Ninja Foodi Max Health Grill & Air Fryer (AG551UK) Review

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Like many parents, in the midst of a cost of living crisis, we’ve been looking for ways to cut our energy consumption and spend less on food as a family. As a result, we’ve been ditching the takeaways and attempting to cook more food at home, relying less on ready meals or those repeated trips to the local supermarket. We got our first-ever air fryer – the Ninja Foodi Max Health Grill AG551UK, back in June 2022 and as complete air fryer novices, we weren’t sure whether they could possibly live up to the hype. That said, with air fryers being cheaper to run than the oven (and more energy efficient too), we were prepared to give it a go. The Ninja Foodi MAX AG551UK has gone on to become a staple in our kitchen ever since.

Air fryers aren’t just a money-saving fad however, they’re actually a healthier way to cook your food too. They can cook chips, potatoes and steaks with little or no oil, meaning you don’t get that unwelcome greasy, fatty mess when you remove them. For fuss-free midweek meals, they can also cook frozen chicken nuggets straight from the freezer, without needing to wait for the oven to warm up – a big plus for hungry little tummies!

Whilst there are lots of air fryers on the market, the Ninja Foodi Max Health Grill and air fryer (AG551UK) comes with one big difference. Not only does it have a substantial-sized air fryer basket, but it also includes the Ninja Foodi Max Grill – allowing you to quickly and efficiently serve up steaks, kebabs and salmon.

Thanks to the integrated meat temperature probe and the smart cook system and which calculates the best cooking times and temperatures, you can also relax knowing that it will come out perfect every single time.

How much is the Ninja Foodi Max Health Grill & Air Fryer AG551UK

The NinjaFoodi Max AG551UK has an RRP of £269.99 but we have seen it regularly at Amazon for £249.99. Amazon also offer Klarna for installments if that suits your family budgeting better.

Whats in the box?

• The Ninja Foodi Max air fryer
• Digital cooking probe,
• Cooking pot (ceramic coated) (3.8 litre capacity)
• Crisper basket (ceramic coated) (3.8 litre capacity)
• Plate (ceramic coated
• Cleaning brush
• Instructions / Recipe inspiration booklet

Key Specification of the Ninja Foodi Max Health Grill & Air FryerAG551UK

• 6 unique cooking functions – The Ninja Foodi MAX AG551UK isn’t just a bog standard air fryer, it has six versatile and simple to use cooking methods including Grill, Air Fry, Roast, Bake, Dehydrate and Reheat. The reheat option is great for reheating sunday roasts or leftovers for a lunch the following day.
• Digital Cooking Probe – The Ninja Foodi Health Grill and Air Fryer comes with an integrated leave-in probe. This innovative addition tmonitors the internal temperature of your food as it cooks. I found this really reassuring, especially when cooking was meat. It’s great for reassurance when you’re new to the world of air frying.
• Smart Cook System – Select the cooking function and food type from a range of preset options using the simple touch screen and then take your pick from rare to well done. No more checking regularly or worrying about it overcooking – the Foodi will tell you when your food is done exactly how you like it.
• Touchscreen light up control panel is easy to use and intuitive – even for an air fryer beginner!
• Dimensions – 29 x 40 x 43cm (H x W x D)
• Weight – 10kg
• Capacity – 3.8 litres
• Multidraw – No

What have we cooked in the Ninja Foodi Max Health Grill & Air Fryer?

What haven’t we cooked in the NinjaFoodi MAX more like?

During the week, we use the NinjaFoodi MAX for quick and easy dinners, especially around after-school clubs and extracurricular activities. Chips in the Ninja are excellent – golden and crispy on the outside but still hot and fluffy on the inside – along with chicken nuggets, fish fingers and onion rings – all cooked to perfection and much quicker than in the oven too. I have also been pleased to see that unlike cooking oven chips, I didn’t notice the layer of grease or fat at the bottom when I removed them. A big plus there.

Steaks on the grill has been an absolute joy for my partner who is a big fan of red meat. He wasn’t convinced that it could cook his rare or medium rare steaks (hes too much of a Miller & Carter fan!) but cook it to perfection it did. The auto cook function has been incredible for this, and ideal if you’re cooking steaks differently for different people.

My other personal favourite is mini herby roast potatoes. They are absolutely divine. The NinjaFoodi MAX AG551UK is also fantastic at crisping up a jacket potato that you’ve started in the microwave – SO much quicker than waiting for an eternity in the oven.

We haven’t fully tested the roast and bake functions yet, but the flexibility and versatility this machine offers is great – it’s nice to know the NinjaFoodi MAX offers those functions should we need them.

What I loved about the Ninja Foodi Max (AG551UK)

Neither my partner or I had used an air fryer before, but we found the NinjaFoodi MAX AG551UK really easy to use. It’s quite an intuitive machine, and so whilst it comes with instructions and a recipe book, this is more for inspiration than needing to sit and read through it al before you start. We found it a little overwhelming at the start – mostly knowing what dishes to try but we have both been really impressed. We’ve since gone on to cook a wide range of family friendly dishes including nachos, chicken fried rice and crispy bacon. Yum.

Our favourite elements of the air fryer include:

• The healthier cooking – The NinjaFoodi MAX AG551UK claims to use 75% less fat than traditional frying methods which is really reassuring. You can cook on the Foodi without any oil at all (or a small amount if you prefer for flavour). What you cook in your foodi deterines how healthy it is (no ones fooled into thinking chips are healthy!) but they’re much better than fat fried or greasy options we may have been using before.
• The Foodi is really easy to clean – With large sized non stick ceramic coated pan, crisper and grill parts, it’s very straightforward toi clean by hand but also safe to use in the dishwasher. The NinjaFoodi MAX AG551UK comes with a cleaning brush to pull away any more stubborn pieces, and shouldn’t be used with a scourer incase you scratch it.
• Volume – At 3.8 litres, the capacity of the Foodi is impressive. The grill is big enough to fit up to 6 burgers at once, so a great way of serving up a quick and easy dinner for the whole family (which I would have struggled with previously with pan space!). There are times however when we would’ve liked to cook two different things simultaneously, and that’s where the Ninja Foodi Max Duel Zone airfryer is a great alternative.
• Cooking probe – makes it super easy to know when your meats are thoroughly cooked. I am always paranoid about undercooking meat – especially chicken, so this is great for peace of mind.
• LCD Display – is very easy to use and the progress bar visually tells you how long you have left to wait
• This multi-purpose airfryer comes with a range of cooking options and in terms of storage, all the contents stash away inside when not in use – with the pan and crisper basket stacking into each other and the probe tucking away into the side of the main airfryer unit.

Cons of the NinjaFoodi Max Health Grill & Air Fryer

• Size – measuring 29 x 40 x 43cm (H x W x D) and weighing 10kg , it’s. a pretty substantial unit; meaning unless you have significant countertop space or a utility room, it is a little on the large side. It’s also a bit big and heavy to be getting in and out of cupboards every time you need it.
• Cost – there’s no getting away from the fact that the NinjaFoodi Max is a significant cost and investment, that said, as a health grill and air fryer in one, you could use this product a lot, which if utilised to its full potential is absolutely worth the cost. I am a firm believer in the phrase ‘if you’re going to do it, do it properly’, so whilst you can of course find cheaper air fryers on the market, this one certainly justifies the higher price tag.
• This air fryer is not as energy efficient as some, being a more powerful machine running at 2,460 watts. That said, it’s still cheaper to run than your oven due to the instant heat up and shorter running durations.

Is the Ninja Foodi Max worth it?

If you have a lot of countertop space and plan to use your airfryer regularly then yes, i believe the NinjaFoodi Max is worth the RRP. It can easily be used as an alternative to your oven and with six cooking options you may find you never need your oven again! How I wish we had this at home when our kitchen was being done – it would have made a very pleasant alternative to microwave meals and toast!

Where can I buy the Ninja Foodi Max Health Grill & Air Fryer?

Based on our research, the retailers that have the best availability and best retail price for the NinjaFoodi Max AG551UK are Amazon and Lakeland,

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