You've seen it. That brushed stainless steel box sitting on your friend’s counter, looking a bit like a relic from a 1990s professional kitchen. It’s the Cuisinart convection toaster oven with air fryer—specifically the TOA-60 or its digital sibling, the TOA-65. While every other brand is out here making plastic eggs that look like spaceships, Cuisinart stuck to a design that feels like it belongs in a bakery. It’s heavy. It’s tactile. Honestly, it’s a bit of a beast.
People buy these things because they’re tired of soggy leftovers. Microwaves are great for soup, but they’re a death sentence for a day-old slice of pepperoni pizza. This machine changes that. But it isn’t just a glorified toaster. It’s a high-velocity heat chamber.
The Air Fryer Gimmick That Actually Works
Let’s be real for a second. "Air frying" is just marketing speak for a very fast, very hot convection fan. Cuisinart knows this. They didn't reinvent physics; they just took a high-performance heater and slapped a powerful fan right above the food. Most toaster ovens have a tiny fan on the side that whispers warm air around. The Cuisinart convection toaster oven with air fryer uses a top-down configuration that blasts the top of your food.
It’s loud. Not "jet engine" loud, but you’ll definitely know it’s working.
The result? Chicken wings that actually crunch. If you’ve ever tried to do wings in a standard oven, you know the struggle of the "rubbery skin." In this unit, the fat renders out fast. By the time the timer dings, the skin is shattered-glass crispy. You don't need a gallon of peanut oil. You just need that airflow.
Why the Analog Knobs Matter
In a world where everything has a touchscreen that breaks if your finger is slightly damp, Cuisinart’s decision to keep physical knobs on the TOA-60 is a stroke of genius. Or maybe it’s just cheaper. Either way, it works. There’s something deeply satisfying about the mechanical tick-tick-tick of the timer.
It feels permanent.
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You’ve got four main dials. One for temperature, one for the function (Bake, Broil, Toast, Air Fry), one for the main timer, and a separate one just for toast shade. This is where people usually mess up. They try to use the main 60-minute timer for toast and end up with charcoal. Don't do that. Use the dedicated toast timer. It’s calibrated differently for a reason.
The Space Problem: It's Bigger Than You Think
Don't buy this if you live in a tiny studio with six inches of counter space. You need clearance. This machine gets hot—really hot. We're talking "don't leave a plastic bag of bread leaning against the side" hot.
The interior is surprisingly cavernous. You can fit a 4-pound chicken in there. You can fit six slices of bread. You can even fit a 12-inch pizza, though it’s a tight squeeze. This capacity is why it’s effectively replaced the full-sized oven for many families. Why preheat a massive 5-cubic-foot oven for 20 minutes just to chicken-nugget some frozen snacks? The Cuisinart is ready in about three.
Efficiency is the name of the game here.
Cleaning is the Achilles Heel
Here is the truth nobody tells you in the glossy advertisements: this thing is a pain to keep pristine. Because the fan is so powerful, it blows grease around. If you’re air-frying bacon—which, by the way, is the best way to cook bacon—tiny droplets of fat will find their way to the heating elements and the interior walls.
If you don't wipe it down regularly, you'll eventually see a bit of smoke when you crank it up to 450°F.
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Pro tip: Use parchment paper on the baking pan when you can, but never let it cover the entire basket when air frying. You’ll block the airflow and ruin the whole point of the convection. Also, the air fry basket is stainless steel mesh. It’s great for crisping, but if you let burnt cheese get stuck in those wires, you’re going to be scrubbing for a while. Soak it immediately. Just trust me on that one.
Cuisinart vs. The World: Ninja, Breville, and the Rest
When you’re looking at the Cuisinart convection toaster oven with air fryer, you’re inevitably going to compare it to the Breville Smart Oven Air or the Ninja Foodi.
Breville is the "luxury" choice. It has more sensors and "Element IQ" technology that moves heat around. It’s also significantly more expensive. Ninja is the "utility" choice. Their "flip-up" models save space, but they feel a bit more like a gadget than a kitchen appliance.
Cuisinart sits in that sweet spot. It’s the mid-range king. It feels like a tool. It doesn't have a bunch of fancy presets for "dehydrating kale" or "making yogurt," although the newer digital versions have added some of that fluff. Most people just want to bake a potato or air fry some fries. Cuisinart does those two things better than almost anyone else in the $200 price bracket.
The Nuance of Temperature Control
One thing a lot of users complain about is that the Cuisinart runs hot.
If a recipe says 400°F, you might want to dial it back to 375°F in this oven. Because the heating elements are so close to the food and the convection fan is so aggressive, things cook faster than the back of the box suggests. It’s a learning curve. You’ll probably burn a batch of cookies once. Take it as a rite of passage. Once you learn the "Cuisinart offset," you’ll be fine.
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Practical Advice for New Owners
If you just unboxed your Cuisinart convection toaster oven with air fryer, do yourself a favor and run it empty for 15 minutes at a high temp. There’s a "new car smell" but for ovens—mostly just manufacturing oils burning off. Get that out of the way before you put food in it.
- Placement: Give it at least 4 inches of breathing room on all sides.
- The Tray: The crumb tray slides out from the bottom front. Clean it every single week. If you don't, the crumbs will eventually smoke and make your kitchen smell like a campfire.
- Accessories: Look into getting a small stone for pizza. The direct heat from the bottom element combined with the convection fan on top makes for a crust that rivals a brick oven.
It isn't a perfect machine. The knobs can feel a bit light, and the lack of an interior light on some older models is annoying. But in terms of sheer reliability and the quality of the "crunch" it produces, it’s hard to beat.
Moving Toward a Better Kitchen Workflow
Stop thinking of this as a secondary appliance. For a household of two or three people, it’s the primary oven. It’s faster, it’s cheaper to run, and it doesn't heat up the whole house in the summer.
When you start using the air fry function, start with simple stuff. Frozen fries are the baseline. Then move to Brussels sprouts with a bit of balsamic and olive oil. Then try a whole roasted chicken. You’ll find that the "convection" part of the Cuisinart convection toaster oven with air fryer is actually more useful than the "air fryer" label. It just makes everything cook more evenly.
To get the most out of your unit, start by calibrating your expectations. It's an oven first, a fryer second, and a toaster third. Treat it like a professional tool—keep it clean, watch your temperatures, and don't be afraid to experiment with the rack heights.
Next Steps for Peak Performance:
- Check your clearance: Ensure your counter space has enough overhead room so you don't warp your cabinets.
- Buy a dedicated thermometer: Since these units can run 25 degrees hot, an inexpensive oven thermometer will tell you exactly what’s happening inside.
- Adjust your recipes: Reduce standard oven temperatures by 25°F and check for doneness 5–10 minutes earlier than suggested.
- Deep clean the mesh: If the air fry basket gets gunked up, use a paste of baking soda and vinegar to break down the grease without scratching the steel.