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Air fryer chicken wings
The chicken wings cooked in the Ninja air fryer were a thing of beauty.
Chicken wings are almost universally loved and are a very popular item for air frying. The goal of an air-fried wing is to have a crispy outside and a skinny, juicy inside. To test each oven’s ability to air fry, I cooked three frozen wings on air fry mode at 450°F for 30 minutes, flipping them every 10 minutes. I let each oven heat up completely before putting the wings in and then I photograph them immediately after removing them. Naturally, I also tasted it when it was cold enough to eat.
Success here depends on high heat and good fan circulation of hot air, which means faster cooking. The faster the air fryer cooks and the more effective the ultra-convection, the faster the outside skin will crisp up, reducing the possibility of the chicken drying out on the inside.
Oven Ninja Foodi won the great wing war with a feather, with crispy wings after 30 minutes. It was also quite soft on the inside and had no real visible burning. The Cuisinart also passed the wing test, but I had to pull it out after about 25 minutes because it was all done. They even had some burned skin but not enough to bother me. The Breville and Crux also performed well with nicely browned and crispy skin, while the KitchenAid ranked sixth and the Calphalon seventh with not enough browning or crispiness for my taste.
Air french fries
The Ninja and Breville cook French fries to golden brown faster without burning them.
This second air fryer test is designed to highlight the pure power and speed of a single oven’s air frying function, as well as its ability to cook evenly. I put a handful of frozen French fries (McDonald’s style) in an air fryer at 450 degrees Fahrenheit and determined how quickly each one reached the golden brown color we all crave. Since fast cooking and convenience are key features of a tabletop air fryer oven, faster equals better. All of the items involved in the oven (except the Cuisinart) eventually reached the desired degree of doneness, but some got the job done more quickly and consistently than others.
Breville won the frying test with perfect golden potatoes in six minutes. I set the Ninja to a slightly lower temperature (390°F) according to its manual, and in eight minutes I had perfect French fries (a very close second place and would likely win or tie if I set it to 450°F). The KitchenAid also took eight minutes on 450F while the Crux took nine minutes to get there and the Calphalon took 12. The Cuisinart was actually the quickest at just three minutes, but it burned the edges of the fries and they didn’t cook evenly. At this point, I’m beginning to doubt that the Cuisinart has an unusually intense air fryer function, for better or worse.
Grilled salmon
The Breville and Ninja were the only ovens that produced any kind of crust after four minutes.
To test broilers, I brushed a 4-ounce salmon fillet with a mixture of mustard, olive oil, and brown sugar. After the oven preheated, I stuck the salmon under the broiler about 2 inches from the top and left it there for four minutes before removing it from the oven to take photos.
The main thing I looked for here was how well each chicken breast imparted a caramelized crust on the top of the fish. Some ovens, like the Calphalon and Cuisinart, showed almost no signs of browning, while the Ninja and Breville provided nice color and the beginnings of a good crust. I decided they would share the blue ribbon for this test. Both KitchenAid and Crux showed some browning, landing them in third and fourth place.
Plain old toast
Both Calphalon and Ninja did a very nice toast consistent with their average presets, but the Ninja (pictured) did it in half the time.
The goal of this test was to see how accurate a toaster’s presets were in a given oven and how fast it toasted. I stuck one slice of bread in each toaster and set it to medium. I didn’t rate this test as highly as the others, because the truth is, any of these ovens will get you to your desired degree of browning, and it may take more (or less) time, some tinkering or learning the presets to get it how you want it.
The length of each cooking time for the “medium” preset in each oven varied widely, ranging from more than six minutes for the Calphalon to just three and a half minutes for the Ninja. As it stands, these two produced the most balanced and attractive toast that matches the preset, but Ninja (the winner) did it in half the time. The Breville, KitchenAid, and Crux appliances barely toasted the bread at all when set to medium — which simply means you’ll have to use a darker setting — while the Cuisinart over-toasted the bread.
Baked cookies
The Ninja and Breville tied in the cookie competition with both ovens achieving nearly perfect results.
Next, I wanted to see how accurately and consistently each oven reached and maintained temperature, and baking a cake is a perfect test for that. I scooped 1 tablespoon of Toll House cookie dough onto parchment paper and stuck one in each oven on the middle rack for the recommended time and temperature (350°F for 10 minutes).
The cookie race was a photo finish between Ninja and Breville, both of whom had nearly perfect results. The Cuisinart cookie was overcooked, as was the Crux (although slightly), while the KitchenAid cookie was a little undercooked.
Preheat test
Another big draw to using a countertop oven over a large oven is the speed at which it preheats. While the cookies were baking, I timed each oven to see how quickly they would reach 350°F.
The Ninja Foodi blew all the others away, preheating to 350°F at lightning speed for 50 seconds. Most of the others took about three and a half minutes, while the larger Breville took five minutes to reach temperature. I haven’t done a formal air fryer preheat test, but I did notice that the Calphalon took noticeably longer than the others to reach 450°F when air frying.
Test temperature accuracy and consistency
This is one of the most important functions of any oven, especially if you plan to do some light baking in it. If your oven can’t maintain an accurate, consistent temperature, it makes recipes that much more difficult to follow, and you’ll have to forever adjust and market your food to make sure it doesn’t burn. I used a thermocouple to read the internal temperature of the oven while it was baking for 10 minutes at 350°F. I was able to get an average temperature reading throughout the baking, but I also watched the thermometer in real time to see how much fluctuation occurred during cooking.
The KitchenAid won this test with an average reading of 350 F on the nose and very little fluctuation. The Ninja (average temperature 343°F), Cuisinart (346°F), and Breville (345°F) also performed well, although the Breville started out very hot and then went back down. The final place winners were Crux, which was hot (365°F) and Calpahalon, which was cold (337°F). Both were also the most inconsistent of all the baked goods.
Cleaning and care
The smart design feature allows you to go directly into the Ninja oven and give it a good cleaning.
With the exception of Ninja (more on that in a second), there’s nothing particularly unusual about caring for or cleaning these ovens. They have standard interiors in various sizes made of stainless steel that require regular cleanings and wipes. Each oven also has a removable, dishwasher-safe crumb tray to catch French fries and delicious bits.
Now back to the ninja. Because of the compact interior, this oven is definitely more susceptible to smudges and stains, especially when preparing foods that contain fats and grease like wings. Fortunately, there’s a clever design feature that allows the entire basement of the Ninja Oven to fold away so you can get right in with a cloth or Brillo pad and wipe it down. I’m sure the Ninja will require more frequent cleaning than the others. If this is not something you are diligent in, it is definitely something to consider.
