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Oster French Door vs Ninja Foodi XL Pro Toaster Oven Side-by-Side Comparison
Our Verdict
- Performance (50%)6.4/10
- Design (25%)6.7/10
- Usability (25%)6.4/10
- Performance (50%)8.0/10
- Design (25%)8.8/10
- Usability (25%)9.5/10
The Oster French Door (TSSTTVFDDG) and the Ninja Foodi XL Pro (DT201) are two of the largest toaster ovens on our roster. At first glance, the Oster is slightly larger and also more expensive than the Ninja. However, our tests showed that the former was inferior to the latter in every aspect of evaluation.
Exterior-wise, the Oster has ventilation slats on all sides that we like. Its glass french door with cool-touch door handles also stood out well.
Unfortunately, the main thing pulling the Oster behind is its build quality. Its buttons require a lot of force to register and the french door can slam shut if your hands slip. On the other hand, the Ninja’s door hinge is firm and its buttons are responsive and intuitive to use.
The Oster also has no extra features to help with conveniences like toggle switches, other information besides timer and input temperature, or a slide-out crumb tray—which the Ninja does. Performance-wise, the Oster wasn’t equipped with a high power output and powerful convection system to deliver the utmost cooking capabilities like the Ninja.
Oster French Door Toaster Oven Performance
- Toast (40%)6.0/10
- Pizza (25%)6.3/10
- Whole Roasted Chicken (25%)8.1/10
- Baked French Fries (10%)4.1/10
- Toast (40%)8.3/10
- Pizza (25%)6.5/10
- Whole Roasted Chicken (25%)9.0/10
- Baked French Fries (10%)7.8/10
Toast
- Function: Toast
- Number Of Slices: 4
- Toast Level: 4/6
- Cooking Time: 7m 25s
- Second Batch: 5m 31s
- Convection: No
We began our Toast test on the Oster with the default toast level 4 and got pretty good results right off the bat. For good measure, we continued to try the toast level 3, which failed to color evenly within the stipulated time.
We then tried level 5 only to end up with burnt toast and not the expected deep brown shade. Regretfully, while level 4 was the best toast level, it didn’t score high on our benchmark scale—only 6/10.
On this setting—7 minutes 25 seconds on the timer—the four pieces of bread on the upper tray were toasted to a nice golden brown color. However, the color became dark towards the edges, especially where the bread was less dense.
Additionally, a large portion of the bottom right piece of toast was significantly lighter, possibly indicating a cold spot in the cooking chamber. With such unevenness, we could only score the surface color a 6/10 despite the overall golden brown hue.
Moreover, due to the lengthy toasting time, the toast became very crispy but dry on the inside. Our head chef, Tuyet Pham, said this crispiness would be great for eggs benedict and especially soup, but maybe not omelets and sandwiches. Unfortunately, the dark edges produced a bitter taste, preventing it from getting higher than a 6/10 from our chef.
We toasted the second batch of four slices immediately after the first. We chose level 4 again whereupon the oven automatically calibrated the timer to 5 minutes 31 seconds.
Since the oven was already hot, the aforementioned cold spot became less apparent. The toast was not as crispy nor dry as the first batch, which made it more suitable for sandwiches and omelets.
However, the burnt edges were still a problem, so the oven received one final 6/10 for consecutive usability. If you want better results for the second batch, we recommend decreasing the toast level by one.
- Function: Toast
- Number Of Slices: 4
- Toast Level: 5/7
- Cooking Time: 5m 15s
- Second Batch: 4m
- Convection: No
We began our Toast test by setting the toast function to level 4. With four slices of bread placed on tray level 3, they came out very light on top. The bottom side had a bit more color but it wasn’t enough.
After that, we cranked the oven up to level 6. That gave us a very even color, but it was too brown. In the end, we settled for toasting at level 5, which ran for around 5 minutes 15 seconds, as the best option, earning a score of 8.3/10.
Under this setting, the toast mostly received a light golden brown color. However, there were various areas that were a bit darker or lighter, possibly due to the bread’s varying thickness. The unevenness in surface color, especially on the bottom, prevented us from scoring it higher than 8.5/10.
Interestingly, this unevenness in the bread gave it a variety of textures throughout which deserved another 8.5/10. Our head chef, Tuyet Pham, determined the toast would go great with pretty much everything including omelets, sandwiches, eggs benedict, and soup.
The light golden brown areas were slightly crispy on the outside and moist on the inside. On top of that, the golden brown areas were crispy all the way through and the light golden areas gave us a different, softer texture.
For the immediate second batch at the same toast level, the oven automatically reduced the time to 4 minutes. This time, the toast had a more even brown color than the first batch. However, there was a more apparent unevenness on the bottom with colors that ranged from white to dark brown.
Nonetheless, nothing was burnt, so it did not taste bitter. The extra crispiness made the toast even better for soup. All in all, the oven got a 7.8/10 for consecutive usability.
Pizza
- Function: Turbo Convection
- Temperature: 450°F
- Cooking Time: 6m
- Convection: Yes
For this pizza test, we didn’t choose the oven’s 400°F pizza preset because it didn’t match our Pizza test requirement of 450°F. Instead, we chose Turbo Convection as a suitable setting for baking pizza. Nonetheless, the results were not so favorable scoring only 6.4/10 on our testing scale.
We were, however, impressed that the oven only took 9 minutes to bake a 9-inch thick-crust meat pizza placed on the upper rack level. According to our accumulated data on average toaster oven performance, this deserved a 9/10.
Unfortunately, the oven lacks the high-intensity heating capability needed to crisp a crust effectively in such a short period of time, which the Toshiba AC25CEW-BS has. Consequently, parts of the crust bottom stuck to the grooves of the baking tray and the surface had a light golden color - so the score was only 5.5/10.
We had to stop baking because some of the meat and parts of the cheese started charring. It was a shame that the cheese didn’t completely melt before this, so we could only give the toppings a 6/10.
We were able to prevent the toppings from burning and the potential bitter taste. However, the crust and the topping weren’t good enough for the taste of the pizza to get a score higher than 5.5/10 from our chef.
- Function: Pizza
- Temperature: 450°F
- Cooking Time: 5m
- Convection: Low
Our Pizza test was one of the few occasions where we felt the Ninja didn’t measure up to its potential. We suspect the score would be better if we were baking a fresh pizza instead of a store-bought 9-inch thick-crust meat pizza. Anyhow, we settled on a score of 6.5/10 for this test.
After preheating, we placed the baking tray and the pizza at tray level 3 as suggested by the digital display. The oven only took 5 minutes to bake the pizza compared to the recommended 10 minutes on the label. According to our standards, this deserved a 10/10 for cooking time.
Unfortunately, despite having the convection system on low, the crust was only golden on the side closest to the fan. The other half of the crust lacked color. In addition, such a short amount of time wasn’t enough to crisp any of the crust (even the golden side). Thus, we could only give the crust a 6/10.
The reason we had to stop the cooking so early was that the meat and the bell peppers on the golden half of the crust were beginning to char. Luckily, the toppings on the other half cooked properly. However, it seemed the cheese didn’t have enough time to melt, so the toppings only got a 5/10.
Considering the state of the crust and the toppings, our chef gave the pizza a 6/10 after tasting it.
Whole Roasted Chicken
- Function: Turbo Convection
- Temperature: 350°F
- Cooking Time: 1h 10m
- Convection: Yes
The spacious interior of the Oster seemed a key factor in our Whole Roasted Chicken test, scoring an impressive 8.1/10. We placed a 3 lb chicken belly-up on the upper rack level and flipped it after the first 40 minutes.
After 1 hour and 10 minutes, the skin reached an acceptable roasted color scoring a 7/10 for cooking time. Our chef surmised that further roasting wouldn’t result in better skin caramelization. Thus, we stopped roasting to avoid overcooking the meat and inadvertently lowering the total score.
The skin had an appetizing golden color, except for the sides of the two drumsticks which were a little lighter in color. Compared to other benchmark tests, the skin only crisped slightly indicating the heating elements and convection system to be less than ideal/top-of-the-range. The results were good, enough for a 7.5/10.
In conclusion, the oven maintained an ideal temperature long enough to evenly cook an entire chicken throughout. We measured the internal temperature of the chicken and it was 181°F. This was very surprising and almost spot-on with the recommended 165°F - 180°F by the USDA—thus earning a whopping 9.8/10 for doneness.
Interestingly, the meat came out so tender that the bone simply fell off as we tried to carve the chicken. If the skin was crispier, the chicken would have received a higher than 8/10 for taste.
- Function: Air Roast
- Temperature: 350°F
- Cooking Time: 40m
- Convection: Maximum
The strengths of the Ninja really shined through in our Whole Roasted Chicken test, scoring an impressive 9/10. We placed our 3-pound whole chicken in the air fryer basket with plenty of room to spare and slid it onto tray level 3. We also placed a baking pan below to catch any drippings.
With this test, we were able to confirm the manufacturer’s claim that food in this oven didn’t need to be turned, especially when using its air fryer basket. Nonetheless, to stay consistent with our test parameters, we still flipped the chicken after the first 25 minutes.
The oven took only 40 minutes to cook the chicken all the way through and to create an appetizing-looking and crispy skin. It was one of the fastest cooking times among our toaster ovens and deserved a whopping 10/10, on par with the Cosori CO130-AO which uses a rotisserie kit.
The skin was evenly golden from the bottom to the top. It also crisped up nicely around the tips of the wings and drumsticks as well as areas with a lot of fat.
However, it would seem the surface of the chicken cooked so quickly that a lot of the fat didn’t get rendered out from the skin. Thus, while the outer layer of the skin was crispy, the inside was soft. The skin’s softness from the remaining fat, unfortunately, prevented it from scoring higher than 8.5/10.
Checking with a meat thermometer, we found the chicken’s internal temperature to be 194°F-199°F which was quite high compared to the USDA recommended of 165°F-180°F. This was the reason we didn’t continue cooking longer for better skin caramelization. Our chef was afraid that would overcook the chicken. After carving the chicken, we found no pink spots in the meat and gave it an 8.4/10 for doneness.
With such a short cooking time, the meat remained delightfully juicy. Also taking into account the texture of the skin, our chef gave the chicken a 9/10 for taste.
Baked French Fries
- Function: Turbo Convection
- Temperature: 400°F
- Cooking Time: 30 m
- Convection: Yes
For our Baked French Fries test, the Oster was disappointing, scoring only 4.1/10. Our reasoning was the poor size ratio of the cooking chamber to the oven’s power output. The oven wasn’t able to maintain a high enough temperature for baking frozen fries, as opposed to the Ninja DT201.
After 30 minutes the fries showed no significant change in color—where the test time limit was 25 minutes! Therefore, we had no choice but to stop baking and give the fries a 0/10 for cooking time.
Most fries had a pale color as if they were air-dried instead of air-fried. Some small pieces had a light golden color, but that wasn’t enough to score higher than 5/10.
Texture-wise, the fries were soft but dry on the outside, barely enough for a 5.5/10. All things considered, the only silver lining was that the fries were cooked, so our chef gave them a 5/10 for taste.
- Function: Air Fry
- Temperature: 400°F
- Cooking Time: 19m
- Convection: Maximum
We put 12 oz of frozen fries into the air fryer basket and slid it onto tray level 3. We also gave the fries a toss after the first 13 minutes. The overall score for our Baked French Fries test was 7.8/10.
The oven took 19 minutes to bake the fries which was enough for a 7.7/10. With this oven, our chef had to balance the cooking time with the color of the fries. If we stopped baking too early, the thicker fries would lack color; if too late, the thinner fries might be burnt.
The fries’ colors ranged from light golden on the thicker ones to golden brown on the thinner ones. This unevenness resulted in a 7.5/10.
The colors of the fries largely reflected their texture. The longest and thickest fries had a slightly crispy outside and a very moist interior. Meanwhile, the shortest and thinnest fries were completely crispy all the way through.
The silver lining was that average-sized fries got perfect, crispy surfaces with moist interiors. While the texture varied, none of them were bad, so we gave the overall batch an 8/10.
Considering the varied colors and textures of the fries, our chef awarded them a respectable 8/10 after her taste test.
Oster XL French Door Countertop Toaster Oven Design Review
- Exterior (20%)8.0/10
- Interior (30%)7.0/10
- Build Quality (50%)6.0/10
- Exterior (20%)7.0/10
- Interior (30%)9.5/10
- Build Quality (50%)9.0/10
In the Oster TSSTTVFDDG Double-Door Convection Toaster Oven Box
- Model: TSSTTVFDDG
- Warranty: 1 year (US and Canada only)
- User Manual
- Baking Rack x 2
- Baking Pan
- Removable Crumb Tray
The Oster TSSTTVFDDG arrived boxed between two styrofoam brackets. The four accessories were packaged inside carton boxes and taped to the oven. While the box only has some basic information, a complete user manual was inside.
- Model: DT201
- Warranty: 1 year
- User Manual
- Baking Rack x 2
- Baking Pan x 2
- Broiling Rack
- Removable Crumb Tray
- Air Fryer Basket
The Ninja toaster oven arrived firmly positioned between two foam pads inside an eye-catching package. Its seven included accessories were also fitted nicely in carton boxes. The oven came with a separate user manual, a tips and tricks sheet, and a recipe booklet.
Exterior
- Weight:16.8 lbs (7.6 kg)
- Length:21.5" (54.7 cm)
- Width:20.0" (50.7 cm)
- Height:12.8" (32.5 cm)
- Material:Stainless steel
- Color:Silver
- Door Handle:Cool-touch
- Tray Indicators:No
- Crumb Tray:Removable
Considering the Oster’s large size, ventilation slats on all sides are a big plus. (+3). At first glance, the most stand-out feature was the tempered glass french door with cool-touch door handles (+3).
It has a rear buffer to maintain a cool distance from the wall, but we thought it could be greater(+2). Additionally, while the oven’s leg stoppers are sturdy, they are rather small.
Our measurements of the oven’s footprints were 21.53" x 19.96" x 12.79" which matched closely with the manufacturer’s 22" x 19.5" x 13". On a side note, we weighed the oven and it was 16.75 lbs while the manufacturer stated the entire package to be 13.87 lbs.
- Weight:26.4 lbs (12.0 kg)
- Length:16.9" (43.0 cm)
- Width:20.3" (51.5 cm)
- Height:13.4" (34.0 cm)
- Material:Stainless steel
- Color:Silver
- Door Handle:Cool-touch
- Tray Indicators:No
- Crumb Tray:Removable
The Ninja has many ventilation holes on its casing, especially at the back and on the bottom, to accommodate its extremely powerful convection system. A unique design choice that stood out to us was the fact that the control panel was located on the oven’s cool-touch door handle.
Most ovens situate their control panel on the casing, thus adding to the oven’s footprint. By combining the control panel with the door handle, the oven can also maximize space for its cooking chamber.
You don’t need to worry about the handle slamming to the ground or countertop since the door hinge does a great job of keeping the door firmly in place. While it doesn’t have tray-level indicators on its glass door, the digital display does show the recommended tray level for every function.
Our measurements of the oven’s footprints were 16.93" x 20.28" x 13.34" which jived closely with the manufacturer’s 17.09" x 20.22" x 13.34". For these measurements, we also took into account the door handle and rear buffer.
The oven has a buffer on its backside to prevent it from being pushed too close to the wall. The feature could be a bit longer, in our opinion. We do need to mention that the bulky shape of the oven and its lack of carrying handles may make it difficult to move around.
Control Panel
- Type:LCD + 15 buttons
- Temperature:150°F - 450°F
- Timer:1 minute - 6 hours
- Indicator Light:No
- Status Bar:No
- Light Toggle:No
- Convection Toggle:No
- Rotation Toggle:No
- Automatic Preheat:Yes
- Audio Cues:No
The Oster has an LCD and 15 flat buttons including 8 for functions, 2 for timer adjustment, 2 for temperature adjustment, a Clock button, a Stop/Cancel button, and a Start button. The oven has an automatic interior light with no toggle button.
- Type:Digital display + 10 buttons
- Temperature:85°F - 450°F
- Timer:1 minute - 4 hours
- Indicator Light:Yes
- Status Bar:Yes
- Light Toggle:Yes
- Convection Toggle:Yes
- Rotation Toggle:No
- Automatic Preheat:Yes
- Audio Cues:No
When plugged in, the On/Off switch will light up. You then press it to turn on the oven and its digital display. The door handle is black while the digital display is white, creating good color contrasts.
The control panel includes two buttons to adjust cooking functions, two for time, two for temperature, a light toggle, a Start/Stop button, and the ‘2-level’ button.
The ‘2-level’ button is unique to this Ninja. It suggests the best rack levels for cooking two trays of food at the same time. This even allows you to roast a tray of meat and a tray of vegetables at the same time. Everything is explained in detail in the Ninja recipe booklet.
Cooking Functions of the Oster XL Digital Convection Toaster Oven
- Toast (level 1-6)
- Bake (150°F-450°F)
- Turbo Convection (150°F-450°F)
- Broil (450°F)
- Pizza (400°F)
- Warm (150°F)
- Defrost (150°F)
- Dehydrate (150°F)
The Oster has eight cooking functions including Toast, Bake, Broil, Pizza, Warm, Defrost, Dehydrate, and Turbo Convection. Despite the name, Turbo Convection is basically Convection Bake—meaning this oven only has one convection level.
The standard Bake function and ‘Turbo’ Convection operate in the oven’s maximum temperature range, between 150°F to 450°F. The Toast function has 6 preset levels from Light to Dark, Meanwhile, the Pizza function is set to 400°F and Broil to 450°F—meaning neither can be adjusted.
The user manual recommends not to preheat the oven when using Defrost and Dehydrate. These two functions are set to 150°F—the lowest possible temperature —and cannot be adjusted. However, 150°F is a bit high compared to common dehydrators which operate at around 100°F.
For some reason, we couldn’t find the set temperature for Warm in the manual, but we measured the temperature to be 150°F.
- Air Fry (250°F–450°F)
- Whole Roast (250°F–450°F)
- Air Roast (250°F–450°F)
- Bake (180°F–450°F)
- Dehydrate (85°F–200°F)
- Pizza (180°F–450°F)
- Bagel (level 1-7, 1-9 slices)
- Toast (level 1-7, 1-9 slices)
- Broil (HI or LO)
- Reheat (100°F–450°F)
Each cooking function on the Ninja has its own temperature range to match the function’s purpose. What’s special about this model is that each function deploys a specific convection level and a specific number of heating elements, each tailored to the dishes stated in the recipe booklet.
Whole Roast, for example, uses a high fan speed and the rear convection heat source to provide rotisserie-style results. Air Roast uses the maximum fan speed and the rear convection heat source to quickly cook food for a crispy outside and juicy inside.
Air Fry also uses the maximum fan speed and the rear convection heat source to cook food as quickly as possible for the crispiest results. Pizza uses the rear convection heat source but a low fan speed to avoid drying the pizza crust and toppings too much.
Bake operates the same way as Pizza. The same goes for Dehydrate, which has a lower temperature range for removing moisture from foods.
The remaining cooking functions don’t deploy the convection fan. Broil activates the top heating elements on the high setting to provide top-down heat for a crispy finish. On the other hand, Reheat activates the top and bottom heating elements on the high setting.
Toast also activates the top and bottom heating elements but on the medium setting to quickly and evenly brown both sides of your bread. Bagel, however, activates the top heating elements on the medium setting and the bottom heating elements on the high setting. This is because the recipe book instructs you to place the bagel slices cut-side up.
Interior
- Heating Elements:3 nichrome
- Convection Fan:Yes
- Lighting:Yes
- Tray Levels:2
- Rotisserie:No
- Safety Hook:No
The Oster uses three nichrome heating elements with an unusual looped design for the upper heating element (+3). Most similar large-capacity ovens we have examined have four upper heating elements, two bottom heating elements, and a combined power draw of 1800 W.
However, the Oster has only one upper heating element which bends across and around the cooking chamber’s ceiling to cover the same area as would four. Since the power draw is divided equally between working heating elements, we speculated this design choice was to accommodate the oven’s lower power draw of 1500 W.
The TSSTTVFDDG claims to have ‘easy clean interior walls’. While they are not grease-proof, our cleaning test showed that the oven was, indeed, easy to clean (+1).
The convection fan is situated on the right side of the cooking chamber (+2). While the oven has an interior light, it’s fully automatic with no manual operation (+2).
Having only two rack levels, the oven doesn’t really require guides on the glass door (-1). The manual recommends using the upper rack position for toast and pizza, and the lower one for other foods. It’s worth noting that the rack guide rails are assembled parts and not hollowed out of the cooking chamber’s walls like many other toaster ovens.
The baking rack should not be slid into the lower rack slot with the baking tray attached to the bottom. This will result in direct contact with the bottom heating elements.
- Heating Elements:5 quartz + 1 nichrome
- Convection Fan:Yes
- Lighting:Yes
- Tray Levels:4
- Rotisserie:No
- Safety Hook:No
The best aspects of the DT201 are its convection system and heating elements. Together, these two systems are designed to eliminate the need for rotating your pans or flipping foods halfway through cooking, a fact that we confirmed with our performance tests.
The convection fan provides airflow of up to 130 CFM (cubic feet per minute). Such a powerful convection system would usually be very noisy but thanks to the door’s tight seal, it wasn’t a problem.
The Ninja has three quartz heating elements on top and two on the bottom; most other similarly-sized units have four in total. What really separates this oven from the rest, however, is its third heat source in the rear, right where the convection fan sits. This nichrome heating element surrounds the convection fan cavity to properly and consistently heat the airflow.
The quartz heating elements heat food directly using infrared light, so airflow isn’t always important. Meanwhile, nichrome heating elements heat up the air around them, so their effectiveness can be improved with the help of convection systems.
The cooking chamber has four tray levels with engraved numbers 1-4 from the bottom up. It also has a coating but it’s not 100% non-stick, so it may be prone to stubborn stains.
Of course, an oven like this won’t lack an interior light. While this oven isn’t designed to accommodate a rotisserie kit, its performance showed that it could provide the same results.
Capacity of the Oster Double Door Oven
- Length:15.8" (40.0 cm)
- Width:16.5" (42.0 cm)
- Height:10.0" (25.5 cm)
According to the manufacturer, the TSSTTVFDDG can take 14 slices of toast and two 16-inch pizzas on its two racks. However, our hands-on testing proved it fits only 12 slices (6 per rack, each requiring at least 4.5 x 4.5 inches of space) or a 15-inch pizza. While it wasn’t clear what the maximum size for a whole chicken was, our tests indicated plenty of room for a 3 lb bird.
The manufacturer doesn’t state the interior capacity, but we measured the cooking chamber volume to be around 42.83 liters—our biggest number to date. However, we felt only two rack slots didn’t do justice to the oven’s capacity.
- Length:14.5" (36.8 cm)
- Width:11.8" (30.0 cm)
- Height:11.0" (27.9 cm)
The Ninja has the largest cooking chamber out of all the toaster ovens we’ve reviewed so far, measuring around 30.82 liters. While the manufacturer didn’t state a specific capacity, this unit could comfortably accommodate a 12-pound turkey.
Each rack level can also fit nine slices of toast or a 12-inch pizza. With the 2-level even cooking feature, you can roast a 5 lb whole chicken and a tray of vegetables at the same time.
Power Cord
- Length:25.8" (65.5 cm)
- Type:2-prong plug
- Power:1500 W
- Rated Output:120 V ~ 60 Hz
The power cord is 25.79" long which is enough for household use. However, it could be a bit longer since a toaster oven as large as the Oster requires at least 5 inches of clear space on all sides. The oven doesn’t have storage space for the cord like some ovens do.
- Length:3.2 ft (1.0 m)
- Type:3-prong plug
- Power:1800 W
- Rated Output:120 V ~ 60 Hz
The power cord is roughly 38 inches — plenty for household use. Unfortunately, the oven doesn’t have a storage place for the cord. The rear buffer is also not designed to wrap the cord around.
Accessories
- Length:15.7" (39.8 cm)
- Width:16.1" (41.0 cm)
- Height:0.7" (1.8 cm)
- Material:Stainless steel
- Dishwasher Safe:Yes
The Oster has two slightly different baking racks. One is the standard rack type, while the other has two supports below to slide the baking pan under.
- Length:14.5" (36.8 cm)
- Width:11.5" (29.3 cm)
- Height:0.3" (0.7 cm)
- Material:Stainless steel
- Dishwasher Safe:Yes
The Ninja comes with two baking racks which fit perfectly with the rail guides to prevent accidents when moving food in or out.
Accessories
- Length:14.13
- Width:11.8" (30.0 cm)
- Height:1.1" (2.9 cm)
- Material:Stainless steel
- Dishwasher Safe:Not advisable
The baking pan has ridges and grooves for creating attractive roast markings and catching drippings. It also has wide edges for a firm fit on the baking rack supports, unlike some other designs we’ve seen.
However, it’s not big enough to fit into the rack rail guides and can only go on top of a rack or attached beneath. This means it doesn’t make full use of the oven’s capacity. In addition, the tray is coated, but not completely non-stick so prone to stubborn stains.
- Length:13.5" (34.4 cm)
- Width:14.5" (36.8 cm)
- Height:1.0" (2.6 cm)
- Material:Stainless steel
- Dishwasher Safe:Not advisable
The Ninja comes with two baking pans to make the most out of its capacity. They are designed to be smaller than the baking racks and too short to reach the upper guide rail.
They have an enamel coating which is non-stick and easy to clean. Note that citric acid from citrusy fruits can damage this coating.
Accessories
- Length:15.7" (39.8 cm)
- Width:12.5" (31.8 cm)
- Height:0.8" (1.9 cm)
- Material:Stainless steel
- Dishwasher Safe:Not advisable
A crumb tray is always a useful accessory to clean up pesky debris, especially with a large toaster oven like the Oster. Look out for crumbs falling onto the oven floor as you take out the tray. It’s quite a hassle to tilt the oven to get them out.
- Length:13.5" (34.4 cm)
- Width:13.5" (34.4 cm)
- Height:1.0" (2.5 cm)
- Material:Stainless steel
- Dishwasher Safe:Not advisable
The broiling rack is designed to fit nicely onto the baking pans and also has an enamel coating. It has grooves and ridges which can give your roast dish that grill-like appearance. The holes at the bottom allow grease to drain from the food onto the baking pan below.
Build Quality
The TSSTTVFDDG is light for its size and has a graspable rectangular shape making it easy to carry or position on a counter (+2). It also has a sturdy build and durable stainless steel casing (+4). The LCD is black while the numbers are yellow and the settings are red, making everything easy to see (+1).
Unfortunately, we found that the flat buttons often required some force to register (-1). Moreover, the door hinge could be firmer thus preventing the door from slamming shut.
The Ninja’s casing is made of durable and thick stainless steel which gives the oven good heat insulation. Thus, during our tests, the oven’s exterior only got hot to the touch after cooking for a long time at a high temperature (>400°F).
The digital display has a good color contrast which makes it easy to see—an advantage compared to the Instant Omni Plus 18L. Its buttons are highly responsive and very sturdy. All of the accessories are designed well to fit their purposes and make the most out of the oven’s capacity.
Unfortunately, possibly due to uneven metal expansion, the pans that we received bent when heated. Even though they flattened out again once they cooled, this was still a manufacturing flaw.
Moreover, the light button seemed to be broken when we received the oven. We could sometimes turn the light on and sometimes not. Nonetheless, we deemed these flaws to be specific to our particular unit, so we didn’t deduct too many points in terms of build quality.
Oster TSSTTVFDDG Digital French Door Toaster Oven Usability
- User Control (30%)8.0/10
- Oster French Door Toaster Oven Ease of Use (50%)5.0/10
- Cleanability (20%)7.5/10
- User Control (30%)9.9/10
- Ease of Use (50%)9.9/10
- Cleanability (20%)8.0/10
User Control
The Oster’s controls are easy to understand since what you see is what you get (+2). Therefore, the LCD doesn’t provide any extra information but it’s easy to read (+2).
The buttons have only a single function and are easy to tell apart(+2). Although the manual says you can press the Stop/Cancel button twice to turn off the oven, we weren’t able to do so (-1).
The temperature can be adjusted in increments of 5°F and the timer runs from one minute to six hours, which is quite impressive (+1). Time can be adjusted in increments of 1 minute up to 2 hours and in increments of 0.5 hours above 2 hours (+1).
To set up the clock, press the clock button once and the clock will flash. Then, use the arrow keys to set the hour and press the clock button again to likewise set the minutes. Finally, push the clock button or the start button to set the time (+1).
The control panel of the Ninja is far from simple but the digital display presents all the information in a way that’s pleasing to the eye and not at all complicated. In addition, its buttons are really straightforward.
The timer adjusts in 1-minute increments when under 1 hour and 5-minute increments when over 1 hour. You can also hold the +/- buttons for 2 seconds to activate faster scrolling in 5-minute increments.
The temperature can be increased in 5-degree increments. You can also hold the +/- buttons for 2 seconds to activate faster scrolling in 10-degree increments.
For the Toast and Bagel functions, the preset temperature is 450°F, similar to all toaster ovens. Adjusting the Temp/Shade and Time/Slice buttons simply changes to a predetermined cooking time.
The best part, however, is that you can select the number of bread slices and toast up to 9 slices at once. You can also manually adjust the time once cooking has started to better choose your preferred shade of browning. This toasting performance really puts the Ninja in a class of its own.
The Air Roast and Air Fry functions are basically distinguished by their tray positioning, especially when cooking two trays at the same time. To utilize the Air Roast function, for instance, you can place the meat dish on tray level 1 and the vegetable dish on level 3. As for the Air Fry function, you can cook two trays of the same food to the same results by placing them on tray levels 2 and 4.
The Dehydrate function is another stand-out feature in our minds. The recipe booklet outlines instructions for several types of food. You can purchase additional dehydration accessories to dehydrate up to 4 levels at one time. The Reheat function can also be used to keep your food warm at around 120°F.
Oster French Door Toaster Oven Ease of Use
As you select a function, the corresponding icons will illuminate in the LCD screen. The TSSTTVFDDG has an automatic preheat phase which is only applicable for the Bake and Turbo Convection Bake functions (+1).
After setting the time and temperature, you then push start and the display will show PrE indicating the oven is in the preheating phase. You can bypass this phase by pressing the start button a second time.
Preheating takes roughly 5 minutes to around 300°F regardless of the temperature you set. You can readjust the time and temperature only after the preheating phase.
Interestingly, we found that the oven would return to preheat mode after adjusting the temperature until the new input temperature was reached and not just 300°F. This is also stated in the user manual.
The racks fit perfectly into the rail guides thus preventing accidents when placing food in the oven (+3). When the cooking cycle begins, the interior light will turn on automatically and then off when the cooking cycle ends (+2).
The french door and its cool-touch handle allow you to stay away from the heat wave when opening after cooking (+4). The doors are also single-pull which is very convenient. However, the doors cannot open partially and can slam shut if your hand slips (-2).
Unlike some ovens, opening the door doesn’t stop the oven or the interior light (-2). The oven casing can get very hot after long cooking times at high temperatures, so you should take care (-1).
When the cooking cycle finishes, the oven will beep once, switch off the heat, and return to the clock screen. It’s advised to unplug the oven after use.
The oven has a short automatic preheat phase which lasts 1 minute 25 seconds and heats the oven to around 200°F. While this feature wasn’t very useful in practice, the oven still reaches the correct temperature extremely quickly. All cooking functions use this phase except for Toast, Bagel, Broil, Dehydrate, and Reheat.
Whenever you select a function, the oven will display the optimal oven rack position. As you cycle through functions, you’ll notice the tray-level recommendations change for the best results. When the door is open, display settings freeze to prevent any accidental changes to the cooking cycle.
The 2-level even cooking feature allows you to cook two sheet pan meals at once which can be very helpful for big gatherings or weekly meal prep. The door hinge allows for partial opening at any angle greater than 75° which most toaster ovens can’t do.
The manufacturer’s claim of ‘30% faster cooking than a traditional full-size convection oven’ was a bit arbitrary. The same goes for ‘up to 30% crispier results vs. a traditional convection oven’. Nonetheless, our performance tests did show crispier and juicier results than many other toaster ovens.
We also couldn’t confirm the claim of ‘up to 50% more even baking results vs. a leading countertop oven’. Our observations of the cooking process did show, however, that the oven distributed heat so evenly that there was no need to flip food midway through the bake.
Keep in mind that opening the door stops the oven but not the interior light. During the cooking process, the light will turn off automatically after one minute, and there’s no way to keep it on.
The oven turns off automatically after 10 minutes of no interaction. Nevertheless, we still suggest you unplug the oven after use for safety reasons.
Cleanability
The stainless steel exterior of the Oster was very easy to clean (+2). Even though the interior doesn’t have a non-stick coating, there are no tricky nooks and crannies, so cleaning didn’t require much labor (+4).
After roasting a chicken, the baking pan accumulated some stubborn stains which we were able to remove even with a baking soda paste and water (+1.5). We were worried the grease could splash inside the fan cavity while cooking, but this was not the case.
The exterior’s stainless steel finish made it very easy to clean. In addition, the interior has plenty of space, so the grease rarely reached the cooking chamber’s walls.
However, the interior doesn’t have a non-stick coating so we had to put in a little effort to clean the grease. We were also worried that grease could have splashed inside the fan cavity.
The baking pans and broiling rack are easy to clean thanks to their enamel coating. The small downside to this was that the stains that did appear stuck out like a sore thumb.
We could remove most bits that fell off our food thanks to the removable crumb tray. Plus, when the door was fully opened, its hinge left a small space where we could just sweep the remaining crumbs out.