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Ninja Foodi PossibleCooker Pro 8.5-Quart Multi-Cooker Review: Is It Worth It?
The 8.5-quart oval cooker that replaces a slow cooker, Dutch oven, saucepan, steamer and food warmer — one pot, one lid, whole-family dinners.
Illustrative image — see Amazon for the actual product.
Our verdict
The Ninja Foodi PossibleCooker Pro is the slow-cooker upgrade for people who want richer results without the multi-pan cleanup. It's not as versatile as an Instant Pot Multi-Cooker, but the oval sear-plus-slow-cook design makes it the one you'll actually use on weeknights. For families cooking real dinners, it earns its counter space.
The short version
The Ninja Foodi PossibleCooker Pro is Ninja's answer to 'what if a slow cooker could sear and simmer too.' It's an 8.5-quart oval nonstick pot that sits inside a heater base with 8 preset modes — slow cook, sear/sauté, braise, steam, bake, sous vide, prove and keep-warm — so you can brown meat, deglaze, and slow-cook in the same vessel without dirtying a stovetop pan. The oval shape holds a whole chicken or pot roast horizontally instead of forcing it upright, and the integrated spoon rests in the lid so you never lose it in the sink. For families who want set-and-forget dinners without the multi-pan cleanup, it's the appliance that finally earns its counter space.
Pros & cons
Pros
- Oval 8.5-quart shape fits whole chicken, roast or lasagna horizontally
- Sears and slow-cooks in the same nonstick pot — one dish to wash
- Integrated spoon in the lid so utensils don't disappear
- 8 cooking modes covers weeknight-to-weekend range
- Removable pot is dishwasher-safe
- Lower price than a Le Creuset + slow cooker combo
Cons
- Larger footprint than a standard 6-quart slow cooker
- Not a true pressure cooker like the Instant Pot Duo
- Nonstick coating requires wood/silicone utensils only
Why people love it
Sear on high heat, then slow-cook
Brown meat and vegetables directly in the nonstick pot on the sear/sauté setting, then flip to slow cook without transferring — the fond and browned bits stay in the sauce.
Oval geometry for real cuts
The oval 8.5-quart shape (vs a round 6-quart slow cooker) fits a 5-6 lb chicken, brisket, pork shoulder or 9x13 lasagna sideways without cramming.
Integrated everything
Serving spoon rests in a slot on the lid; keep-warm auto-switches when a mode finishes; the pot lifts out to serve at the table or go into the dishwasher.
Who it's for
- Families cooking for 4-6+
- Anyone tired of dirtying a skillet plus a slow cooker
- People who batch-cook chili, stews, pot roasts
- Small-kitchen cooks replacing 3 appliances with 1
Is the Ninja Foodi PossibleCooker Pro worth it, or is a plain Crockpot enough?
The PossibleCooker Pro's core innovation is the sear-then-slow-cook workflow in one pot. On a plain Crockpot or a Hamilton Beach slow cooker (usually under $50), you brown meat in a skillet, transfer to the slow cooker, deglaze the skillet, transfer the deglaze, and wash the skillet — a real friction point that makes a lot of slow-cooker recipes 'a hassle enough to skip.' The PossibleCooker Pro does the brown, deglaze, and slow-cook in one pot with one dish to wash. That workflow change is what makes it more used, week to week, than a basic slow cooker.
But 'worth it' depends on how often you slow-cook. If you slow-cook once a month, a $40 Crockpot plus your existing skillet costs less and takes the same counter space you already have. If you slow-cook weekly and make a lot of braises, stews, chilis and pot roasts, the PossibleCooker's convenience matters — you actually use it, you dirty fewer pans, and it eventually replaces a couple of other cookware pieces on your shelf. The people who love this appliance are the ones who slow-cook 3+ times a week; casual users would be fine with cheaper gear.
Ninja Foodi PossibleCooker Pro vs Foodi Multi-Cooker vs Foodi SmartLid: sorting out the Ninja Foodi lineup
Ninja's 'Foodi' branding covers a dozen products that all look similar and confuse buyers. Here's the short version. The PossibleCooker Pro is what this review is about — sear + slow-cook + sous vide in a nonstick oval pot, no pressure cooking. The classic Foodi Multi-Cooker (usually 6.5 or 8 quart) does pressure-cook, air-fry, slow-cook and sear in one appliance with two lids to swap — much more range but bulkier, harder to store, and more expensive. The Foodi SmartLid is the newer pressure/air-fry hybrid with a single lid that does both jobs.
Pick the PossibleCooker Pro if you want a slow-cooker upgrade with sear and don't care about pressure cooking or air frying. Pick the Foodi Multi-Cooker (any version) if you want to replace an Instant Pot AND an air fryer AND a slow cooker with one appliance and don't mind the size. Pick the SmartLid if space is tight and you want maximum function per counter inch. The PossibleCooker Pro is the simplest tool in the lineup, and simplicity is a feature — fewer buttons to learn, fewer things to fail.
How to actually use the PossibleCooker Pro (recipes and workflows that make it earn its counter space)
The two workflows that make this cooker earn its keep are 'sear-then-braise' and 'set-and-forget-batch.' Sear-then-braise is your weeknight-to-weekend champion: brown 3 lbs of chuck roast in the sear mode until it develops real crust (10 minutes), remove, sauté onions and garlic in the fond, add a cup of red wine and let it reduce (this is the flavor step home cooks skip when using a plain slow cooker), then add stock, aromatics and the meat, switch to slow cook 8 hours. The result is closer to Sunday-dinner braise than to standard slow cooker mush.
Set-and-forget-batch is where the oval size pays off. Sunday afternoon: 4-lb pork shoulder, spice rub, onions and a bottle of beer in the pot, slow cook mode for 10 hours. Monday: pulled pork tacos. Tuesday: pulled pork ramen. Wednesday: freeze the last quart. One 15-minute prep, four dinners. Also great: whole chicken (fits horizontally, doesn't cram), lasagna baked in the pot, chili for a crowd, applesauce from a peck of apples, chicken and dumplings, and Sunday-morning steel-cut oats set the night before. If you're going to spend counter space on it, the ROI comes from actually using it 3+ times a week.
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Check Price on Amazon →Sold and shipped by AmazonFrequently asked questions
Ninja Foodi PossibleCooker Pro vs Instant Pot Duo vs Crockpot: which one should I buy?
They solve different problems. The Instant Pot Duo is a pressure cooker first — it makes 8-hour dinners in 45 minutes and is unbeatable for beans, rice, and quick weeknight braises, but the round bowl and pressure lid make it awkward for larger cuts and it doesn't sear evenly. A basic Crockpot is a simple slow cooker — great for set-and-forget stews but you'll still dirty a skillet to brown meat first. The PossibleCooker Pro sits between: no pressure cooking, but a large oval pot that sears and slow-cooks together. If you already own an Instant Pot, this is a real complement for weekend cooking; if you're picking one appliance, the Instant Pot has more range.
Is 8.5 quarts too big for a household of 2?
Larger than you need for daily cooking, but not wasteful. Two-person households typically use the PossibleCooker Pro for batch cooking on weekends — cook once, eat four meals — and for entertaining. If your primary use is one weeknight dinner for two people, a 6-quart round slow cooker is more efficient. The 8.5-quart oval shines when you're feeding 4+, batching soup for the freezer, or cooking a whole 5-lb chicken or brisket that wouldn't fit in a smaller pot.
Can it replace my Dutch oven for braising?
For weekday braises, yes — it does short ribs, chuck roast, chicken thighs braised in wine, and stews as well as a Le Creuset for most home cooks. Where a real cast-iron Dutch oven still wins: oven-finished braises where you want deep crust development, high-heat searing of thick cuts (the nonstick coating caps out around 400°F while cast iron can go to 500°F+), and the extra-slow gentle heat retention that improves collagen breakdown. If braising is central to your cooking, keep your Le Creuset; if you braise occasionally, this handles it fine.
How is the nonstick coating? Does it wear out fast?
Ninja's nonstick is a standard PFOA-free ceramic-based coating — comparable to what you'd find on a Ninja Foodi or Our Place pan. With proper care (wood or silicone utensils only, no metal; hand-wash or top-rack dishwasher; no aerosol cooking sprays which build up polymer residue), it lasts 3-5 years of daily use before losing its release. If you cook aggressively (steel spatula habits, hard scrubbing), expect 1-2 years. This is the honest trade-off vs a $400 enameled cast-iron Dutch oven that lasts forever.
Does it work as a sous vide?
Kind of — sous vide mode holds a set water temperature within a couple of degrees, which is fine for chicken breasts, salmon, or 1-hour steaks. It's not a precision immersion circulator (an Anova or Joule holds ±0.1°F vs Ninja's ±1-2°F), and the wide oval shape makes low-water-level sous vide inefficient. For entry-level sous vide experimentation, it works. If sous vide is a serious interest, buy a dedicated Anova stick.
Is it loud? Any smell during use?
Very quiet — no fan, no pressure release valve, just a heating element under a pot. You'll hear the sear mode sizzle and the occasional gentle bubble during a slow braise, but no mechanical noise. First few uses have a mild new-appliance smell as manufacturing residues burn off; run one water-only cycle at the sear temperature before your first food cook. After that, it's odorless.
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