00:00I have had my hands on the ninja slushy for a couple of weeks now. I know it's like the most
00:08coveted viral gadget on the internet right now. It's been going in and out of stock. So right off
00:13the bat, I'll tell you, check the link in the description to see if it's available. But that
00:18said, do I think it's worth $270 coming from someone who will always order the slushy drink
00:25if it's on the menu at a restaurant or bar? Let's start with setup and controls. I posted
00:31the unboxing back on TikTok when I first got it in for testing. And I'll say I am no stranger
00:36to ninja appliances. So unboxing and getting the ninja slushy set up was familiarly straightforward.
00:42I always figured that those fancy slushy machines at Tiki Bars were super pricey and expensive. So
00:47I didn't expect to have it up and running in just a few minutes. There are a few parts to know here.
00:53There is the vessel, which is basically the main container and the pouring spout is attached here
01:00to it. The auger here, this is how the magic happens. It keeps turning and eventually the
01:06liquid turns to slush. This part comes out here. It's the condensation tray and it catches any drips
01:12as the machine gets cold. But how does it actually get cold?
01:15It gets cold thanks to this 360 degree chilling cylinder that's attached to the main base. It uses
01:26what ninja calls rapid chill technology. When it comes to the controls, there's not very much going
01:32on here. We have the power button, our five presets, slush, spike slush, frap, milkshake,
01:37frozen juice. We have the rinse cycle button. And here we have the meter that lets you control how
01:43slushy you want your slush to be. Kind of like these volume buttons here let you determine how
01:47much you want it to be. Even if you don't read the instruction book, you'd probably be able to
01:52figure it out. I would, however, recommend the instructions. The quick start guide here comes
01:57with two Kickstarter recipes, one of which is going to be the fan favorite. It's the one ingredient
02:05soda slush. You can use any full sugar soda. I've already done this a few times. So today we're
02:10going to be using Pepsi wild cherry. You're going to see just how easy this is to get started.
02:17The options for drinks with the ninja slushy are pretty endless though. You can follow the recipe
02:22book. I've also looked up some stuff online and I've also gotten a little creative. I tried frozen
02:27espresso martinis and frozen margaritas as well as a frozen coffee frappuccino type thing that was just
02:32way too early in the morning for me to film. But you can use, you know, lemonade mixes, juices,
02:37milkshake ingredients. If it's liquid and it has a high enough sugar content, it can be turned into
02:42a slushy. The thing that surprised me most about the ninja slushy is how quiet it is when it's
02:47actually in use. My current collection of countertop appliances include my manual espresso maker,
02:54the Breville Infiz, both of which are quite loud when they're actually being used. I'm sitting
02:59literally right next to it and I have the noise app open on my Apple Watch. I'm going to stop talking
03:05and show you what the sound is like.
03:12It does make some noise, don't get me wrong, but it's very low and it's consistent enough that it's
03:17not so much of a nuisance. Okay, it's been about a half hour and that's looking pretty slushy to me.
03:25I'm not sure what's up with the indicator light, but usually that would blink. I like how this looks.
03:30I want to move on with my day, so we are going to open up the pour spout.
03:37That's really awkward.
03:40There we go.
03:41I got my Wild Cherry Pepsi slushy. I went ahead and turned the machine off. Now, my biggest concern
03:50with any appliance, especially something like the Ninja slushy, was that it was going to be just
03:55a major pain in the ass to clean. But I am pleased to report that the cleaning process isn't as intensive
04:02or time-consuming as you might think. First, to empty the vessel of any leftover slush lodged around
04:08the edges, you pour water inside and press the rinse button. You open the spout, let the water out.
04:14I usually use a medium-sized measuring cup like this one. Turn the machine off and disassemble it
04:19by pulling the bale handle forward. The vessel and auger come off and I rinse those out in the sink
04:24with some water and dish soap. I take a damp paper towel and wipe down the chilling cylinder and the
04:29condensation tray so that everything is dry. And that's all there really is to it. It's just a few
04:34minutes of cleanup, nothing out of the ordinary compared to my other appliances. But since there
04:39is a lot of sugar involved, you definitely want to keep it clean. I would not let this sit out
04:44overnight. I would just make sure it's rinsed properly after you're done so you don't have to
04:48worry about it. Now let's talk about some of the things I don't really like about the Ninja slushy,
04:54starting with the fact that it's not very ideal for single servings. I'm lucky to live in a
04:59household of slushy lovers, but if you were hoping to go solo on your slushy adventures,
05:04the Ninja slushy seems like a very big commitment. Not only is it pretty bulky, taking up a lot of
05:11precious counter space on my already crowded counters, but you need a minimum amount of liquid
05:17for the machine to actually work. Recipes max out at six to eight servings, but bottom out at two to
05:22three servings, meaning even if you just want one drink, you'll have to use enough ingredients to make
05:28multiple drinks, or at least to hit that minimum indicator line here on the vessel. Of course there
05:34is nothing that stops you from having seconds and thirds, but at that point I would probably just go
05:39get a slurpee for less than three dollars at 7-eleven. Something I didn't consider beforehand and has
05:44actually been kind of a pain point for me is how much sugar you need to have in the Ninja slushy in
05:51order for it to work. So if you're trying to watch your sugar intake, the Ninja slushy is not for you.
05:57I'm no scientist, but a very quick Google search taught me that the syrupy sugars circulating
06:03constantly throughout the mixture keep it from freezing solid. That means if you want to put your
06:09favorite diet soda in the machine, it won't get the results you're looking for. Similarly, you can't
06:15just dump in a bottle of wine and get a wine slushy. You need to add some juice to it if you want to make,
06:21say, a frosé. Ninja's recipe book does do a good job at breaking down the standard sugar requirements,
06:26but as someone who doesn't like to drink too many of their calories, this is the type of thing that's
06:31definitely a treat. I wouldn't make it more than once or twice a week, which has been a challenge
06:36since I've been wanting to test it as much as I can for this reviewed. That's compared to something
06:42like the Ninja Creamy where you get kind of the best of both worlds. You can enjoy the full fat ice
06:47creams, but then also make something healthier like a low-cal protein ice cream. Overall, if you do like
06:54slushy drinks as a treat, maybe you have kids or people in your household and you're constantly
06:58looking for fun appliances to switch things up, the Ninja slushy makes a lot of sense. Again, I know
07:04it's hard to get your hands on, so the link in description, if you're interested, is down below.
07:09The couple of pain points I mentioned are not deal breakers. However, they are things that I think
07:14people should keep in mind so they know whether it's actually something they want to buy or if they
07:19just saw it online and thought, oh, that looks cool. Be sure to let me know what you think,
07:23though, in the comments of this video. I've posted plenty of videos of the Ninja slushy in action
07:28on socials, so be sure to check us out everywhere at Tom's Guide and catch up with what I'm doing
07:33at Kate Kozich. Thanks for watching. I'll catch you next time.
07:53Bye-bye.
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