The Ninja Crispi has changed the face of air frying - I tested it and won't go back

The idea of a portable air fryer, up until now, was one of those things you talk about whimsically like “I wish my oven could prep and cook my food” except that now, thanks to the Ninja Crispi a portable air fryer actually is a thing.

When Ninja first announced this addition to their already impressive collection of air fryers, there was a lot of excitement. The Njnja Crispi promises to solve storage issues and the fact that you could take it to the office suggests that Ninja could be changing how we cook.

With the Crispi’s credentials front-of-mind, I’ve been on a mission to find out how true to its promise this air fryer really is. I’ve put it through our tests and I have to say, I think this really could change the face of air frying. It's one of the best air fryers I've ever used.

Specifications

Unboxing

The Ninja Crispi, as you might expect, comes in a much more compact box than any of its air fryer predecessors could boast. It’s still quite dense — there’s a lot of brain power packed into this air fryer — it’s easy to pick up and swing onto the counter. 

You’ll see that the air fryer comes with a large glass Tupperware-style base and a small one, perfect for cooking different quantities and types of food. Each base comes with a lid and then you have the main air frying power which sits in the attachment that clips on top of each glass dish. There’s not a lot to it, which is great news if you’re looking for something that’ll keep storage down to a minimum.

Who would it suit?

As soon as you see the word ‘portable’ used in any context, you know that you’re in for an appliance that errs on the side of compact. This is certainly the smallest air fryer that I’ve tested, which makes it perfect for flats and small homes. As a result of the size and sheer simplicity, it’s also a great place for people who are new to air frying to begin. You can’t really go wrong with it.

The style of air fryer — essentially using Tupperware — makes this an easy, go-to fit meal preppers. Whether that’s because you’ve got a busy commute or hectic home, you can literally store your dinner in the fridge, whip it out, cook it, and put the leftovers back in the fridge without needing to wash up or search for the right Tupperware. If all air fryers are supposed to make life easy, this just made normal models look like hard work. 

What is it like to use?

One of the reasons that I rave about this as the perfect air fryer for beginners is that it’s really simple. The top of the air fryer offers three settings: air fry, roast, reheat, and keep warm. There’s a setting that lets you change the automatic timer that the air fryer will run for and that’s the full extent of what you’ll have to tackle. 

The lid clicks into place on top of each container — these have to be Ninja branded, by the way, and then you’re good to go. Even though this says that it’s portable, don’t get that confused with a cordless model. You’ll need to be near a plug, although the lead stretches pretty far.

Test 1: roasted vegetables

I always test vegetables in an air fryer, but this came with a specific roast setting, so I could resist doing a mix of all my favourites. I chopped courgettes, tomatoes, peppers, and onions, tossed them in oil, and then scattered them across the base of the Ninja Crispi. I clipped the lid, satisfyingly into place, and pressed on the roast setting. 

The Crispi’s default time is ten minutes, but don’t mistake this for any bespoke setting or guidance. For my first time making chips, I assumed the setting was default and they nearly caught. If you peruse Ninja’s recipe books and user manual, you’ll work out the timings that are best for you.

My vegetables needed eleven minutes on the roast setting before I was happy with how they were bubbling and browning. I took them out and could enjoy some tender and delicious roasted veg. 

The glass base comes in really handy when you’re getting your eye in for the recipes, quite literally. I spent a lot of time peering through the sides, eagerly watching all my dinners cooking away. It’e a game-changer for saving you from accidentally burning chips just because you couldn’t see through your air fryer. 

Test 2: chips

Chips and air fryers go hand in hand, so this is really the litmus test for whether your air fryer is worth it. I tested both normal french fries as well as sweet potato chips (and have continued to eat so many chips that I think I’ll turn into one soon, purely because of this air fryer). 

The Crispi will default to suggesting that you cook your chips for 14 minutes, which is about average for air fryers. I filled the base of the Crispi with my chips and let it cook them, quietly and quickly for nearly a quarter of an hour. Now, this was the first time that I ever used the Crispi, so I largely left it to its own devices. When I heard the signature Ninja chime to tell me that the chips were done, I could see that they were more than cooked. I think most people would say that the crispy tips and golden centres were perfect — they certainly tasted great — but I like my chips a little softer.

Over the last couple of weeks, I’ve settled on eleven minutes as my perfect time for chips. That’s a really speedy result, especially considering the fact that I’m talking about frozen food. It takes a lot of skill to perfectly cook frozen chips in eleven minutes, but the Crispi has got it.

Of course, if you use the smaller dish, you’ll want to take at least five minutes off that cooking time too. I’m not saying that for food will be done five minutes sooner, but that it’s worth checking on. My only complaint for the whole chip test is that a few fell through to the base of the air fryer. This happens on every single model that I’ve tested and it’s easy to rescue them — I’m greedy — but I think Ninja will have innovated themselves out of this conundrum soon. 

Test 3: frozen food

I know I cooked the chips from frozen, but a great test for an air fryer is how well it can cook a whole meal from frozen. Fish fingers and chips is a classic, quick, mid-week meal, so it’s my go-to for testing. I could fit two people’s worth of fish fingers and chips in the large air fryer basket and comfortably enough for one big meal in the smaller one. As with all the tests, this was great, I lumped all the components in together and hoped for the best, but you could line up your fish fingers in the small basket and your chips in the large one and then cook them back-to-back on specialist timings. 

For me and my simple meal, it just seemed easier to give the whole basket fifteen minutes. The fish fingers came out crispy, with a beautifully crunchy crumb and yet a piping hot filling. The chips were hot, crispy, and evenly cooked too. As far as easy dinners go, I think this is a good result. 

Test 4: reheating pizza

The reheat function is a more gentle heat setting, which doesn’t have to just be used in leftovers. I use it for my ‘low and slow’ air fryer meals, but it does work just as well when you want a quick blast of heat onto last night’s food. In this case, we’re talking about pizza.

Now, I don’t mind cold pizza, but it’s a great way to test a reheat setting. You need the base to stay soft, the crusts to keep crispy, and you want all your ingredients to be well hydrated too. 

I managed to cram almost 3/4 of my pre-cooked and then cooled pizza into the base of the large air fryer. In ten minutes, the whole thing had cooked right through. As if Ninja had listened to my requirements, the pizza tasted as good on the second time round as it for when I had a nibble of it the first time that it cooked. The edge of the base might have tasted a little drier, if I’m being picky, but it was generally, genuinely good. 

Cleaning

All the parts of the Ninja Crispi, aside from the obvious lid, are dishwasher safe. This means that you can load everything out of sight and let your appliances do your dirty work, as if life couldn’t get any easier.

I like to wash the parts by hand, since this normally means you put less wear and tear on them. If you’re like me, I have no doubt that you’ll enjoy watching all the grease and cookery residue slide off the non-stick trays. It’s worth noting that Ninja has developed a special ceramic coating that’s both non-stick and non-toxic, so you don’t need to worry too much about scratches. I’d still kee to using soft sponges and definitely avoid abrasives, but you don’t need to worry as much as you might with a cheaper, less well made model.

As for storage, this is one of very few air fryers that I think you could actually put in your it cupboard. Obviously, let it cool, but this should slot into about the same space that you would dedicate for a food processor. 

How does it compare?

Before the Crispi, Ninja’s latest innovation was the DoubleStack, an air fryer which is tall and deep, but super slim. If you need capacity and you want to save space, this is the better option. It follows a much more traditional air fryer aesthetic and functionality: you have independent drawers and many more settings, but you won’t be packing the drawers into your fridge, nor will you be moving this into a cupboard after use. The DoubleStack is, therefore, better for more adventurous cooks, busy family homes, and more serious air fryer needs. The Crispi is better for beginners and small homes. Both have my seal of approval.

If you like the sound of simplicity and compact dimensions, aside from recommending the DoubleStack, I’d also throw the Instant into the mix. This is significantly cheaper, very small, and it follows similar principles. You have four cooking setting, but more control over the time and temperature of your bakes. It’s slower and lacks the ingenious innovations of Ninja, such as the glass and food storage, but you could easily tuck it to the side on the counter and pull it out when you need quick meals. It’s definitely the option for the savvy shoppers. 

Should you buy it?

If you are yet to join the air fryer crowd, the Ninja Crispi is a great place to start. The simple controls and impressive power make it easy for beginners to get to grips with and yet the different glass bottoms and versatility mean that it could cope with the needs of a small family. Ninja has done it again.

How we test

At woman&home, we put air fryers through their paces to make sure they live up to the hype. As someone who loves a crispy, golden chip, I take any excuse to test them out — and call it work. Every air fryer I review gets at least two weeks in my kitchen, where I use it for everyday cooking to see how well it performs.

I start with four key tests: cooking homemade chips to check crispiness and even cooking, air-frying frozen fish fingers to assess speed and consistency, roasting vegetables to see how well it caramelise and retain moisture, and reheating pizza to test how evenly it revives leftovers. These tasks give me a solid understanding of how well the air fryer handles different types of food.

Once the basics are covered, I experiment with more recipes to see where each model excels or falls short. By the end of testing, I’ll know exactly who this air fryer is best for and how it compares to others in terms of performance, features, and value for money.

If you want to find out more, you can visit our dedicated page for how we test air fryers.