The debate over preheating oil in an air fryer basket

So my air fryer basket got a nasty nonstick scratch after I tried preheating it with oil sprayed on for 3 minutes at 400F. I've read some folks say oil before heating is fine and others claim it ruins the coating for good. Has anyone else had a basket fail like this or is it just my cheap model acting up?

2 comments

2 Comments

sageburns1mo ago

Oh man, same thing happened to me with my off-brand one... I sprayed a little oil in there before preheating and the coating started flaking after like a month. I think some of these cheaper baskets just can't take the heat with the oil on them.

barbarac671mo ago

Yeah the "can they handle the heat" part is what gets me. I read a thing somewhere that said even some brand name air fryers have coatings that start peeling if you oil them before preheating, something about the oil burning faster than the coating can handle. Sounds like your off-brand one definitely hit that issue, @sageburns. Makes me wonder if the cheaper ones just skip putting a proper heat-resistant layer on there.