Is dinner prep starting to feel like a nightly triathlon? Same. I’m no domestic goddess, and often too time-poor to cook nutritious family meals, but I did feel a bit like Nara Smith (the TikTok influencer famous for making wholesome meals from scratch in elaborate outfits) after testing the new Ninja multicooker.
If you’re wondering what the Ninja Combi 14-In-1 Multicooker does, it combines a lineup of benchtop appliances (think air fryer, oven, and more) into one sleek machine. Featuring 14 cooking functions, its pièce de résistance is that it creates entire meals – protein, veggies, and grains – at the same time.
How do I know? I was lucky enough to attend a Ninja cooking masterclass in Sydney with none other than celebrity chef Matt Moran (you might recognise him as a judge from the third season of MasterChef Australia). Armed with Matt’s tips (and a serious craving for his miso and marmalade-glazed salmon), I tested the Ninja multicooker upon my return to New Zealand.
Could I master the machine? And is it more than just a pretty addition to my kitchen bench? Here’s my review of the Ninja Combi 14-In-1 Multicooker.
Shop the Combi 14-In-1 Multicooker for $599.99 at Ninja.
Ninja’s Combi 14-In-1 Multicooker review verdict
- My rating: 9 out of 10
- Why I rated it a 9/10: The Ninja Multicooker allowed me to whip up healthy, delicious meals for the family, all while slashing cooking and cleanup time. However, I did need to sacrifice bench space for the Combi, and while it doesn’t have a pressure cook function like other multicookers on the market, it makes up for it with its air fry feature (which, in all honesty, is way better).
Pros
- Its 14 cooking functions make it the definition of versatile, including the ability to cook multiple meal elements simultaneously.
- It cooks food in half the time of a wall oven to get dinner on the table, fast.
- The step-by-step instruction manual is easy to follow, and there’s no shortage of healthy, great-tasting recipe inspiration. I’m now trying dishes I’ve never bothered with before.
- Cleanup is a breeze – the tray, pan and crisper plate are dishwasher safe.
- You’ll receive free shipping plus a two-year warranty when you order the multicooker from the Ninja website.
Cons
- At 10kg, it’s not the lightest, so if you’re all about convenience, you’ll want to keep it on the bench rather than lugging it in and out of the cupboard. That said, it does replace the need for multiple appliances, meaning less clutter.
- Love baking? Check your tins fit the Combi’s dimensions. I don’t have a 22cm round cake tin, so I improvised with a loaf tin instead.
What’s so special about the Ninja Combi?
The Ninja Combi 14-In-1 Multicooker simplifies everyday cooking, handling everything from baking, steaming and grilling to reheating leftovers.
Its standout feature? The Combi Cooking mode. It lets you prepare an entire meal of protein, vegetables and carbs simultaneously in as little as 15 minutes. And forget boring meat and three-veg. We’re talking herbed chicken couscous, salmon with pea and lemon risotto, beef taco bowls, and tandoori chicken skewers with basmati rice. Dinner just got a serious upgrade.
If you’re a Type A kind of person who must clean as you go, the Ninja Combi’s dishwasher-safe trays make cleanup easy. Plus, you can tidy up your prep items like chopping boards, knives, and mixing bowls while the Combi cooks your meal.
How does the Ninja Combi work?
The Ninja Combi uses ‘HyperSteam’ technology to rapidly thaw and cook frozen protein and veggies to perfection – crispy on the outside, juicy on the inside. Pasta lovers, there’s no need to boil water separately – it handles that too.
As Matt Moran explains, the Combi’s clever design ensures every part of your meal is cooked just right. “With the Combi, use the top bake tray for proteins and vegetables to get that direct, circulating heat and perfect crisping results, and the bottom Combi pan for vegetables or grains where they can gently steam, cook and soak up flavour. It’s an easy way to get a perfectly cooked complete meal, all at once, with minimal effort.”
The Ninja Combi’s cooking functions include:
- Combi Cooker: Combi Meals, Combi Crisp, Combi Bake, rice/pasta, steam, prove
- Air Fry/Hob: Grill, air fry, bake, reheat, slow cook, sear/sauté, pizza, toast
What’s in the box
The Ninja Combi 14-In-1 Multicooker measures 39 cm wide, 37 cm deep, and 33.2cm high.
It comes with the following dishwasher safe accessories:
- Combi Pan
- Bake Tray
- Crisper Plate
There’s also a recipe book with 20 chef-created recipes and cooking charts to build your own meals. The user manual is straightforward, offering step-by-step guides for each cooking function and plenty of recipe inspiration, even for beginners.
Results from my test
1. A gourmet meal in 35 minutes
At the Sydney masterclass with celebrity chef Matt Moran, we prepared a restaurant-worthy dish – Matt’s Miso & Marmalade Glazed Salmon – using only the Ninja Combi 14-In-1 Multicooker.
We steamed rice and water in the bottom pan, then added greens to the higher-up bake tray to steam alongside the rice.
We then prepared the salmon with its glaze. Once the greens and rice were ready, we removed them, switched the Combi to the Air Fryer grill setting, and cooked the salmon for 10 minutes for the glaze to caramelise.
The result? Melt in your mouth salmon with a generous heaping of rice and veggies.
2. Baking a cake
Feeling adventurous, I put the Ninja multicooker to the test by baking carrot cake. My round cake tin didn’t fit in the Combi, but a smaller loaf tin fit perfectly.
The cake came out moist, evenly cooked, and passed the fork test with flying colours. It looks dense in the photo, but that’s precisely how the recipe intended it to be. I was relieved it worked, as I’ve had my fair share of cakes baked in the oven that have collapsed spectacularly in the middle.
3. Pasta cooked to perfection
One of the most surprising features? The Ninja Combi 14-In-1 Multicooker can boil grains and pasta from scratch – no stovetop required. Adapting a shrimp scampi and linguine recipe from the Ninja Test Kitchen, I was amazed at how tender the linguine turned out.
Meanwhile, the previously frozen prawns, alongside a mix of vegetables, cooked to juicy perfection in the top tray.
The biggest win? Cooking everything in the same appliance drastically reduced cleanup time. I even managed to wash all the prep utensils during the cooking process. Afterwards, I popped the trays and pans into the dishwasher and was done in minutes.
I’m yet to try the prove function – my colleague across the ditch, Sarah Murphy, Senior Food Editor at Better Homes and Gardens used it to make homemade pizza from start to finish. That’s my next challenge!
What do the experts say about the Ninja Combi?
New to the Combi way of cooking? Will Tran, Senior Product Manager at Ninja, suggests starting with the Combi Meals Mode.
“If you’re new to the Ninja Combi, my top tip is to start with Combi Meals mode – it cooks a protein, carb, and veggies all at once, with everything ready at the same time in just 15 minutes. For another easy win, try Combi Crisp mode. It combines HyperSteam and Air Frying to cook fresh or frozen proteins and veggies to perfection — juicy inside and, crispy outside. The Combi is designed to simplify mealtimes and deliver restaurant-quality results with minimal effort”, he says.
Chef Matt Moran also praises the Ninja’s efficiency and quality, adding, “It takes the guesswork out of cooking and helps anyone create something delicious with minimal effort. It’s the kind of appliance that changes how you cook, every day.”
Matt also highlights the Combi’s versatility for batch cooking: “The Combi’s capacity makes it perfect for a big weekend cook-up. Roast veg, a slow-cooked ragu, and some grains can be prepared ahead and used across a few meals during the week. It’s a smart way to save time while keeping meals interesting.”
Overall, is the Ninja multicooker worth it?
Absolutely. This multicooker has more than earned its spot on my benchtop by making everyday cooking faster and easier. I don’t think I’ve ever used the word ‘perfect’ this much in an article, but when it comes to whipping up chef-approved meals in no time, the Ninja Combi gets my seal of approval.
Where to buy the Ninja Combi 14-In-1 Multicooker
Shop the Combi 14-In-1 Multicooker for $599.99 at Ninja.
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