Cosori TurboBlaze 6L Air Fryer more than delivers on this setting. I couldn't fit my full 12" pizza in the drawer without some trimming and cutting, so that's worth keeping in mind if you want to cook a pizza from scratch. However, with the pizza cut in half and carefully placed, I had the perfect set-up.

In just ten minutes, on the dedicated re-heat function, my cold pizza had been revived. All the toppings were warmed through, the cheese had melted, but I still had wonderful moisture in the sauce and toppings. The crust was crispy, but with nice fluffiness in the crust. I would absolutely trust the Cosori TurboBlaze 6L Air Fryer with reheating my leftovers.

Can the Cosori TurboBlaze 6L Air Fryer bake?

In honour of Nigella’s appearance on bake off, I did some sweet treats inside the air fryer. These weren’t showstoppers in the visual sense, but they did prove that the Cosori TurboBlaze 6L Air Fryer is a real show stopper. It perfected tray of 8 cupcakes as well as a full batch of cookies. I used the bake mode and set the temperature and like I would my normal oven. The cookies were ready in five minutes and mu cupcakes were finished in fifteen.

This is yet another example of the consistency with which the Cosori TurboBlaze 6L Air Fryer cooks. All my sweet treats were evenly cooked with a beautiful crumb, texture, and flavour. They were devoured by my family, who applauded the Cosori's skills. They've had to test many a burnt cupcake or raw cookie from other air fryers before.

Is the Cosori TurboBlaze 6L Air Fryer easy to clean?

Cosori is a famously reliable brand when it comes to cleaning. The Cosori TurboBlaze 6L Air Fryer is incredibly easy to get sparkling. In spite of being touch screen, I didn't notice my fingerprints marking the display in a way that looked grubby or in need of attention.

The drawer is non-toxic, non-stick and can go in the dishwasher, but in truth it's just as easy to wash by hand. Grease and burns almost slid out of the drawer and warm soapy water had it sparkling again in seconds. It's wonderfully easy.

Should you buy the Cosori TurboBlaze 6L Air Fryer?

I went out on a limb (and Nigella Lawson's word) to give this underrated air fryer a shot at scoring a spot in our guide to the best air fryers of all time and it's more than surpassed my expectations. The sensitive controls, well-considered features, and even, reliable cooking makes this one of my favourite air fryers. When you factor the price into it, this is a sensational model.

How we test air fryers

At woman&home, we have a series of standardised tests that we put every air fryer through. We start with chips, to look at consistency across the basket and then grill vegetables, cook frozen food, and reheat pizza. We aim to get a good idea of how versatile, consistent, and thorough an air fryer is so that we can recommend the right model to the perfect person. We'll talk about who it suits and value for money all the way through, but if you still have questions, don't hesitate to email me. You can also have a look at how we test air fryers in more detail on our dedicated page.