Review on 🍲 Ninja OP401 8-Qt. Foodi All-in-One Multi-Cooker - Black/Gray: Versatile 8-Quart Cooking Power by Lakshmi Pennington

First off, this review does not show up as a verified purchase as I purchased it directly from Ninja at a lower price. Since I already have 6 sqm. and 8sqm instant pots and a 10 liter elite platinum pressure cooker, I wondered for a while if it made sense to buy another pressure cooker just because it has a browning lid. When Ninja had a sale I decided to bite the bullet and give this device a try. I've had this oven for a few months now and I'm so glad I decided to try it. It doesn't have all of the preset buttons that Instant Pots have, but I didn't use them anyway. I find Ninja Foodi's controls much simpler and more intuitive than Instant Pots. You simply select the cooking method (pressure, steam, slow cook, roast/sear), the heat level depending on the cooking method and the cooking time. When using the crispy lid you have options for crispy, bake/fry, deep fry and dehydrate. Different heating levels and cooking times are available for each cooking method. There are a few features of Ninja Foodi that I appreciate over Instant Pots. I've cooked pork shoulder in the Foodi pressure cooker in the same amount of time as I have in the Instant Pot in the past, but I was pleased to find that the Foodi has 5 heat settings for sautéing/stewing compared to the 3 offered by the Instant Pot. . When I cook pork shoulder or quick roast, I add onion, garlic, and other seasonings to the pressure cook water. When the meat is done, I take it out, cover it with Reynolds cling wrap to keep it warm, and use an immersion blender to blend the onion and garlic into the meat juices for the sauce. With Foodi I can keep the sauce simmering and it doesn't boil. I also often use Foodi for steaming. I have a few pressure cooker accessory kits and I can cook more at once with Foodi than with any other stove I have. What I like is the simplicity: place food in the steamer basket, press "Steam", select minutes to steam and press "Start". What could be easier? The Airfry function is great for fries for two, fish, steaks and many other dishes. When I need to air fry large batches I have a few other appliances that I use and have ruled out the NuWave Brio Airfryer and the smaller Instant Pot. While I usually prefer pressure cookers with stainless steel pots, I have to admit this Foody spoils me. I'm a big fan of water stains on stainless steel, so all my stainless steel cookware is cleaned with Bartender's Friend after each use. The pot at Foodi has a safe non-stick surface and is incredibly easy to clean. When I use it as a steamer, all I have to do is drain the remaining water in it and dry it while it's still hot. When cooking under pressure, a simple wash with soap and water is sufficient. So far there have been no stains and nothing stuck. The liner retains some odors from cooked food, but that's common with all pressure cookers. This will not affect future cooking and can be removed by soaking the pad in soapy water or a solution of baking soda and water. I have used it so many times. Countertop storage doesn't work in most kitchens because there isn't enough room to open the covers under the cabinets. It can be pulled onto the counter to allow the lids to be opened, but still be aware that pressure cooking releases steam that can damage cabinets. I also prefer to keep it on my kitchen cart because it's lower than my counters and I can see the tops of the lids and the cooktop better. UPDATE 8/12/19: I've had this Ninja Foodi for a little less than 3 months now but use it almost daily. I grow mushrooms outdoors and often harvest mushrooms that I prepare to freeze at Foodi. Today the gourmet and I trained properly. Earlier in the day I picked 3 different types of mushrooms that needed to be cooked in batches. Once that was done, I immediately set up the Foodi to pressure cook my dinner. After using the sauté setting on high to brown the brisket, I place the seared brisket on a plate to sauté the chopped onion and garlic. I then added red wine, water, spices and ketchup and brought to a boil, sear over high heat. Then I put the brisket back in the pot and pressure cook it for 50 minutes. When it was done I removed the brisket and covered it with aluminum foil to keep it warm and poured everything else in the pot into a sauce and fat separator with a strainer over it. and the liquids in the separator were returned to the kettle after the fats rose to the top of the separator. I blended everything in the pot with an immersion blender until smooth, then added the cornstarch water to thicken the sauce. The 5 roasting levels are so practical. You can bring the sauce to a boil at high speed and then gradually bring it to a boil. This is something I've never been able to do with my instant pot. Since I use this Foodi almost every day, I can definitely recommend it. If the kitchen gods told me I could only choose 3 kitchen appliances, this Ninja Foodi pressure cooker would definitely be one of them. Until recently, I used to sauté leafy greens, which I grow in bulk, with chopped onion and garlic with additional flavorings like broth to prevent the bitter aftertaste that leafy greens are sometimes known for. This was a laborious process as the stems took longer to cook than the leaves and the leaves had to be added to the pot in portions to wilt. I grow a number of leafy greens indoors and often have to process large batches of leaves before freezing. Tonight I was trying to steam a large batch of tri-color Swiss chard that I've collected. The night before my husband and I cut the stems and leaves rather than separating them as usual so the stems could cook longer with the onion and garlic. Tonight I filled a steamer basket with chopped leaves and stems and steamed them in Ninja for 4 minutes. I have to admit I was amazed to find that all the leaves were evenly cooked and the stalks were tender but still slightly crispy. The leaves were light green instead of brownish green when I roasted them and the stems kept their color. The amount of chard I had was cooked in 4 batches, but I didn't have to stand by the stove for 30-45 minutes and flip them. To my surprise, there was absolutely no bitterness in them - they were fresh and wonderful to taste with no added flavors. I also noticed that the stalks of the tri-color chard I use still have their color as opposed to the sautéed stalks which lose all of their color. I will never prepare my leafy greens any other way after that. I've added a photo of my steamed chard. UPDATE 7/2/20: I recently discovered and purchased a set of Ninja Foodi skewers for the 8 liter Foodi at Revain. This added a whole new dimension to the possibilities of this instrument. This skewer set allows you to roast skewers, chicken drumsticks, thighs and wings and then brown them under a crispier lid. I used a set of skewers to make BBQ chicken wings to die for. You can bake the chicken pieces and then fry them without stirring to brown the bottom ones. My review of the Ninja Foodi Skewer Set includes photos of grilled chicken wings I make and explains how I make it. I hope this review was helpful to you and I will update this review if my mind changes or I have additional useful information.