Whether you’re looking for a quick, healthy snack or a delicious side for your air-fried steak, steamed vegetables are a wonderful, healthy choice.
Steaming is a great way to make your food both healthy and tasty, and as if that wasn’t enough, it’s super-quick.
Steaming vegetables is even easier when you have a Ninja Foodi on your kitchen bench. It also saves you the expense of having to buy a separate steamer since you need just one appliance to have all your steaming, sautéing, grilling, slow-cooking, baking, air-frying, and pressure-cooking needs covered (also, decluttering your kitchen bench – now that’s a big win!).
If you’ve just brought home a Ninja Foodi, steamed vegetables are among the easiest and tastiest dishes to get started with.
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Why Steamed Vegetables Are Good For You
Steamed vegetables come with a range of health benefits. Unlike boiling, where the nutritional goodness of the vegetables leaches into the water, steaming keeps the nutritional content more or less intact.
The vegetables’ flavour, texture, colour, and nutrients are preserved, along with potassium, zinc, phosphorus, antioxidants, and water-soluble C and B vitamins.
Also, the fact that oil isn’t used in the cooking process adds an extra healthy touch to steamed vegetables—you’re not dealing with extra cholesterol, and steam also removes any extra fat from the food, especially meat, lowering the total number of calories.
Apart from this, steaming also softens any fibres in the food and makes it easily digestible.
Steaming gives you fresh, crunchy, healthy, quick, and easy food—a win-win!
Steaming Vegetables In A Ninja Foodi
To steam vegetables in your Foodi, you only need your vegetables, water, and the Foodi itself! Let’s get started.
Instructions
- Start by prepping your vegetables and rinsing them in cold water. For example, if you’re steaming broccoli, cut the head into florets and follow it with a cold-water rinse.
- Add water to your Foodi pot. The amount of water needed for the steaming will depend on the type of vegetable and the amount you’re steaming. Generally, it’ll take you between a cup and four of water for different vegetables.
Check out my handy chart below for vegetable cooking time. - Once you’ve poured in the water, cover the pot with the lid and plug the unit into an electrical outlet to power it up.
- Use the “Function” dial to reach Foodi’s “Steamer” mode. You’ll need to preset the steaming time; again, refer to the Ninja Foodi chart to determine how long you need to steam the vegetable.
- Once you’ve done this, you’ll hear a beep and see a “P” on the timer, meaning your Foodi is preheating.
- While your Foodi heats, place the vegetables on the steaming/roasting rack. This rack comes with the Foodi.
- Another beep will let you know that the water is steaming as it’s reached its boiling point. The timer will begin its countdown after this beep.
- Open the lid (carefully and away from you so that you’re not hurt), put the steaming/roasting rack into the Foodi (use mitts so you don’t burn yourself), and let the Foodi work its magic!
- If you’re worried about overcooking the food, check it occasionally. Once the cooking is done (the timer will beep again), remove the food immediately so it doesn’t overcook.
Note: After the countdown, the Ninja Foodi will automatically go into the “Auto Warm” mode.
If the water runs out in the unit before the steaming time is up, the Foodi will automatically pause. Once you add more water, the Foodi will work to bring the water to a boil once again, and once it has the water boiling, the timer will resume.
If you don’t have the steaming/roasting rack, use Foodi’s air fryer baskets or any silicone steamer baskets that fit inside your Foodi.
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Ingredient
Amount
Preparation
Liquid
Cook Time
-
Asparagus
1 bunch
Whole spears
2 cups
7-15 mins
-
Broccoli
1 crown or 1 bag (12 oz) florets
Cut in 1–2-inch florets
2 cups
5–9 mins
-
Brussels sprouts
1 lb
Whole, trimmed
2 cups
8–17 mins
-
Butternut squash
24 oz
Peeled, cut in 1-inch cubes
2 cups
10–17 mins
-
Cabbage
1 head
Cut in half, sliced in 1/2-inch strips, core removed
2 cups
6–12 mins
-
Carrots
1 lb
Peeled, cut in 1-inch pieces
2 cups
7–12 mins
-
Cauliflower
1 head
Cut in 1–2-inch florets
2 cups
5–10 mins
-
Corn on the cob
4 ears
Whole, husks removed
2 cups
4–9 mins
-
Green beans
1 bag (12 oz)
Whole
2 cups
6–12 mins
-
Kale
1 bag (16 oz)
Trimmed
2 cups
7–10 mins
-
Potatoes
1 lb
Peeled, cut in 1-inch pieces
2 cups
12–17 mins
-
Potatoes, sweet
1 lb
Cut in 1 /2-inch cubes
2 cups
8–14 mins
-
Spinach
1 bag (16 oz)
Whole leaves
2 cups
3–7 mins
-
Sugar snap peas
1 lb
Whole pods, trimmed
2 cups
5–8 mins
-
Summer squash
1 lb
Cut in 1-inch slices
2 cups
5–10 mins
-
Zucchini
1 lb
Cut in 1-inch slices
2 cups
5–10 mins
Tips For The Perfect Steamed Vegetables In Your Foodi!
Here are some tips to keep in mind for better results:
- If you’re using the pressure cooker lid to cover the Foodi, make sure that you keep the steam valve open, unlike when you’re pressure-cooking. If the steam doesn’t escape, the vegetables inside will be mushy and soft.
- If you’re working with frozen vegetables, you can follow the same cooking method listed above but add an extra minute or so (depending on how frozen it is) to the cooking time.
- Remove vegetables immediately after steaming; the line between perfectly steamed and overcooked is fine, so take the food out as soon as the cooking is done.
- If you’re using any seasoning or spices, sprinkle these onto your vegetables before cooking them.
- Note that the instructions in the Ninja Foodi chart are for average/medium-sized vegetables. For example, smaller broccoli florets will take less time to cook than larger ones, so you’ll have to adjust the steaming time based on this.
How To Steam Vegetables In A Ninja Foodi: The Bottom Line
Though steaming vegetables is quite easy, it’s very easy to undercook or overcook your veggies, especially the first few times.
Don’t let that throw you off; a few tries are all you need before you hit the nail on the head and dish up perfectly crunchy, healthy, and tasty plates of steamed vegetables like a pro!
