I air fried my lunch at work for a week
Updated
What happens when you air fry at a desk? Well, your colleagues certainly notice! Joshua Buchwald
There’s very little joy in microwaving leftovers at work. A two-minute spin often turns last night’s dinner into a soggy lunch.
But what if you could ditch the office microwave for good and air-fry your leftovers at your desk? Sounds insane, but Ninja have an appliance that wants to save you from sad, over-zapped lunches.
Ninja Crispi 4-in-1 Air Fryer at a glance…
Ninja Crispi in action Joshua Buchwald
Pros: Good quality, non-toxic glass containers; heats relatively fast; versatile; portable small container; incredibly quiet on ReCrisp mode
Cons: Ninja Crispi Pod and the large container are heavy
Verdict: Delivers effortless crispy lunches at work and at home
First impressions
Is it odd to be excited over air fryers? Not when the perfect lunch is on the line.
Out of the box, the Ninja Crispi is packed with all the right gear to get going as soon as you plug it in.
What you get is a small 1.4L glass container and a large 3.8L glass container – each with an aluminium crisper plate and lid.
The star of the show is the Crispi Pod; it’s what does the air frying. The Crispi Pod sits on top of the smaller container or on the bigger container with an extension. It’s got four cooking modes, depending on your preference: Air Fry, Re Crisp, Keep Warm and Roast.
To operate, simply plug it in, select your mode and off you go.
Finally, if you’re worried about the materials, the glass containers are thermal shock resistant and non-toxic for cooking, and the crisper plates feature a non-stick coating that is free from PFAS and PTFE.
Day one: Reheating fries
Fries are a no-brainer in an air fryer. Joshua Buchwald
The air-fryer gods were looking out for me on day one when KFC fries landed in the office. I knew I had to set this up ASAP to get some soggy fries back to crispy perfection.
While it was a small batch, in about 10 minutes, I had some fresh, crispy fries to eat. So this gave me the immediate confidence that reheating was going to be perfect for my leftovers.
The biggest shock was just how quiet the Ninja Crispi was on ReCrisp mode. It was a gentle hum, and the smell didn’t waft out too strongly when cooking. Of course, when I went to eat the fries, they smelled and tasted just like they should when you buy them in store – delicious.
So, I set my sights on meal prep for the coming days to ensure that I had some leftovers to take in. As for the pod, I left it in the office after wiping it down and took the small and large containers home.
Day two: Lasagne test
The ReCrisp mode on the air fryer became my favourite function. Joshua Buchwald
Lunch for day two was lasagne. Now when your lasagne comes out of the oven, it’s got crunchy bits on top. Replicating that in a microwave isn’t possible; soggy is the only option.
Thankfully, the Ninja Crispi’s ReCrisp mode was built for this purpose. I let the air fryer run for the default 10 minutes. Once it was done I realised that a big slice of lasagne with delicious cheesy layers needs more time – 15 minutes later and I was ready to eat at my desk.
Warning: if you’re conscious of being ‘that guy’ who distracts the office with delicious-smelling food, maybe don’t whip up a lasagne.
Day three: A good pub feed
The perfect meal to make your coworkers jealous of your lunch! Joshua Buchwald
Nothing beats a pub schnitzel, chips and sauce on the side, which is exactly what I wanted to replicate for my next desk side lunch.
To get your food crispy, Ninja recommends placing your meal on top of the crisper plate. But you can remove that and add food underneath if you want to separate things.
This time I used the Air Fry mode, and the sound ramped up noticeably compared to the previous days. Rather than a quiet hum, it sounds like your standard benchtop air fryer. Learning from last time, I set the timer to 15 minutes.
What came out was the perfect lunch that caused quite a bit of commotion. People were commenting on the food, asking “Is that the Ninja Crispi?“, and then asking if it was actually any good.
My response was an overwhelmingly positive “Yes!”
So, day three was an overall success.
Day four: A sandwich well-toasted
Who knew you could toast a sandwich in an air fryer? Joshua Buchwald
Now, normally, a toastie only needs the work sandwich press. I like to bring baking paper so I don’t leave too much of a mess, but there are times when other people are using the appliance while I’m on break, and I’m too hungry to wait.
So, I chose the only other reasonable option: air fry my sandwich.
Boccaccio, olives, cheddar, rocket, tomato, balsamic vinegar, topped lightly with olive oil for that extra crisp. The smell coming out was as if a Michelin Star cafe was cooking up a lunch rush.
In Air Fry mode, this worked out perfectly! A bit noisy, quite hot, but a 10/10 sandwich.
Day five: More lasagne
Lasagne air fried again! This time, it was hot all the way through. Joshua Buchwald
After the success of my first slice of lasagne, I had to revisit. Plus, I had leftovers.
This day was unusually busy in the office, so the (not-so-subtle) beeps didn’t go unnoticed, nor did the gentle hum and sizzle of my food crisping to perfection. Suddenly, I had a crowd of watchers.
“Something smells good over there!”
“Did someone bring an air fryer in?!”
“That looks so good!”
As expected, the lasagne was a success. No notes.
Day six: The roast chicken test
Roasting chickens has never been easier. Joshua Buchwald
I’ve found air fryers to be the most consistent at roasting chickens. No need to baste them, as they come out succulent and well-done. So for the weekend, I took the air fryer home to roast an entire chicken.
I put the chicken in the larger container and stuffed it with lemons, garlic, herbs, and spices. Then, set it on air fry mode (as per recommendation) and let it roast for an hour. The benefit of glass containers is that you can check on the progress.
It needed an extra 15 minutes, but once the extra minutes were done, I was left with a juicy, well-seasoned chicken.
What I learned from a week of air frying at my desk
- Leaving the pod at your desk (or in the office kitchen, if you’d prefer) is smart if you don’t want to drag it to and from work, although it’s possible to do so if you don’t mind the extra weight.
- The glass is hot once the air fryer heats up, but seeing into the air fryer makes it easier to monitor the food.
- Air frying lunches has changed my lunches for the better. It works like a charm, even at your desk!
- Expect to preheat or leave your food in there longer than the default time settings.
- This would be great for camping, as it packs up in a relatively compact way. You just need a power outlet to fire it up.
- The glass containers are dishwasher-safe, and the Crispi Pod can be all cleaned up with a simple wipe with a wet cloth.
- You’ll struggle cooking for a family in this.
Is the Ninja Crispi worth it?
Ninja Crispi in action Joshua Buchwald
The short answer: Yes!
The Ninja Crispi has been a total game-changer for reheating leftovers and bringing them back to life.
Whether you use it in the office, like me, or you keep it at home, it’s great for smaller, one-serve meals.
For the price the appliance is a value buy, especially if you use it to heat your lunches at work.
READ MORE: I put the Kleva Spin Crisp Air Fryer to the test. Here’s my verdict
