I tried the beloved Ninja Foodi MAX Dual Zone Air Fryer AF400UK - believe the hype

Price on writing: RRP £220, now just £170

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Our verdict

Full transparency: I’m really bad at cooking. Ask my husband and he’ll tell you about the time I burnt hot dogs. So honestly, anything that makes cooking easier, I will throw my money at it. Of course, one of the most lust-worthy kitchen appliances that has grown hugely in popularity since the pandemic is an air fryer. 

Famed for cooking in a shorter amount of time than a conventional oven, without using as much energy, there’s an air fryer in every home I visit these days. From stacked versions to large single-baskets suitable for an individual or couple, there are plenty of options to choose from to find one that suits your family size and needs. 

For me, who has four people and two dogs to feed daily, I was in need of something that wouldn’t take too much space in my kitchen, could fit enough food in for four, would be quick and, most importantly, easy to use. And when it comes to the best dual air fryers for families, there’s one that reigns supreme: the Ninja AF400UK. 

I’m not exaggerating when I say it has transformed our mealtimes. Dinnertime especially was one of the most stressful times in our home. That witching hour before feeding the kids made it impossible to actually concentrate and cook a meal. The constant noise would make it very hard for me to follow a recipe, often resulting in me losing my patience, giving up and resorting to something on toast. 

These days? With my Ninja AF400UK and armed with several new air fryer cookbooks, I’ve whipped up buttermilk chicken, chicken shawarma, veggies for salads and meals, jacket potatoes, chicken schnitzel (we eat a lot of chicken in our household), and dare I say it… the crispiest homemade chips we’ve ever made. No longer am I fending off my two hungry kids before dinner for 30 minutes. Now, they’re fed, quiet and happy in just 10 minutes. That may not sound like a huge difference in time, but when kids are constantly opening your fridge freezer for a snack or nagging for a bag of crisps before a meal, it’s easy to get rather miffed. IYKYK. 

Not only is the Ninja AF400UK quick, but it’s also easy to use, offers various settings (after all, it doesn’t just air fry), is easy to clean and and has two large capacity drawers that you can either match or sync, which if you’re time dense like me while cooking, is a lifesaver. No wonder it was voted Mumsnet's best Ninja air fryer overall, then.

Cooking in the Ninja Foodi MAX Dual Zone Air Fryer AF400UK: how easy is it to use?

We’ve been using the Ninja AF400UK Air Fryer religiously since receiving it a month ago. My husband uses it to make his protein-packed lunches, while I rely on it for quick and healthier meals for our two children. It’s a huge help cooking meals I decide are a good idea when making my weekly meal plan. 

An instruction booklet does come with the air fryer, but honestly, this is more handy for figuring out cooking times for different ingredients. There are helpful tips on how to use the controls, but they’re pretty straightforward and I found it easy to figure out from just using the display controls. 

There’s a dial that lets you select which mode you’d like: air fry, max crisp, roast, reheat, bake, or dehydrate. Air fry and max crisp are our two favourites, especially when combined to make crispy chips or jacket potatoes. We’ve tested all six cooking functions at least once, though. But honestly, we find the air fry setting enough for the meals we make on a regular basis. 

The dual-zone cooking is amazing. As I’ve mentioned, one thing I struggle with when cooking is being able to focus and track timings on different meal elements. I’m definitely a chuck-it-in-the-oven-at-200-degrees-for-20-minutes-and-hope-for-the-best type of individual. The air fryer allows you to control each basket separately, which is very helpful if you have chicken nuggets that need 12 minutes at 200°C, but the chips or veg only need, say, seven minutes at 180°C.

With the sync function, you can set both drawers off at the same time, but the basket with the shortest duration will hold until the sister drawer reaches the same time. This means both drawers finish cooking at exactly the same moment. 

With match, you can select your settings on one drawer, press the match button, and it’ll duplicate the settings across to the other side so you don’t have to re-do everything. Ideal for saving those all-important seconds.

In terms of convenience vs other cooking methods, I do find it much more convenient. As working parents, we would often find ourselves pressed for time once work ended each day, followed by panic as we hadn’t started tea on time. Because you know, God forbid your kids don’t get fed by 6pm. They’ll turn into Gremlins if not. And not the fuzzy, cute kind. With the Ninja AF400UK, I can finish at 5.30pm, chuck in some food, and have everyone’s meal on the dining table by six. 

As for the noise, it’s not as loud as a microwave, but it’s not quiet, either. There is a droning hum from the air fryer when it’s turned on, but it’s more of a background white noise that isn’t too disruptive.

Read next: The best slow cookers, tried and tested

Ninja Foodi MAX Dual Zone Air Fryer AF400UK performance: how are the results?

Of course, one of the first things we cooked in the fryer after it arrived was chips. Surprise, surprise. Frozen, I’ll admit. It takes around 12 minutes for us to whip up a batch of tasty and rather crispy fries that our kids inhale. Even though the instructions stipulate that you should place them in a single layer, I am guilty of throwing a load in and giving it a few shuffles as it cooks. Are they evenly cooked? Yes. Are they all crispy? Yes. Do they take less time than a conventional oven? Yes.

My kids’ diet recently has largely been made up of frozen goods — nuggets, chips, frozen veg, fish cakes, pizza, you name it. But since receiving the dual-zone Ninja, I’ll admit, I’ve been a bit more confident with cooking different things. As I said, I’ve made chicken schnitzel — from scratch! — and it’s become one of our favourite go-to weekly meals. If I had braved cooking schnitzel from scratch before, I’d have been looking at up to 30 minutes in the oven. Now? As little as 12 minutes.

I’m more inclined to experiment now too, not just because of speed, but also because of how easy it is to actually clean the drawers. They’re non-stick, and thanks to the removable grids, you can keep them in tip top shape between uses. 

Finally, I attempted to make kale chips . In my head they were going to turn out crispy — and they did… but only after flying around the basket so much they got stuck between the heaters at the top. The smell of burnt kale filled our home for a day or so. So, take heed of my cautionary tale, and avoid anything too light if you do plump for an air fryer.

Ninja Foodi MAX Dual Zone Air Fryer AF400UK: design and style

I’m personally a fan of white appliances as we have an open-plan kitchen/diner/living space, with white walls and light grey cabinets. Anything dark would really clash, as you’ll have seen if you read my Russell Hobbs Inspire Kettle and Inspire Toaster reviews. 

So, I was thrilled when I was sent a Curry’s exclusive white version of the Ninja AF400UK. It sits perfectly on our kitchen counter (thankfully we have space for it next to our microwave). 

Considering its size, it was unsurprising that getting it out of the box was a little tricky. It’s bulky and sturdy but not so heavy that I can’t move it on my counter to clean underneath and behind it. Given it’s dual-zoned, I do find it offers capacity for us to cook enough food for the four of us. You can fit a small roast chicken in one drawer while you do your potatoes in the other at the same time.

Related: Best air fryers for a family of four

Is the Ninja Foodi MAX Air Fryer AF400UK easy to clean?

Yes, it’s very easy to clean — much easier than my years-old oven trays that I HATE having to scrub. The drawers are both non-stick, as are the removable grids inside each of them. They’ve been washed by hand in the sink after every use and go in the dishwasher once a week (usually on takeaway night) to have a deeper, more thorough clean.

Even with the messiest of recipes — for example, I tried making buttermilk chicken, and let’s just say I used too much egg and milk — the food didn’t stick and was very easy to get off.

Price: is the Ninja Foodi MAX Dual Zone Air Fryer AF400UK worth it?

As a family of four, 100% I’d say it’s worth it. Not only has it transformed our evening meals as a family — removing the stress of cooking — but it's also used for breakfast and lunch regularly. 

There are several products I'd recommend keeping handy in the cupboard or fridge which cook perfectly in the air fryer. Think waffles, pastries, bao buns, gyozas… all of which are the right amount of food for my husband and I at lunchtime, saving us money when we're tempted to just grab a meal deal. Maggi also offer seasonings designed specifically for the air fryer (we LOVE the shawarma one) that I highly recommend for a chicken-based meal.

How we tested

We’ve used the air fryer daily for over a month now — and some days it can even be used up to three or four times. I’m yet to host a meal for friends or extended family using it, but throughout testing, all four of us have enjoyed each meal it’s created. Even our dogs have enjoyed a chicken breast or two at speed (when I’ve forgotten to take their frozen raw meals out of the freezer). 

I haven’t personally owned an air fryer before testing this, but I did hunt down an affordable option that would be a Christmas gift for my mother a couple of years ago. That particular one was a Philips, and it only had one basket that was more suitable for an individual or couple. In fact, I remember telling my mum — who insisted I also treat myself to one — that it wouldn’t be big enough for our family. But guess what, the Ninja AF400UK certainly is.

About the author

Rebecca Roberts is a writer, editor, and content marketing expert hailing from Leeds. Here at Mumsnet, she commissions, writes, and edits to bring parents content designed to make life easier. As a parent of two children, she knows how difficult it can be to get food on the dinner table that kids will actually a) eat and b) enjoy. So, her thorough reviews of kitchen appliances are designed to make sure any recommendations made are indeed worth your money.

Beyond her role as an editor here at Mumsnet, Rebecca can be found balancing life as a working mum of two toddlers and when she’s not at her desk, you’ll likely find her at a local playgroup, in a nearby coffee shop, or walking the dog up and down country lanes.

About Mumsnet Reviews

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