This Bagotte Air Fryer Has Almost Replaced My Oven

It seems like everyone is talking about air fryers and how cool they are. But really, how cool are they?  I’ve been using this Bagotte 3.7 QT air fryer for the last several weeks, and man, I’m sold. It’s awesome (but it has some quirks).

If you’ve been living under (or maybe even near?) a rock for the last, I dunno, couple of years (?), then you may be asking yourself “but Cam, what’s an air fryer?! Does it literally fry air? How does fried air taste?” And well, friends, I’m here to tell you exactly that.

First of all, an air fryer doesn’t fry air (though now I’m curious what fried air might taste like), it fries food with air. Like, hot air. It uses hot air circulated around the food to cook it more thoroughly and consistently. If that sounds familiar, you’re right on—this is basically the same process a convection oven uses. Really, an air fryer is just a convection oven with a simpler design.

The goal of an air fryer is to get the same result that would normally require a deep fryer and oil—crispy, delicious food. But because the air fryer is frying with air instead of oil, it’s also healthier because it reduces the amount of additional fat that you’re cooking with to essentially zero. (Most oil is basically just fat with no real nutritional value.)

So, an air fryer gives you everything you love about deep fried foods without the added fat and calories. It’s a win-win, right? Sure! But only if it, you know, works. That’s what I wanted to know when I decided to check out the Bagotte 3.7 QT air fryer. And you know what? I’m a believer.

I wouldn’t say that I eat a lot of fried foods—I worked my ass off (literally) to lose a bunch of weight, so now I’m pretty conscious about what I eat. But that doesn’t mean I don’t still absolutely love some deep-fried goodness, because dammit man, I do. I’ve been cooking things like fries and frozen chicken (wings, mostly) in the air fryer—you know, stuff that you can cook in a deep fryer or an oven. And, the air fryer has basically replaced my oven for most small portions.

Why? Because it just does a better job of cooking things. It’s faster (because you don’t have to preheat it), and the result is just better. I mean, I’m not going to remove the oven from my house and replace it with an air fryer or anything, but when I’m hungry and don’t have time to, like, cook things, the air fryer is my jam. My wife’s jam, too.

But yeah, I also want to talk about the Bagotte specifically. The one I have for review is black, 3.7 quarts, has a dishwasher-safe basket, is programmable, and all that other stuff you expect from an air fryer. But there are a few things worth noting about it.

(Note: The black version is no longer available. The white model is the same fryer, though.)

For one, it’s huge. Maybe I’m just ignorant to the underground world of air fryers or whatever, but I didn’t expect it to be this massive hunk of a thing. The kitchen in my house is pretty small and lacking in counter space (buying a house with a tiny kitchen because it “would be good enough” is maybe the biggest regret of my life), and this thing takes up a ton of space. We can’t leave it on the counter when not in use, so it gets stored in a cabinet out of the way. That’s pretty cumbersome because it’s so big and bulky. So, if your house has a small kitchen, it’s something to consider.

Also, the button arrangement on the top is kind of weird. It uses touch-sensitive haptic buttons (instead of physically clicky things), which is great. But the order is weird to me. For example, the plus and minus buttons to configure the temperature and time are backward—the plus is on the left and minus on the right. I’ve been using this fryer for many weeks now and I still can’t get used to it. I’ve been on this Earth for 38 years and instinctually know that the left button should be minus/down and the right one should be plus/up. But it’s not in this case, and I can’t get my stupid brain to understand that.

That said, it’s really a minor annoyance because once you get all the button mashes right, it’s not something you think about again (until the next time). I do appreciate the fact it has touch buttons, though, because it offers a very clean look—especially when it’s turned off. They just disappear. It’s nice and probably better than dials or physical buttons.

The top also has a quick guide on how long and what temp to cook common things (like fries and chicken), which is exceptionally handy. It kind of kills the super clean vibe that the unit would have without this text on the top, but the utility makes it worth it.

Once you finish cooking things, you pull out the little basket and basket tray. The handle is attached to the basket itself, which has a button that allows you to remove the basket from the tray—it actually reminds me a lot of a deep fryer basket. But that’s also where things get a little wonktacular.

The first time you use the thing, it’s unclear if you just pull the basket and tray straight out or if you have to push the button to remove it from the fryer. There’s a warning that says not to push the button while pulling the tray out to shake the contents (which helps mid-cook), but it doesn’t really say why. It would be a lot clearer if the “when shaking” note wasn’t there and it just stated not to push the button when pulling the tray out.

The first time my wife used it, she pushed the button while pulling the tray out, which actually released the basket from the tray. When she pulled the whole assembly out, the tray fell to the floor (and almost on her foot).

Not only that, but when the tray hit the floor it warped it pretty badly—this thing is made of thin aluminum, after all. I had to fiddle with it for a while before it would go back into the fryer properly, and even now it doesn’t close perfectly on the right side. The good news is that it doesn’t seem to hinder the functionality from what I can tell. It’s just an eyesore.

But despite its few quirks, I really like the Bagotte air fryer. If you’re looking for a good one, I have no problem recommending this one—just keep in mind that you don’t have to push the button when pulling the basket out and you’ll be fine.