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Cooking and energy use - best methods to reduce costs?

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  • wild666
    wild666 Posts: 2,181 Forumite
    Part of the Furniture 1,000 Posts Name Dropper Combo Breaker
    Chloe_G said:
    My Tower air fryer takes up a lot of space on the worktop but you can only cook a portion of chips in it for one person.  I wouldn't have room for a larger one!
    I placed my air fryer on the electric cooker as I've stopped using the electric cooker. 
    Someone please tell me what money is
  • wild666 said:
    new_owner said:
    We use a slow cooker, microwave 5.something L air fryer and we have an 8L instant Pot with an air fryer lid and 5.6L without. We use them for cooking constantly. we have not used the oven since the start of the year.

    We bought the instant pot over the ninja because we preferred the more compact sizes and the separate lids (+lower costs)
    The Ninja 11 in 1 is a slow cooker, pressure cooker and air fryer plus other methods in one. I haven't used my cooker since I bought mine but I do have a one ring Induction hob for thinks that I cannot cook in the Ninja like rice, I suppose it cooks rice but not a sweet and sour recipe.

    This is something that the kitchen designer didn't understand - that it is my main cooking device. I can put it away when not in use - no, it sits on the counter all the times. You have a family home, if you want to sell it will put people off if you only have a compact combi oven. I just smiled but I am designing my kitchen for me, not a potential buyer many years down the line. Once I've finished my house, if all they can find to put them off buying is my small combi oven then there is something wrong with them. Needless to say I will not be going with that particular kitchen designer!
  • adindas
    adindas Posts: 6,856 Forumite
    Part of the Furniture 1,000 Posts Name Dropper
    edited 25 August 2022 at 4:38PM
    adindas said:
    Effician said:
    Mstty said:
    If I am doing something like a stew, pasta dish, cottage pie or a dish that can be reheated in the microwave, I make double, chill and refrigerate half and have it the next day or day after. Saves on energy and washing up.
    Skills that I fear the deliveroo generation never had and need quickly 

    Going back on topic, whilst cooking some chicken and roast potatoes in the combination microwave yesterday evening I was thinking about the vast amount of heat radiated by this device into the room.
    We have a Sharp 40l combi & using the poultry setting for a 1.8kg chicken it uses ~1.5kWh. Cooking the same size chicken in the pressure cooker & then crisping the skin in the air fryer uses ~0.6kWh. The taste & texture are close but different  in a good way though & i must add that we normally inject the flesh with a garlic & ginger infused olive oil as this makes for better cold cuts.


    That's good to know re kwh used. I did a whole chicken in my foodie, it took was so much quicker than my rubbish table top oven and was really succulent. I used the steam air fry option and in total took me about an hour to make from prep to plate.
    For some people with an opportunity cost that one hour cooking and  prepping might cost them £50 (say)
    For this it it cheaper if they just buy a whole roasted chicken from take away shop or big supermarkets..

    I'm not sure in what instance it would could £50 to buy and cook a chicken but certainly it might be cheaper to buy a pre roasted chicken (for now but I suspect costs will have to go up due to surges in energy prices). I prefer to know what's in my food, that's all.
    As I mentioned before, the opportunity cost. You are spending an hour work for prepping and waiting your cooking which otherwise could have been used for a more productive activity to do what you are good at. In economics term it is called comparative advantage. You should be doing the work you are good at and leave the other works you are not good at to other people who could do better and cheaper than you. You just need to pay the service or buy the goods from them.
    For some people with an opportunity to earn somewhere else with a rate of £50 per hour (say) they have to give up this one hour time (equivalent to £50 payrate) as that time has been occupied for prepping and cooking.
    But for people who enjoy cooking, it can not be seen as an opportunity cost as they will be doing what they like anyway. The same thing with visiting a gym, doing regular sport, this can not be seen as an opportunity cost.
  • adindas said:
    adindas said:
    Effician said:
    Mstty said:
    If I am doing something like a stew, pasta dish, cottage pie or a dish that can be reheated in the microwave, I make double, chill and refrigerate half and have it the next day or day after. Saves on energy and washing up.
    Skills that I fear the deliveroo generation never had and need quickly 

    Going back on topic, whilst cooking some chicken and roast potatoes in the combination microwave yesterday evening I was thinking about the vast amount of heat radiated by this device into the room.
    We have a Sharp 40l combi & using the poultry setting for a 1.8kg chicken it uses ~1.5kWh. Cooking the same size chicken in the pressure cooker & then crisping the skin in the air fryer uses ~0.6kWh. The taste & texture are close but different  in a good way though & i must add that we normally inject the flesh with a garlic & ginger infused olive oil as this makes for better cold cuts.


    That's good to know re kwh used. I did a whole chicken in my foodie, it took was so much quicker than my rubbish table top oven and was really succulent. I used the steam air fry option and in total took me about an hour to make from prep to plate.
    For some people with an opportunity cost that one hour cooking and  prepping might cost them £50 (say)
    For this it it cheaper if they just buy a whole roasted chicken from take away shop or big supermarkets..

    I'm not sure in what instance it would could £50 to buy and cook a chicken but certainly it might be cheaper to buy a pre roasted chicken (for now but I suspect costs will have to go up due to surges in energy prices). I prefer to know what's in my food, that's all.
    As I mentioned before, the opportunity cost. You are spending an hour work for prepping and waiting your cooking which otherwise could have been used for a more productive activity to do what you are good at. In economics term it is called comparative advantage. You should be doing the work you are good at and leave the other works you are not good at to other people who could do better and cheaper than you. You just need to pay the service or buy the goods from them.
    For some people with an opportunity to earn somewhere else with a rate of £50 per hour (say) they have to give up this one hour time (equivalent to £50 payrate) as that time has been occupied for prepping and cooking.
    But for people who enjoy cooking, it can not be seen as an opportunity cost as they will be doing what they like anyway. The same thing with visiting a gym, doing regular sport, this can not be seen as an opportunity cost.

    Got it! Glad to live a simple life :D
  • Keep_pedalling
    Keep_pedalling Posts: 20,740 Forumite
    Tenth Anniversary 10,000 Posts Name Dropper Photogenic
    I think I will switch water heating from gas to electric when the new price cap comes in. Currently on Octopus Go for electric until the end April so I can heat the emersion at 7.5p pkWh in the early hours. Gas is with EDF on SVT so will cost twice that when the price doubles in October.  
  • london21
    london21 Posts: 2,142 Forumite
    1,000 Posts Fourth Anniversary Name Dropper

    Looks like bulk cooking going forward.

    Switching the heating on only when necessary (have to wear layers, socks etc.)

  • Keep_pedalling
    Keep_pedalling Posts: 20,740 Forumite
    Tenth Anniversary 10,000 Posts Name Dropper Photogenic
    Might also be making lots of one pot meals in the slow cooker on cheap rate electricity.
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