In the modern age, it’s getting easier and easier to become sedentary. With millions of us playing video games on our home consoles for hours on end, or watching hours’ worth of streaming services, keeping ourselves in good shape can be easily forgotten. Add to that the easy availability of sugary snacks with high fat content, and it’s no surprise that the UK is facing an obesity crisis. Cosori is a woman-owned brand that is trying to tackle the issue, making it much simpler for people to make better choices when it comes to their nutrition.
Cosori’s Smart Kitchen Digital Food Scales aim to bring awareness to the foods that people are eating, through an integration with the VeSync app. The scales, which have a premium feel thanks to their sturdy build, feature a display screen so you can use them in conjunction with the app to show the nutritional breakdown of the food you’re weighing. It should be stated that the breakdown is only displayed on the scales if you use them with the app, so to get the most benefit you have to use the two things together.
The scales include standard features such as a tare function and the ability to switch between units. You can charge them with a USB-C cable too, meaning you don’t have to keep buying batteries. Another nice feature is that you can pre-programme up to 50 foods and cycle through them on the scales using the arrow buttons, rather than having to go through the app every time.
The idea behind the scales is a good one. In practice though, it’s a little bit overly clunky. You place the food item on the scales (e.g. a tomato) and then load up the VeSync app where you search for ‘tomato’. Once you locate that, the display changes to show a full breakdown on the scale of key metrics such as calories, fat breakdowns, carbs etc. You can pre-programme up to 50 foods and cycle through them on the scales using the arrow buttons, rather than having to go through the app every time, which is definitely a huge bonus. This definitely speeds things up as you get used to the scales.
On the plus side the scales take next to no time to set up, and the VeSync app might be really handy for those who are trying to keep track of what they eat. It enables you to scan barcodes and use AI to guess the nutritional value of the foods you’re eating. If you’re familiar with apps like MyFitnessPal, then VeSync will be easy to navigate around. You can track all of your meals, input exercises and just get a really good overview of your health on a day-to-day basis.
The Cosori Turbo Blaze Air Fryer perfectly complements the Cosori Smart Kitchen Digital Food Scales. While the Air Fryer is not a smart device (Cosori does offer alternative Air Fryers that are smart), it offers a healthier way to prepare food than traditional methods. Not only does the Air Fryer cook meals up to 46% faster than other air fryers on the market, it also consumes less energy making it a cost-effective choice for those who are conscious of their mounting bills.
So what does the Air Fryer offer? The 6L capacity is big enough for the average household and it features one drawer that is surprisingly spacious. The big draw here though is the number of different cooking modes you can choose from. There are four Turbo Modes – Air Fry, Roast, Grill and Frozen – as well as Reheat, Bake, Dehydrate, Proof, Preheat and Keep Warm. The Turbo Modes cook food incredibly quickly, using the highest fan speed. The crisper plate, which sits in the draw, ensures that your food gets really crispy and allows the air to circulate around the food. I found this really useful for making things like chips and potato wedges. The end result was crunchy, evenly cooked and best of all, you hardly need to use any oil making it a much healthier option than frying or using the oven.
For another of my tests I cooked a batch of bacon and within 6 minutes it was ready to go. For those that like their bacon that bit crunchier, try 8 minutes at 180 degrees Celsius and you won’t be disappointed. I was really impressed with how quick it cooked and it didn’t dry out the bacon either. Even better, it’s way healthier than chucking your bacon in a griddle.
If you’re a baker you’ll love the Proof function, which will enable you to get that perfect rise on your dough before you bake it, and the Dehydrate function is handy for making food last longer. The Bake function allows you to make cakes and sweet treats, just make sure that you have the right size tins to bake your creations in. I recommend a gluten-free chocolate brownie as it comes out so delightfully gooey.
Before using any of the cooking modes, you should use the pre-heat function. That ensures that the air fryer is warm and ready to cook. You can change the temperature easily using the digital display on the top of the Air Fryer, meaning you have full control. You can also switch between Celsius and Fahrenheit, which is a nice touch. You can also pause cooking if you need to and there’s a safety function built in to shutdown if the Air Fryer overheats.
The Air Fryer comes packaged with a recipe book to help you get to grips with how it all works. There are lots of sweet and savoury ideas, and I suggest working your way through the recipes when you first get the Air Fryer. You’ll get the hang of how to get the best of out of it in no time.
Overall, I was far more impressed with the Corsori TurboBlaze Air Fryer than I was with the Cosori Smart Kitchen Digital Food Scale. The Air Fryer is a quality piece of kit that will come in very handy as costs continue to rise and families feel the pinch. You can use it to complement your traditional oven or even replace it altogether. The Scales I liked but I think some people will find them too much of a faff. Once you’ve programmed your foods in, they are a lot easier to use but even then you’ll be more reliant on the app than you’ll want to be. With both items on offer for Black Friday, there’s never been a better time to get your hands on them!
Released by: Cosori Buy the ‘Corsori TurboBlaze Air Fryer’ and the ‘Cosori Smart Kitchen Digital Food Scales’
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