Review: Presto GranPappy Electric Deep Fryer from CSN Store

We've owned three or four deep fryers over the years, and I think we may have found the last one we're going to need for a long time to come, the Presto GranPappy Electric Deep Fryer from CSN Store. Of all the features this unit advertises, there's one thing about it that sets it apart from all the other deep fryers in its price range or lower... It's extremely easy to clean. That's always been the real drawback of previous deep fryers, honestly. Despite any features they may have had, what always held them back and inevitably made them just too disgusting to use was the difficulty in cleaning them. Their manufacturers always tried to put in one or two too many features that you really don't need (we'll get to that in a minute) and it ends up making the unit more complicated, not in terms of operation, but in terms of construction.

Our previous deep fryer, for example, had a primary bucket, a snap-on control unit that dipped a heating coil into the bucket and clung to the main body, the main body in which the bucket rested, a hinged lid with a window and carbon filters, and a collapsable basket that would hang on little hinges on the side of the unit to be dipped into the oil. We're talking about several pieces with lots of little nooks and crannies, and the grease would inevitably find its way into all of it. Not to mention that wire mesh basket was just impossible to get completely clean. Things would cling to it to no end. It was disgusting.

The Presto GranPappy Electric Deep Fryer, by contrast, consists of nothing more than a single unibody bucket design and a simple snap-on lid. No nooks, no crannies, nowhere for the oil and grease to hide. It's solid, has a simple shape, and is very easy to empty and clean. Then just snap the lid on for storage and you're done. The ease of cleaning and operating actually seem to make it such that we don't even have to clean it as often. I mean, nobody changes the oil after every use. That's just wasteful. So just snap the lid on to keep it covered for the next use. As you see on the picture we were making homemade onion rings and boy they came out perfect!

Let's go over a few things that set this unit apart from other units we've owned over the years:

1. No temperature control. You want to know a secret? You don't need it. It's deep frying, it takes only moments, it's easy enough as it is. Put the food in, wait until it looks like something you want to eat, take it out. If there's a center that you want to double check (such as with chicken) then cut it open and check. Put it back if it's not done. Honestly, you really don't need temperature control.

2. No basket. I know, instinct tells us that we want to use a basket. After all, that's what they use in the fast food places, so it must be better, right? Ask yourself... is anything about fast food really better than your own cooking? Also, those baskets are cleaned using industrial cleaning methods by minimum wage employees. You don't have industrial cleaning methods in your kitchen, and your time at home is worth more than minimum wage. Ditch the basket, use a scoop. The scoop gives you more control over individual items, and it's easier to clean. It's just a utensil that washes like any other.

3. No moving parts. You don't need a lid when cooking. In fact, you don't want a lid when cooking. The steam is supposed to escape, and you're supposed to watch the food to know when it's done. No moving parts means no places for grease and grime to gather.

Honestly, this is easily the best deep fryer I've ever owned. It's quick and easy to grab, use, clean if necessary, and store. No mess, no fuss. And on sale for $44.99 right now at the CSN Store, I would buy one for my relatives in a heart beat to replace their old over the top deep fryers.