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The Ninja Foodi Max multi-cooker we’re testing has 9 settings, and this time, we’re taking the Slow Cook function for a whirl. After looking through the fridge, freezer, and cupboards to work out what we already have (so we didn’t have to go out and spend more money… we’re poor!), we decided to test out the slow cook setting with a yellow-sticker lamb stew.
When it comes to cooking, using what you already have it a great way to save money. From my potato wedges test, I had spuds leftover – the 8p bag of potatoes from Aldi was still half full, meaning the bulk of this stew cost me nothing. Various food tests have resulted in a decent, supermarket own-brand spice cupboard which is perfect for stew.
The carrots in this stew came from the carrot bag we bought for our Ninja Foodi Max shepherd’s pie test. My vegetable stock cubes (£1.10 from Tesco) were used to save myself going out and buying meat stock. These stock cubes are the very same that appear in my Ninja Crispi pasta bake test – the same with the peas I stirred into my stew at the end.
Having a lamb is a real treat: it’s far too expensive at full price, so when I saw some diced shoulder had been yellow stickered in Sainsbury’s, I snapped it up.
To make sure the meals you’re cooking maximise your shop and reduce food waste, tailor your weekly meal plan to use similar ingredients. For example, my test week of potato wedges with chicken mini fillets, cheese toasties, shepherd’s pie, lamb stew, and chicken pasta bake have a lot of ingredient overlap. Lots of variety, little waste.
Preparing the lamb stew
Stews are wonderful when it comes to using things you’ve already got in your cupboards. You could choose to have just meat and gravy, add in a spoon of this herb, that herb, worcestershire sauce, brown sauce, chilli (I added a heaped spoon of hot paprika), garlic, and any vegetables you have in your fridge or freezer. Anything goes when it comes to stews.
With that in mind, let’s look at timings:
Time to prep
Peeling, slicing, dicing, searing = 30 minutes
Time to slow cook
Anywhere between four and eight hours. If you’re more organised than me and prep in the morning, you could stick the Foodi Max Multi-Cooker on low and up the time to coordinate with dinner time. As I wasn’t going to be eating for seven hours, I increased the time to match.
Setting up and using the Ninja Foodi Max’s slow cook function
The upside with using the Foodi Max compared to a dedicated slow cooker is being able to fry the onions and sear the meat in the same pot. No frying pan needed.
To start, I set the multi-cooker to Sear/Saute and softened some onion and carrot cubes in a splash of oil. I then tipped in the lamb shoulder and cooked until it was lightly browned. Next, I added some mid-size potato cubes. While all this was searing, I stuck the kettle on, ready to top the pot off with some vegetable stock. Once the stock was added, I added a teaspoon of rosemary, thyme, and hot paprika, as well as two bay leaves and a shake of salt and pepper.
With all the ingredient incorporated, I turned off Sear/Saute, locked the pressure lid in place, turned the dial to Slow Cook, and set the time to seven hours. (Make sure the valve on top of the pressure lid is pointing towards Seal before you start.)
As you can see from the picture above, slow cooking in the Ninja Food Max is a tall affair. The regular lid has to remain open while the steamer lid is in place – I couldn’t then push the Foodi under my cupboards and out of the way. As a result, this big boy occupied a lot of counter space.
Would I use the slow cook function on the Ninja Foodi Max again?
Yes.
After seven hours of slow cooking, the lamb was buttery soft, no tough cubes in sight. For a hit of colour, I stirred in some frozen peas and switched the Foodi Max back to Sear/Saute. Once the peas had softened, I added a teaspoon of cornflour to thicken the gravy.
The stew was hot all the way through, my spoon slid through the lamb like a hot knife through butter, and the vegetables were all soft – no hard spots in the centre of the potato or carrot chunks. Served with some buttered bread, it made a hearty, filling meal.
