My skill level when it comes to barbeque food sits somewhere just below complete beginner. Give me a tiny disposable barbecue on the beach and I will serve up burnt sausages and burgers covered in sand that will have you boasting “Oh no thanks, I’m still full from the first one”.
But despite this skill barrier, there is a barbecue that has caught my eye and kept me interested for a while now. The Ninja Woodfire Electric grill seems, at least on paper, like the perfect barbecue for both seasoned professionals and someone (like me) who needs a helping hand.
So I spent a few weeks with the barbecue, testing out its many functions, gizmos and array of features to see if this 3-in-1 cooker lives up to the hype that its company name tends to generate.
Set-up and design
The Ninja Woodfire is heavy. Not stone-pizza-oven-that-needs-a-crane-to-lift-in heavy, but certainly enough that it’s a pain to move. And yet, you’re going to have to move it a lot.
This is an electric device that needs to be plugged in to use. This is fine for the fanciest of people with outdoor electricity and a covering where the device can be kept out at all times, but for the rest of the world, get used to lugging this around.
But the weight isn’t a surprise and is well worth it for the amount of features. The barbecue is built with a premium metal and plastic design that looks quite honestly expensive and is nice to look at.
There isn’t much setting up needed here, simply take it out of the box, select the tray you want to use and it can be plugged straight in, ready to use. There’s a normal grill, a basket, tray and air fryer. It is however worth reading through the included booklet first (sorry, there is homework) as this can help make the most of the device.
Features
There is a lot going on with the Ninja Woodfire and there is a huge number of ways you can use it, combining cooking methods, smoking chip types and different baskets and temperatures.
On the left-hand side of the device is a toggle. With this, there are options including smoke, grill, air-fry, roast, bake, dehydrate or reheat your food. Obviously, the mode chosen will depend on what food is being cooked.
Modes like the roast and grill options focus heat onto the barbecue grill, pushing out heat from below. Other options like the air fry or smoker modes instead circulate heat around from the top, making for a slower, more even cook.
It comes with both a grill plate for frying food, as well as two baskets for air frying and other cooking methods. These can all be switched around and played with to find optimal cooking methods.
One unique feature of the Ninja Woodfire is the attached smoker. On the right-hand side of the device is a metal chamber. Fill this with the included wood chips from Ninja and hit a ‘woodfire’ button on the front and your food will be given a nice smoky flavour.
Cooking
It is hard to know where to start with the Ninja with so many cooking options at your disposal. The first step is to switch it on with the surprisingly well-hidden switch underneath it.
Cooking some different foods on the grill section was incredibly simple. Move the switch around to grill, turn up the temperature and set a timer. With the lid closed and some time elapsed, I came back to perfectly cooked sausages and bacon.
On to a more elaborate task, or at least that’s what I expected from the smoker mode. With some pork belly in hand, I set the timer to a longer four hours, put in the marinated meats and set it off.
Here is where the smoking chamber on the side comes in handy. Ninja sends a selection of wood flavourings with your barbecue. Select the flavour you like and load up the small chamber on the side.
This gave the food a nice smoky wood flavour but also strikes fear in the heart with a constant smell of intense burning radiating around the garden. The smoker process was surprisingly easy to set up, especially as you can control both the time and heat with the digital screen on the front.
The other modes worked as expected. The air-fryer mode made some perfectly crisp potatoes, and the roast and bake modes were easy to use, cooking food to the desired crispiness.
Despite all the many parts involved, the clean-up process is surprisingly easy. The smoker chamber pulls out, allowing for easy disposal of the burnt wood chips, and the grill pulls easily out from the barbecue.
However, for people not fully paying attention like me, it is important to note that there is a small hole at the top of the grill that inserts into the main part of the machine. If you decide to soak your grill, it will leak all over your counter… not a fun experience.
Verdict
The Ninja Woodfire is the Inspector Gadget of the barbecue world, just when you think you’ve tested out all of its functions and tools, a new discovery comes along for how to cook your food.
Sure, it isn’t the most portable barbecue out there, and plugging it into the mains is a pain, but for the avid garden cook, it is going to be a challenge to find anything that can do as much as this, without going all out on size and price.
While there is a lot going on with buttons, modes and different settings to play with, this is an intuitive experience for the most part. Having the ability to set timers and control the temperature at all times makes this a forgiving experience, for both the experienced cook and beginner alike.
Alternatives
George Foreman On-The-Go
The biggest drawback of the Ninja Woodfire is its lack of portability. It isn’t going to work on a camping trip, nor will it appeal to anyone who struggles to lift heavier weights. The George Foreman On-The-Go is on the complete opposite end of the spectrum.
In fact, this is the antithesis barbecue. Lightweight, affordable and free of plugs, the On-The-Go is more old-school. It can be filled with coal and temperatures are regulated through vents and an included thermometer to get the perfect cook.
However, unlike the Ninja, this is seriously light on features. There are no buttons, timers or settings, no alternative cooking methods and no adjustable smoking settings, it’s BBQing at its most stripped-back.
Ooni Koda 12
While the Ninja Woodfire can do a lot of things, it isn’t going to be the best option when it comes to pizza. If you’re looking to become a master pizza chef, a mini-pizza oven will be a much better option.
Ooni has cemented itself as one of the leading pizza oven brands on the market. The Ooni Koda 12 is a gas-powered pizza oven looks great and can cook pizzas up in just 60 seconds once it has heated up.
It isn’t just pizzas though, the oven can roast fish, veg, meat or a host of other foods – just don’t leave them in too long because, at 500 degrees, this is a seriously hot oven.
Weber Go-Anywhere
Much like the George Foreman above, the Weber Go-Anywhere is all about portability over everything else. It’s design, weight and accessories all come together to make this the kind of barbecue you can chuck in the car and take anywhere.
Also like the George Foreman, it doesn’t overcomplicate things, instead focusing on a simple cooking experience using charcoal to get the grills up to the perfect temperatures.
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