Vortex Series

We have an Instant Pot Vortex 6 quart basket. It's huge and does a great job. But for a family of 5 you may be better off with two units. We also have a microwave/convection oven and a gas convection oven. Both of those have a keep warm setting which is basically 175 - 225 degrees. A lot of times we cook things separately and keep one warm while we cook the next thing.

Instant vortex plus 6qt has worked amazing for us! We’ve had it for about 2 years now with no issues at all.

I don’t know about a dream but we use the hell out of it for wings, salmon and fried Twinkie’s and it has never let us down.

Instant pot vortex and I love it! My tray does not fly out when tipped upside down. Easy peasy to clean. Gets blazin hot and fast!

My instant pot vortex is a breeze to clean, often times I can use just a paper towel.

Yo, we were in the same boat not long ago - didn’t want any of that non-stick teflon coating bs, or plastic trays that smell weird when hot. Ended up grabbing the Instant Vortex Plus (stainless steel one) and it’s been solid. Trays are full stainless, no peeling, no coating drama. Cleans easy af. It just works. Been air frying the hell outta veggies, frozen stuff, chicken thighs, all that - and it's holding up like a champ. We also looked at the Cuisinart toaster oven w/ air fryer function - pretty sure you can swap the trays for stainless if needed. That one looks more like a real oven tho, more space but also bigger footprint on the counter. My advice? Skip anything that has non-stick unless you like scraping black flakes off your food in 6 months. Ask me how I know 😅 TL;DR: – Stainless trays or bust. – Instant Vortex Plus (SS version) been goin strong. – Avoid non-stick if you wanna keep your sanity.

> this was a big issue when they first came out; I assume they've fixed it by now Can confirm - it had a smell the first time I ran through a 15m air fryer cycle (empty, per the quick start instructions) and I haven't smelled anything since.

It’s one of the better ones I’ve had outside of an original vortex when the instapot stuff was made in Canada.

Id definitely go with the Instant vortex mini. its around $60 and is the recommended budget air fryer on wirecutter. You can find some good options [in this thread](https://www.reddit.com/r/cookingforbeginners/comments/1lxgrty/best_budget_air_fryer/)