This was a Christmas gift to myself, I was so tired of using pots of oil on my stove to deep fry food. I've been needing and wanting a new deep fryer and when I saw this 3 basket fryer for that price, I could not pass it up, I have paid the same price for a smaller 1 basket at a local store in the past! I've already used it 3 times and am in love with it. I use peanut Oil so I can strain it through paper towels and use it over, instead of having to throw used oil out after using it once or twice. I love the timer, no more setting a timer on the microwave or watching the clock, when it dings my food is done cooking! I don't really like the cord (I know it's for safety) but it is so short, I have to keep it close to the plug outlet, on my counter or table, which means it makes it harder for me to see the numbers on the knob, as I'm only 5'4 and my kitchen is not lit very bright, I always have to have my 16 year old son who is 6'1 come in with a flash light to put the knob where I need it to be. Also with other fryers in the past the magnets have stopped working and would no longer attach to the fryer, which hinders the product useless and I've had to throw them out. I sure hope this doesn't happen with this product!. I love I can cook more than one thing at the same time, My son and I love Fish and Fries/onion rings or even hush puppies. and now I can get both items cooked together at the same time so no more one being cold by the time the other gets done, and no more grabbing the Cast Iron Skillet, turning on the oven, putting what fried food is done in the pan into the oven to stay hot while everything else cooks. The baskets are a breeze to wash, I wash everything by hand, I don't own a dish washer, I just stick them down in a sink full of hot soapy water, then using the handle I swish them around a bit, then use a soft bristle scrubber to get any crumbs off that didn't want to come off, and use the sink sprayer to rinse them off, Air dry and put away. it is a lot bigger than I thought it would be , so storing it I had to move some stuff around on my shelf but It now has it's own place on the shelf and the baskets are right beside the fryer. I made fried chicken in it the other day, Thighs and legs, I do not know if it's the batter combination I used or what, but I was very disappointed that I had the exact same problems with this deep fryer as I do Frying them in an iron skillet cook for the time stated, the outside is practically burnt while the inside is raw Supposed to take like 14 minutes (or so) to Fry Chicken, It takes me over an hour and I'm still dealing with parts of the chicken being raw while the outside is close to being burnt or is burnt. But according to the family, it only looked horrible, they ate it and actually ate all that I cooked up ( I do not eat chicken especially fried) Makes fries great! My boyfriend likes his fries Crunchy and I always have a hard time getting them that way when I was frying in a pot on the stove, I don't like mine very crunchy, but I made them his way first, on the longer time given, and they turned out to his liking :) so that's a good thing :D I've had this since a few days before Christmas, and I've used it about 5 times, and Yesterday was the first time since using it I took it all apart and washed it after using it, and it was a breeze , the only part that took forever was cleaning/straining my oil, I use Peanut Oil and I use a Paper towel in a colander put inside a big bowl I need to find a new way to get this accomplished as my way is very time consuming and I spend a lot of time at the sink (I put the bowls in the sink so if I make a mess it's contained there). waiting on the oil to drain/sift through the paper towel lined colander into the bowl. But it's worth it! Means I don't have to always buy a new jug of oil when I need to refill my fryer I don't know if this part is a defect or if it is supposed to do it, I've read the manual front to back several times, but all other fryers I've owned with a power light, the power light would come on as soon as you turned the heat knob, However this one the power light only comes on once you turn the TIMER knob! That does make it a little confusing because you're not sure if it's on or not, but I usually always turn the timer on to the 15 minute mark that the manual says it takes to heat up any way. But it would be nice if the power light came on when you turned the Heat Temp. Knob. So to conclude I really don't have much bad to say about this fryer the only cons are: The Cord is way too short and it's magnetic (Again I know this is a safety feature but not everyone has little kids to worry about knocking a hot fryer off a counter). And that the power light does not turn on as soon as you turn the heat temperature knob. Everything else about this fryer is a Pro . And I will be recommending this one to my family and friends who are looking for a fryer. The price is great as well.
