Buying a hand/stick blender . . .

Lynn from Fargo wrote on 01 Apr 2006 in rec.food.cooking

Quoted message said:

I think I'm going to buy a stick type blender. I need one that will
reach the bottom of a pretty deep pot. It should be pretty tough, easy
to clean.

Do you think I can find one for under $50 ???

Lynn from Fargo
Who wants to puree with the rest of you

I have a braun stick blender and a (16 qt) 4 gallon stock pot...They work
together well. My Idea would be measure the inside wall of your deepest pot
and get a Stick Blender that can be immeresed to that depth...My Braun was
well under $50...more like $39.

--
-Alan

On 1 Apr 2006 19:38:34 -0800, "Lynn from Fargo" <[email hidden]>

Quoted message said:

I think I'm going to buy a stick type blender. I need one that will
reach the bottom of a pretty deep pot. It should be pretty tough, easy
to clean.

Do you think I can find one for under $50 ???

Mine was $49.99 at Target, so I'd say yes. (Mine is a Kitchenaid, and
I love it. Its stick is metal, and it's a breeze to clean.)

serene

Lynn from Fargo said:

I think I'm going to buy a stick type blender. I need one that will
reach the bottom of a pretty deep pot. It should be pretty tough, easy
to clean.

Do you think I can find one for under $50 ???

They are all about the same size, so far as I've noticed. My Braun was
a special at $20 at Costco. I later saw the same one for $30. But
that's been a couple of years so they may have gone up. I suspect they
are the sort of thing that varies at different places, so shop around.
Mine came with a long tall container that is perfect for making the
fastest mayonnaise you've ever seen, and with a whisk attachment. Both
are very useful. It also came with a mini-chopper attachment, which I
use surprisingly often. Newer ones come with two speeds, which may be
a good thing but I haven't missed not having that feature. -aem

On 1 Apr 2006 19:38:34 -0800, "Lynn from Fargo" <[email hidden]>

Quoted message said:

I think I'm going to buy a stick type blender. I need one that will
reach the bottom of a pretty deep pot. It should be pretty tough, easy
to clean.

Do you think I can find one for under $50 ???

Braun, with their mini-chopper attachment, are only $25 and
well-worth it.

-sw

On 1 Apr 2006 19:38:34 -0800, "Lynn from Fargo" <[email hidden]>

Quoted message said:

I think I'm going to buy a stick type blender. I need one that will
reach the bottom of a pretty deep pot. It should be pretty tough, easy
to clean.

BTW: Stick blenders are notoriously easy to clean. I rarely do
anything to it except rinse it off right after use.

-sw

Steve Wertz said:

BTW: Stick blenders are notoriously easy to clean. I rarely do
anything to it except rinse it off right after use.

Okay for light use, but I use mine twice a day for protein shakes and
the dynamics of the swirling leave deposits up near where the
driveshaft enters the stick. Normally I run it in rinse-water, and
every few days i get in there with soap and a scrubbie and get that
ring out.

This would not be sufficient for the health department, though...

--Blair

Lynn from Fargo said:

I think I'm going to buy a stick type blender. I need one that will
reach the bottom of a pretty deep pot. It should be pretty tough, easy
to clean.

Do you think I can find one for under $50 ???

Lynn from Fargo
Who wants to puree with the rest of you

Here, prices seem to depend on brand and on extra gadgets. Gadgets can
include whippers and choppers. Something to think about when you buy
one. I have a "plain" stick b;ender. Wish I had the extras. They can
save you from having to assemble the fp and are quicker to clean.

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

Here, prices seem to depend on brand and on extra gadgets. Gadgets can

include whippers and choppers.<<

Same here. I bought a super powerful motor Braun, which has a handle
more like a hand mixer to which you can affix a stick blender
attachment. It does loads of jobs incredibly well, but has the fault
that it isn't as easy to fit into, say, a stock pot.
OTH, I don't need a mixer or mini-chopper because it has those, as well
as dough hooks. When squeezing into a kitchen half the size you're
used to, it's a good thing.

Judith Umbria said:

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

Here, prices seem to depend on brand and on extra gadgets. Gadgets can

include whippers and choppers.<<

Same here. I bought a super powerful motor Braun, which has a handle
more like a hand mixer to which you can affix a stick blender
attachment. It does loads of jobs incredibly well, but has the fault
that it isn't as easy to fit into, say, a stock pot.
OTH, I don't need a mixer or mini-chopper because it has those, as well
as dough hooks. When squeezing into a kitchen half the size you're
used to, it's a good thing.

European kitchens are smaller, aren't they? At least that is my experience.

I have a hand mixer with an attachment that is a stick blender. I wish I
had a stick blender with the extras instead. The hand mixer is too slow,
IMHO. So I haven't got rid of the other hand mixer, which is much faster.

I also own an FP and a blender. The blender never gets used anymore. I
wish I had a small chopper because the fp sometimes requires more
assembly time than I can be bothers with, especially because I rarely
need large quantities of chopped food.

Somewhere in there I have one appliance too many. Well, two
I just can't decide which one to get rid of. The blender would be the
only candidate. But it has sentimental value. If I had acquired all
those appliances at the same time, I probably would have got a hand
mixer with stick blender attachment and extra gadgets plus the FP.

BTW Judith, on a different note: I *love* your blog (which I saw posted
in the UK ng on Women's Day). The writing, the recipes and the links.
Your blog has caused me hours of www browsing through various foodie
sites. I now check it regularly for new entires.It's the first blog ever
that I've done that with. Thank you for that.

Lynn from Fargo said:

I think I'm going to buy a stick type blender. I need one that will
reach the bottom of a pretty deep pot. It should be pretty tough, easy
to clean.

Do you think I can find one for under $50 ???

Lynn from Fargo
Who wants to puree with the rest of you

Lynn, I don't know how deep that pot is but as far as I can tell they are
all about the same size. I got one at (believe it or not!) Walgreens
Drugstore for $10 that had two attachments (one a blade attachment, the
other a small uh, whirring disc.) Not a wire-whisk, but hey, when I want to
whisk I use a whisk. It has held up just fine as I use it to puree cooked
vegetables in soups; it works perfectly for sauces, too. So before you go
fancy, try the cheap version and then see if you really want to invest in a
fancy stick blender.

BTW, my brother bought me a fancy Braun Stick Blender for Christmas about 5
years ago and it never did work. I didn't have the receipt so I couldn't
take it back to the store to exchange it. I think it's still sitting here
in a box someplace. Anyone want to by a high priced stick blender that
doesn't work? I'll be selling it right next to the teeny tiny never seen
before pine-cone I found at my front door, on e-Bay. Look for it! LOL

Jill

Lynn from Fargo said:

I think I'm going to buy a stick type blender. I need one that will
reach the bottom of a pretty deep pot. It should be pretty tough, easy
to clean.

Do you think I can find one for under $50 ???

Different brand loyalty here. I had a Braun, lasted about 3 years
before the motor started to make a terrible burning smell when I used
it. Repolaced it with a Phillips brand, which I absolutely adore. It
came with a stick blender, whisk attaachment, mini-chopper, and a 4-cup
blending container with a lid. COst me $39.99. It also has 4 speeds
(I'm always in a hurry, I use high speed 90% of the time, but it's nice
to have options!) I've had it for at least 5 years and never had a
problem with it.

Lynn from Fargo said:

I think I'm going to buy a stick type blender. I need one that will
reach the bottom of a pretty deep pot. It should be pretty tough, easy
to clean.

Do you think I can find one for under $50 ???

How deep is "pretty deep", and what and how much volume will be in the
pot... and how often will you be using it?

The typical inexpensive homemaker type "boat motors" don't last long
with constant use and don't do a very good job with large volumes (more
than a quart). You also say you need "pretty tough", the typical
homemaker stick blender ain't... for anything deeper than like four
inches and more than a quart they're pretty wussy.

Quoted message said:

From reading some of your past posts regarding cooking for rather large

groups I somehow suspect that what you're looking for is a commercial
stick blender (immersion blender), those typically cost more than $200
and up to $1000, but they last long and perform well with large
quantities. My opinion is that if it's too much for your regular
countertop blender than a home maker stick blender will not be
satisfactory. I don't puree very large quantities so my regular
counter top blender works well for me, but if my needs changed where I
were I to consider a "boat motor" it would definitely be of the
commercial type.

This might be just what you're looking for:
http://www.everythingkitchens.com/waring_commercial_Immersion_blender_WSB50.html

Here's an inbetween style, I kind of like this for home use and the
price is right, but for heavy duty use I'd be much more inclined to the
one above or better:
http://www.everythingkitchens.com/bamix.html

And there are so many, sizes to suit all needs:
http://www.centralrestaurant.com/Hand-Mixers-c83g720.html

I wouldn't waste my money on some $30 kitchen toy what hasn't much more
power than my 'lectric tooth brush.

But need more info.

Sheldon

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

Somewhere in there I have one appliance too many.>>

Put the blender under the stairs and get it out once a year for frozen
daiquiris! Mine is the Braun 350 watt with attachments. It's clean
and easy and does each thing fine. I too have a FP, old and trusted.
Thanks for the compliment. I wonder how it ever got on UK Women's Day?
I didn't even know there was one... Have you tried any of the dishes?

I do think I know the coolest cooks. Diva is fab, David L in Paris is
wonderful.

"Lynn from Fargo" <[email hidden]> wrote in
news:[email hidden]:

Quoted message said:

I think I'm going to buy a stick type blender. I need one that will
reach the bottom of a pretty deep pot. It should be pretty tough, easy
to clean.

Do you think I can find one for under $50 ???

Lynn from Fargo
Who wants to puree with the rest of you

Okay cooks illustrated rated stick blenders in the March/April 06 issue

Their comments is as follows

1. Kitchenaid $49.99 - few extras, good as traditional blender
2. Braun Multiquick $34.95 - Great $ and performance, plastic shaft can't
be used over heat.
3. Braun Multiquick Pro $34.95 - More attachments no more performance.
4. Cuisinart Smartstick $69.99 - Trouble with chunky pesto.
5. Hamilton Beach Turbo-Twister Mixing stick $19.99 - good value, don't
like plastic housing
6. Proctor-Silex $12.99 - Blade cage cramped leads to occaisional
clogging.
7. Oster Hand Blender w/Blending Cup $23.99 - vibrates and loud.
8. Farberware Special Select $24.99 - Refused to puree broccoli soup,
bulky handle.
9. Cuisinart cordless $49.95 - Loose joints between components and lack
of guts trumped cordless feature.

YMMV

--

Charles
The significant problems we face cannot be solved
at the same level of thinking we were at when we
created them. Albert Einstein

Charles Quinn said:

"Lynn from Fargo" <[email hidden]> wrote in
news:[email hidden]:

Quoted message said:

I think I'm going to buy a stick type blender. I need one that will
reach the bottom of a pretty deep pot. It should be pretty tough, easy
to clean.

Do you think I can find one for under $50 ???

Lynn from Fargo
Who wants to puree with the rest of you

Okay cooks illustrated rated stick blenders in the March/April 06 issue

Their comments is as follows

1. Kitchenaid $49.99 - few extras, good as traditional blender
2. Braun Multiquick $34.95 - Great $ and performance, plastic shaft can't
be used over heat.
3. Braun Multiquick Pro $34.95 - More attachments no more performance.
4. Cuisinart Smartstick $69.99 - Trouble with chunky pesto.
5. Hamilton Beach Turbo-Twister Mixing stick $19.99 - good value, don't
like plastic housing
6. Proctor-Silex $12.99 - Blade cage cramped leads to occaisional
clogging.
7. Oster Hand Blender w/Blending Cup $23.99 - vibrates and loud.
8. Farberware Special Select $24.99 - Refused to puree broccoli soup,
bulky handle.
9. Cuisinart cordless $49.95 - Loose joints between components and lack
of guts trumped cordless feature.

YMMV

Yup, every one of those home maker thingies is essentially mickey mouse
[censored]. The only reason I haven't purchased a commercial immersion
blender (and I would need one for the quantities of soups I make) is
because I don't like pureed soups, I prefer chunky. For the few times
a year I need to puree a few cups of something my contertop blender
works fine. Even the best most expensive immersion blender can't out
do any ordinary home maker style countertop blender... immersion
blenders are to countertop blenders what those tiny whirly coffee bean
pulverizers are to real burr grinders... both those over process way
too much before everything is processed. Commercial immersion blenders
are actually liquifiers... those stick thingies are incapable of
pruducing a puree, before it produces a *homogenious* puree most
everything is liquified. There's a big difference between liquified
and pureed, pureed has substance, liquified does not. Even countertop
blenders cannot produce a perfect puree, but they come somewhat close.
For a real puree only a food mill will do... everything passes through
but once. When I make my own tomato sauce from my crop I pass gallons
and gallons through my Foley food mill, I know a motorized blender
would be much quicker and entail far less effort, but then I may as
well buy jarred because I would have produced [censored]. The Food mill
produces a perfect puree, nothing else can.

Sheldon

"jmcquown" <[email hidden]> hitched up their panties and posted
news:[email hidden]:

Quoted message said:

Lynn from Fargo said:

I think I'm going to buy a stick type blender. I need one that will
reach the bottom of a pretty deep pot. It should be pretty tough,
easy to clean.

Do you think I can find one for under $50 ???

Lynn from Fargo
Who wants to puree with the rest of you

Lynn, I don't know how deep that pot is but as far as I can tell they
are all about the same size. I got one at (believe it or not!)
Walgreens Drugstore for $10 that had two attachments (one a blade
attachment, the other a small uh, whirring disc.) Not a wire-whisk,
but hey, when I want to whisk I use a whisk. It has held up just fine
as I use it to puree cooked vegetables in soups; it works perfectly
for sauces, too. So before you go fancy, try the cheap version and
then see if you really want to invest in a fancy stick blender.

I agree. I got mine for $9.99 at the local Dierbergs supermarket. Works
great and I've hung it on the wall in a handy place.

Michael

--
"The most remarkable thing about my mother is that for thirty years she
served the family nothing but leftovers. The original meal has never been
found."

--Calvin Trillin

Sheldon said:

Lynn from Fargo said:

I think I'm going to buy a stick type blender. I need one that will
reach the bottom of a pretty deep pot. It should be pretty tough, easy
to clean.

Do you think I can find one for under $50 ???

How deep is "pretty deep", and what and how much volume will be in the
pot... and how often will you be using it?

When I was producing my fruit juice curds for sale, I made them in
batches of 24 8-ounce jars at a time. That's 6 quarts - a gallon and a
half - of curd at a time (in a 7-quart, stainless insert/bain marie,
nested in another with boiling water in the bottom one, if that means
anything to you). They were thick and hot (190F-200F) when I mixed them.
Some had chunks of fruit in them to begin with, but were pureed by the
blender.

I used a Braun, which I still have, for literally hundreds of batches.
Worked like a champ then, still hangs on my pot rack.

I have a commercial 2-gallon countertop blender, but it was too rough
for the curds and they broke down with all that shear and turbulence.

I have a commercial stick blender that we used in my restaurants - the
shaft is 14". It's good for enormous quantities in constant operation.
If you're doing so much that a domestic stick won't reach the bottom, do
it in a couple batches. Takes a little more time, but saves a lot of
money. Cleanup with the commercial unit takes 5 times as long as the
Braun. Add it all together and I'd go for the domestic unit unless it
would be subjected to serious, heavy-duty use.

Quoted message said:

The typical inexpensive homemaker type "boat motors" don't last long
with constant use and don't do a very good job with large volumes (more
than a quart). You also say you need "pretty tough", the typical
homemaker stick blender ain't... for anything deeper than like four
inches and more than a quart they're pretty wussy.

Yawn...

Quoted message said:

Quoted message said:

From reading some of your past posts regarding cooking for rather large

groups I somehow suspect that what you're looking for is a commercial
stick blender (immersion blender), those typically cost more than $200
and up to $1000, but they last long and perform well with large
quantities. My opinion is that if it's too much for your regular
countertop blender than a home maker stick blender will not be
satisfactory. I don't puree very large quantities so my regular
counter top blender works well for me, but if my needs changed where I
were I to consider a "boat motor" it would definitely be of the
commercial type.

Right. Pastorio

Quoted message said:

This might be just what you're looking for:
http://www.everythingkitchens.com/waring_commercial_Immersion_blender_WSB50.html

Here's an inbetween style, I kind of like this for home use and the
price is right, but for heavy duty use I'd be much more inclined to the
one above or better:
http://www.everythingkitchens.com/bamix.html

And there are so many, sizes to suit all needs:
http://www.centralrestaurant.com/Hand-Mixers-c83g720.html

Here is more info on various handheld "immersion" blenders at
epinions.com:
http://www.epinions.com/Blenders--reviews--blender_type_handheld

I have an older model stick blender with a metal shaft, but I don't see
a brand name anywhere on it... it's fairly heavy, brown on the cord
end, cream on the bottom, and came with some bowl-like attachments for
doing nuts and things (which I never used). At the time I think it
cost about $20-25 ....it doesn't have a full "guard" all the way around
the blade, just a few metal "fence" areas.

As for use, I LOVE mine. It doesn't feel plastic-y like some I've seen
with the really cheap ones, and it's been plenty strong (...enough to
pulverize anything I've ever tried), but haven't owned another one to
compare actual use. Hope the darn thing lives forever.

Nowadays, I use it primarily for two things (frequently):

....pulverizing just parts of a soup or a stew to thicken them, or a
whole soup ...for example, when I fix bean soup or beef stew, I stick
the whole wand into *one side* of the pot right on the stove and whirr
away --I used to remove part of the food and blend in a separate
container but found I didn't need to do that, and didn't want the extra
hassle. That leaves most of the beans or carrots, beef, etc., intact,
but purees about 1/3 of it (I then stir everything back together).

....making small smoothies as bedtime snack from homemade yogurt
Since I add frozen fruit (cut into small chunks) along with some sugar
to the yogurt, sticking the wand right into the paper coffee cup which
is holding the other ingredients works out great.

Checking epinions again, looks like some of the differences between the
blenders mostly have to do with number of attachments, number of
speeds, and motor power.

For example, some of the slightly more expensive ones come with up to 9
speeds or so, as opposed to the 2 speeds most have... some of the
motors are a bit stronger than others, but most are strong enough to do
most jobs (except perhaps to crush ice --one unit which was supposed to
crush ice was disliked by its owner though because after awhile,
crushing ice broke the plastic of some part which messed up the whole
blender).
There was one important difference, with the Hamilton Beach I think...
its reviewer said it had too short a guard around the blades and
scratched up her pots --definitely not good!

Might want to check out Customer Reviews at amazon.com too.

Diane B.

Sheldon & Pastorio are probably correct. I should get a
commercial/restaurant model BUT:
1. Absolutely cannot afford even a hundred bucks.
2. I am a rather small (under 5'😉 person and I have small hands, so
using a smaller home type would be easier.
3. Measured my pots and the big ones are way too deep even for a
commercial stick.
4. I will look at Kitchen Aid and Braun and let you know how it all
turns out.

Thanks much for all your help!
Lynn in Fargo