It's a small oven. Use it.

As a starting point, drop the temperature by about 20°C and cut the time by roughly a fifth, then check at around 60% of the new time. So a recipe at 200°C for 35 minutes becomes about 180°C for 28, checked at 17. Models vary a lot, so adjust from there and note what worked — your own card beats any recipe book.

Almost always crowding. An air fryer is a small fan oven, and it needs air moving around each piece. Use a single layer with visible gaps, shake or turn halfway, and accept two quick batches rather than one packed one — which also risks the middle being underdone.

Most things you'd roast or bake in small pieces: chicken thighs and wings, sausages and bacon, fish fillets, halloumi and tofu, roasted vegetables, potatoes in all forms, eggs baked in a small dish, granola, and reheating pizza or pastry so it crisps again. What it does badly: wet batters, loose leaves, large joints and anything very liquid.

Usually in stages rather than all at once. Cook the component that keeps well first, cover it in foil, then the quickest item last so everything lands together. The calculator is honest about the maths: six portions from a two-portion basket at 220°C for 45 minutes works out at around 112 minutes across three batches — sometimes the oven really is the better tool.

Never put a loose paper liner in during preheating — it can lift into the element. Keep vents clear of walls and cupboards. Clean the basket after each use and check the element and grease trap regularly, since built-up fat is what makes them smoke. Check meat is cooked through at the thickest part, and follow your manufacturer's manual where it differs from general advice.