Thinking about moving to a Ninja Foodi.

weringo · 19 Dec 2021 at 15:50

I just picked one of these up. Where do you guys find things to cook? Any good websites / cookbooks?

robj20 · 19 Dec 2021 at 15:56

weringo said:
I just picked one of these up. Where do you guys find things to cook? Any good websites / cookbooks?

Just what you usually cook but faster/more conveniently.

weringo · 19 Dec 2021 at 15:59

That sounds like quite an investment figuring out what setting to use and how long each thing takes to cook, unless there's any good tips?

andy_mk3 · 19 Dec 2021 at 20:56

weringo said:
That sounds like quite an investment figuring out what setting to use and how long each thing takes to cook, unless there's any good tips?

There's a Ninja Cookbook on Amazon, a UK based one. I've picked one up for the Mrs, looks pretty decent. The Ninja itself does come with a few ideas and guidelines. A lot of it comes down to experimenting and experiance too.

Vanquish-Storm · 9 Jan 2022 at 11:07

I was toying with getting an air fryer but the foodi sounds better with the other types of cooking it can do.

Someone here mentioned the instant pot? Is there much difference between the two?

lalala123 · 9 Jan 2022 at 11:16

What's the footprint on the counter ? I reckon it,d be ~ a foot square, which works in your own place, but not too well in a shared household I guess

robj20 · 9 Jan 2022 at 11:37

Vanquish-Storm said:
I was toying with getting an air fryer but the foodi sounds better with the other types of cooking it can do.

Someone here mentioned the instant pot? Is there much difference between the two?

I went for the instant pot because it does Sous vide as well and has a smaller foot print but it's a bit taller. I prefer how the different lids Chinese off as well, plus stainless steel pot for longer live and easier cleaning.

Vanquish-Storm · 9 Jan 2022 at 16:30

robj20 said:
I went for the instant pot because it does Sous vide as well and has a smaller foot print but it's a bit taller. I prefer how the different lids Chinese off as well, plus stainless steel pot for longer live and easier cleaning.

oh I took a impromptu trip to the local qvc outlet and they had the ninja foodi max for £99

edit: looks like I’m going to have to take a trip back. There are parts missing and it’s well used! It’s even rusted in places.

Raymond Lin · 9 Jan 2022 at 19:48

i ended up getting a Instant Pot and a Ninja Airfryer separately! Total cost about the same as a Foodi.

I would say I love the Air fryer more than i thought i would. I use it a few times a week.

robj20 · 9 Jan 2022 at 20:30

Raymond Lin said:
i ended up getting a Instant Pot and a Ninja Airfryer separately! Total cost about the same as a Foodi.

I would say I love the Air fryer more than i thought i would. I use it a few times a week.

Why not just buy the air fryer lid for the instant pot?

Raymond Lin · 9 Jan 2022 at 20:32

robj20 said:
Why not just buy the air fryer lid for the instant pot?

I didn't know they make one!

Edit - it cost more than my air fryer!

aVdub · 26 Jan 2022 at 08:41

We use the Ninja Foodi Max Health grill and Instant Pot Duo much more than the double oven now and only really use the rings for scratch curries and sauces.

Finding it hard work to find a decent UK recipe book for the Ninja though..

Kelt · 13 Mar 2022 at 22:50

Got mine for £153 from Very, so not bad.

Great bit of kit, the air crisping is a pleasure to use, so simple, haven't tried the pressure cooker yet.

andy_mk3 · 14 Mar 2022 at 22:05

Bought our OP500UK end of 2019, the pressure lid has never been great, always had to hod it down for it to build pressure. Lately it's gotten worse so contacted John Lewis, upgraded to a OL650UK for the price difference of £20, just need to collect it from Waitrose this week.

robfosters · 14 Mar 2022 at 22:17

What’s the difference between a foodi and a PKP?

Ninco! · 15 Mar 2022 at 21:34

Ayahuasca said:
They're great, I'm considering getting the grill to go alongside my Foodi Max.

Same, the Grill looks like a George Foreman on steroids, I like the concept for burgers, steaks etc.

@robfosters, I am curious as well.

ic1male · 10 May 2022 at 11:14

Lots of you in here seem to have gone for the pressure cooker model but did anyone buy the dual zone AF300/400 model? That's the one I'm looking at - salmon in one side and asparagus in the other, for example. All the reviews on all the websites it sells on are practically gushing with enthusiasm but then you read comments on the YouTube videos where people are cooking things and it's all stuff such as "oh, it's rubbish for steaks, use your frying pan" etc. So now I'm a bit torn.

I can practically get the damn thing for free if I convert my Microsoft XBox Rewards balance into John Lewis gift vouchers though.

I'm really just after something that can do things like chicken breasts, fish fillets, steak, roast veggies, sausages, etc. without me having to stand there watching it.

Raymond Lin · 10 May 2022 at 11:21

Don't use it for steaks. It's not hot enough (well, you can and it will cook but it's not the best that it can be). You want that sear and caramelisation from the meat sitting in the fat. It only goes up to 210c and in a hot pan it gets much hotter than that.

Dual zone is convenient, a bit like if you want to cook more stuff or have everything done at the same time. Depends how much you want that convenience.

p.s. Ninja Airfryer owner (1 zone), and Instant Pot pressure cooker owner and cast iron pan/carbon steel/stainless steel pan owner.

Oven chips in the air fryer. Steak on cast iron pan. Burgers on Carbon Steel pan. Sausages in the air fryer. Veggies can do in air fryer and I can even cook pork belly with crackling in air fryer. I wouldn't cook chicken breast in air fryer, like I wouldn't roast a chicken breast in the oven. It will just get too dry.

ic1male · 10 May 2022 at 11:50

Raymond Lin said:
Don't use it for steaks. It's not hot enough (well, you can and it will cook but it's not the best that it can be). You want that sear and caramelisation from the meat sitting in the fat. It only goes up to 210c and in a hot pan it gets much hotter than that.

Dual zone is convenient, a bit like if you want to cook more stuff or have everything done at the same time. Depends how much you want that convenience.

p.s. Ninja Airfryer owner (1 zone), and Instant Pot pressure cooker owner and cast iron pan/carbon steel/stainless steel pan owner.

Oven chips in the air fryer. Steak on cast iron pan. Burgers on Carbon Steel pan. Sausages in the air fryer. Veggies can do in air fryer and I can even cook pork belly with crackling in air fryer. I wouldn't cook chicken breast in air fryer, like I wouldn't roast a chicken breast in the oven. It will just get too dry.

That's food for thought but I'm not really that fussy about how things turn out, as long as there is no blood, I'm good.

Maybe Ninja have updated their product since you bought yours but the website says it goes up to 240C (whether that makes much difference, I dunno.)

Also of note is that nowhere on the product page do they mention steak. Practically everything but steak. So you are right on that one.

Raymond Lin · 10 May 2022 at 11:58

ic1male said:
That's food for thought but I'm not really that fussy about how things turn out, as long as there is no blood, I'm good.

Maybe Ninja have updated their product since you bought yours but the website says it goes up to 240C (whether that makes much difference, I dunno.)

I've tried all kind of things in mine.

Sausages, Banana bread, bread (I have a tiny loaf tin), cookies, melting butter, dehydrating things, peas, frozen food, pork belly, chicken wings, sweet potato fries. One thing I learn is that to make things crispy on the outside, it needs fat (or oil), chicken wings works great because of the skin and that it encompasses the whole wing, almost like a blanket. So chicken breast don't really work due to the low fat content. I treat it like a really hot oven, and not as a fryer. Also, it will need flipping half way as well if you want crispy on all sides.

Made these in the air fryer, not the rice or veg obviously.