Are Ninja foodies (or similar) worth it?

We use our Ninja a lot, I don’t think we’ve turned the oven on recently.

I often find that gadgets don't get used but I do use my Ninja a lot. I'm not sure of the costs but it is cheaper to run than the main oven. It is quite big so you do need space in your kitchen.

I suppose it all depends on what you normally cook. I use my Ninja a lot and only turn on the oven now if I am cooking more than fits in my Ninja. The other problem is baking - none of my dishes fit in the Ninja, although I could happily use it if I baked smaller cakes. I love that the Ninja is easy to clean, just wipe the fat out and then wash it out. You need to consider the actual machine you are buying and what it offers - some include grills, slow cookers, air fryers, pressure cookers and some are just air fryers, which may be all you want.

We were using our oven about 4 times a week so I have just bought a air fryer ( Instant Pot Vortex Plus). Its wattage is 1700W compared to my main oven which is 3500W. I watched loads of YouTube videos before I bought and the clincher for me was that its basket is big enough to take our favourite frozen pizza.
One piece of advice on using an air fryer that came across was to reduce the temp you would normally cook at by about 10C and the time by half. So far that has given perfect results for us. I may consider buying a book on air fryer cookery but so far I’m very pleased with my purchase.

I have a 9 in 1 foodie, love it. Originally purchased for our holiday home but have purchased a 7 in 1 for there, also purchased one for our DIL as we loved it so much. Yes, it must use less electricity than a normal oven. So convenient.

Do you find the 9 in 1 better than the 7 in 1, Shropshirelass?

I am thinking of getting one, but am confused by all the options.

I spent days researching and ended up buying an air fryer for around £60. I did not want to spend a fortune in case I did not like it. I live on my own and my electric double oven was being used frequently. I have saved many £££ as I have not used my oven since Christmas. Mine is Pro Breeze and the two items are dishwasher safe but I believe not all are.

I have the space- the fryer must not be near a wall or under cupboards. It gets very, very hot so I have protected the worktop surface.

Tonight it will be fish, French fries and a piece of corn on the cob. With heating, this will take 15 minutes.

Buy one large enough if like me you are not a fan of batch cooking for an evening meal. Mine is the best thing since sliced bread. I only need a teaspoonful of oil for some but not all food. I heat it for 5 minutes first.

I use my Ninja Foodi at least 3 times a week. My husband bought it for me as a surprise, and to be honest, it lived in it's box for a couple of weeks before I was brave enough to try it out. I'd never had a pressure cooker and was a bit intimidated by it.
I absolutely love it now.

I wouldn’t buy the cheap versions from Lidl (or similar). They don’t hold very much and we found it very hit and miss. There’s a reason they are often offered on the free recycling groups. Possibly ok for one person. I’ve heard of very positive results from the better quality versions.

A friend of mine demonstrated her Ninja to me. I was suitably impressed and can see why they are so popular.

I love mine - I have the 9-in-1 and it's a very useful piece of kit to have in the kitchen. It makes fantastic soups, stews and things like risotto and paella in a fraction of the time it would take to do conventionally. It's certainly not the kind of gadget you buy which then ends up gathering dust.

My daughter has the all singing all dancing large Ninja cooker.

She cooks absolutely everything in it and very rarely uses her gas oven.

I would recommend the Ninja brand, not cheaper models.

Anyone know whether it is possible to buy something similar which is not made in China?

We have a Tefal Airfryer and a OnePot which is a pressure cooker, slow cooker, sous vide, rice cooker, etc. I use the Airfryer all the time, even for stir fries and even if it doesn't save electricity (which it probably does) it is a much healthier way to cook. The OnePot is quite big so more cumbersome to wash up and I have to admit, I probably wouldn't buy another although I love a pressure cooker when I remember to use it!

I use mine everyday! Oven is hardly ever on. There’s some great Facebook pages with recipes and tips etc. I have the 9 in 1. When it needs replacing I will definitely get the new one with the one lid that goes with every function as mine has a separate slow cooker lid that makes it quite a bulky unit but does sit on top when not in use

We've used an air fryer for about 4 years now and live it! I've seen the foodie by ninja and it look really good , I may well upgrade once my current one has ceased to function! I'd go for it ,they save lots on oven use and specially any grill use also nil oil for traditional so called fried dishes too. Sunday brunch is an almost silent spatter and smoke free affair nowadays! I bet the full oven use version is amazing!

We have a ninja too and love it. I don't know how big your family is, but they cook quite a lot (weight of food given in instructions) but obviously size varies. You can cook a whole 6kg chicken if cut in half. Ours has a temperature probe which is useful.
(Uses much less power than a normal oven).

I have the 15 in one. Does everything that I need; will be using the temp probe on a beef joint tomorrow to see how it does.
Pressure cooking is fast and noise free; it does the best crispy bacon ever. Steaks, burgers all cook perfectly, no smoke or fat splashes.
I do not have a large oven just a combi microwave (big enough for a small turkey though), it doesn't use a lot of electricity. If you have a smart meter you can see it's energy consumption. The inner bowl and crisping basket are dishwasher safe.
We got rid of a George Foreman grill, awful thing.
If you want some ideas on what the different Ninjas will do, Google Ninja Test Kitchen or look on YouTube.
It is large and heavy, mine lives on the worktop. You will need space above it to open the lid and while it is cooking so I pull it forward of the top cupboards.

My ProBreeze air fryer was actually made in London, not that far from where I live. Some items are still made outside China but not a lot!

I absolutely love my Ninja Air Fryer and don't know how I managed without it before because it is so versatile and cooks almost everything really well, and in a shorter time.. I use it all the time and think it's the best kitchen gadget I've ever had. Definitely worth the money!

Does anyone know what the 15-in-1 does that the 14-in-1 does not, please?

It's not easy to tell from the website.

I too have been considering an air fryer. So far I have concentrated on the size and concluded it would have to be 4 litre capacity. This of course means it would be a fair size bit of equipment. Still researching. I have a fan oven and a microwave with grill and convection oven. The microwave combo gets a lot of use.

My dausghter bought me a Philip's air fryer as a treat
I found the chips somewhat tough and have not tried anything else
Am willing to learn but. please. what should I consider using it for?
If it is cleaner. quicker. cheaper to run, less trouble to use AND tastes as good as using the regular recipes and appliances, please let me know

It’s just two of us and I use my Ninja Foodi Grill every day, it’s so versatile