My Ninja

[Richard Crowe]

I purchased a Ninja 1100 Kitchen System at Kohl's because, it was on sale, I had a 30% off coupon and also had $30 in Kohl's Cash to use for the purchase. That really brought down the price. I love it and use it for everything.

I purchase frozen chicken breasts at Costco ($2.00 a pound), cook them in the microwave and then chop the breasts in the 72 ounce Ninja container which does an excellent job of converting the chicken breasts into a topping for our dog's kibble. It is really an easy system because I can keep the breasts in the freezer and pull out as many as I need; usually two to three, depending on the size of the breasts.

 Previously, we used a Cuisinart Food Processor to do this but, the Ninja is more efficient for this use and is far easier to clean than our model Cuisinart processor.

I dropped the 72 ounce container and it broke on the tile kitchen floor.  I went online to purchase another container ($35 + shipping) but, had trouble checking out of their site.  The site would not accept either my credit credit card not my PayPal account. So, in frustration, I called customer service which was a lucky break for me (no pun intended),  The customer service representative told me that since I had my Ninja for only six months or so (she never asked for proof of purchase) that the company will replace the container for just shipping and handling charges of $7.95. Now that's great customer service!

BTW:  I use the Ninja for far more than just grinding chicken for my dogs. It is a great tool, easy to use and easy to clean.  Another dog related use of the Ninja is to grind puppy kibble into a finer consistency when we are weaning our rescue puppies from mom's milk.  The finer consistency kibble and a little warm water makes a great transition food. This is especially good for our smaller breed rescue puppies.

[Karen, Jasper and Jackdoodle]

I'm sure these tips will be helpful for a lot of members of the group, Richard. Thank you for sharing. 

[Deborah Brown]

I've been making dog food and probably need to upgrade to something like this.  I'm on a roll this week because both beef and chicken were on sale at Meijer for $1.99/pound.  I prefer the fresh because many of the frozen meat products have added water and sodium and sometimes preservatives.  Of course, all our meat if full of hormones and antibiotics so maybe it doesn't matter much.  I haven't gotten to the point where I'm buying expensive grass-fed organic meat for the dogs yet.

Thanks for sharing!

[Jennifer and Lily]

I love my ninja! I often freeze bananas and use my ninja to blend them, and it is the most amazing "ice cream". It blends very hard bananas to a creamy consistency. It's a healthy treat and I can give a little scoop to Lily. :)

[F, Calla & Luca]

Great customer service indeed.

[J and Riley (and Luna)]

I don't have a ninja (just a little Kitchen Aid food processor).  When I make chicken baby food I boil the chunks of chicken with just enough water to cover the pieces then process with the liquid and freeze in silicone brownie trays, pop out the cubes and store in freezer bags.  Blending with the liquid from boiling gives the chicken a smoother consistency - something you don't need to do for a dog but it does make it more moist.

These brownie trays are AWESOME and each cavity is about 1 oz of food.  I think it would work nicely for doggie food toppers too since it's easy to portion that way.

Wilton brownie trays:

http://www.amazon.com/Wilton-2105-4923-24-Cavity-Silicone-Brownie/d...

[Sally S Miles]

Excellent idea,  thanks.

[Jill, Woody & Maxi]

To grind the food, do you use the ninja food processor container or the regular blender style container?

The ninja I have comes with 2 different containers and 2 different blades.  I did not have good luck with the ninja food processor blade/container..I had to go back to the cuisinart!  But, maybe I'll give it another shot!

[Richard Crowe]

I have the 1100 Ninja Kitchen System BL700 which comes with two containers (48 oz, and 72 oz,) and two sets of blades plus the dough blade which I have never used.

I use the smaller container for doing my smoothies and a lot of other uses but, have found that when I am shredding two to three chicken breasts (I cut them in cuinks first) the larger 72 oz. container and appropriate blade set does a better job.  I most often use the pulse setting so that I don't grind the chicken into a gruel. The Ninja does a wonderful job.

BTW:  My wife likes her Cuisinart better but, I hate cleaning the darned thing...

One of the things that I really like about the Ninja is that it cleans up very easily.  A drop or two of dish washing liquid, fill the container with hot water and swirl it around is all it takes.  For stubborn particles, replace the container, blades and top on the motor and run it for a few seconds.  I have used both the Cuisinart Food Processor and a standard blender for various projects and the Ninja cleans up far easier,

[Sally S Miles]

I ditched my Quisinart for being a hassle - useage ok, cleanup not so much, so I have looked at KitchenAid off an on, but see a lot of Ninja products. Having two sizes of container is what I want. Thanks for the tip on some savings. I can get to Kohl's in just five minutes :)