This is the review of the Ninja Foodi, a kitchen appliance that is a pressure cooker and air fryer all in one. Find out what is great about the Ninja Foodi and what the cons are to buying a Ninja Foodi.
Two things that have changed my cooking game in the last 2 years is my purchase of an instant pot or electric pressure cooker and the air fryer. I knew that the pressure cooker was going to be a game changer in terms of cooking things fast.
Using the pressure cooker allowed me to make many simple foods fast for myself at home and for clients. I love how versatile it is and I use it multiple times a week.
What I didn’t expect was to actually fall in love with the air fryer too! I really didn’t want to love it, but it also made cooking so much faster and made all of my food get a tender crisp texture that we enjoy.
When I found out that the Ninja Foodi was a pressure cooker and air fryer all in one, I kind of freaked out a bit. One because I had no idea HOW a kitchen appliance worked in double capacity, and two because I felt like I couldn’t justify buying ANOTHER appliance to take up counter space.
Well, my curiosity won and I ended up buying a Ninja Foodi on black Friday and there is no turning back!
Check Out My Ultimate Air Fryer Guide
What is a Ninja Foodi?
The Ninja Foodi is a pressure cooker that crisps. The appliance has a 6.5qt pressure cooker along with a 4qt Cook & crisp basket for the Tender Crisp (air fryer option).
How does the Ninja Foodi work as an air fryer and pressure cooker?
The machine itself comes with an air fryer lid that permanently stays on but opens up to the side when pressure cooking. When you are using the electric pressure cooker function, you pop on the pressure cooker lid that has a venting and sealing capability.
The Ninja Foodi also comes with a wire trivet for which the handles reverse so you can pressure cook multiple things at once. I found this handy to cook meat and vegetables at the same time.
To use this as an air fryer, you would put in the air fryer basket it comes with and close the permanent lid. The permanent lid allows for air flow or convection while the food is cooking.
Check Out:
- Best Air Fryer Guide | For those who are Air Fryer Curious
- Instant Pot Basics | Cook rice, eggs, and other basic foods
- Instant Pot Recipes
- Air Fryer Recipes
What is the benefit of buying a Ninja Foodi?
- It will replace the counter space for 2 kitchen appliances (air fryer and instant pot)
- You can pressure cook something and then immediately crisp it up. This works well for something like a whole chicken that you can pressure cook so its tender and then tender crisp it so that the skin gets crispy. For this reason, there is no need to bring the chicken to the broiler and everything can stay neat.
- The user interface is easy to use with a clean design and easy to understand buttons.
- I am able to cook 2 things at once which is really helpful when I get home and have little time to make a healthy meal. It has such a large cooking capacity!
- All of the pieces it comes with are easy to clean.
- There are accessories to buy that make cooking and even baking in the Ninja Foodie easy.
- There are plenty of easy to follow instructions including a Ninja Foodi Cookbook with involved recipes and basic easy recipes.
What are the cons of buying a Ninja Foodi?
- Right now it is expensive, especially as a new kitchen launch (fall 2018). A Ninja Foodi retails for about $200-$250 which is a little more expensive than buying an air fryer or pressure cooker together. You can definitely find this on sale!
- It is a large appliance. Even though it does the double the work, it still takes up a good amount of counter space.
- The instant pot lid and trivet need extra storage. One thing I don’t enjoy is the fact that I have to store the instant pot lid and the adjustable wire rack somewhere else. I could keep the pressure cooker lid on, but then I would have to leave the air fryer lid all the way open. It’s not a huge deal for me to store it somewhere else, but something to think about before purchasing
- The Tender Crisp Air Fryer takes slightly longer to cook food. Because this is also a pressure cooker, this appliance doesn’t have the capability to have air circulating all around the food on the sides and bottom. It only comes from the top. This doesn’t cause too much of an issue but it’s something that I noticed. The extra time it takes (just a few minutes) is well worth the fact that it can be a pressure cooker too.
Where can I buy a Ninja Foodi?
The Ninja Foodi is available:
- Ninja Kitchen Website
- Kohls
- Amazon *affiliate link
- Sam’s Club
Should I buy a Ninja Foodi?
For me, the answer to this question was a YES! Before purchasing the Ninja Foodi, I had both an instant pot and an air fryer on my counter. I often used both of them each night to cook dinner and then had to clean each appliance.
The Ninja Foodi makes the experience of cooking healthy food fast really enjoyable and I haven’t even tapped the surface of what it can do.
If you need to slash your kitchen time and have the $200 to spend, I say go for it!
Valerie Skinner is a Whole30 approved personal chef & recipe developer that bridges the gap between healthy eating and busy lives by providing simple healthy meals and recipes for you and your family.
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