Category: Air Fryer Cooking

Vici Spicy Vegetable Gyoza Review | Air Fryer Test from Lidl Portugal

8/10/2025

Pierogi. Ravioli. Empanada. Dumpling. Momo. Khinkali. Gyoza.

Nearly every nationality has a version of some type of dough stuffed with a delicious filling and then cooked in some way - deep fried, steamed, boiled, and so on.

Today we try some Japanese inspired gyoza from Vici brand, purchased at Lidl grocery store.

This post is part of a series: July 2025 Lidl Grocery Store Finds • Japanese Food in Portugal
More Easy Air Fryer Cooking Ideas

Vici Gyozas de verduras picantes

Learn Portuguese:

Verduras - vegetables
Picantes - spicy

What does Gyozas de verduras picantes mean in English?

Spicy vegetable gyozas!

Learn Portuguese Category: In these posts you will learn some Portuguese vocabulary!

Vici Gyoza - Verduras Picantes (Spicy Vegetables)

Cooking Instructions & Nutrition Info for VIci Frozen Gyozas

The package includes visual instructions for how to cook these frozen Japanese gyozas summarized as follows:

Pot: 4-5 minutes
Pan: 2 minute + 3 minutes steaming
Steam: 6-10 minutes
Microwave + h20: 5-6 minutes
Oven at 200 C: 15 minutes

How To Cook Frozen Gyoza

English Ingredients for Vici Spicy Vegetable Gyoza

You can find an English ingredients list on this package. After the ingredient list you will find more detailed cooking instructions.

How to pan fry dumplings (Gyoza):

"Lightly grease a frying pan, place the dumplings in the pan and cook on moderate heat for 2 minutes or until golden brown on the bottom. Fill some water and steam for 3 minutes."

How to steam dumplings (gyoza)

"Put some water in the steaming pan and heat. When thh water is boiling, arrange dumplings on the steaming board and steam for 6-10 minutes. "

Ingredients and Cooking Instructions for Vici Spicy Vegetable Gyoza

How to microwave dumplings (Gyoza)

"Put dumplings in a suitable dish with water (dumplings completely covered). For standard 700W microwave, heat for about 5-6 minutes."

How to cook dumplings (Gyoza) in the oven

"Cover the dumplings with sauce and cook in the oven (preheated to 200C/395F for about 15 minutes)"
... Not sure what kind of sauce you would be cooking these in though tbh....

How to boil dumplings (gyoza)

"Boil in a pot with water for 4-5 minutes."

How to cook frozen Gyoza (Japanese dumplings) in an air fryer

Despite the package having instructions for not one, two, three, or four, but FIVE cooking methods... we opted do none of those and instead try cooking Vici gyoza in our air fryer!

See More: Air Fryer Cooking

Cooking Gyoza in an Air Fryer | Air Fryer Cooking Blog

We arranged 14 gyoza in our air fryer and spritzed with cooking spray. We air fried them at 200C, the highest temp on our air fryer, for about 10 minutes and checked for internal temp and color.

Vici Gyoza de Verduras Picantes Cocinado | Easy Air Fryer Ideas

Can you cook frozen gyoza in an air fryer?

Absolutely! This is an easy way to cook these little Japanese parcels of joy. As you can probably tell from the photos, the dough is quite crispy.

More often when you have gyoza the dough is soft and starchy with one side having a nice crust from being fried in a pan. So this is a different experience, for sure.

Crispy Gyoza From Lidl | Lidl Review Blog

Vici Gyozas de verduras picantes Review

We love Vici Gyozas! We have tried both the chicken (frango) and spicy vegetables (verduras picantes) and we prefer the vegetable version. They are very flavorful and truly do have a nice spice level to them!

Vici Spicy Vegetable Gyoza Review

We have repurchased these at Lidl multiple times and they are great to have on hand for a busy night or when you're too tired to cook.

See how they turn out when cooked in a pan... ( Cook along coming soon!)

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DIY Air Fryer Fish and Chips | Continente Portugal Frozen Battered Fish Review

7/20/2025

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If you're looking for solid Fish and Chips in Algarve, I can recommend Lara's Plaice in Albufeira and The Water Dog in Armacao de Pera. Two very different styles and atmospheres, but both yummy and repeatable.

Unfortunately time, location, and budget won't always permit to go to a fish and chips joint, so the freezer aisle will have to do!

This post is part of a series: Continente Grocery Reviews • Americans in Portugal

Continente Filetes de Pescada com Ovo

We found "fish filets with egg" (filetes de pescada com ovo) at the local Continente and wanted to give them a try in the air fryer.

Filetes de Pescada com Ovo | Continente Review Blog

Continente Battered FIsh Ingredients, Nutrition Facts, and Cooking Instructions:

Ingredients, Cooking Instructions, Nutrition Facts | Continente Egg Battered Fish Fillets

As we were cooking these in the air fryer, we followed the package instructions of cooking the filets without defrosting at 200C (392F) for 11-13 minutes.

Add to Cart: Beer Battered Fish

The Result:

The result was a tasty, simple fish sandwich dinner perfect for a busy weeknight meal.

We served it on a long fresh baked Portuguese roll called a cacetinho, or french roll, topped with ketchup and iceburg lettuce. Add some french fries (chips for brits) and you're sorted!

Air Fryer Fish Sandwich | Portugal Food Blog

Okay obv this isn't the same as a true British Fish + Chips and air frying a battered fish fillet is never going to be the same as deep frying, but still this is a solid option for an easy and quick meal. :)

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Easy Air Fryer MeatLoaF Weeknight Meal Idea with Lidl

7/15/2025

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First things first:

Is meatloaf one word or two words?
Meat loaf ... Meatloaf ... Meat loaf ... Meatloaf... I can't tell. The more I stare at it the weirder it looks either way. According to the internet both spellings are used so now that that is sorted we can carry on!

Can You Cook Meatloaf In An Air Fryer?

You better believe it!

Meat loaf is an American comfort food and it can be an easy weeknight meal idea made even easier by using an air fryer! Wait. Is air fryer one word or two? :p

This post is part of a series: June 2025 Lidl Grocery Store Finds • Americans in Portugal

Does Portugal Have Meat Loaf?

Portugal has something called a "rolo de carne" (literally "meat roll") which is similar but more of a rolled up meat loaf with cheese or other filling stuffed inside. (Think of a pumpkin roll, but with meat and cheese).

This 'Portuguese meatloaf' can be tasty, but sometimes the ground meat gets a bit dried out during cooking since it's thinner in order to roll up around the recheio (Portuguese word for "filling").

So anyways... back to a simple meatloaf...

How To Make Meat LoaF In An Air Fryer

Meat loaf is a blank canvas. You start with ground meat of your choice, shown here is beef, and then add salt & pepper and adapt it to any flavor profile you want.

Some meat loaf recipes call for eggs and breadcrumbs (Oh by the way, many ground meat packages in Portugal already contain bread crumbs or similar, so please double check if you're eating gluten free)

Just chuck everything in a big pan and combine it all with your hands, ideally. It feels gross, but you can do it! This working of the meat not only incorporates the flavors of your chosen spices, but also contributes to the end texture of the american rolo de carne.

Raw Meat Loaf | Air Fryer Cooking

If it grosses you out too much, don't worry, you can use a utensil, but you'll still want to get your hands involved to form the meatloaf well.

Once you have mixed everything together and shaped the meat into a loaf shape (lol), place it on the air fryer basket!

Cooking Meat Loaf In An Air Fryer

What temperature should I cook a meat loaf in an air fryer?
Try setting your air fryer for 190C (375F) and cook it for around 25 minutes if its 1 kilo (~2 pounds)

What is the internal temperature for meat loaf?
Ground beef, like in a meatloaf, should be cooked to 165 degrees internal temperature to ensure food safety.

Cooked Meat Loaf in Air Fryer | Easy Weeknight Dinner Ideas

How to tell if meatloaf is cooked inside?
Easy! Use an instant read meat thermometer. Ensure it reads 165F or ~74C.

What To Eat With MeatLoaf

There are so many delicious side dishes for meatloaf. For example:

Mac and Cheese
Mashed Potatoes and Gravy
Corn on the Cob
Corn Bread
Brussel Sprouts with Bacon
Steamed Veggies like Brocoli, Cauliflour, and Carrots

Barbecue Meat Loaf with Steamed Veggies and Quinoa Rice Blend

Get Yo'self an Air Fryuh

For this quick weeknight meal I just made a plain meat loaf.

When it was nearly done I added barbecue sauce and put it back in the air fryer to sizzle.

For sides we just had the default - frozen veggies from Lidl (this time broccoli, cauliflour, and carrots) along side rice with some quinoa mixed in.

Ways To Make Meatloaf More Interesting

Instead of BBQ sauce, try a Ketchup (heinz plz + tks) topped meatloaf!
Use a beefy mushroom soup mix when you prepare the meat mixture
Stuff it with cheese in the middle - try mozzarella, cheddar, pepper jack, provolone, gouda, or havarti.
Wrap it in bacon. Nuff said. ;)

Meat Loaf Dinner | Cooking With Lidl

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Lidl Mcennedy Honey BBQ Chicken Wings Review - Easy Air Fryer Cooking

7/14/2025

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As Americans, we always find it amusing when traveling abroad to see the idea the rest of the world has about American food and culture - no, we don't actually put hot dogs in our pizza crust! lolololol

The Mcennedy American Way brand name from Lidl gives us a chuckle, but they aren't wrong that Honey BBQ wings are beloved in the States.

This post is part of a series: June 2025 Lidl Grocery Store Finds • Expats in Portugal

American Style Honey BBQ Chicken Wings at Lidl Portugal

McEnnedy Honey BBQ Chicken Wings Ingredients

If you'd like to see the ingredients on these frozen honey bbq chicken wings from Lidl Portugal, tap the photo below to enlarge. The ingredients list is available in 4 languages!

Mcennedy American Way Chicken Wings Ingredients - Honey Barbecue Flavor

How To Cook Lidl Frozen BBQ Chicken Wings

The cooking instructions for frozen chicken wings are on the back of the bag and offers instructions in 4 languages.

how to cook frozen wings in a standard oven:
200 C for 30-35 minutes

how to deep fry wings:
160 C for approximately 5 minutes

how to cook wings in a pan:
12 minutes in heated oil

Frozen Chicken Wing Cooking Instructions

How to make honey bbq wings in the air fryer

Much like the Asia Curry Frozen Chicken Wings, we opted to test out the air fryer for the Mccenedy Honey BBQ wings.

Put Frozen Chicken Wings In Air Fryer!

We heated the air fryer to 200C (~400F) and began to check the chicken wings at 15 minutes, using our instant read meat thermometer to ensure a safe temperature for cooking chicken was reached (btw thats 73.9C or 165F) .

Side Note: If you don't already have a meat thermometer, can I just urge you to take the plunge and buy one? You only have to buy it once and it will save you from overcooking your meat and having to chew through rubber or undercooking it and needing an expensive ER visit with food poisoning.

Get A Meat Thermometer Here! You'll Thank Me Later :)

Cook Honey BBQ Chicken Wings In Air Fryer | Lidl Grocery Review

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Lidl Mcennedy honey bbq frozen chicken wing review

Once again, like the Vitasia Curry Wings, these made for easy protein in a hurry. They cooked up well in the air fryer, getting a little crispy while maintaining some sticky glaze.

which is better - Curry Wings or Honey BBQ Wings at Lidl?

It's a draw!

One of us preferred the curry wings while the other preferred the bbq. You'll have to give them a try and let us know which you prefer!

Reviewing Chicken Wings At Lidl Grocery Store In Portugal

Vitasia Frozen Chicken Wing Review - Asia Curry Flavor
Original Lidl Frozen Chicken Wings
Fresh Chicken Wings - Lidl Portugal

New Category: Chicken Wings

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Lidl Vitasia Curry chicken Wings - Worth The Hype?

7/13/2025

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In this Lidl Review we are featuring Vitasia Chicken Wings in the Asia Curry flavor.

This post is part of a series: June 2025 Lidl Grocery Store Finds • Expats in Portugal

Asia Curry Chicken Wings from Vitasia - Lidl Portugal Review

These Asia Curry Chicken Wings were purchased in Lidl Portugal in the freezer aisle.

Vitasia Chicken Wings Ingredients - Asia Curry Flavor

The ingredients are listed in Spanish (ES) and Portuguese (PT) on the top left side of the packaging. Tap the image to read all of the ingredients.

Vitasia Asian Curry Chicken Wing Ingredients

How to cook Vitasia Frozen Chicken Wings

You can cook these frozen chicken wings from Lidl in at least 3 ways. The package recommends the following:

Oven at 200C or 180C for convention - 30-35 minutes
Frying pan with oil for approximately 12 minutes
Deep fryer at 160C for approximately 5 minutes

We opted to do our own thing and use the air fryer.

Cooking Instructions - Vitasia Chicken Wings

How to cook frozen chicken wings in the air fryer

Can you cook frozen chicken wings in the air fryer? Of course you can!

We just used the convection oven temperature recommendation of 180C (~350F) and started checking them after 15 minutes.

At that time we temped them using an instant read meat thermometer and flipped them over for a few more minutes.

How many chicken wings fit in an air fryer?

In our air fryer, 10 wings fit comfortably at a time.

Chicken Wings in Air Fryer Basket

Lidl Vitasia Asian Curry Chicken WIngs Review

For an easy midweek meal or late night snack, frozen wings can be a great choice to get some protein in. Making them in the air fryer is easy and healthier than deep frying.

Overall we thought these were good, but occasionally found 'weird bits' or broken bones which we didn't love.

The curry flavor is nice to shake things up a bit. 10 wings is a decent amount, but not quite enough for 2 people. Maybe I could have crammed some more in, but I wanted to leave room for the air to circulate and get some color and crisp.

Pro Tip: Cook one round of chicken wings in the air fryer, then after you plate them, toss a second round in. They'll be cooked right when you're wishing you had more! ;)

Asia Curry Flavored Chicken Wing Dings

More Lidl Chicken Wing Reviews:

Mcennedy Chicken Wings - Honey BBQ Flavor
Original Lidl Frozen Chicken Wings
Fresh Chicken Wings - Lidl Portugal

What Grocery Store Carries Vitasia Brand?

Vitasia is a brand carried by Lidl Grocery Store. Since we love asian food and asian-inspired foods, we have loads of reviews for Vitasia products primarily from Lidl Portugal.

Check out these posts:

Most Recent Lidl Portugal Reviews:

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Traveling through food

Vici Spicy Vegetable Gyoza Review | Air Fryer Test from Lidl Portugal

​Vici Gyozas de verduras picantes

​Cooking Instructions & Nutrition Info for VIci Frozen Gyozas

​English Ingredients for Vici Spicy Vegetable Gyoza

How to pan fry dumplings (Gyoza):

How to steam dumplings (gyoza)

​How to microwave dumplings (Gyoza)

How to cook dumplings (Gyoza) in the oven

How to boil dumplings (gyoza)

How to cook frozen Gyoza (Japanese dumplings) in an air fryer

See More: Air Fryer Cooking​

Can you cook frozen gyoza in an air fryer?

​Vici Gyozas de verduras picantes Review​

See how they turn out when cooked in a pan... ( Cook along coming soon!)

More Air Fryer Cooking Ideas

More Lidl Grocery Finds & Reviews:

DIY Air Fryer Fish and Chips | Continente Portugal Frozen Battered Fish Review

​Continente Filetes de Pescada com Ovo

Continente Battered FIsh Ingredients, Nutrition Facts, and Cooking Instructions:​

The Result: ​

More Air Fryer Cooking:

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Easy Air Fryer MeatLoaF Weeknight Meal Idea with Lidl

Can You Cook Meatloaf In An Air Fryer?

Does Portugal Have Meat Loaf?

How To Make Meat LoaF In An Air Fryer

Cooking Meat Loaf In An Air Fryer

What To Eat With MeatLoaf

Ways To Make Meatloaf More Interesting

More Air Fryer Cooking Ideas

More Lidl Portugal Grocery Reviews:

Lidl Mcennedy Honey BBQ Chicken Wings Review - Easy Air Fryer Cooking

McEnnedy Honey BBQ Chicken Wings Ingredients

How To Cook Lidl Frozen BBQ Chicken Wings

How to make honey bbq wings in the air fryer

Lidl Mcennedy honey bbq frozen chicken wing review

which is better - Curry Wings or Honey BBQ Wings at Lidl?

Reviewing Chicken Wings At Lidl Grocery Store In Portugal

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Lidl Vitasia Curry chicken Wings - Worth The Hype?

Vitasia Chicken Wings Ingredients - Asia Curry Flavor

How to cook Vitasia Frozen Chicken Wings

How to cook frozen chicken wings in the air fryer

Lidl Vitasia Asian Curry Chicken WIngs Review

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What Grocery Store Carries Vitasia Brand?

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Vici Gyozas de verduras picantes

Cooking Instructions & Nutrition Info for VIci Frozen Gyozas

English Ingredients for Vici Spicy Vegetable Gyoza

How to microwave dumplings (Gyoza)

See More: Air Fryer Cooking

Vici Gyozas de verduras picantes Review

Continente Filetes de Pescada com Ovo

Continente Battered FIsh Ingredients, Nutrition Facts, and Cooking Instructions:

The Result:

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