Wings Tonight


 
LMichaels

LMichaels

TVWBB 2-Star Olympian
Had a hankerin for wings tonight. So went into town and all my little shop had was a special deal they'd gotten of bulk restaurant wings. Pre marinated buffalo style or such. 5lbs for only $1.50lb So I figured WTH. Doing smoked/airfried on the little Ninja. Apparently you can do smoke with any setting you want. Because it does not rely on "combustion" for heat. So, I got a good load of them out there in the air fry basket, she's up at 400 deg, and pouring the smoke to them. Sure hope they're good :D
I have no question the Ninja will do a great job, only a bit worried about buying pre-marinated. My original plan was to do light oil coat on bare wings, after drying them, then toss with Killer Hogs Hot Rub, and air fry with smoke. But plans went out the window :D So, still have smoke air fry going strong.
 
Well the wings were pretty awful. Though not the fault of the Ninja but the horrid marinade. They would have been sooooooo much better with my original plan
 
Did the Ninja deliver a proper doneness, texture, and crispiness such that you will try it again with your own recipe?
 
BFletcher said:
Did the Ninja deliver a proper doneness, texture, and crispiness such that you will try it again with your own recipe?
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Oh it most certainly did. I'm amazed at the versatility of this little thing. And holy cow the smoke it puts out is pretty amazing. This weekend we're doing our Christmas with the kids. There will be steaks on the Ninja I think. Also it's pretty darn cold here and that did not seem to affect it at all. Once it lit the pellets it cranked right up to the 400 deg. No issues. So, yeah I will be doing wings again on it
 
BFletcher said:
I've never used the Air Crisp mode; sounds like I need to change that.
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Definitely put that in your arsenal with this little guy. I keep getting amazed at what can be accomplished with it. I have a half pork butt in the freezer. Thinking I'd like to give that a go soon
 
LMichaels said:
Oh it most certainly did. I'm amazed at the versatility of this little thing. And holy cow the smoke it puts out is pretty amazing. This weekend we're doing our Christmas with the kids. There will be steaks on the Ninja I think. Also it's pretty darn cold here and that did not seem to affect it at all. Once it lit the pellets it cranked right up to the 400 deg. No issues. So, yeah I will be doing wings again on it
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As for the smoke flavor, with a gasser at one end of the spectrum, a pellet grill in the middle, and a coal burner with wood chunks at the far end, where would you say the smoke flavor of the Woodfire falls?
 
Ed P said:
As for the smoke flavor, with a gasser at one end of the spectrum, a pellet grill in the middle, and a coal burner with wood chunks at the far end, where would you say the smoke flavor of the Woodfire falls?
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Well one issue I see with all this. I unlike so many others do not feel the smoke flavor of a pellet grill is in any way inferior to what I've tasted off a stick burner. On top of that I am still learning the vagaries of using the Ninja. So the closest I've come to "smoking" anything was a hunk of pork belly I put on it a few days ago. The intent of making some crispy smoked belly.
That came out tasty but cooked much faster than I expected and then because of the speed of the cook it "tightened up". But it had reasonable smoke on it, but not a fair evaluation against my Member's Mark or Big Z.
So, in all fairness to the device and my so far not as skillful methodology I am going to reserve judgement until I develop a little more skills with it. But suffice to say, I'm not finding it lacking so far.
So stay tuned to this bat channel as I will update as I learn more. I'm also getting a hankerin' to put some ribs on it so I may try that prior to the half butt I have in the freezer
 
I'm not here to speak for Larry but I would like to offer some feedback from my own perspective. In my humble opinion, for how I have used my Ninja, I would compare it to my pellet smokers (SmokeFire and Bull). I sometimes regret that I have not used a WSM since having purchased the SmokeFire and I owe it to myself and the legacy of the WSM to change that. I also have an MGrill M1 that I use for stick burning (and I also have a PBC).

I don't think I can fairly rank each of my smokers in terms of a flavor profile because I have never performed a side-by-side comparison simultaneously but for every meal our family has experienced from all of them, we have always been fully satisfied.

I feel like the PBC gives the most distinct flavor and I could probably pick it out from a blind test. I like it--sometimes--but not always. My M1 with splits of wood--how do I express this--for my limited ability to describe a flavor profile I suppose I can only say that it delivers an organic smoke flavor. I could live without that flavor but I sometimes enjoy splitting wood and feeding that smoker every hour.
 
I like Larry's reply. I am curious to hear his feedback on pork ribs, if that's what he's referring to, because my Wife specifically asks sometimes when I do babybacks if I will do them on the Ninja.
 
I probably should have used a more desriptive term instead of "smoke flavor" when what I really mean is that subtle flavoring that we sometimes get from cooking outdoors.

We live in an area where air quality sometimes necessitates a no-burn alert, so I see this as a way of minimizing my impact on the environment while still enjoying the taste of outdoor grilling with convenience and simplicity. I will be exploring the Woodfire XL when the right deal comes along, like the one Larry found. In the meantime, I'll be watching this thread, so please keep it going, Fletch and Larry!
 
Ed P said:
I probably should have used a more desriptive term instead of "smoke flavor" when what I really mean is that subtle flavoring that we sometimes get from cooking outdoors.

We live in an area where air quality sometimes necessitates a no-burn alert, so I see this as a way of minimizing my impact on the environment while still enjoying the taste of outdoor grilling with convenience and simplicity. I will be exploring the Woodfire XL when the right deal comes along, like the one Larry found. In the meantime, I'll be watching this thread, so please keep it going, Fletch and Larry!
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Oh, OK in all honestly in terms of taste, aroma and texture, honestly I don't think I could discern the Woodfire from something grilled over a gasser (even one with a smoke generator), or as straight charcoal grilling. Quite honestly on those days you may not want to "burn" fuel the Woodfire is a great tool to have on your belt. Quite honestly I'm so impressed so far I don't even think I am going to bother with my Q320.
But again, as I learn more and ad more tools to my belt with it. I will report back.
 
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