TikTok video shows secret part of air fryer that you may not know needs to be cleaned

Air fryers have become our new best friends in the kitchen, but one uncleaned component has got home chefs feeling all kinds of ashamed.

As much as your air fryer has likely become an essential staple in your life, you probably aren’t giving it the love and care it deserves.

Your tray is probably immaculate and you may even give the top a dusting every now and then, but can you confidently say your air fryer is clean as a whistle?

This one particular area of air fryers is particularly troublesome to clean, too, but it’s worth knowing it needs doing.

If you never get round to it, you could end up getting some bad smells in your kitchen, or worse yet a full-blown fire.

One person took to TikTok to provide the unofficial public service announcement, and a fair few air fryer fans wish they hadn’t.

Having looked up the inside of their air fryer, they found that the heating element and everywhere surrounding it had become thoroughly browned and greasy after many months of usage.

The trouble with cleaning this part is that it’s tricky to get your hands in to scrub every nook and cranny, heating elements tend to be difficult to clean at the best of times, and months of use will mean that gunk is very much baked-on.

The responses varied widely, covering everything from jokes to terror.

"The underside of my air fryer is none of my business," said one popular comment.

“I don't know what you're taking about, I don't see anything,” said another.

Someone else added: "I'm gonna just pretend my air fryer doesn't have this part and never lift mine up

"Use until fire, then buy a new one," came one popular solution. Please note this course of action is not advised.

It might be a pain to do, but a little cleaning effort can go a long way.