Ninja Artisan review: How an electric oven helped us make the perfect pizza in our own backyard

Hanover. There are a few classics that are simply a must in summer. Barbecues, for example. For many, this is the epitome of a successful evening in the garden – light the charcoal or gas, grill sausages, halloumi, neck of lamb, or even some vegetables and side dishes – delicious.

Until summer 2025. Suddenly, our grill stays cold even on sunny weekends. Not because we don't feel like eating good food—quite the opposite. We've simply found something that excites us even more: pizza. Not just any pizza, but a truly good Neapolitan pizza. With a thin crust, a risen crust, and ready in three minutes—right in the middle of the garden.

As is often the case, it all started quite differently. The road to this point was quite long, and at times quite frustrating – until now.

As is probably the case for many others, it all started quite traditionally: with a sheet pizza . Ready-made pizza dough from the refrigerated section, quickly unrolled, tomato sauce from a jar, and the usual toppings of salami, mushrooms, corn, and cheese. Those who were really crazy added bell peppers or even made a small slice with tuna. Dinner was ready. Especially when things needed to be done quickly, or the kids were craving pizza and wanted to top their own slice, this was a straightforward solution.

Culinary expectations were naturally low – just in keeping with the effort involved. And honestly, that was perfectly fine. This wasn't about baking the "perfect pizza" at home, but rather about topping and then eating it together with the kids.

Phase 2: Your first dough

Eventually, the moment came when the ready-made dough was no longer enough. I honestly don't remember exactly how that happened – maybe it was a recipe that looked particularly good online, or maybe it was just the desire to make something "proper" for once. Maybe the supermarket had simply run out of ready-made dough, but the kids still wanted pizza – in any case, it was the first time they'd mixed their own dough.

It sounded really simple at first, and the best part: flour, water, yeast, salt, and oil – you've probably always got that stuff at home. So, put it in a bowl, toss everything together, knead, let it rest, and you're done. In reality, though, my first pizza doughs were rather... well, let's say, improvable. Sometimes it was too sticky, sometimes too dry, sometimes it didn't rise at all. And even when it did manage to be shaped, the end result wasn't really any better than store-bought.

But with each attempt, the result got a little bit better. At some point, it was no longer rectangular, but the dough was round on the baking sheet. At some point, the cheese no longer reached all the way to the edge. And at some point, I had that first feeling of: Okay, this is going in the right direction.

Phase 3: We need to talk – about pizza stones

The real turning point came one Saturday evening – at a friend's house. A kitchen party, several people, lots of ingredients, an oven with a preheated pizza stone . And then: fresh dough, a quickly topped pizza, into the oven, and out again a few minutes later. And what landed on the plate was simply in a whole different league. Crispy, hot, thin, with a lightly browned crust. And above all: incredibly delicious.

"Holy shit," I thought. THIS is really good. No soggy center, no rubbery dough, no overly crispy spots—this had nothing to do with the pizza we made at home.

For me, as a kitchen appliance hoarder, it was clear: a pizza stone was a must. A few days later, just in time for the weekend, our very own pizza stone moved into our kitchen. From then on, pizza became part of our weekend routine, especially in autumn and winter. The oven was running, the dough was resting, the stone was heating up. And we began experimenting: with different types of flour, different recipes, longer fermentation times, pre-doughs, and basically anything else we could think of. Because one question kept bothering us: Why is the crust at our favorite Italian restaurant always so airy, so light, so perfect? And why the hell does their cheese taste so damn good?

Phase 4: Do we just need more heat? Pizza from the kettle grill

After some research, we realized that the temperature must be making the difference. Our kitchen oven only reaches 250 degrees Celsius, but the pizza at our Italian restaurant is baked in an oven with real fire. So we had another brainwave: Why not simply place the pizza stone in a kettle grill?

The idea was as simple as it was ingenious. A kettle grill with a closed lid, plenty of embers underneath – and for even more flavor, real logs instead of coal. What could possibly go wrong? More heat, more smoke, more pizza-like flavor. Or so I thought.

So we bought a kettle grill – not for grilling, but primarily for baking pizza. The pizza stone fit inside, the fire was burning, and our hopes were high. And hey: Temperature-wise, it actually wasn't that bad. The lid held a decent amount of heat, and the thermometer climbed higher than anything our kitchen oven had ever managed.

The only problem was: I had heat, but absolutely no control. What came out of the grill on the first attempt smelled promising, but looked like half pizza, half charcoal briquette. The bottom was black as asphalt in some places, still doughy in others. The edges remained pale, while the underside was already starting to smoke. And the second attempt wasn't any better. In fact, it was worse.

On top of that, the whole setting was pretty much the opposite of relaxed. Not only had I ruined the meal, but I'd also smoked out half the village. The smoke wafted through the garden, across the street, and into the neighbor's hedge. And the smell of pizza? More like a mix of campfire and frustration.

After the second attempt, it was clear: This wasn't going to work out for us, the kettle grill, and me. Annoyed, I put the thing on the classifieds – perhaps hoping someone else could do it better. In any case, that chapter was closed for me.

Phase 5: Pizza oven with wood pellets – the next great hope:

After the kettle grill debacle, the motivation was still there. The idea of piping hot pizza from a real pizza oven wasn't so easy to shake. So, another attempt. This time with a compact outdoor pizza oven fueled by wood pellets. No open fire, no grill grate, but a device specifically designed to deliver restaurant-quality pizza. In theory.

The whole thing looked promising. The stove was quickly assembled, the pellet compartment was easy to fill, and the first smoke rose. And here, too: decent heat. At least for a short time.

Because what followed was – in retrospect – the absolute height of disappointment. Perhaps things would have been different if I had gone straight for the much more expensive option with a gas connection...

The temperature was practically impossible to control. The oven was either so hot that the pizza would char in seconds – or so weak that nothing would happen on the dough at all. And as soon as you added new pellets, it was all over: the flame was extinguished, smoke rose, and everything had to be re-ignited. There was no flow, no routine – just hecticness.

Added to this was the stress of timing: Because the pizza only needed a few seconds in the oven, there was practically no break between each baking cycle. As soon as one pizza was ready, the next one had to be prepared immediately – frantically topping, sliding it onto the peel, and putting it in. At the same time, the fire couldn't be lost sight of, because even a brief idle time would cause the temperature to plummet. So: add more, blow, hope. While one person topped the pizza, the other tried to somehow keep the flames alive. A relaxing pizza evening? Not to be expected.

After two or three attempts, it was clear: This wasn't going to work. The oven went into the garage. And it's been sitting there ever since, unused. It's probably possible to make a really good pizza with this thing somehow—I'm sure others can. I definitely can't. So—back to the kitchen and the pizza stone in the oven.

And then came the moment when everything suddenly became so simple: No firewood, no smoke, no temperature stress – but a device that, at the touch of a button, did exactly what we hadn't been able to achieve in all our previous attempts: consistently good pizza. The Ninja Artisan was there. Electric, stable, quickly reached temperature – and above all: reliable.

The device was quick to set up; my first impression was that it was solidly built and intuitive to use. And most importantly, it can reach temperatures of up to 370 degrees Celsius – no smoke, no long preheating, and no need to adjust the settings. Simply switch it on, preheat, slide the pizza in, and it's done. Three minutes later, it was out. And it was... really good. Like, really good. So good, in fact, that the idea of eating out is now off the table for us. Sorry, favorite Italian restaurant.

The crust was evenly baked, the crust was puffy and incredibly delicious, the surface was browned, and the cheese was perfectly melted. No comparison to what came out of the kitchen oven—and certainly not to what had ever been achieved on the grill outside.

Particularly pleasant: the constant temperature. There was no need to add or check anything; you could concentrate fully on the toppings. And if it took a few minutes until the next pizza was ready, no problem. The Artisan simply maintains the temperature. No rush mode, no flame management. Simply make pizza and enjoy it with family and friends.

And yes – the whole thing even works indoors. Even though we're currently baking almost exclusively outdoors because it's simply part of the fun. Pizza in the garden, everyone around, the aroma – the perfect summer evening is complete.

The Ninja Artisan offers various modes: pan pizza, New York style, thin crust, or thicker crust – all of which can be controlled via temperature and cooking time. Sounds exciting, but to be honest, we've been ignoring it until now. Since we got the oven, we've only been after one thing: Neapolitan-style pizza.

And for precisely this style, we found a recipe that simply works for us. It's from the recipe book of a well-known German kitchen appliance and is so simple and effective that it's become our standard. No fancy ingredients or complicated steps – but with exactly the result we wanted: a light crust, a smooth dough, and perfect flavor.

We also tried the included dough recipe from the Artisan Handbook – on the second evening. But something went wrong: The ingredients weren't that different from our dough, but the result left a lot to be desired. It was far too sticky, difficult to shape into the desired shape, and even harder to remove from the pizza peel.

Since then, we've simply made our recipe. Every time. And it works.

The recipe (for two pizzas):

• 200 ml water
• 3 g fresh yeast
• 360 g pizza flour type 00
• 8 g salt

That's all there is to it.

Preparation: Knead all ingredients into a smooth dough – by hand or with a food processor. Then let the dough rise for two hours over hot steam (in the aforementioned food processor). Then let it rest for at least another six hours – usually overnight. This will make it supple, stretchy, and develop a lovely aroma.

What makes this dough special is its simplicity – and the fact that it is easy to work with and rises perfectly in the Artisan.

Anticipation in raw form: The dough pieces are resting ready – the Ninja Artisan is about to create pizza like in Naples.

Source: Daniel Schramm

A staple for us: Neapolitan-style pizza – with tomato sauce, good mozzarella, and fresh basil. Classic, simple, and great. Also a must: salami. Sounds banal, but the heat of the Artisan makes a real difference in flavor.

My wife's favorite is clearly anchovy fillets, along with good olives, tomato sauce, mozzarella and basil.

And yes—even if it's sacrilege for some: We regularly serve Hawaiian pizza. With pineapple. Period.

Another winning option: a white pizza – completely without tomato sauce. Just blind-bake the dough, then top it with Italian mortadella, fresh burrata, and homemade pistachio pesto. Sounds exaggerated? It was fantastic.

Even though our cooking has revolved almost entirely around pizza, the Ninja Artisan is far more than just a pizza oven. This is immediately apparent at first glance at the menu: In addition to various pizza styles, you can also select programs for baking and air frying. And that's precisely what makes the oven so exciting – especially for those who don't have the space (or the desire) for multiple appliances.

The hot air function works like a traditional air fryer – only with more space. It allows you to cook fries, vegetables, or chicken wings with low fat and crispy ingredients. And best of all, the Artisan stays outside – ideal for summer when you don't want your kitchen to become a deep fryer. The baking mode also opens up a whole new world of possibilities: focaccia, bread, casseroles – anything that requires high temperatures and even heat distribution is basically possible.

Admittedly, we haven't used these features much so far because the pizza is simply too good. But just knowing that the Artisan can do even more makes it a true all-rounder for us. Instead of placing a grill, oven, and air fryer on the patio, this one oven is basically enough.

So if you don't just want to make pizza, but generally want to enjoy uncomplicated, versatile cooking in the garden or on the balcony, the Ninja Artisan is a device that can do much more than just dough and tomato sauce.

Enjoy your meal. There's really nothing more to say.