Ditch Your Gigantic Air Fryer

For nearly a decade, I’ve had a love-hate relationship with my gargantuan air fryer/pressure cooker (an older version of this thing). It weighs a ton—21 pounds, to be exact—and can cook far more food than my two-person household needs. Plus, from an aesthetic standpoint, it isn’t the statement piece I had envisioned for my kitchen. Yet, the promise of fast-food-quality french fries (without needing a deep fryer) or a perfectly chewy midnight cookie (without turning on the oven) has convinced me to keep this egregiously large, ugly thing displayed on my kitchen countertop.

After I saw videos on TikTok of the Ninja Crispi, a mini air fryer that weighs as little as 6.5 pounds and is touted as a portable device, my hopes of finding a small-scale replacement for my monolithic air fryer were high, but my expectations were low. Could it really be powerful enough to evenly crisp a large batch of fries? Or lightweight enough to conveniently take on the go? Or small enough to stash in the cupboard without taking up a ton of space?

Much to my surprise, in testing the Crispi, I discovered that it packs a lot of power despite its modest size and has several enticing features, such as its glass cooking containers, which provide unobstructed views of the food at all times. Still, it has a few drawbacks compared with other smaller air fryers (that are less than half the price).

How it works

Most air fryers I’m familiar with have a built-in container or a removable nonstick basket that pulls out like a drawer. The Ninja Crispi, on the other hand, is essentially a lid that attaches to either of two standalone glass containers: one 4-quart and one 6-cup. The containers are refrigerator-, freezer-, and dishwasher-safe, and each comes with a corresponding lid that snaps on tight for storing leftovers.

Ninja claims that the 4-quart container can fit a 4-pound chicken. The 6-cup container is better for one or two people and can easily fit two standard-size Russet potatoes. Ninja also sells additional compatible glassware sizes online, including a 2.5-quart option, which can hold 2 pounds of chicken wings at a time. For context, my gigantic 5-quart air fryer can prepare about three salmon fillets at once.

The Crispi comes with eight individual pieces—a 1,500-watt air fryer hub with an attached 3-foot power cord, the 4-quart and 6-cup glass cooking containers and matching lids, large and small crisper plates, and an adapter (for the larger container)—all of which can be stored separately.

You can use it in two configurations: the 4-quart setup, which weighs about 9 pounds, and the smaller, 6-cup setup, which weighs about 6.5 pounds. Overall, the components feel durable and sturdy, and the Ninja Crispi is covered by a one-year limited warranty if you purchase the appliance through an authorized SharkNinja retailer.

The heating console features a simple control panel with four buttons: start (to power the machine on and off), mode (to select from its four cooking presets), and two additional buttons, a plus sign and a minus sign (to increase or reduce the cooking time).

The four cooking presets activate four automatic temperature and fan-speed settings: Recrisp (380 °F to 400 °F), Bake (375 °F to 400 °F), Air Fry (400 °F to 425 °F), and the high-heat Max Crisp (425 °F to 450 °F).

When you select a preset, the air fryer provides a suggested cooking time, which you can adjust depending on what you’re making. The machine also can detect which container is underneath it and adjust the cooking preset to account for the difference in volume.

Setting up the Crispi is simple. First, insert the appropriate crisper plate into the bottom of the glass container. Then, add the food. Next, attach the heating pod (if you’re using the 4-quart option, place it on top of the adapter until it clicks) atop the glass container. Finally, select the cooking preset and toss the food occasionally for best results.

by Maki Yazawa, Wirecutter | Read more:
Images: Wirecutter/NYT
[ed. Looks good. Not cheap.]