Making purees, soups, batters, fruit and green smoothies, sauces, frozen desserts, nut butter, or margaritas – a blender truly is a wonderful addition to any kitchen.
However, once your food is all smoothly blended, it’s time for the boring part. Of course, I’m talking about washing and cleaning your Ninja blender.
Washing up can be a drag. Blenders come with a bunch of parts you need to disassemble and clean individually. Let alone all the hard-to-reach places and sharp blades that need to be cleaned!
But washing up is no reason to skip on using your blender. The great news is – all Ninja blenders can be washed in the dishwasher! However, not all parts can withstand machine dishwashing.
Still, there are a few things you should know before you pop your blender in the dishwasher. Some parts can be washed in the dishwasher, but others may get damaged – so read on to find out which parts of Ninja blenders are dishwasher-safe and how to clean them!
Table of Contents
- Do I absolutely have to clean my Ninja blender after every use?
- How do I clean my Ninja Blender?
- Cleaning Your Ninja Blender in a Dishwasher
- Self-Cleaning and Washing Your Ninja Blender by Hand
- Spick and Span!
Do I absolutely have to clean my Ninja blender after every use?
Let me get this straight right away. Yes. You absolutely should wash your Ninja blender after you’re done using it. Every time. Without exception. The same goes for washing your juicer.
There’s a good reason to do it: the earlier you wash your blender, the easier the cleanup is.
Delaying wash-up for too long after blending will cause food particles to oxidize, get sticky and dry up, and even worse, give the bacteria time to develop. If you wait for long to wash your blender, you’ll need to put in a lot of elbow grease and use scorching hot water to properly get rid of bacteria. Yuck.
Washing away fresh food remains is easy, even if it’s sticky or gets into corners, nooks, and crannies. Do it ASAP, and you’ll thank yourself later!
That being said, if you just made a batch of something, and you’re about to make another one in a bit, you don’t need to wash your blender. Perhaps just give it a quick rinse.
But never, ever let your blender sit dirty and then make food in it without washing. That’s a surefire path to food poisoning.
How do I clean my Ninja Blender?
Cleaning a Ninja blender doesn’t need to be hard. There are a few ways to wash your blender. You can choose the method that works best for you at any given moment:
- Self-cleaning for a quick cleanup
- Washing by hand for a deeper clean
- Dishwashing your blender for thorough cleanliness.
Cleaning Your Ninja Blender in a Dishwasher
Washing your Ninja blender in a dishwasher is safe, and in fact, it’s the most hygienic way to do it.
While washing the appliance, a dishwasher uses higher temperatures than you do when you wash by hand. The high water temperature will kill bacteria and leave your Ninja blender spick and span – ready for the next batch of purees or ice-cold smoothies!
Which Parts of a Ninja Blender Are Dishwasher-safe?
Almost all parts of your Ninja blender are dishwasher-safe!
The only exception is the blender base, just like with any other food processor. Due to the electrical components, you should never let the blender base get in touch with water. It’s enough to just wipe it with a damp cloth when it gets dirty!
So, the dishwasher-safe components of any Ninja blender are:
- The blending jars, pitchers, and blender cups – they’re all BPA-free!
- Jar lids (top-rack only)
- Blade assemblies (top-rack only)
How to Clean Your Ninja Blender in a Dishwasher
- Unplug your appliance
- Twist off the blending jar (or pitcher) from the base and take the lid off
- Rinse the jar and the lid under a stream of water
- Unsnap the blade assembly from the jar
- Put all parts on the top rack of your dishwasher. If you don’t have enough space for all blender parts on the top rack, make sure at least the lids and the blender blades are up on top – they’re only safe on the top tack of the dishwasher.
- Start your dishwasher and let it do its magic!
- Wipe the base by hand with a damp cloth, and use a bit of cleaning detergent if necessary.
Self-Cleaning and Washing Your Ninja Blender by Hand
Dishwashing is not the only way to clean your Ninja. If you’re in a rush, don’t have a full load for your dishwasher, or simply want to save some electricity, you can use one of these two methods.
How to Quickly Self-Clean a Ninja Blender
Self-cleaning is very quick, but not super thorough. This is the fastest way to clean the inside of your blender jar and the blades, but it doesn’t disinfect the blender fully. Use this method as a quick clean if you’re in a pinch, but don’t forget to wash your appliance thoroughly next time.
Keep in mind that this method only works if you do it right after blending. It won’t clean any caked-on, old food residue.
- Remove the blending jar
- Rinse it under the sink
- Pour a bit of warm water in, less than halfway up the jar. That should come out to about a cup or two, depending on the size of your Ninja blender jar
- Squeeze a few drops of dish soap into the jar
- Mount the jar back onto the blender base
- Use the pulse option about 10 times. Make sure that the soapy water reaches the top of the jar
- Rinse the jar, the blades, and the lids with running water and leave them to dry.
How to Hand Wash a Ninja Blender
Hand washing is a great way to maintain your Ninja blender in pristine condition – no dishwasher necessary.
Approach cleaning your Ninja by hand like you would any other dish:
- Disassemble the blender
- Rinse the jar, lid, and blade assembly under a stream of water
- Use dish soap with a sponge or a scrub brush to thoroughly clean all the parts. Be careful when handling the blades – they’re extremely sharp – sharper than they look!
- Rinse thoroughly
- Let your blender air dry or dry it with a clean cloth
- Use a damp cloth or a bit of cleaning liquid to wipe the base of the blender.
Spick and Span!
Ninja blenders are great. Not only are they great for making healthy foods and drinks, but you also get to clean them up quickly thanks to their dishwasher-safe parts! Now that you know how easy it is to clean it, feel free to use your Ninja blender as often as you feel the need for a healthy snack.
Ninja blender maintenance is all that easy. If you like what we do over here at The Home Dweller, share this blog with your friends and family so they can enjoy the perks of super-easy kitchen appliance clean-up too!
