Why the ‘Sunday Roast’ is changing thanks to new air fryer trends

The British Sunday roast is changing shape in real time — not in a grand dining room, but on the worktop, under a humming lid. Rising energy bills, smaller kitchens, and a new appetite for quick comfort are quietly rewriting the ritual. The star of the shift is a squat, beeping box: the air fryer.

The kitchen window steams. A joint of chicken sits on a cooling rack, skin shimmering like lacquer, while a dual-drawer air fryer ticks down the last two minutes for the potatoes. A kettle burbles. Someone reaches for the gravy granules with one hand and a phone with the other, filming the first shake of the basket like it’s a goal celebration.

The dog noses the air. Kids argue about the crispiest spud. No oven door slamming, no blast of heat fogging the glasses — just the gentle whirr of a fan and an impatient chorus of beeps. The roast still smells like a hug. It looks different.

Then the beeps start.

The roast is shrinking — and getting louder

In many homes the oven has been demoted from lead guitarist to rhythm section. The air fryer takes the solo now, cutting into the old choreography of pans, trays, and oven shelves. What changes first is time: less of it in the kitchen, more of it at the table or on the sofa.

The second thing is sound. Instead of the hush of an oven, there’s the small engine thrum of a countertop machine and the ritual shake mid‑cook. It feels oddly participatory, like stirring a pot. You get involved more, in short bursts.

Texture is where it wins hearts. Air fryers exaggerate the edges — the blistered skin, the frilled potato, the bronzed breadcrumb — while keeping the middle plush. For a roast, that means crunch you can hear across the room. **Crunch has become the theatre.**

The micro-trends behind the macro-shift

Ask a high‑street retailer and they’ll point you to dual‑zone air fryers, the ones that let you run veg and meat at different heat, then sync the finish. Ask TikTok and you’ll find “steam‑and‑crisp” hacks, spatchcock shortcuts, and five‑minute gravy done in a jug. The drip, drip of small changes adds up to a new Sunday.

A friend in Manchester told me her flat never had an oven that held temperature well. She switched to an air fryer during the energy spike and never looked back. Her roast chicken now is small, spatchcocked, and glossy, with parsnips done in the second drawer. She eats at two, not four. It’s still a roast; it’s just lighter on the day.

A hospitality buyer put it simply: people want the roast experience without the roast penalty. That’s money, time, and heat. When a machine preheats in two minutes and runs cheaper than a clunky oven for a small meal, it wins. **The Sunday roast is not dying.** It’s adapting to the life that surrounds it.

What we gain — and what we quietly lose

Speed gives you spontaneity. You can decide at noon and eat by one. You can roast for two without wasting a whole oven’s space. For many, that unlocks a roast on more weekends, not just the “big ones.” The trade‑off is scale: fewer trimmings, fewer trays, fewer leftovers to plunder on Monday.

There’s a shift in atmosphere too. That slow, all‑afternoon heat soaking the house? Less of it. The roast becomes an event measured in beeps and shakes, not hours. We’ve all been there: you want the tradition, but not the tyranny.

Ritual survives in new places. The shake replaces the baste. The resting tent still matters. The gravy still gets a nod of respect. **It’s mutating in plain sight.** The centre holds: meat, potatoes, veg, a jug of brown comfort.

How to nail a modern roast in an air fryer

Go smaller, go flatter. Spatchcock a chicken for even heat and quicker skin; use a rack so hot air hits underneath. Parboil potatoes five to seven minutes, drain hard, then rough them up in the pan with a spoon of oil and salt. A thin coat beats a slick.

Preheat for two to three minutes. Don’t crowd the basket; cook in two batches if you must. Shake potatoes halfway through, and let meat rest on a warm plate while you finish veg. Use a probe thermometer rather than the clock and carve to your preferred finish.

Let fat do the flavour. A teaspoon of beef dripping tossed through parboiled spuds turns them pub‑roast good. Keep the marinade simple: salt, pepper, lemon zest, a dab of mustard. I swear the chip‑shop smell of heavy oil has left the building.

The common mistakes (and easy saves)

Too much oil makes soggy edges. Start lean; add a mist halfway if the potatoes look dusty. Sauce bowls in the drawer burn or rattle; warm gravy in a jug and finish it on the hob. Crowd the basket and you’ll steam, not crisp.

Watch sugar content on glazes. Honey or sticky BBQ will catch fast in the tight heat; paint it on in the last five minutes. If Yorkies are non‑negotiable, heat an empty tray in the oven or an air‑fryer‑safe tin, then pour batter and blast hot. Let’s be honest: nobody is making towering puddings every single week.

“The air fryer didn’t kill my roast,” laughs Gina, a home cook in Leeds. “It killed the panic. I can do potatoes while the chicken rests and still get that ‘ooh’ when the plate lands.”

• Quick swaps to try:
  – Whole chicken? Spatchcock and cook on a rack for even browning.
  – Pork belly? Start lower heat for tenderness, finish high for crackling.
  – Carrots and parsnips? Toss with maple and thyme, cook in the second drawer.
  – Cauli cheese? Pre‑steam florets, then air‑fry with crumbs for a blistered top.

Keeping the soul intact

The machine changes the method, not the meaning. Share the plate. Pour the gravy twice. Sit a little longer. The roast is a pause button we press with other people around us, and a fan on the counter can’t blow that away.

What the air fryer does is strip out the faff that used to keep one person stuck in the kitchen, and it spreads the job out. One shakes the potatoes, one stirs the gravy, one carves. On a grey Sunday, that division of delicious labour feels like its own small kindness.

Some weeks you’ll still crave the slow oven and a tray of brassicas catching on the edges. Other weeks you’ll want the clean crunch of a 40‑minute roast with zero drama. Choose the roast that suits the day. It all counts.

The method you’ll actually repeat

Here’s a simple flow that slots into everyday life. Season early if you can, even an hour makes a difference. Bring the meat closer to room temperature while you parboil potatoes.

Preheat the air fryer. Cook the meat on a rack until the skin is golden and the juices run clear when pierced, then rest under foil. While it rests, run your potatoes until the outsides ruffle and sing. Finish with flaky salt.

Warm your plates. Reheat gravy. Toss a green — peas with mint and butter, or cabbage with a splash of vinegar. Plate fast and eat hot. *Your future self will thank you more than a fourth side dish ever could.*

What this says about Sundays now

We’ve compressed so much of life into our small corners — work, screens, endless lists — that the roast has had to fold up to fit. The air fryer isn’t a fad in that context; it’s a tool that lets the ritual breathe in a tighter room. There’s tenderness in that compromise.

Sundays still need a centre. Meat or mushrooms, potatoes or parsnips, gravy or miso‑rich jus — the point is the pause. If the machine makes the pause easier to reach, that’s not a loss. That’s a door left open.

So keep the jug. Keep the crunch. Keep the part where someone leans back and says, “I’m done,” and someone else steals one last potato. The roast can be small and still feel big.

FAQ :

• Can you make roast potatoes that taste “proper” in an air fryer?Yes. Parboil, rough the edges, use a teaspoon of beef dripping or neutral oil, don’t crowd, and shake halfway. They’ll crackle and stay fluffy.
• What about Yorkshire puddings?Heat an empty tin until scorching — in the oven or an air‑fryer‑safe tray — then pour batter and cook hot. Small ones work best in a fryer.
• Does an air fryer really save money versus an oven?For small to medium meals, it often does, thanks to quicker heat‑up and concentrated cooking. Running costs vary by model and tariff, but the logic holds.
• Can I cook meat and veg together?Yes with dual‑zone models or by staggering: cook meat first, rest it, then run veg while juices settle. Use a rack to keep airflow around the protein.
• How do I stop food drying out?Don’t overcook. Use a probe to hit your preferred doneness, rest meat, and add a little fat to veg. A light glaze at the end locks in shine.