Philips' new air fryer uses steam to revolutionise cooking and cleaning – here's what happened when I tried it at home

This steam air fryer from Philips aims to tick all the boxes, offering two drawers, various functions including steaming, and all sorts of presents to cover various foods - as well as meals incorporating different ingredients you can cook at the same time.

On top of that it has a few extra functions, from alerts to remind you to shake food to a steam clean function, and is pretty quiet compared to some gadgets. But on the down side it’s not a cheap bit of kit, neither is it small. It will take up a fair bit of space on your counter without necessarily allowing you to cook huge meals or big joints of meat thanks to the division of its capacity between two drawers.

To put it through its paces, I tested it out the classic best air fryer recipes of homemade chips to bacon, freezer food, and even roasted a whole chicken - one of its boasts. It does it all adequately, but neither did it leave me in love, especially for a £249.99 price tag.

Philips 5000 Series NA555/09 Dual Basket Steam Air Fryer specs

• Type: Steam air fryer
• Dimensions: 382.5 x 443.9 x 351.7 mm
• Cooking area: 1 x 6L drawer, 1 x 3L drawer
• Capacity: 9L
• Weight: 8.8kg
• Maximum temperature: 200C
• Cooking modes: 12 presets
• Power: 2750W
• Colour: Silver
• Material: Brushed steel

Who tested this air fryer?

Ellen Manning is a freelance journalist specialising in food and drink, writing about everything from restaurants to home cooking, and the all-important kitchen gadget.

She is a regular gadget tester for Ideal Home, having put everything from blenders to coffee grinders, microwaves and air fryers through their paces. She tests each gadget extensively to make sure it’s worth spending your hard-earned cash on, and gives her honest opinion on what the results are from the point of view of an average, amateur home cook.

Unboxing the product:

Like most air fryers on the market, especially ones of this size, the Phillips comes boxed up in a fairly hefty package. And while some products are a fair bit smaller than the box initially suggests, this feels like a big old bit of kit.

Slightly less slick looking than some competitors on the market, it has a slightly industrial feel to it and the water compartment on the top that enables the steam function adds to its size and means it’s not only less easy than some others to fit in a gap on your counter, but is more intrusive aesthetically, too.

That said, it has all the digital displays you’d expect from the air fryers of today, and even the instructions are available via a QR code that takes you to the manual via a website. A good idea, though I’ll admit I’m a fan of a quick start guide on a bit of paper to be honest.

We spend a while trying to find the right instructions and what’s what, whereas I can’t help but think that some other brands come with easier to follow instructions, or are simply more intuitive and easy to use with no instructions at all.

In terms of design, the fact it’s got two baskets has me wondering if I’ve been missing out in the past with only one cooking area. Plus, one of those baskets is equipped for steaming, which adds an easy extra cooking method.

It also gives you the freedom of cooking two different parts of your meal with separate cooking methods at the same time. One gadget, two ingredients, two methods, one mealtime. Sounds good in theory, if it delivers.

It promises to cook up to 40% faster than a conventional oven (don’t they all), is healthy because the baskets help the fat drain off the food, and has a few handy additional functions like a reheat button, alerts that remind you when to shake the food, and a steam clean function that I’m hoping will save me previous time cleaning out the baskets.

Cooking

Roast chicken

As its name suggests, the Phillips dual basket steam air fryer has two baskets - a smaller 3L drawer for sides and snacks, and a bigger 6L drawer for mains, fries and favourites - or a whole 1.2kg chicken apparently. Something I decide to test.

After in-depth examination of the online instructions, I find the advice on roasting a whole chicken and pop mine in for the suggested time of 60 minutes at 180C. I’m not sure this is any more efficient or preferable to using my oven, though I guess I don’t have to wait for it to preheat. The chicken fitted well in the basket - it was only a fairly small one so I’m not sure you could do a roast dinner for a huge family in this, but for one or two people it’s fine.

A tiny gripe emerged as I tried to get the time up to 60 minutes, watching it crank up slowly without going up in bigger increments to get to 60 quickly. A small thing, maybe, but in a world where we know stuff like that can be made easier, it’s a bit irritating.

Nevertheless, after 60 minutes the chicken was cooked perfectly, confirmed by a temperature probe test. Not just that, it was still moist and tender with perfectly crispy skin. Impressive.

Given the Phillips boasts an additional steamer function, I’m keen to try it, so decide some steamed tenderstem broccoli with my roast chicken might be nice. Except there’s a problem.

Only one drawer has the steam function, and it’s the one the chicken’s in. So unless I want to air fry my broccoli I’ve got to wait until the chicken’s done and then steam my broccoli - kind of rendering the excitement of cooking everything at the same time null and void.

Homemade chips

My standard Ideal Home air fryer test of homemade chips is a simple one to prepare. Peel and cut potatoes into uniform sized chips, toss in oil and seasoning and cook for 15 minutes. The shaking reminder comes into play at various points, reminding me to give them a wiggle, and while it’s useful if you’re distracted I’m not sure it’s entirely necessary.

Most of us tend to remember to give stuff a shake when we’re eagerly awaiting it to be ready - especially when it’s chips. After 15 minutes, they’re on their way but not done, though that’s not unusual or any different from plenty of other air fryers. A further 10 minutes and they are, and pretty good too. Crispy on the outside, fluffy inside, and any oil has drained away from them so they don’t feel greasy. A decent job.

Frozen food

I team the chips with some breaded fish from the supermarket freezer section. And here is where the bonus of two drawers comes in as it can be cooked while the chips are on. In they go to the smaller drawer while the chips are in the bigger one, and I set it to the same temperature.

However, 15 minutes in I can’t help but feel convinced that this smaller drawer somehow doesn’t get up to the same temperature as the larger one.

One to test in the future, but something to bear in mind maybe and to make sure you check the progress of the food rather than just blindly trust that it’ll be done in accordance with the cooking time. In line with this, rather than rely on timing recommendations I rely on a temperature probe and am relieved that the fish is done by the time my chips are too.

It’s crisped up nicely on the outside without drying out the fish inside, so no complaints there. I also notice that the Phillips is pretty quiet, only hitting the low 60s on a decibel reader, unlike some other models that make a lot more noise. A plus for the Phillips for sure.

Bacon

I test bacon in the larger drawer, laying rashers of streaky inside. I say the larger drawer, but I still can’t fit loads in. The joys of a cooking area divided into two drawers rather than one large one, I guess, but again something to bear in mind. It cooks it swiftly and evenly, to the point that it’s slightly overcooked at the point I would usually expect it to be done.

It doesn’t really need turning, thanks - I assume - to the RapidAir Plus Technology that is basically a star-shaped design that claims to circulate hot air around and through the food with faster airflow to make sure it’s cooked evenly. It seems to work, and is certainly efficient.

What's it like to clean?

I’m overjoyed that most air fryers these days seem dishwasher safe, but the messaging around cleaning the Phillips is a bit mixed. While its baskets seem to be dishwasher safe, the cleaning advice is to hand wash, so I err on the side of caution and run a sink of water, lamenting a return to the old days when washing up was a thing and feeling like any time and effort I’ve saved with my swanky air fryer has been eaten up by needing to lovingly scrub the baskets out.

Of course, the Phillips does offer an automatic Steam Clean function, which could be a game changer and save any effort. I try it, and it’s not half bad, though it doesn’t get it as clean as dishwashing or washing it by hand, so while it might be useful for a quick clean, you’re probably going to have to do it properly once in a while. And, a bit like cooking, the steam function only applies to one of the drawers, so you’re never going to be able to escape cleaning duties, I’m afraid.

How does it compare to similar models and its predecessors?:

The Phillips Dual Basket Steam air fryer is as efficient when it comes to air frying as similar gadgets on the market, and the steaming option is a nice idea. However, when you think that plenty of air fryers can offer roasting, baking, dehydrating, frying, air frying and all sorts of other functions, I’m not sure it’s an utter game-changer to offer steaming and air frying.

It’s not quite as good looking as some other similar models, such as the Ninja FlexDrawer, nor is it quite as intuitive to use. It’s also less easy to clean, and with a fairly hefty price tag of £249.99 I’m not sure it offers the same level of high-end gadgetry that other similar models on the market do.

Should you buy the Phillips Dual Basket Steam air fryer?

The Phillips dual basket steam air fryer does what it claims, and cooks food well, whether that’s your crispy bacon, homemade chips, freezer food or even a whole roasted chicken.

The steamer function works well - but be aware you can only do this in one of the drawers, so you might have to plan your meals accordingly and may not have as much freedom as you think. It’s a big old gadget, so not one for someone with a small kitchen, but be mindful that you may not be able to cook huge meals as by the time the 9L capacity is split between two drawers you can’t fit quite as much in as you may imagine.

Possibly one for a smaller family or couple rather than a big family feeding plenty of mouths. Also not one for someone on a budget, as you’ll be parting with a not-insignificant sum for it.