Ninja is a kitchen brand that’s become a household name in the UK, in what feels like the blink of an eye.
And Ninja appliances are known for being multifunctional top performers. So when I came across the Ninja Sizzle, I was surprised that unlike all other Ninja appliances I’ve reviewed, including the best air fryers on the market, this one can only really do one thing.
In our first look at the Ninja Sizzle, we explained how this new release is essentially a big electric griddle pan. Yes, you can choose between a flat plate or a griddle plate, but there’s no other functionality. And for £150 I was intrigued to see if it would impress me, or whether it’d be the first ever Ninja appliance I've tested that would leave me wanting more.
On its website, Ninja markets the Sizzle as a low-smoke, low-fat, indoor grill for authentic chargrilling. Conjuring up images of a magical smoke-free indoor BBQ. And since I tried it out in February, I was most definitely feeling ready for some BBQ vibes to remind me of summer.
Ninja Sizzle product specs
- Plate size: 23.3 x 35.5cm
- Cooking temperature: up to 260C
- Weight: 4.4kg
- Size: 13.7 x 37.5 x 35.5cm
- RRP: £149.99
Unboxing, setting up and first impressions of the Ninja Sizzle
True to form, Ninja avoided using any plastic or polystyrene packaging, and the Sizzle was encased entirely in paper and cardboard. It’s not very heavy and was quick and easy to unbox. So far, so good.
The main unit is comprised of a heating element in the base. On top of this sits one of the interchangeable cooking plates, there’s both a flat plate and a ridged griddle-style plate included in the box.
On first impressions, the plates are really well built and sturdy. They simply sit on top of the element, there’s no complicated assembly required.
Both non-stick plates have a well at the front to catch grease that drains away during cooking. It’s worth noting that this isn’t the type of indoor grill that heats your food from above as well as below. It’s not a panini press style appliance, it only heats the base plate.
The lid is made of a perforated metal that's supposedly designed to help reduce smoke in your kitchen. Although at this stage I’m struggling to see how, since the smoke can easily get out through the holes. When in the open position, the lid can be lifted from the base for easy cleaning.
The controls are as simple as they come, just one dial for the temperature. The numbered temperature settings are 80C, 120C, 160C, 200C, and Max. But in between the numbers there are markers every 10C, to make it easy to adjust to other temperatures.
When it comes to the highest temperatures though, the system for the markings on the dial seems to go out of the window. There are four markers between 200C and max, suggesting that max is 240C. But all the product info states that the maximum temperature is 260C, so I’m left somewhat confused.
What is the Ninja Sizzle like to use?
Grill plate
The first meal I attempted on the Ninja Sizzle was asparagus and tenderstem broccoli to go with seabass, all cooked on the griddle-style plate. Luckily it comes with a recipe book that includes cooking charts for a variety of foods, so I had a point of reference for the temperature setting and cook times.
According to the charts, everything I was cooking was best cooked at 260C (max) which made life simple. The instructions clearly advise preheating at your chosen temperature for what feels like a lengthy seven minutes. So I dutifully turned the dial to max, and since there's not a timer or an inbuilt preheat function, I had to set a seven minute timer on my phone.
Once hot, I added the lightly oiled broccoli and turned regularly with tongs for 10 minutes, before adding the asparagus and cooking it all for a further six minutes. My immediate feeling was that it was slower to cook and more hassle than if I’d thrown the veg in my dual zone air fryer.
Once I’d removed the veg, I added the seabass, cooking it skin side down for the majority of the 6 minute cook time. It cooked nicely, but the skin didn’t crisp up as much as it would have in a one of the best nonstick pans, and the ridges of the grill plate made it tricky to pick up and turn, so next time I’d probably try the flat plate. On the whole, the meal was okay, but I knew that in an air fryer, such as the Ninja AF100UK and a frying pan, I’d have achieved better textures.
Undeterred, I used the grill plate to cook three skin-on, bone-in chicken thighs. I preheated it to the suggested 190C and placed the thighs skin side down. Not long into cooking, the chicken fat started to spit so I closed the lid to keep any smoke and fat at bay.
I turned them every five or so minutes to ensure they cooked evenly. According to the charts the suggested cook time for boneless chicken thighs is 11-15 minutes. However, my bone-in thighs took 25 minutes to cook through.
While there was no smoke in the kitchen, the lid did nothing to stop the room filling with greasy frying smells. Thankfully I’d placed it right next to my hob, so was able to make use of my extractor fan. With that in mind, I wouldn’t recommend using it too far from an extractor.
It was evident from the inside of the grease splattered lid that it had held back plenty of fat splatters. However it was also evident from my heavily grease splattered worktop, that either some of the splatters made it through the holes in the lid. Or, the worktop was getting covered every time I opened it and turned the chicken thighs. Either way, the cleanup operation was a bit of a mission.
The overall taste and texture of the chicken was good, the thighs were succulent and the skin crisped. But there wasn’t a char-grilled flavour, and taking into account the mess, once again, I wish I’d just cooked them in the air fryer instead.
Lastly I cooked a couple of beef burgers with some halloumi and chunks of red pepper. I preheated it to 190C and started with the burgers, adding the halloumi slices and red pepper after 10 minutes. I turned the burgers as needed and they developed an appealing charred bar marking on the outside. Similarly, the halloumi cooked with defined grill marks. The whole lot was cooked in a total of 17 minutes.
During cooking I kept the lid closed as much as possible and thankfully, the burgers weren’t as messy to cook as the chicken, and most of the splatters were contained. Once again though, the lid did nothing to contain the greasy fried burger smell that filled the kitchen.
Flat plate
To try out the flat plate, I followed a recipe for pancakes that’s in the Ninja Sizzle recipe booklet. The flat plate sits slightly tilted so that grease collects in the well at the front, and I was intrigued to see if the pancake batter would slide down towards the well.
Once preheated to 175C, I spooned three tablespoons of batter onto the plate for each pancake and made six small round pancakes. Luckily the batter stayed put and pooled into little pancake shapes. I didn’t grease the plate, so was relieved when they didn’t stick.
The thin pancakes cooked within the suggested six minutes, but the first side was notably more browned than the second side. There was enough batter for a second batch of six, so once I’d removed the first batch I made six more.
The second batch took longer to cook and didn’t brown as nicely as the first batch. So perhaps the plate needed a few minutes between batches to regain enough heat to cook the second batch as efficiently as the first.
Inspired by an image of a fry-up in the recipe book, I chose the flat plate to cook up sausage, bacon, and eggs. After the seven minute preheat, I started cooking the sausages at 180C. And despite frequent turns, it was 24 minutes before they were cooked enough to add the bacon and eggs.
I turned the temperature up to 200C before adding the bacon and eggs, because the cook charts suggest 190C for bacon and 200C for eggs. The bacon cooked fine, and though there was space for four fried eggs, they ended up all merging together, with the front two dribbling into the fat well.
Furthermore, a couple of the eggs stuck to the plate, so I’d recommend a spritz of oil if you want to be able to lift them off in one piece. Once again, I found myself thinking the air fryer would have been an easier and less messy way to cook the sausages and bacon, while a good non-stick frying pan for the eggs would have been far less stressful.
How does it compare to similar products?
As I’ve mentioned, I do believe you’d be better off using an air fryer to cook certain meats. For the same price, you could buy the new Ninja Air Fryer MAX PRO. It doesn’t have a grill setting, but the air fry, bake, and roast functions should be sufficient for cooking lots of meats like sausages, bacon, and burgers. Plus the drawer contains all the mess and can go straight into the dishwasher when you’re done.
Alternatively, the Ninja Woodfire Electric BBQ Grill & Smoker is technically an outdoor electric grill. But it can be used in all weathers and seasons. And it has significantly more to offer, such as seven cooking functions including, air fry, grill, smoker, and roast. But, that catch is that at £350 it’s pricey and you can’t use it indoors.
What's it like to clean?
The two plates both have a non-stick coating, so even after cooking really messy and greasy foods like burgers and chicken, nothing stuck to them. For greasy foods, oil collects in the well at the front of the plate, so you’ll need to tip that out before washing. And while I really wanted them to be dishwasher safe, washing them up by hand ended up being pretty quick, but required plenty of washing up liquid to banish the fat..
The lid can become heavily splattered with oil and grease, and luckily it’s easily removed and dishwasher safe. I washed it in the dishwasher when it was really greasy, but it took up a fair bit of space in my dishwasher, so when it wasn’t too dirty I washed it by hand.
Should you buy the Ninja Sizzle Indoor Grill & Flat Plate?
As I said at the start of this review, the Ninja Sizzle really didn’t wow me and it’s not an appliance I’ll be making space for in my own kitchen. Most foods I cooked on it would have cooked just as well, if not better in my air fryer.
Having said that, it does what it claims to do, and if you like griddle style cooking, then it’ll get the job done. But I’m not sure that it offers much more than a really good quality non-stick griddle pan or large frying pan, other than a lid that’ll somewhat reduce grease splatters.
Ultimately it’ll come down to the type of food you like to cook, and your reasons for wanting it in the first place. If for example, you’re in a rented house with a terrible hob, this will probably be an invaluable addition that’ll make cooking easier, but in most other circumstances, I’m struggling to see the point.
