Energy costs as households switch from ovens and microwaves to air fryers and slow cookers.

Kitchen appliances have become more popular in recent months as people seek to save on their energy bills.
Since this month, the average electricity bill has risen to £2,500 and many households are making changes to cut costs amid the cost of living crisis.
Many people swap things in the kitchen, and sales of air fryers and slow cookers have skyrocketed as shoppers look for an alternative to using an oven. These appliances have become more popular due to their energy efficiency, but how much do they actually save compared to more traditional cooking methods?
According to Welsh Online, Hometree researchers looked at how much energy typical deep fryers and slow cookers use to get an idea of ​​the cost per hour of operation. As Martin Lewis explains, you can estimate the power consumption of a device by multiplying its power by the number of minutes or hours remaining.
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Hometree has found that even if you leave a slow cooker on all day, it consumes about the same amount of energy as a light bulb, helping to reduce energy costs compared to an oven or stovetop. On average, a slow cooker consumes about 1.2kWh in eight hours, which is only 5p per hour.
At the same time, air fryers are more energy efficient than most ovens because they cook food much faster. The average power of an air fryer is 1 kW, so 10 minutes of use will cost about 5-30 pence per hour.
While microwave ovens may not be as versatile as other cooking methods, they can be used for things like reheating and defrosting food. They also cost less per hour of operation than a deep fryer – on average, a 700W microwave costs about 1.98p for five minutes of use, or 23.8p for an hour.
Meanwhile, electric stoves consume about 17p every 15 minutes at an average output of 2kW or 68p per hour. Induction hobs are the most energy efficient, followed by electricity, although electricity is more expensive than gas, so a gas stove can end up saving you a few pounds a year.
Finally, it’s no surprise that research has shown that using an oven, gas or electric, is the most expensive. The average oven has a power of around 3 kW, which means it costs about 34p – £1.02 an hour to run it for 20 minutes.
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