The Salton AF2085 is a single-basket air fryer with a 5.3-quart capacity, available throughout the Canadian market. We tested this model in collaboration with Radio-Canada, Canada's francophone public broadcaster. For more info, see their French-language recommendation article and video investigation on air fryers. This air fryer has a rectangular design with a digital display on the front panel, where you'll find eight preset programs for cooking various foods, along with manual control settings.
Our Verdict
The Salton AF2085 is an alright air fryer. It makes good-quality fried food, cooking options like sweet potato fries, chicken tenders, and wings to a mostly crispy golden brown. That said, it doesn't cook very quickly, and it leaves a fairly large portion of each batch undercooked. It's not a particularly versatile option. With a fairly narrow temperature range and only one fan speed, it's best suited to classic air fryer meals and snacks.
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Makes good-quality fried food.
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Preheats quickly.
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Cooking speed is just mediocre.
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Lacks versatility.
The Salton AF2085 is okay for large-batch cooking. With a 5.3-quart capacity, it has enough space to cook for two to three people at a time. Its cooking speed is acceptable, but not particularly fast, so if you want to make a large quantity of food in multiple batches, it will take a while. Otherwise, it makes good-quality fried food but lacks versatility, so it's not ideal for other cooking methods like baking or dehydrating.
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Makes good-quality fried food.
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Preheats quickly.
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Cooking speed is just mediocre.
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Lacks versatility.
The Salton AF2085 offers decent air-frying performance. Cooking onion rings, corndogs, zucchini, and other air fryer favorites results in batches of food that are mostly crispy and nicely browned, though a significant portion remains undercooked as well. While it has adequate cooking surface area to spread food out in a single layer, its fan isn't very fast, negatively impacting cooking speed. It also doesn't maintain a very stable temperature throughout the cooking cycle, which can make it tricky to follow recipes closely and make it more likely that your food will dry out or burn.
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Enough cooking surface area to arrange food in one layer.
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Makes good-quality fried food.
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Cooking speed is just mediocre.
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Slow fan speed.
The Salton AF2085 preheats very quickly, but its cooking speed is mediocre.
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Preheats quickly.
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Cooking speed is just mediocre.
The Salton AF2085 has a moderate 5.3-quart capacity, enough to serve two to three people. Its basket has a reasonable amount of surface area, so you can spread food out in a single layer, which helps it crisp up more quickly and evenly.
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Enough cooking surface area to arrange food in one layer.
The Salton AF2085 is very compact, especially considering its capacity, so it won't take up much space on your countertop. It's also fairly easy to store in a cupboard or on a shelf when not in use.
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Compact size.
- 6.8 Air Frying
- 6.9 Large Batch Cooking
Performance Usages
- 7.0 Frying Performance
- 6.5 Cooking Speed
- 7.0 Cooking Capacity
- 7.9 Size
Changelog
Differences Between Sizes And Variants
This air fryer comes in 'Black.' See the label for our unit.
If you encounter another variant, let us know in the comments, and we'll update our review.
Compared To Other Air Fryers
The Salton XL Digital Air Fryer is a medium-sized, 5.3-quart air fryer with a rectangular design similar to the BELLA 6qt Pro 90165. It's a pretty compact model, taking up less counter space than similar-capacity options, such as the Ninja Max XL AF161. Like the Chefman TurboFry RJ38-5-T, it features a digital display with a handful of preset programs for various foods. It offers good air-frying performance compared to other models, though some budget-friendly options, like the Beautiful 6qt Digital, make crispier food faster. Unlike more versatile picks, such as the COSORI TurboBlaze, this air fryer has a narrow temperature range and only one fan speed, so it's not well-suited to alternate cooking methods like baking or dehydrating. That said, it's a solid option if you're short on space and want to make medium to large portions of classic air fryer snacks and meals.
If you'd like more to consider, check out our recommendations for the best air fryers, the best budget and cheap air fryers, and the best large-capacity air fryers.
The Ninja AF141 is a better air fryer than the Salton AF2085. While these appliances have similar overall capacities, the Ninja has more surface area in its basket and a faster maximum fan speed, resulting in a quicker cooking time and slightly more well-cooked and crispy food. The Ninja is also more versatile; it has a wider temperature range, its fan can change speeds, and it maintains a more stable temperature. These features mean that the Ninja can deliver a variety of cooking methods beyond air frying, like 'Reheat' and 'Dehydrate.'
The Beautiful 6qt Digital is a better air fryer than the Salton AF2085. It makes better-quality fried food and delivers results faster. It also offers more versatility with a wider temperature range and variable fan speed, so you can use it to roast, reheat, and dehydrate, as well as air fry. The Beautiful also maintains a more stable temperature, which makes it easier to follow recipes and means the air fryer is less likely to dry out or burn your food. Finally, the Beautiful also comes in a variety of colors, so you can choose one that suits your style and decor.
The Dreo ChefMaker is a better air fryer than the Salton AF2085 for most people. When air frying foods like French fries, onion rings, and chicken wings, these models offer very similar results, but the Dreo cooks faster. It's also more versatile, with a wider range of temperatures and fan speeds and less temperature fluctuation, so you can use it to bake, dehydrate, toast, and more. The Dreo also offers a special feature called 'Chef Mode,' which allows you to input what you're cooking and receive guidance on how and when to use the cooking rack, temperature probe, or water misting feature. That said, if you don't need these extras and want something more budget-friendly, you may prefer the Salton.
The Salton AF2085 and the Gotham Steel Air Fryer are pretty evenly matched. They both produce decent-quality fried food, and neither is very versatile. The Gotham Steel cooks a bit faster, but the Salton maintains better temperature stability, which makes it easier to follow precise recipes. One thing to note is that even though these air fryers are about the same size, the Salton has almost double the capacity of the Gotham Steel. So, if you're tight on space and need to make larger portions, you may prefer it.
Test Results
Its basket has a decent amount of space inside, enough to serve two to three people. There's an adequate amount of surface area to work with, too, so it's reasonably easy to spread food out in a single layer for the best results.
This air fryer isn't particularly versatile. With a fairly narrow temperature range and only one fan speed, this model isn't ideal for applications beyond air frying, like proofing dough or dehydrating. It also lacks presets for alternate cooking methods, but there are programs for various kinds of food:
- Fries (frozen): 400 °F, 15 minutes
- Fries (fresh): 400 °F, 25 minutes
- Steak: 360 °F, 25 minutes
- Shrimp: 320 °F, 12 minutes
- Chicken: 370 °F, 20 minutes
- Wings: 360 °F, 15 minutes
- Bake: 320 °F, 25 minutes
- Fish: 330 °F, 15 minutes
This air fryer makes good-quality fried food. Onion rings, mozzarella sticks, Brussels sprouts, and other typically air-fried foods end up mostly golden brown and evenly crisped. That said, a significant portion of each batch also remains undercooked.
This air fryer offers alright temperature stability. It heats back up reasonably fast after you open the drawer to add food. Still, its temperature fluctuates quite a lot throughout the cooking cycle, making it harder to follow recipes closely.