I have one of the original Tefal Actifry models which has a paddle to turn the food as it cooks and it makes the best chicken thighs, then I put mushrooms into the pan once the chicken is done and being kept warm, so the juices are absorbed. I have done stir fry a couple of times but mushrooms are the better option.
We used to have a 'fire oven' and it cooked really well - but it did require the flues cleaning out regularly, and we had it from new, plus my mother's mother cooked on a 'Yorkshire range' so my mum grew up with the knowledge of how they should work.
One house I visited had a similar cooking arrangement, but it only got hot on one side. I worked out how to take it apart and found that the flues were blocked with bricks and it had been assembled with the small and large ovens the wrong way round.
Once put back together correctly and lit, all the temperature dials started to move, and by the time cook arrived to do lunch it was all hot, as were the radiators in the housekeeper's sitting room and the butler's pantry. I had to leave soon after, but was sent a box of chocolates. I think I still have it somewhere as it was constructed like a jewellery box, and I didn't have a real one. (Still don't)
