It's been a big year for Ninja. First, the brand launched the viral Ninja Slushi, followed by its first luxury coffee maker, the Ninja Café Luxe, and now the brand behind some of the best air fryers has released a portable cooking system called the Ninja Crispi.
The Ninja Crispi is the first of its kind; a self-described "portable cooking system" that includes a 4-qt and 6-cup TempWare glass container, 2 storage lids, and a Ninja Crispi PowerPod which attaches onto the glass containers to cook or reheat everything from meal prepped lunch to leftover takeout. And at $159 at NinjaKitchen, it's a pretty convenient option for busy professionals or students without a lot of storage space.
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The Crispi is designed to be portable, meaning you can take both the TempWare containers and the PowerPod itself to the office or potluck dinners to cook just about anywhere. Despite its compact dimensions it's still super powerful, with the ability to heat up to 450 degrees Fahrenheit. Another big win is the fact that you can prep, cook and serve your meal all in one dishwasher-safe container, which is a great feature for those who hate doing the dishes.
What we know about the Ninja Crispi
Glass air fryers aren't new. The Crispi actually reminds me a lot of the Fritaire air fryer, which has a glass cooking chamber and a removable air frying lid which replicates a more traditional halogen oven and is very easy to clean. When I tried the Fritaire though, I found that it got very hot to touch and made adding and removing food quite fiddly, which is why the application of this tech in the Crispi makes a lot more sense. And with a glass bowl, opposed to an air fryer with a non-stick coating, it's very likely that those concerned about the toxicity of non-stick cookware, will be ditching their non-stick air fryers for the Ninja Crispi.
You can eat straight out of the container, and because it includes a crisper plate for each of the two container sizes, it can cook multiple elements of a meal at once: spaghetti and meatballs, chicken and potatoes, salmon and veggies, the possibilities are pretty endless.
There are four cooking modes to choose from:
- Max Crisp
- Bake
- Air Fry
- Recrisp
And you can also adjust the timings using the plus and minus buttons either side of the compact digital display.
The Crispi PowerPod comes with an adaptor which takes it from cooking in the compact 6-cup container to the generous 4-quart, which is comparable to some smaller air fryers.
First impressions of the Ninja Crispi
I've not been able to get my hands on this new release yet, but I'm keen to test it. There are a few downsides that come to mind straight off the bat. I can't imagine cooking will be all that even when you can't give your food a shake halfway through cooking. You can switch off the lid and open the system up to flip salmon or toss your potatoes, but it's unlikely to be as convenient as a drawer air fryer.
That's not to say this isn't a convenient appliance, though. According to Ninja, you can use the Crispi just about anywhere, including the office. The permanently fixed heat-safe feet claim to be safe on granite, laminate, quartz, butcher block, marble, and more, so while your co-workers may raise their eyebrows at first, you shouldn't cause any office dramas. Getting in your work bag? That could be a different story, but I'll reserve judgement until I've tested it.
One thing that I really like is the idea that you can use this cooking system to spruce up takeout with its "Recrisp" setting. I use my own air fryer to do this already. When fries or chicken wings arrive a little limp and soggy, they go straight in the air fryer to crisp back up before I enjoy them from the comfort of my couch.
So will this cooking system replace your air fryer? I doubt it. But it could be the perfect companion to it, and if you're a student or busy professional who's short on time and counter space, I do think it could be the perfect fix for home cooking without access to an oven.
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