Ninja Foodi FlexDrawer Air Fryer review

Key options

• Capability: 10.4 litres
• In actual phrases: Can deal with a 2kg leg of lamb
• Twin drawer: Can be utilized as one or two drawers

Ninja already has a few monster air fryers in the marketplace, with the likes of AF400UK and AF451UK each providing 9.5 litres of cooking area mixed from their two drawers.

The Ninja Foodi FlexDrawer Air Fryer AF500UK, to offer it its full moniker, ups that capability to 10.4 litres however throws in an choice that none of its siblings have: the power to prepare dinner with both a one or two drawer system.

The result’s a behemoth air fryer that gives way more flexibility together with your cooking, therefore the Flex within the title, however retains the skills to prepare dinner entire, large, meals in a single go.

I have been utilizing the Ninja Foodi FlexDrawer Air Fryer AF500UK for a number of weeks now, learn on for my full assessment.

Design and parts

• One large 10.4 litre drawer
• Or two 5.2 litres drawers
• LED show

Let’s not disguise away from the truth that the Ninja Foodi FlexDrawer is a really large air fryer. Not simply by way of its cooking capability, the machine itself is huge.

Measuring 32.7 x 49.6 x 31.6cm, and weighing simply shy of 10kg, you are going to want a good sized area (and a few robust help) in your kitchen counter.

As with most fashionable air fryers, you are solely actually having access to round half of that footprint, with the decrease portion the place you will discover the cooking space.

Up prime, hidden behind the controls and LED show, is all of the intelligent tech that makes the machine warmth and flow into the air.

Regardless of its impending kind issue, as soon as you have acquired it out of the field it is a piece of cake to get arrange and operational.

There’s nothing actually to assemble, you simply must put the drawer, crisper plates and divider into place and slot it in. After all, it is in all probability finest to offer all of those components a wash first earlier than use and the excellent news is that all the things you employ for cooking, together with the drawer itself, is dishwasher secure.

Speaking of the drawer and, let’s face it, it is the principle attraction right here; it pulls out as one sole entity and it is as much as the consumer to divide if wants be.

That is tremendous easy to do, you simply slot a metalic plate between the 2, making it doable to change from a ten.4 litre basket to 2 5.2 litre ones in seconds.

The drawer of the Ninja AF500UK boasts a PTFE coating, whereas the crisper plates are constructed from non-stick aluminium that includes a nano ceramic coating.

You possibly can, if you want, prepare dinner with out the crisper plates (though technically that is not as wholesome because the fat do not run away) and it is also doable to make use of paper or aluminium foil within the drawers too, ought to the recipe require it.

Options

• Max crisp, air fry, roast, bake, reheat, dehydrate and show modes
• Sync and Match modes for dual-zone cooking
• MegaZone permits for a complete meal to be cooked in a single

The important thing factor, as talked about, that differentiates the FlexDrawer from its stablemates is that two-in-one drawer resolution.

What which means, in use, is that you’ve the selection to prepare dinner in a single large, 10.4 litre drawer, or prepare dinner with a pair of 5.2 litre drawers. Or certainly, simply use one of many smaller drawers and save your self some vitality.

When cooking with the massive drawer, Ninja calls this the MegaZone. In that mode, it is a fairly simple affair: you simply select the mode of cooking, temperature and time and so forth, and away you go.

It is once you whack in that divider and use the drawer as a duo that you’ve some choices to contemplate.

The twin-zone’s first choice is the Sync mode, which guaranteeing each zones conclude cooking on the identical time, making the preparation of various meals at various temperatures straightforward to realize.

For instance, you might have some rooster wings in drawer no.1, set to air fry at 180°C for 30 minutes, and a few leftover mac and cheese, set to reheat for 20 minutes at 200°C, within the different.

The opposite mode, Match, synchronizes the zones for uniform settings. When you might, in fact, simply have all of your meals in a single large MegaZone setup on this situation, it’s helpful to maintain totally different meals separate.

No matter mode you go together with and, much like Ninja’s prior efforts with dual-drawer fashions, the AF500UK prioritises simplicity, complemented by an excellent quick-start information detailing really useful cooking modes, occasions, and temperatures for varied dishes.

The array of cooking modes encompasses air fry, roast, bake, reheat, dehydrate, and show, every accompanied by particular temperature settings and timers.

Not like some fashions, the AF500UK lacks a pre-heat perform however compensates with fast warming. To make sure even cooking, occasional agitation of the meals is critical and, with the generously sized drawer, silicone tongs show helpful for manoeuvring gadgets.

Regardless of the divider not serving as an ideal insulator, leading to a heat empty zone after single-zone cooking, the sensible implications on cooking high quality are negligible when getting ready totally different meals on either side; perhaps do not dehydrate at 50°C in a single drawer whereas roasting at 240°C within the different although.

After cooking, as talked about, the drawer and crisper plates are simply cleaned by hand or conveniently tossed into the dishwasher for added ease and effectivity.

Efficiency

I’ve tried the AF500UK throughout a variety of various meal choices. I’ve carried out a small portion of chips air frying on one facet with a turkey leg roasting on the opposite, I’ve had a complete rooster within the MegaZone surrounded by carrots and potatoes, I’ve used the Max Crisp mode on a single drawer to prepare dinner croquettes and a complete lot extra.

The outcomes of which have all been the identical… spot on.

So long as you observe both the cooking directions and timings within the handbook, or any dependable recipe web site on-line, you should not run into hassle.

The entire level of an air fryer is to make cooking simpler and the FlexDrawer does simply that.

The Ninja AF500UK’s Max Crisp mode stands out for its capacity to realize remarkably excessive temperatures, making it best for swiftly cooking meals that demand a crispy exterior, such because the the aforementioned croquettes, the place you are after a texture that mixes a crispy outer layer with a mushy and fluffy inside, a feat that the Ninja AF500UK effortlessly accomplishes.

I additionally felt that it excelled when cooking meat. I did a turkey crown for a Sunday household dinner and was happy to seek out the Ninja had carried out an excellent job of cooking it to the specified temperature, whereas leaving it very moist inside.

There is not any probes with the FlexDrawer, so I used my very own Meater gadgets to double verify any proteins have been cooked correctly. With all of the recommended timings and settings, they all the time have been.

Remaining ideas

Sure it is large and sure, it is considerably costly in what’s turning into a busy and ever extra aggressive market however if you need one of the best air fryer for a household – i.e. that may cowl everybody’s particular requests – then the Ninja Foodi FlexDrawer Air Fryer AF500UK might be the one.

Cooking is a doddle, the twin drawer system works effectively and there are sufficient ‘extras’ thrown in to justify the worth tag.

How we check

After we publish our evaluations, you may relaxation assured that they’re the results of “residing with” long run exams.

As a result of we’re testing new gadgets all day, on a regular basis, we all know what issues and the way a specific gadget compares to alternate options that you may also be contemplating.

Our evaluations are complete, goal and truthful and, in fact, we’re by no means paid on to assessment a tool.

Learn our information on how we check to study extra.

FAQS

Is the Ninja Foodi FlexDrawer Air Fryer AF500UK out there within the US?

As I am based mostly within the UK, I have been testing the UK variant however there may be certainly an analogous mannequin Stateside, going underneath the label Ninja Foodi FlexBasket.

Does the Ninja Foodi FlexDrawer Air Fryer AF500UKK have a single or double drawer?

Each, the ten.4l capability of the massive drawer truly divided into two 5.2l drawers, utilizing a steel insert.

How scorching does the Ninja Foodi FlexDrawer Air Fryer AF500UK go?

240°C is the utmost temperature

Ninja Foodi FlexDrawer Air Fryer AF500UK: Specs