Air Fryer
Dutch engineer Fred van der Weij invented the modern air fryer in 2006 to cook crispy food using circulating hot air rather than deep oil.
Van der Weij began developing the appliance in Almere, Netherlands, seeking a safer, lower-fat method to produce crisp french fries. Dissatisfied with standard ovens and bulky deep fryers, he built his earliest prototype out of wood and aluminum, utilizing chicken wire for the cooking basket. To study airflow patterns inside the chamber, he and his colleagues blew cigarette smoke through the apparatus to track heat convection.
Over several years of experimentation, Van der Weij refined the internal aerodynamics to create a high-velocity circulation system combining radiation and convection, which he patented in 2006 under the name Rapid Air Technology. The design circulated superheated air rapidly around the food basket, allowing a thin layer of surface oil to brown ingredients through the Maillard reaction. The mechanism eliminated the need for large vats of boiling oil while drastically cutting cooking times.
Van der Weij partnered with the Dutch electronics corporation Philips to manufacture and commercialize his invention. Philips officially debuted the consumer model, branded as the Airfryer, at the IFA consumer electronics trade show in Berlin in 2010. Later, it bought the patent. The countertop appliance subsequently launched globally, spawning widespread adoption across international cookware markets.
Fred van der Weij transformed home cooking with chicken wire and cigarette smoke, engineering a countertop system that replicates deep frying through rapid, high-temperature air circulation. Electronics giant Philips ran with it, and the rest is delicious history.