Skillful use of the home blender includes the right choice of power of its operation. Let’s look at what power is needed for the two most common types of blenders: stationary and immersion.
The development of modern technology does not stand still, every day making everyday life of modern housewives easier and easier. Today every woman’s kitchen is equipped with a huge number of home appliances. One of the indispensable things in the household is a blender. When choosing this device, you should pay special attention to the power – it will depend on it, which products the kitchen helper will cope with.
Popular types of blenders for home use
There are several varieties of blender. Knowing these options will help you easily pick up a great electric appliance for the household, saving some tens of dollars.
Immersion blender
Is the most popular device for blending various non-solid products. The device has a plastic or metal handle that perfectly fits the size of your hand. Handle with a variety of nozzles is dropped into any dish in which the grinding and mixing of ingredients takes place. A clear advantage of this type of electrical equipment is a large selection of functional attachments, with which you can significantly expand the menu of prepared dishes.
With such a device you can prepare various dishes: purees, desserts, soups, mincemeat. The positive features of the immersion blender can include its ergonomics. The device does not take up much space in the kitchen and is able to mix ingredients in any container, not only in those that come with it.
Stationary
It consists of a base and a glass/metal/plastic vessel, at the bottom of which is a cutter (knife). With the help of the device to crush ice, whip various mixtures, prepare smoothies and mix cocktails. Stationary blender is easy to use: you only need to fill its bowl with ingredients and turn on the “Start” button. A few seconds and the dish/drink is ready!
The blender’s rotating blades are designed to chop and mix ingredients, and this work is done faster with a faster device. The speed of rotation of the cutting unit in a stationary blender directly depends on the power of the electric motor.
Products can be soft, thick, hard, with heterogeneous textures. The faster the knives rotate, the better quality and in a shorter time interval stationary blender copes with the grinding of products of different consistency. The high-speed model is able to grind hard and complex ingredients, which for a low-powered device is an impossible task.
Power of the stationary blender
The performance of the motor and the capacity of the jug depend on the intended use of stationary blenders. There are professional models (for kitchen/bar) and for home use. Professional models are characterized by power from 1.5 kW, at the highest speed parameters can reach values of 3 kW/30000 rpm.
Household blenders of stationary type have power parameters that vary depending on the price segment.
- 300 – 500 W are budget models. They are suitable for making smoothies and yoghurt from milk/kefir and berries without using ice, whipping eggs, preparing liquid dough (as for pancakes) and other similar tasks.
- 600 – 800 W are medium-priced appliances. Applicable for chopping cooked and raw vegetables, fruits, nuts, cooked meat, making soup purees, smoothies, etc.
- For crushing ice, you’ll need a device with at least 1000 watts of power. Such a semi-professional blender can chop frozen meat, make viscous dough (biscuits, pancakes).
The powerful device handles simple products in a matter of seconds. To perform the same task with a low-power blender will take several minutes.
It is worth remembering that in the characteristics of the device, manufacturers indicate the peak power value. The parameter characterizes the ability of the motor to work for a short time with a specified maximum output. For example, when turning on the turbo mode. The standard operating mode of even the most high-performance devices does not exceed 500 watts.
Power of an immersion blender
Immersion device for chopping products differs from the stationary one not only by design, but also by power. The value of the parameter depending on the class of the model varies from 140 W to 1.2 KW. Models are available in the following classes.
- Budgetary devices with low power up to 250 W. Designed for the preparation of baby purees from soft foods: bananas, tomatoes, peaches, etc.
- Devices of medium-price level are characterized by the parameter 250-600 W. You can grind meat, frozen vegetables and fruits, other similar ingredients.
- Premium segment blenders are characterized by an output of over 650 watts. The devices are able to work with coffee beans, nuts, ice and frozen fruits.
- Models with power from 1000 watts are equipped with a special attachment for kneading thick dough.
What else to pay attention to when choosing
When selecting, you should pay attention to the material of the container. It can be made of plastic, metal or glass. The most common are bowls made of food-grade plastic. They are lightweight and difficult to break. The disadvantages include the fact that over time it can slightly stain due to food.
Metal bowls are very durable, suitable for chopping very hot and frozen ingredients. But it is difficult to observe the process of work in such a bowl – it is opaque.
In a blender with a metal bowl it is not possible to observe the grinding process
A glass cup is not subject to staining when interacting with products, you can see everything that happens in it. However, the fragility of the glass bowl did not allow it to become a popular option.
Responsibly should be selected and the material of the blades, the immersion part and the mixer. The nozzle should be made of stainless steel material. This is very important when chopping foods such as fruits and vegetables. A reliable steel chopper will allow you to cut them without first peeling the skin and seeds, which contain a huge amount of useful trace elements, vitamins and fiber.
For a stationary blender, an important point to pay attention to when choosing will be the stability of the bowl and the ability to close it tightly with a lid.
If you follow the simple rules for selecting a blender, your home will have a reliable assistant in the preparation of a wide variety of dishes.
Conclusion
So, what should be the ideal blender? The higher the power, the more functional the device. Such a unit in just a few minutes will help to prepare a variety of dishes and drinks (more about the functions of the device: what you can do with a blender). But if you are happy with a less powerful blender, then there is no point in overpaying and buying an expensive device.
