Multicooker with air fry
Ninja Foodi MAX Health Grill & Air Fryer AG551UK
Model AG551UK (also AG551UKSeries) — United Kingdom
A lidded grill with a crisper basket, and the source of more published cooking guidance than any other appliance in this catalogue.
AirfryerHQ is an independent information site. We are not affiliated with, endorsed by, or connected to any appliance manufacturer. Product and brand names are used descriptively to identify appliances readers own, and belong to their respective owners.
Where to get real advice for this machine
Almost everything that changes a cooking answer is a property of the architecture rather than the badge. This is a multicooker with air fry, and the Multicooker with air fry page carries the cooking guidance that actually applies to it.
The pot is deep and narrow, so the usable area is smaller than the litres imply and food sits further from the element than in a drawer. Times run 10–20% longer for anything cooked from raw, and a single layer matters more here than anywhere else. The architecture's real strength is a different workflow entirely: pressure cook or slow cook first, then crisp for a few minutes at the end — which produces results a basket machine cannot.
Does it genuinely air-fry?
Genuine air frying
Genuine on the criteria that matter. The crisper basket elevates food inside the pot so air reaches every surface, the element and fan sit directly above in the lid, and the published air-fry temperatures reach 200°C across most of the chart. Fat drains from the basket into the pot below rather than pooling under the food. The chamber is a deep pot rather than a shallow drawer, which is the one respect in which it is less like a basket machine than its chart implies — a point the cooking pages make where its figures are used.
- Air moves fast, not just around
- Air reaches every surface of the food
- Fat and moisture drain away
- Reaches genuine browning temperatures
What we know about this machine
Read from Ninja Foodi MAX Health Grill & Air Fryer AG551UK — Instructions (PDF) (revision AG551UKSeries_IB_MP_Mv1_200630_Mv1), retrieved on 2026-08-13.
It is rated at 2460 W, which is toward the top of the domestic range and means it recovers temperature quickly after cold food goes in. It has a single cooking drawer, so everything in it cooks at one temperature for one time. On preheating: has a preheat programme.
The figures above are the manufacturer’s. What they mean for cooking is AirfryerHQ’s reading of them, not a measurement — nobody here has run this machine.
Power and heat
- Power
- 2460 W
Setup and cleaning
- Cooking zones
- 1
- Preheating
- Has a preheat programme
- Dishwasher safe
- Cooking pot, Grill plate, Crisper basket, Splatter guard, Cleaning brush, Other included accessoriesEverything else is a hand-wash, and the main unit never goes in.
- Supplied with
- Grill plate, Crisper basket, Cooking pot, Digital cooking probe, Cleaning brush
In the manual’s own words: A programmed preheat of about three minutes runs before most functions and displays ADD FOOD when it completes. The manual says preheating is highly recommended for best results but can be skipped with the PREHEAT button, and that a unit still warm from a previous use will not need the full time — which is the most useful sentence any manufacturer in this catalogue has written about preheating.
Retrieved from Argos's manual library for Argos product 735/0124. The document identifies itself as revision AG551UKSeries_IB_MP_Mv1_200630_Mv1.
9 figures we could not establish
Each of these says WHY it is missing. “Not recorded by the sources consulted” means the manufacturer does not publish it in the document we read — not that nobody looked, and not that the figure does not exist.
- Advertised capacity
- Not recorded by the sources consulted — Not stated in the specification panel of the manual read.
- Usable cooking area
- Not recorded by the sources consulted — Not published. See the capacity guide for why litres is not this.
- Chamber
- Not recorded by the sources consulted — Not published.
- On the worktop
- Not recorded by the sources consulted — Not published.
- Weight
- Not recorded by the sources consulted — Not published.
- Power range as published
- Not recorded by the sources consulted — A single rated figure is published, not a range.
- Temperature range
- Not recorded by the sources consulted — No overall appliance range is published. The grill settings are published as four named levels with stated temperatures, which is a different thing and is recorded as modes.
- Adjusts in
- Not recorded by the sources consulted — Not stated.
- Standby power
- Not recorded by the sources consulted — Not published by this manufacturer. Only one model in this catalogue publishes a standby figure at all.
What each setting actually does
Read from the manual. The marketing name is what is printed on the panel; the canonical capability is what the mode is in generic terms, so a reader can find advice written for somebody else’s appliance.
| On the panel | Canonically | Starts at | Settable range | Preheat |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Grill (LOW) | Grill | 200°C | Fixed — cannot be changed | Not stated |
| Grill (MED) | Grill | 230°C | Fixed — cannot be changed | Not stated |
| Grill (HI) | Grill | 250°C | Fixed — cannot be changed | Not stated |
| Grill (MAX) | Grill | 260°C | Fixed — cannot be changed | Not stated |
| Air Fry | Air fry | No temperature setting | Adjustable, range not published | No |
| Dehydrate | Dehydrate | No temperature setting | Adjustable, range not published | No |
- Grill (LOW): One of four fixed grill-plate levels. The manual pairs LOW with bacon and sausages.
- Grill (MED): The manual pairs MED with frozen meats, and its whole frozen grill chart is written against this level.
- Grill (HI): The manual pairs HI with steaks and chicken.
- Grill (MAX): The manual pairs MAX with vegetables and fruit, and notes that the unit may smoke when cooking on a hotter setting than the one recommended for the food.
- Air Fry: The manual describes a default set point that appears on the display but does not print its value, so no figure is recorded here. Time is adjustable in 1-minute increments up to an hour.
- Dehydrate: The only mode the manual states does not preheat. Time is set in 15-minute increments up to 12 hours. The chart uses 60°C for fruit and vegetables and 70°C for jerky.
Error codes and display states
Only what this manufacturer publishes, and only for this manufacturer. A code means whatever the firmware author decided it means, and reading one across from another brand is the commonest way to misdiagnose a fault.
Published without a stated cause
E- What the manual says it means
- The manual says only that the unit is not functioning properly. There is no further detail published, and "E" is the entirety of this manufacturer's fault-code vocabulary for this appliance.
- What to do
- Contact the manufacturer's customer service on the number printed in the manual. No user action is offered and none should be invented — a single undifferentiated fault code means the appliance has detected something it will not tell you about.
- Can it be reset?
- The manual does not say
- Does it need service?
- Yes, the manual says so
Stop using it and contact the manufacturer
Ninja Foodi MAX Health Grill & Air Fryer AG551UK — Instructions
A protection device has operated
PRBE ERR- What the manual says it means
- The appliance timed out before the food reached the internal temperature set on the probe. The manual frames this as a protection measure: the unit can run only for certain lengths of time at specific temperatures.
- What to do
- Not a fault in the appliance and nothing to reset. Check the probe is pushed lengthwise into the thickest part of the food, and expect to restart the cook. If the food was frozen or much larger than the probe programme expects, that is the likeliest reason it timed out.
- Can it be reset?
- Yes, the manual says so
- Does it need service?
- No, the manual says not to
Something you can correct
The food will not have reached the temperature you set. Do not treat a timed-out probe cook as finished — for poultry, pork or minced meat, the governing food-safety rule applies and the food needs more cooking, not less.
Ninja Foodi MAX Health Grill & Air Fryer AG551UK — Instructions
Accessory or interlock
Shut Lid
- What the manual says it means
- The lid is open and the selected function cannot start until it is closed.
- What to do
- Close the lid. Opening the lid mid-cook pauses the appliance by design rather than cancelling it, and cooking resumes when the lid is closed again.
- Can it be reset?
- Yes, the manual says so
- Does it need service?
- No, the manual says not to
Something you can correct
Ninja Foodi MAX Health Grill & Air Fryer AG551UK — Instructions
Accessory or interlock
Plug In
- What the manual says it means
- The cooking probe is not plugged into its socket on the control panel.
- What to do
- Push the probe plug into the socket until it clicks, before starting. The manual is specific that it must go in until it cannot go further.
- Can it be reset?
- Yes, the manual says so
- Does it need service?
- No, the manual says not to
Something you can correct
Ninja Foodi MAX Health Grill & Air Fryer AG551UK — Instructions
A prompt, not a fault
ADD FOOD
- What the manual says it means
- Not a fault at all. Preheating has completed and the appliance is telling the user it is time to put the food in.
- What to do
- Open the lid and add the food. If the appliance was already warm from a previous cook this may appear almost immediately, which is expected — the manual notes that a warm unit will not need the full preheat.
- Can it be reset?
- The manual does not say
- Does it need service?
- No, the manual says not to
No action needed
Ninja Foodi MAX Health Grill & Air Fryer AG551UK — Instructions
Cleaning this model
The parts this architecture has, what collects on each, and what its own manual permits. Full methods and prohibitions are on the cleaning pages.
| Part | What is on it | How often | Dishwasher |
|---|---|---|---|
| Basket | Ordinary residue after cooking | After every use | Dishwasher safe on the models we hold |
| Basket | Burnt-on residue | When it needs it | Depends on your model — check the manual |
| Basket | Ordinary residue after cooking | After every use | Depends on your model — check the manual |
| Basket | Stuck food | When it needs it | Depends on your model — check the manual |
| Crisper plate | Looking after the coating | When it needs it | Depends on your model — check the manual |
| Grill plate | Burnt-on residue | After every use | Dishwasher safe on the models we hold |
| Splatter guard | Greasy film | After every use | Dishwasher safe on the models we hold |
| Interior of the chamber | Greasy film | After every use | Not removable, so the question does not arise |
| Interior of the chamber | Greasy film | About weekly | Not removable, so the question does not arise |
| Interior of the chamber | Lingering smell | When it needs it | Not removable, so the question does not arise |
| Heating element area | Carbonised deposit | About monthly | Not removable, so the question does not arise |
| Fan and air intake | Greasy film | About monthly | Not removable, so the question does not arise |
| Exterior and body | Greasy film | About weekly | Not removable, so the question does not arise |
| Controls and display | Greasy film | About weekly | Not removable, so the question does not arise |
| Cooking probe | Ordinary residue after cooking | After every use | Not dishwasher safe |
The probe is the exception to everything: not dishwasher safe, cord and jack never immersed, and compressed air rather than liquid cleaner near its socket. The splatter guard is the part that decides whether this appliance smokes, and the manual is explicit that failing to fit it lets oil build up on the element.
Faults the manual documents, as printed
Only what the manufacturer publishes. AirfryerHQ does not invent the meaning of an error code, and where a manual documents one undifferentiated fault state that is what appears here.
“E”
The manual states only that the unit is not functioning properly.
Contact the manufacturer's customer service on the number printed in the manual. No user action is offered and none should be invented.
“PRBE ERR”
The unit timed out before the food reached the set internal temperature. The manual frames this as a protection measure, because the appliance can run only for certain lengths of time at specific temperatures.
Not a fault in the appliance. Check the probe is in the thickest part of the food lengthwise, and expect to restart the cook.
"Plug In" on the display
The cooking probe is not plugged into its socket on the control panel.
Push the probe plug in until it clicks before starting.
"Shut Lid" on the display
The lid is open and the selected function cannot start.
Close the lid. Opening the lid mid-cook pauses the appliance by design.
"ADD FOOD" on the display
Not a fault. Preheating has finished and it is time to put the food in.
Open the lid and add the food.
Replaceable parts
Read from this machine’s own documentation. Fit is stated only for the models a manufacturer names — it is never inferred from advertised capacity.
Cooking probe
Cooking probe for a Ninja multi-function grill
The leave-in temperature probe that plugs into a socket inside the appliance and drives its cook-to-temperature programmes. It is the only probe system documented anywhere in this catalogue.
You can fit this yourself: The probe plugs into its socket; there is nothing to dismantle. Ask the manufacturer for the probe for this model. A probe from another appliance is not a substitute — the presets and the timeout behaviour belong to this machine's firmware.
The manual names the part but publishes no reference. Quote the model number from the rating label when you contact the manufacturer.
People replace it because: it is cracked, warped or broken; it is lost, or was missing from the box.
The probe must never go in a dishwasher and its cord and jack must not be immersed. The manual recommends a cotton swab or compressed air rather than liquid cleaner near the probe socket. If the appliance shows PRBE ERR, that is a documented timeout rather than necessarily a broken probe — the model page carries what the manufacturer says it means.
The socket and its cover are inside the cooking chamber. The model identifier is on the rating label.
Ninja Foodi MAX Health Grill & Air Fryer AG551UK — Instructions
Grill plate
Grill plate for a Ninja multi-function grill
The ridged plate that sits in the cooking pot for grilling, as distinct from the crisper basket used for air frying. The manufacturer's own charts cook vegetables and fruit on it.
You can fit this yourself: It lifts out of the cooking pot. Ask the manufacturer for the grill plate for this model.
The manual names the part but publishes no reference. Quote the model number from the rating label when you contact the manufacturer.
People replace it because: the non-stick coating has worn or is peeling; it is cracked, warped or broken.
Listed as dishwasher safe along with the cooking pot, crisper basket, splatter guard and cleaning brush. Abrasive tools and cleaners must never be used on it, and the main unit must never be immersed.
The model identifier is on the rating label and on the manual cover.
Ninja Foodi MAX Health Grill & Air Fryer AG551UK — Instructions
Accessories with something documented for this model
Statements read from this machine’s own documentation. AirfryerHQ does not infer that an accessory fits an appliance from its advertised capacity, and no manufacturer here publishes the dimensions that would let anybody do so.
Useful for a specific job
Leave-in cooking probe
Excellent when the appliance was built for one and awkward when it was not, because the drawer has to close.
Useful for a specific job
Grill plate
Ridges give contact marks and a different surface. If your machine came with one, use it; buying one separately is a narrower call.
You probably do not need this
Dehydrating rack
Only useful if your machine goes low enough to dehydrate at all, and most of them do not.
Recall and safety status
No recall known to us at the review date
No entry for this model was found in the OPSS product safety register when it was searched for air fryers on 13 August 2026. That is a statement about that search and not a clearance.
No verified recall or safety notice is currently recorded in AirfryerHQ for this appliance. That is a statement about this catalogue and not about the product: AirfryerHQ holds a small number of checked alerts and is not a copy of the UK register. Check the authority's own register before concluding that an appliance is unaffected.
The Office for Product Safety and Standards publishes the UK register of product safety alerts, reports and recalls on GOV.UK, and Electrical Safety First operates a recall checker for electrical appliances. Registering an appliance with its manufacturer is what makes a direct notification possible.
Finding the manual
Published as two documents: an instruction booklet and a separate inspiration guide carrying the charts. Both were read. The charts are in the second, which is easy to miss and is where nearly all the cooking information lives.
About this model
A cooking pot with a hinged lid carrying the element and fan, used with either a grill plate or a crisper basket. It matters here out of all proportion to its market share: its companion guide publishes over a hundred chart rows including a frozen block nobody else charts separately, its manual converts its grill settings into degrees, and it documents five display states — which is five more than most manufacturers publish.
Owning this machine
The questions that come after the cooking.
- Looking after itFive minutes a week and one check a month, nearly all of it about grease.
- What to clean it withIncluding which tool every manufacturer in this catalogue prohibits.
- The coating, and when a basket is finishedThe part that decides how long this appliance lasts.
- Replacing a part, and what to ask forWhere the model and serial numbers are, and why no order code appears here.
- Accessories, and whether you need themWith the verdicts first and no affiliate links anywhere.
- Repair, replace, or stop using itThe symptoms that mean stop now, and the ones that mean a part.