Cuisinart (CDF-100P1) Deep Fryer Reviews

I super love it!!! This changed my whole fried life. I so skeptical in getting a deep fryer because they said it’s hard to maintain and clean it. But for some reasons, it’s easy and very manageable to keep it clean for my next use. I get compliments with my fried spring rolls how it is perfectly cooked using Cuisinart deep fryer! Thank you for my gut feel to try on this life changing kitchen magic helper!

I have a small kitchen, and I'm usually cooking for just one, so this little fryer fits perfectly into my lifestyle. My favorite features besides the small size: handles that stay cool, temperature dial and a light that lets you know when it's ready, two fill lines, pour spout, a charcoal filter, and a booklet that includes recipes. The one improvement they could make is to add more settings on the termp. dial; french fries are cooked first at 300° and then at 375°, but the dial doesn't show you where 300° is.

We bought this fryer for Easter Sunday because we were making fried chicken and we've always done it in a frying pan on the stove. We figured this would be much more efficient and make much less mess. We actually set it up in the backyard so we could keep the Heat and the smell out there and it worked wonderfully. The chicken came out gold and brown and crispy and not greasy. The temperature got where it needed to be and showed us when it was ready and stayed hot throughout. We did several batches of chicken because we had a large group over and every batch came out perfect. Everybody was raving about how good the chicken was. It does stay hot for quite a long time afterwards. We left it out there for several hours before the oil was cool enough to transfer to the storage container. We are very happy with this purchase. It's pretty big, we store it in a closet where we keep the pressure cooker and other items we don't use daily and can't afford to sacrifice cabinet space for.

If you read the instruction booklet - you will love this item! It is well designed. I am not easily impressed with tools or appliances that are not created to make life easier. This cool item is perfect for small portions of deep fried foods.

Here are some points to remember:

I suggest you not use the basket if you plan to do a thickly battered item. Simply remove the food with tongs when ready. If the batter is thick like tempura, your food will initially drop to the bottom of the basket and the batter will become imbedded in the grid. At that point, you have lost half your batter and grease will get to whatever you're cooking. Plus it has to be cleaned afterwards.

If you are making french fries (they are gorgeous!), make sure to cook them according to the recipe booklet. They will be softer on the inside (unless you like them al dente').

As you are cooking, allow the 'ready' light on the front to come back on before adding more foods. It only takes a moment, but it ensures the oil has recovered to optimum frying temp.

The ready light comes on before the highest temp is reached. I used a deep fry thermometer to check this. Although the oil is not quite to the thermostat level, it is hot enough for your food to start cooking rather than absorbing a lot of oil. Better to give it another minute after the light comes on initially.

I love how the cover fits right over the basket and filters the steam as your food is cooking. I had no smoking at all at the high temp with peanut oil, but I didn't let it sit there on high with nothing in it either...

READ THE BOOKLET! And I don't mean skim it. It explains how to correctly assemble the basket (doesn't come fitted for use). It explains why the plug is magnetic and the fryer should not be moved when plugged it - duh, think about it! It explains about not keeping it next to the sink where water could splash into it which is very dangerous. So many things I read in the reviews that were negative would never have been an issue if people would just read the book.

It has a small footprint. It takes up less room than my toaster and when not it use, it's so compact and clean!

I used peanut oil and had great results with it. I have made - french fries, zucchini and catfish. So far, I love it. My biggest problem is that I want to use it more often than I should. It makes french fries as good or better than in and out. Forget extruded fries from McD's. I look forward to using this nice appliance for many years.