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Review · Frozen-block machine

Ninja CREAMi

The most affordable of the range and the one that opened the category. Seven programmes and two tubs. It does not chill: you freeze the base for 24 hours and it turns it into ice cream.
7 programmes
from gelato to milkshake
2 tubs
incluidas
24 h
of freezing
See the full review
Common questions
Heladera Ninja CREAMi NC302EU sobre una encimera de mármol, con tarrinas de helado de vainilla y de fresa
Heladera Ninja CREAMi NC302EU en una cocina clara, con un bol de helado de vainilla y una tarrina de fresa
The short answer

The way into the category

It is the original CREAMi and the cheapest: seven programmes and two tubs. It does the same as its big sisters — turning a frozen block into creamy ice cream — with fewer programmes, smaller tubs and without the two-flavour function.

Before buying it, it is worth being clear that it is not an ice cream maker: it has no compressor. You prepare the mix, freeze it for 24 hours and the machine shaves it. It is a different craft, and it changes how the recipe has to be formulated.

The Deluxe adds more, with 710 ml tubs and two flavours in one batch
See on Amazon
Buyer reviews
4,0
out of 5

Our score, after reading the reviews one by one.

How the ice cream turns out
Creamy with the right recipe. With very light bases crystals appear: that is the specific complaint in its two worst reviews.
Ease of use
Simple: pick a programme and away you go. It weighs 6.4 kg and has to come out of the cupboard every time.
The noise
Divided. Some call it noisy but bearable, and others put it down as the only drawback.
Quality and price
The harshest criticism runs along those lines: that it is an expensive blender and that it does not chill. There is some truth in it, and that is why it matters to understand what you are buying.
How well it works

Four things you notice
in use, not on the box

It does not chill, and that changes everything

That is the misunderstanding behind its worst scores. It is not an ice cream maker with a compressor: it is a motor with a blade that works ice. Knowing that, it does its job; expecting something else, it disappoints.

The crystals come from the recipe, not from the machine

One Italian buyer describes it well: he tried light versions and rich versions and always noticed microcrystals. Another, using xanthan gum and dextrose, reports that the result comes very close to a gelato shop's. The difference is in the formula.

The tubs soon fall short

It comes with two, and those who use it daily buy more. It is the recommendation its buyers repeat most: with several frozen you do not have to wait 24 hours for the next one.

Ninja sells spares on its own site

One buyer points it out as a plus, and it is no small thing on an appliance with moving parts washed daily.
Heladera Ninja CREAMi NC302EU con la tarrina de helado de fresa montada en el vaso
Heladera Ninja CREAMi NC302EU en una cocina clara, con un bol de helado de vainilla y una tarrina de fresa
And protein ice cream too

What almost everyone ends up doing with it

Going through its reviews, one dominant use appears that is not on the box: turning a protein shake into ice cream. It comes up again and again — diet, sugar-free, lactose-free, gluten-free — and it explains why it is bought by people for whom industrial ice cream does not work.

7
Programmes
2
Tubs included
24 h
Pre-freezing
6,4 kg
16,5 × 40,5 × 27 cm
The balance

What it wins and what you have to accept

The best of it
  • The cheapest in the range
  • Seven programmes, enough for ice cream, gelato and sorbet
  • Allows protein and sugar-free ice cream with real ice cream texture
  • Parts are dishwasher-safe and spares are on Ninja's website
  • A cycle of a few minutes
What you have to accept
  • It does not cool: the base goes into the freezer for 24 hours
  • Small tubs: anyone who uses it ends up buying more
  • No two flavours in one tub: that is the Deluxe's trick
  • Without a balanced formula you get crystals
  • It scores the lowest of the three Ninjas
Ninja CREAMi NC302EU: in-depth review
Specifications

Specifications of the
Ninja CREAMi

7 programmes
Ice cream, gelato, sorbet, smoothie bowl, light ice cream, milkshake and extras
2
Tubs included
24 h
Pre-freezing the base
Lavavajillas
Removable parts
6,4 kg
Weight
16,5 × 40,5 × 27 cm
Dimensiones
Without a compressor

Sistema

1,4 L
Total capacity of the two tubs
Alternatives · Frozen-block machines

The Ninja CREAMi
against its rivals

These three compete in its bracket. The CREAMi costs today —: these reviews tell you what you gain and what you lose with each one.

Heladera Ninja CREAMi Deluxe NC502EU con la tarrina de helado de galletas y un cucurucho al lado
If you want big tubs

Ninja CREAMi Deluxe

Ninja · NC502EU
Programmes
10
Tarrina
710 ml
Dos sabores
Yes
Price today
—
710 ml tubs, three more programmes and two flavours in the same batch.
See the Deluxe
Heladera Moulinex Dolci MJ602A con sus tres tarrinas de Tritan llenas de helado
Si buscas otra marca

Moulinex Dolci

Moulinex · MJ602AF0
Programmes
10
Tubs
3 · 1,4 L
Dos sabores
No
Price today
—
Ten euros less than the Deluxe, three tubs and fifteen years of declared repairability.
See the Dolci
Heladera Taurus Gelato Flow con la tarrina de sorbete de mango y tres tarrinas más al lado
If you want to spend even less

Taurus Gelato Flow

Taurus · 925022000
Programmes
9
Tubs
3 · 500 ml
Dos sabores
No
Price today
—
The cheapest of the four, but with serious warnings from its buyers worth reading first.
See the Gelato Flow
Heladera Ninja CREAMi Scoop and Swirl NC701EUSTGD sirviendo un cucurucho de helado soft
If you want soft-serve

Ninja CREAMi Scoop & Swirl

Ninja · NC701EUSTGD
Programmes
13
Tubs
2 · 480 ml
Dos sabores
Yes
Price today
—
Thirteen functions and a swirl dispensing nozzle, on the most expensive and largest in the range.
See the Scoop & Swirl
The verdict

Would we buy it? Only if the budget is the deciding factor

It does the same as the Deluxe with less headroom: smaller tubs, three programmes fewer and no two flavours. The Deluxe takes the recommendation unless the budget is tight.

And the usual warning: do not buy it expecting to pour in the liquid mix and take out ice cream half an hour later. For that you need a compressor.

The cheapest
Seven programmes
Without a compressor
Buy today
—
Amazon price as of —
See on Amazon

Compararla con las demás Ninja

Answers to your questions

Frequently asked questions

Does the mix need freezing first?

Yes, 24 horas inside its tub. The machine does not chill: it shaves an already-frozen block. If you cut the time short, crystals appear.

How many tubs does it come with?

Two. Those who use it daily buy more: it is the recommendation its buyers repeat most, because every batch needs 24 hours in the freezer.

Why do I get crystals?

Because the base does not have the solids or the antifreeze this kind of machine calls for. It is fixed with the formula, not with more cycles: our calculator has a Ninja mode.

How does it differ from the Deluxe?

In three things: 710 ml tubs instead of the small ones, ten programmes instead of seven, and the Top and Bottom settings for two flavours in the same tub.

Is it very noisy?

Its reviews are split: some say it is bearable and others put it down as the only drawback. The cycle lasts a few minutes.

Can you buy spare parts?

Yes. Ninja sells them on its own website, and some buyers highlight that as a plus.
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