Ninja OL701 Foodi 14-in-1 SMART XL 8 Qt. Pressure Cooker Steam Fryer with SmartLid & Thermometer + Auto-Steam Release, that Air Fries, Proofs &…
$166.57
Last updated on June 2, 2024 1:50 am Details
- NINJA FOODI SMART XL PRESSURE COOKER STEAM FRYER: Extra-large, family-sized capacity with the ability to pressure cook, air fry, and SteamCrisp – all under one SmartLid.
- FOODI SMART THERMOMETER: Enables you to achieve even more accurate results at the touch of a button. No more guesswork.
- SMART COOK SYSTEM: With 4 smart proteins settings and 9 customizable doneness levels, achieve the perfect doneness from rare to well done. 3 auto-steam release controls allow you to select your desired pressure release setting.
- SMARTLID SLIDER: Slide to unlock 3 cooking modes and 14 cooking functions all under one lid.
- STEAMCRISP TECHNOLOGY: Steam and crisp at the same time for faster, juicier, crispier results without drying out. (Vs. Ninja Foodi OL701 in dry mode only).
- DELUXE REVERSIBLE RACK: Double your cooking capacity or make 3-component full meals at the touch of a button—mains and sides all done at the same time.
- FASTER COOKING: Prepare quicker meals with up to 70% faster cooking (vs. slow cooking), 40% faster 1-touch meals (vs. traditional cooking methods) and 25% faster artisan bread and cakes (vs. traditional ovens).
- LESS FAT: Unlock the juiciest way to air fry, for crispy results with up to 75% less fat than traditional frying. (Tested against hand-cut, deep-fried French fries).
- 14-IN-1 VERSATILE FUNCTIONALITY: 14 programmable cooking functions – Pressure Cook, Steam & Crisp, Steam & Bake, Air Fry, Broil, Bake/Roast, Dehydrate, Sear/Sauté, Steam, Sous Vide, Slow Cook, Yogurt, Keep Warm & Proof.
- WHAT’S INCLUDED: Ninja Foodi SMART XL Pressure Cooker Steam Fryer with SmartLid & Smart Thermometer, 8-qt. Cooking Pot, 5-qt. Cook & Crisp Basket, Deluxe Reversible Rack, and 45 plus Recipe Chef-Inspired Cookbook.
Specification: Ninja OL701 Foodi 14-in-1 SMART XL 8 Qt. Pressure Cooker Steam Fryer with SmartLid & Thermometer + Auto-Steam Release, that Air Fries, Proofs &…
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Photos: Ninja OL701 Foodi 14-in-1 SMART XL 8 Qt. Pressure Cooker Steam Fryer with SmartLid & Thermometer + Auto-Steam Release, that Air Fries, Proofs &…
8 reviews for Ninja OL701 Foodi 14-in-1 SMART XL 8 Qt. Pressure Cooker Steam Fryer with SmartLid & Thermometer + Auto-Steam Release, that Air Fries, Proofs &…
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Ninja OL701 Foodi 14-in-1 SMART XL 8 Qt. Pressure Cooker Steam Fryer with SmartLid & Thermometer + Auto-Steam Release, that Air Fries, Proofs &…
$166.57
3yed –
Hard to clean..hard to clean when you used the presure cooking setting
PhotoGraphics –
If you’re looking at this page there’s a good chance you are very familiar with the Ninja product line and you have been waiting forever for them to come out with what they call an 8-quart fourteen in one appliance, although I like to call it an entire kitchen in one – well except for the fridge I guess. Because this is a brand new product and not widely available yet I will save my report on how it performs until I’ve spent a few weeks, maybe months, actually using it. Nothing irks me more than reading a review about a new product that was just opened this morning but talking about longevity and every feature it has to offer. That’s just not possible. Instead what you’re going to get here is a point by point real life report on each of the features, improvements, concerns and issues and a series of photos showing you close-up views that their ad page glosses over. Be sure to bookmark this and come back later for a more in-depth, long term summary of how it will perform in your kitchen.
THE TOUR
The following isn’t in any special order of importance. I encourage you to read it through to the end.
BIG AND HEAVY
Almost the first thing you will notice is how big and heavy this appliance is. Sure the dimensions listed on this page are accurate but somehow don’t convey the reality of this being on your kitchen counter. I’m lucky to have more counter space in my house than anywhere I’ve lived but unfortunately I am also a gadget buff who loves to cook so I have more small appliances than most kitchens and I like to keep the ones I use most out and ready to use, a luxury I haven’t had before. But some of them don’t get used every day, like my pressure cooker, so those get put in my pantry for storage. One of my goals with this product is to find one device that can replace many, and that is certainly Ninja’s goal as well. All that being said this thing takes up a lot of countertop space and requires even more while in use. And it is much too heavy to even consider carrying it around to some place to store it when I’m not using it. The key is that because it can do so much maybe I’ll just get used to how much space I have to give up.
HEAVY TOP
I want to mention the top as a separate subject, the thing they call the Smart Lid. It takes up about a third of the entire height of the device and is not removable, you have to swing it on its hinge off to the left side of the bottom part. Not being removable I can’t measure it but I would guess it accounts for well over half of the weight of the entire thing. Before you even order this thing picture how much space it will take above the unit and to the left side – that means absolutely no upper cabinets over it and no walls, cabinets or other appliances to the left of it. There is a very large extension of the base to help prevent the weight of it toppling the entire thing over.
REAL KNOB
One trend I am liking with many kitchen appliances is the return of knobs to operate some functions. It was getting to the point that some devices had twenty or more tiny buttons that all looked the same, when they could have had one knob to turn to choose among many functions. On this product, which is smart of course, only the choices illuminate for the major function (Pressure, Steam, Air Fry) that you selected with the big robust slider switch, which has it’s own discreet set of lights to remind you which one you selected.
REAL BUTTONS
There are a few buttons, very few of them, that are separated and well marked. They are helping to reverse that trend that was popular to use membrane buttons (which are one of the first things to fail) or touch sensitive buttons (which require your fingertip to be squeaky clean to operate). Ninja uses real mechanical push buttons that you can feel know that you pushed even without looking at the status light.
CERAMIC BOWL
If ever there was a choice that makes us tear our hair out it’s what kind of bowl we should choose inside our multicooker, rice cooker, air fryer, etc. There is teflon (which a lot of people refuse to use), bare aluminum or stainless steel, or lately a new type of ceramic coating that is diamond hard and has none of the negatives associated with other non-stick coatings. This is a premium appliance and deserves the best and they chose the ceramic lining – which I understand comes in a basic version and an ultra-premium micro-ceramic version. I have a couple of things using micro-ceramic and I absolutely love it. The only downside is that if you strike it with a hard instrument it can crack, so it does require some amount of reasonable care.
WIRE RACKS
Certain food cooked in this appliance will need to be used with a wire rack. Those things always bother me because they lay right on the non-stick coating and it’s only a matter of time before they scratch or damage it. Ninja put little teflon feet on their air fryer basket, I don’t understand how or why they can’t make part or all of their wire racks out of some kind similar material. But it is what it is and the wire rack included are multifunction and useful.
PRESENTATION
I slipped this in-between all of the other stuff just to say that the president of Ninja should order one of these incognito to witness how embarrassingly sloppy they are thrown into cartons as if this was a discount store blue light special. This was my first experience ever with Ninja and my first impression was not very impressive, not for the three hundred and thirty bucks this thing goes for.
OPEN ELEMENT
Back to the product itself, maybe their biggest callout is what they call the Smart Lid. In order to squeeze all of those 14 functions into one device they had to do a lot of unusual things. One that we rarely see is what looks like the element on an ordinary kitchen electric stove mounted upside down and fully exposed. It looks that way because that’s what it is. And the rest of the size and weight of that heavy lid is a big electric fan behind the element to make it work as an air fryer. The thing you should know is that when the lid is opened and resting on its hinge that big hot stove element is right there, fully exposed. Of course it can’t be on when the lid is open but it can still be very hot. This is definitely a kitchen appliance you want to make sure a responsible adult is around if you are teaching cooking to the young’uns.
AWKWARD LIFT HANDLE
I didn’t use the word awkward to mean that I don’t like it, it’s just something that takes a lot of getting used to. Whenever you lift the lid they are adamant that you should not use the handle on the right side, as every bit of your instinct tells you to do. Instead there is a handle molded into the front as part of the slider switch that you must use. I’m right handed and I find it had to get used to having my hand cross in front of my body as I lift the lid. If I train myself to only use my left hand that may solve my problem. In any case it’s something to know about and get used to.
POST LIFTUM DRIP
After you lift that lid if you are cooking with steam the condensation tends to drip down toward the fixed hinge. While this product was so new that only reviewers had a chance to touch one when I saw it, the reviews I saw all seemed to mention this. No one has said if there are any real concerns or if the manufacturer has something more than an opinion on the drip but for now I’m just giving it a quick blot with my dishtowel whenever I raise the lid.
CONTROLS IN GENERAL
One of the keynotes of the makers of high end appliances these days is to work really hard on making their products easier to use without reading the instruction book. For example, I was ready to throw my old pressure cooker in the trash because no matter how many times I used it I could not remember the odd sequence of buttons it took just to turn it on. I couldn’t wait to get my hands on something better. This one wins big time with me on the large easy to read displays, the totally logical way the buttons and knobs work and how they manage to only present you with the options you need to be aware of depending on what you’re doing. There is one slight improvement I would like to see – when the setting is for air fry ten options light up that you select by rotating the knob. The problem is that let’s say you are on nine and want to get back to number one. Logically on many devices you would just keep turning the knob past ten and it would start over at one but not this one, you have to reverse the knob and cycle all the way back through all of the options to get back to a lower number.
SUMMARY
My understanding is that you can order today for immediate delivery and that the unit I described is a full production unit just as you will receive. I continue to believe that no one can zip the thing open, pop it out and proclaim it great or not so great or say much about how it cooks. Those are long term opinions and I will serve you best by using it for a while before giving you my foodie opinion along with some recipes you may not have thought of. I hope my first impressions have been helpful to you. If I had to sum up this particular model I would say that it (like several other new Ninja products just now being introduced) is aimed at larger families, probably with larger kitchens. If you are an RV’er this things might be like solid gold, it can do almost anything you want but not take up all of your storage space. This is a larger and heavier than average piece of cookware but the tradeoff is that it can replace quite a few things in your kitchen. For me that includes my pressure cooker, my slow cooker, one of my two air fryers, and maybe my steamer. If you’re starting out in life with your first kitchen I would strongly suggest considering it. There’s no way for you to ask me questions, unfortunately, but I will update this with feedback I get from my cooking site and other groups I belong to. Thanks for reading this.
A J Saveriano –
SUMMARY
I love this new Ninja Foodi, but honestly, any of the various older Foodis are also a good choice (picture of old vs new). If you already have a Foodi, should you upgrade?
Update 10/18/21: Added info on sous vide mode.
BEST FEATURE:
King Arthur Baking says “How do artisan bakeries achieve that lovely golden, crisp, shiny crust? Steam in bread baking is the key!” Steam/Crisp works like a professional steam oven for bakery style bread-crust. Look how the Ninja “Crusty Bread” has a shine (picture), and no, I did not use an egg wash. [Ninja Foodi Smart recipe book p 68, but I bake for 25 min, not 20.] The following breads are simple modifications: Cottage cheese/black pepper, Cheddar cheese and Whole wheat also have shine (pictures). The rosemary Focaccia p28 is also excellent (picture). A few years ago I bought a small steam oven, but it didn’t work. The Ninja does.
CON:
– Temperature and time adjustment buttons should be more sensitive.
– Much more expensive than older Foodis (especially if you can find one on clearance).
– Only a 3 ft power cord (common to all Foodi).
– In sous vide mode the display only shows the set temperature (not actual), and says to add the food before the set temperature is attained. About ± 5° F.
PRO:
– Includes all older Foodi cooking cycles: Pressure, Steam, Air Crisp (Air Fry), Bake, Saute, Slow Cook, Broil, Dehydrate.
– All of the older style Ninja Foodi recipes still work.
– If you already have a Foodi, the accessories (except the 6.5 qt pot) should still work.
– The pot has a very effective and long lasting ceramic non-stick coating. My several year old original Foodi pot is still perfect.
– Includes the crisping basket that is often left out of other models.
– Like most electric pressure cookers, no steam escapes during pressure cooking.
– Many recipes can be prepared solely in the Foodi without using any other pans.
– Hard copies of the manual and the recipe book (with color pictures) are included.
IMPROVEMENTS over older Foodis (see Note below):
– Automatically quick exhausts after pressure cooking – no need to flip up the weight. A second option is a 10 min delay before quick exhaust which I use for making rice. This is very handy since I don’t have to return to the kitchen until it is all finished.
– One lid (compared to 2 for the older style). No need to find space to store a second lid.
– Hot air exhausts upward so it does not impact nearby appliances (picture: see my TV sitting next to the Foodi during steam exhaust). Unfortunately, my older Foodis exhausted out the back to roast the TV.
– The pot is 8 qt (taller, but still the same diameter as 6.5 qt).
– Several new and useful cooking options including steam-oven bread.
NEW COOKING CYCLES:
– Steam/Crisp: Both steam and “Air Fry” in one operation. Works very well. Steam/Crisp makes crunchy potato wedges/French fries (picture) and crispy chicken skin.
– Proof: A must if your kitchen is cold. Use it along with Steam/Crisp to make yeast breads. Steam/Crisp mimics a professional steam oven for the BEST crispy crust.
– Temperature Probe: A temperature probe can be used during most cooking cycles. Useful when you don’t want your meat to overcook. You can set manually or use the built-in presets for beef, pork, fish, chicken. For example, for pork tenderloin, use the probe with the Steam Crisp setting (adding 1 cup water for steam), then selecting the Pork preset (rare, medium, medium well, well done) and the meat will have a browned exterior and the interior doneness you want. Medium setting produces pork that is just slightly past pink.
The temperature probe also works with pressure cooking. It can be set to a manual temperature or to automatic for beef, pork and chicken. Pork can be set to “Shred” to make excellent shredded pork automatically!
– Yogurt: I suppose it works, but not my thing.
– Sous Vide: It works well enough for occasional use. Cooking at a precise temperature in a water bath (in a bag) is the way restaurants get tender meats. I use it for the tenderest chicken breast. It also works for steaks (followed by broil). Ninja needs only 12 cups of water in its pot.
HOWEVER, sous vide is also disappointing in some ways:
1. The water does not circulate (of course), and so heats the food more slowly.
2. The display only shows the set temperature (not the actual).
3. Ninja tells you to add the food before the set temperature is attained.
4. Only 5° F temperature increments can be selected, and holds the water about ± 5° F .
Maybe I am nitpicking, but my other sous vide (Ink Bird) vigorously circulates ± 0.5° F water and shows the actual temperature.
NOTE:
I also have the original Ninja Foodi 6.5qt OP302 (Pressure, Steam, Slow cook, Saute, Air Crisp, Bake, Broil, Dehydrate) which I am comparing here. Ninja has changed model numbers several times adding/deleting Yogurt, Sous Vide, Dehydrate, etc, and adding/deleting accessories. It also sells the 8 qt Foodi FD401, and the 5 qt Foodi OS101.
PhotoGraphics –
I was a 302 owner. I upgraded to the OL701 (based in part on other review). The pros speak for themselves, especially the food temperature probe usable during pressure cooking, steam/crisp function, proof, yogurt and your usual array of settings, so I’ll comment on the minimal cons I’ve come across. I’m a bit of a clean freak so I’ve discovered some cons based on that. The internal pressure ring is a different material then in past versions and seems to need cleaning more frequently. Removal and reinsertion is a bit trickier as the open-lid angle makes it a somewhat more difficult operation. But the real headache I ran into was the little anti-clog cap. Man, was that difficult to remove. I have an average hand size but nevertheless it was very difficult to get a grasp and remove.
The pressure release valve arrow is a bit misleading as the seal setting is when the valve is in the little notch and not all the way to the end of the arrow.
The new probe is a very cool feature but the manual seems to imply that is can’t be placed in water!? Huh? I must be misunderstanding the manual as it is used under high pressure, with superheated steam, so how can it NOT be in contact with water. And how would you clean it?
Nevertheless, I pressure cooked a piece of boneless skinless chicken breast using the probe with CHICKEN preset and quick release setting and the finished product was excellent, perfectly cooked and ready for me to make chicken salad sandwiches. This machine is going to be a blast!
D. C. Eaton –
This is an amazing machine, love the ability to do so much in one machine….I really like being able to time the release..and the steam cooking is wonderful…am going to try the sous vide at some point…it’s really great being able to steam and crisp in the same pot…it’s a big, heavy machine but it’s wonderful!
3yed –
We upgraded from the previous version that had two lids. The smart lid with the temperature probe takes up less space and works great. The previous version was our most used appliance in the kitchen and I’m sure this upgrade to smart lid will increase our usage.
D. C. Eaton –
Damaged box and a loose lid (feels like the latch/hinge took a beating) have made my experience very upsetting for paying over $400 for this… I mean, it does everything but receiving it in non damaged form would have been nice. What a nightmare to send back to replace.
Lauren Thoraval –
Es una Olla increíble para cocinar, freír y demás, práctica, rápida y fácil de utilizar, el sabor de los alimentos muy bueno, y crujiente si se utiliza esa función, el tamaño del aparato no es tan grande como se dice, lo cual se puede guardar perfectamente en la encimera debajo de los muebles superiores de la mayoría de las cocinas.