This post reviews the best non-toxic air fryers that are free from Teflon and PFAS chemicals as well as other potentially harmful non-stick coatings and chemicals. We have included both air fryer ovens and basket style air fryers in this review.
Disclaimer: Some of the links in this post are affiliate links whereby if you purchase the product through that link I make a small commission. This does not cost you anything extra and allows me to keep this website running and pays for the research that goes into these articles.
Table of Contents
- What is an air fryer and how do air fryers work?
- Are air fryers toxic?
- Benefits of air fryers
- Chemicals and coatings to avoid in air fryers:
- 2. Other coatings and disclosure issues
- Safe materials in air fryers:
- Non-toxic air fryers:
- Air fryer brands to avoid:
- Non-toxic air fryers FAQs:
- Other health info you will want to read:
- Our expertise:
What is an air fryer and how do air fryers work?
Air fryers are small kitchen appliances that function like a small convection oven. They work by circulating hot air around the food to produce a crunchy, crispy texture. When food is cooked this way, it results in a chemical reaction known as the Maillard reaction, which occurs between an amino acid and a reducing sugar in the presence of heat. This reaction leads to changes in the color and flavour of food.
Because it uses circulating hot air to cook food, air fryers can grill and bake food, using little to no oil, and they can make fried foods. They are great for making foods that are typically deep fried such as air fryer French fries. Because air fryers use less oil than deep frying, air frying is felt to be a healthier alternative to deep-fried foods. Air fryers also work really well to cook foods from frozen.
Are air fryers toxic?
One issue with air fryers is the high heat they use to cook with. Heating starchy foods to high temperatures can cause potentially harmful chemicals called acrylamide to form during the cooking process. Acrylamide has been classified as a probable carcinogen and exposure to acrylamide causes numerous cancers in animal models. However, whether acrylamide increases cancer risk in humans is still not clear. But this is why almost all air fryers have California Proposition 65 warnings in California.
However, this doesn't automatically mean that air fryers are toxic to human health. Acrylamide forms in certain foods cooked during high-heat or high temperature cooking methods, including deep frying, baking, and air frying. Acrylamides form whenever you fry or toast food above 338°F and so acrylamide is actually found in up to 1/3 of the food we eat, including air fried foods. So if you really wanted to avoid acrylamide altogether you would not only need to avoid air-fried foods, but most baked goods, fried food, toasted food, grilled food etc, which is really not practical. As such, I personally still use an air fryer, but of course, you can do what feels right for you and your family.
If you are looking for delicious air fryer recipes I have a whole collection for you to enjoy, and if health living is your jam, be sure to read my article on the risks of mycotoxins in coffee.
Benefits of air fryers
There are many benefits of using an air fryer to cook with, and most important to me is that cooking food in an air fryer saves so much time! It is so much faster to cook food in an air fryer compared with cooking food in traditional ovens or baking, frying, or deep frying foods.
Air fryers are the best way to cook crispy food without using a deep fryer. They are also a better option compared to deep frying because they use less oil and therefore cook food with fewer calories and less fat.
Another benefit is that the clean up usually really easy. You just stick the racks and the tray in your dishwasher after you're done using them. You also don't have to worry about making a mess of your counters or your oven.
Chemicals and coatings to avoid in air fryers:
1. Per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS)
Unfortunately, most air fryers on the market are made with potentially toxic nonstick coatings, and/or Per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS), commonly known as “forever chemicals.” I have written about the problems with PFAS many times before in articles like the best non-toxic mascaras, and how to choose safe cookware.
If you aren't familiar with PFAS chemicals, PFAS are a class of chemicals that provide stain and water resistant coatings. For example Teflon is a type of PFAS.
PFAS chemicals are known as “forever chemicals” because they are persistent, meaning they build up and don’t go away. They resist breakdown in the environment and they remain in our bodies for years, and sometimes even decades after exposure.
PFAS, even at low doses, can be harmful to health and are known to have a number of harmful effects including but not limited to:
- They are endocrine disruptors or hormone disruptors.
- Can cause thyroid disease.
- They increase the risks of certain cancers including thyroid and kidney cancer.
- Can cause metabolic diseases including obesity and diabetes.
- Can contribute to cardiovascular disease.
- Increase cholesterol levels.
- Can decrease sperm counts.
- Can increase the chances of miscarriages in pregnancy.
- Affects the growth, learning, and behaviour of infants and older children.
- Increases risk of allergies and asthma in children.
As you can see, for health reasons, you want to avoid PFAS chemicals if you can. Unfortunately, most of the air fryers on the market are made with these chemicals so you need to be cautious when shopping.
2. Other coatings and disclosure issues
When it comes to air fryers, many brands are not transparent when it comes to the chemicals they use in their coatings. They advertise their products as being toxin free and PFOA free but don't actually tell you what chemicals or ingredients they are using instead. This is a problem because they are other potentially harmful chemicals that can be used in air fryers.
Here are some of the issues I ran into when researching this review:
- Some brands do not use PFAS on food contact surfaces but do use them on the inside walls of the air fryer which is a problem because PFAS can aerosolize and drop down onto your food.
- Some companies won't disclose what they use in their coatings as the information is considered to be proprietary. After many years of reviewing and researching non-toxic products I have learned that if a company won't disclose what chemicals they are using, I would err on the side of caution and assume those ingredients aren't safe.
3. Ceramic coatings
I have written about the potential health risks of ceramic coatings before but this information is not widely known so we will review it again here. Many (but not all) ceramic non-stick coatings are made with nano particles and ceramic cookware has been shown to release titanium dioxide nano particles into food when heated. This is concerning because ingestion of nano titanium dioxide has been shown to cause many different health issues in animal studies including: causing harmful effects on male fertility (including damaging sperm), damaging the liver, testicles, heart, brain, kidneys, as well as altering the gut microbiome and causing pre-cancerous lesions in the intestines.
Some of the more popular brands of ceramic coated cookware use nano particles in their ceramic coating including Our Place and Caraway. However, other brands including Green Pan do not use nanoparticles in their coating and instead use a silica base.
4. Plastic
Plastic can be made with various materials that are harmful to our health including but not limited to BPA, BPS, phthalates, microplastics, and other endocrine disrupting chemicals. And what's worse is that when heated plastic releases even more of these chemicals, so you want to make sure the air fryer you buy is plastic free. And don't be fooled by clever marketing that says their plastic is "BPA free" so that you think it's okay - just because it is BPA free does not mean it is safe. Brands typically just replace the BPA with another harmful chemical such as BPS instead.
Safe materials in air fryers:
When shopping for a non-toxic air fryer you want to look for one that is made with safe materials which include glass, stainless steel, or ceramic that is made without nano-particles.
Non-toxic air fryers:
Here is a list of air fryers that I would recommend as safe. However, it is important to note that I could not find a single air fryer that is 100% non-toxic. They all have a part or two that are made with potentially harmful ingredients, but I will indicate those parts in the review, and what you can swap them out for to make them safe.
All of these air fryers are PFAS free, teflon free, and are made without ceramic coatings that use nanoparticles. Note that not all the models made by the brands in this list are created equally, so I cannot recommend all the different models made by these brands, and if I haven't included a specific model in this list it is likely that it was left out for a reason.
1. GreenPan Elite Convection Air Fryer Oven
If you prefer an oven style air fryer the GreenPan Elite Convection Air Fryer Oven is a great option. It is made with both ceramic and stainless steel. It can bake, broil, air fry, dehydrate, slow cook, toast, warm, and act as a pizza oven. I also really like the look of this air fryer. Isn't it pretty? It's also easy to clean and most of the parts are dishwasher safe but it is a little more expensive than some of the other air fryers in this list.
To make it safer: The grill pan is silica based and so ideally you would replace this with a stainless steel tray to make it even safer.
Price: $375.95 USD
Shop for the GreenPan Bistro 9-in-1 Air Fryer Oven on Amazon, on GreenPan or at Williams Sonoma.
2. Café Couture Toaster Oven with Air Fry
The Cafe Couture Oven is a small countertop oven that offers an air fry feature, and has many other functions including bake, broil, toast, dehydrate, slow cook and more. It can be connected to WiFi so you can use your voice to control its actions and control your cooking remotely. It has a 25 litre capacity so is good for larger meals and feeding families. It also comes in a few different colour options depending on your preference. I just love the white and rose gold option. Isn't it so gorgeous?
To make it safer: a couple safety tips for this air fryer is that the baking tray has a Prop. 65 warning so I recommend you replace the baking tray with something safer like a stainless steel baking tray, and the crumb tray is made from aluminum so I would avoid letting your food come into contact with it.
Price: $329.99USD
3. Fritaire Glass Bowl Air Fryer
The Fritaire glass bowl air fryer is a smaller air fryer that is made of glass so you can see all your food while it cooks. It only has a 5 quart capacity however so you can't cook very much in it but it would be a nice option if you have a small kitchen. It also comes in many different colours so you can choose your favourite. The parts are dishwasher safe and the appliance has a self cleaning function to make your clean up even easier. The food surfaces in the air fryer are made of stainless steel so they are a great safe option.
To make it safer: The rotisserie accessories are made from aluminum so I would avoid using them or try to replace them with stainless steel alternatives.
Price: $199.99 USD
4. GE Digital Air Fryer Toaster Oven
The GE Digital Air Fryer Toaster Oven is a combination toaster oven and air fryer that has 8 different cook functions. The outside is made with stainless steel and this air fryer is large enough to hold a 12" pizza. I personally don't love the look of this one as much as some of the others in this review but it is a more affordable option which is nice.
To make it safer: It does have an aluminum coated bake pan which I would recommend swapping for a stainless steel bake pan and the bake rack also contains lead so I would swap that for a stainless steel bake rack.
Price: $147.99 USD
5. PowerXL Duplex SmartSynx Toaster Oven
The PowerXL Duplex SmartSynx Toaster Oven is one of the highest rated air fryers I could find. It also has a large cooking capacity, up to 25 quarts and is one of the more affordable options in this review. It is made with stainless steel and glass and offers 12 different preset cooking options to make cooking your food even easier. I just personally don't love this look of this air fryer.
To make is safer: There are phthalates in the power cord which should not be a safety issue since your food won't come into contact with it but it is not known whether the baking tray also has phthalates so I would recommend swapping it for a stainless steel baking tray.
Price: $130.49 USD
6. PowerXL SmartSynx Dual Door Oven
The PowerXL SmartSynx Dual Door Oven offers two different sections so you can cook different foods at the same time! It is also a larger size so it's great for families. It's made with stainless steel and glass and offers precise temperature control for both sections.
To make is safer: There are phthalates in the power cord which shouldn't be an issue since your food won't come into contact with it but it is not known whether the baking tray has phthalates so I would swap it for a stainless steel baking tray.
Price: $162.00 USD
Air fryer brands to avoid:
There are many air fryers that advertise themselves as non-toxic, but either won't disclose what chemicals they use (so we can't ensure that they aren't using harmful substances), or do use chemicals that have health concerns (such as non-stick materials or ceramic with nano-particles) and as such I cannot recommend them. Some of these brands include:
Non-toxic air fryers FAQs:
No. Ninja air fryers are made with non-stick coatings and are not considered to be toxin free as they do not disclose the ingredients in their nonstick coatings.
In order for an air fryer to be non-toxic it should be made with stainless steel, glass, or ceramic made without nano particles. You want to avoid air fryers made with non-stick coatings, PFAS, teflon, and aluminum.
Other health info you will want to read:
Our expertise:
Dr. Erin Carter, MD, FRCPC, is a physician with board certifications in internal medicine and rheumatology. She is passionate about preventative healthcare including nutrition, environmental health and low toxicity living.
Leave a Reply