Review: This new dual-zone air fryer could change the way you cook

Air fryers really do come in all shapes and sizes. From the simple, compact single-drawer designs to the latest innovations such as Ninja's Doublestack, there's arguably an appliance to suit every family and every kitchen.

And it's great to see there are still innovations making it to the market. Personally, I've always liked the "oven-style" air fryers that have a fold-down door, huge capacities and adjustable shelves.

But then, as soon as I think I've found my perfect air fryer, a company comes along and rewrites the rule book. Again.

This time it's Salter. It's a company I've got to know very well, and I've been impressed with plenty of their latest launches, but the new XL Air Fryer Oven really caught my eye.

This one has what's known as a "French Door"-style opening. Rather than a drop-down door like many of the larger oven-style air fryers, it has twin doors that open outwards from side-mounted hinges.

This allows for a large capacity - 15 litres in this case - and I'm a fan of a large capacity, because that allows for very diverse options when it comes to what you can cook in it.

For example, there's an included rotisserie attachment with this new air fryer. That's actually nothing unusual, but being able to roast a whole chicken is a real joy.

Cleverly, it also has a modular separation system. You can insert a supplied divider into the massive internal chamber, and divide it up into two zones.

This is really handy, because each 7.5l zone, in theory, can then have two trays per side. So you can have two portions of chips cooking in one side, and then some veg and some chicken drumsticks on the other side.

A digital control panel on top of the appliance sorts out all the timing, by syncing and matching the zones up, and you can control them independently - either the temperature or the timing can be altered separately.

There are presets that can be applied to each side, if you like that sort of thing (I don't) and it comes with larger drawers that you can use across the entire chamber, once you've pulled out the divider.

It sounds, then, like the perfect setup. A genius idea. But it's not quite that simple. One of the big problems is the differential in cooking time between the two levels. In either the combined 15-litre setup or using two 7.5-litre zones, the bottom drawer cooks more slowly than the top drawer. Much more slowly, in fact.

This means you'll find you're having to swap the drawers over throughout the cooking cycles a few times to ensure everything's done evenly. It's not a disaster, but it does add a bit of time to the cooking process.

That said, it's a doddle to clean. The French doors make it so easy to access the inside, and that's a good thing, because roasting a chicken is a bit of a messy business.

I also wish the "beep" to alert you the cooking time has finished was a little louder. I've found this with a lot of Salter devices. It's not going to bother everyone, but I use air fryers in my utility room, and it's easy to miss the alert if you're busy in the nearby kitchen.

However, I'm especially impressed with the price. We're now in an era when a top-spec air fryer can cost north of £200, but the Salter XL Air Fryer Oven can be bought for £109.99. Here's one I found on eBay, direct from Salter, with a 61% discount.

That's a good price for a quality, branded air fryer, but it's an amazing price for a 15-litre air fryer with such an innovative design.

At that price, it's genuinely hard to pick fault with it. It's perfect for small families, large families, or just someone who wants a really cheap way to perfectly roast a whole chicken every week.

It's a terrific piece of kit for the money.