Blenders

[bellybuddha]

Is there really a big difference in normal blenders and high speed types? I m just trying to do some research on them as I really would like one to make things like nut butters and smooth desserts. My food processor almost died on me whilst making coconut butter the other day, so I won't be using that again for the purpose of "liquifying" things. I know technically that's not why food processors are for but...

i don't want to fork out for the price tag attached to the likes of vitamix or the blend tecs.
I ve been told that there are better machines than the new Phillips avance blender which is on the mid end but with better power than most mid end ranges. What is your experience and opinion on blenders please? High speed or not? Obviously I would like the benefits of blending things quickly to preserve the nutritional value of the foods. To pay or not to pay? And has anyone got an omniblender? Less expensive than those mentioned but still quite a lot of money. Worth it? Or will I do fine with one less than a hundred pounds?
Thanks in advance.

[Robinwomb]

I invested in a blendtec a few years ago and I absolutely LOVE it! My previous "normal" blender doesn't even come close to comparing. This blender has opened up worlds for me. I can buy any whole grain seed such as millet, buckwheat groats, oat groats, rice, or bulgur and grind it into a perfect flour or I can make my own plant milk. I can make nut butters of all kinds. I can even grind dry chickpeas into a flour or almonds into either a flour or on into almond butter. I have made hot and cold soups in it, countless smoothies, even ice cream with just frozen banana or coconut, or sorbet with oranges and ice cubes. I can make a beautiful avocado, chocolate, banana pudding, and all kinds of bean dips and hummus that all come out creamy and rich. I have even made tahini by grinding sesame seeds, and I can grind flaxseeds (drawback there is I have to grind a large amount for it to catch in the larger blender). My blendtec is way more powerful and fast than a standard blender and it blends leafy greens to liquid. I can put sticks of carrots, add a little water, and get a creamy liquid in seconds. I have done all sorts of things with coconut in there too. It serves as a food processor (although it can be hard to control because it works so fast if you let it go too long it will liquefy things so if you just want to chop or loosen etc you only pulse for a second or two), flour mill, and blender all in one. I think the vitamix is slightly more expensive but it also has a wand so that you can scrape food down the side as you blend whereas you have to stop and do this with a blendtec and start again. My blendtec is very very easy to clean and very powerful. I once left a metal spoon in there by accident when stirring a bean dip. I wanted to add a little more spice. I started to blend again and heard a very loud noise I shouldn't have and realized the spoon was in there. It didn't phase the blender. One drawback though besides price (though I have gotten back more than I paid for by saving money making my own flours and nut butters etc) is the noise level. They can be quite loud. I am not sure if the vitamix is loud too. I bought my sister a Ninja blender recently because her normal blender was crap and while it is nice too, the quality of the food is nowhere near what the blendtec does. But she doesn't use it nearly as much as I use my blendtec so she is perfectly happy with her blender. I think it depends on how much you are going to use it and what for. I will say that with care these things will last a very long time. I know people who have had the vitamix for fifteen or more years and it is still going strong. The blendtecs are newer on the market but they have a nice warranty also. I am not rich by any means (working and going to school and supporting a disabled husband) but I was fortunate to receive a small inheritance which allowed me to order one online and pay for it all. I had wanted one for so long but could not afford it before. I have heard some people have success buying them used on ebay and other places online. That might be something to look into if the price deters you. Even if I didn't have my blendtec though I would have gotten by fine. I think it has spoiled me though. :lol:

[bellybuddha]

Thanks Robinwomb for replying. Really useful information there. The sound of all the dips and frozen desserts you can make with your Blendtec just makes me salivate. Maybe I should save and get one for Christmas. It's all so tempting. Will look on eBay and see thanks.

[Andy_T]

Hello,

allow me to chime in, as I have both a Vitamix and a Blendtec. First, the noise level - absolutely no difference. Both of them are *VERY* loud. When I am in the kitchen making a smoothie, once I have stopped, I can hear my kids screaming in the living room (through the closed door) that they can no longer hear the TV and that I should STOP.

Similar experience when I was living in a small company apartment after switching to my current company and thought it might be a great idea to have a smoothie before going to bed - my next door neighbour did not think the idea was so great, so after that I moved my smoothie-making-activities to the (not too early) morning hours.

Both the Blendtec and the Vitamix are very powerful, and - with some things, e.g. blending a lot of ice - both actually require to use a wand. My Blendtec (bought it on ebay, as it has a mixing cycle counter, you can buy a used one with some confidence because you know how often it has been used) did not come with a wand, so I simply used a wooden cooking spoon, turned around. The first time I used it, the cooking spoon was a bit too long, but the blender took care of that :-)

The Blendtec is perfect if you want to put in the ingredients and then start it, and not further pay much attention to it (it has pre-defined mixing programs for different applications). That is why it is usually the first choice for commerical places making smoothies or such. The Vitamix (at least the one I have) does not have the programs, rather it has a speed dial and a "high speed" switch that overrides the speed dial. That is more versatile for using it for cooking. When asked to use only one of the blenders, I decided to stick with the Vitamix and gave the blendtec to my mother to also allow her to get her fix of healthy stuff. Actually I had bought the Blendtec as a spare and to take to the office to make smoothies there, but the noise levels were not really acceptable for that. In my old job, we had a kitchen that was down the corridor, quite some distance from the offices, in my current office, the pantry is a corner of the large office. I do not think it is a great idea to bring the second blender there, so I simply make 2 huge plastic bottles (about 2 liters in total) of smoothie in the morning and bring that to the office.

There are also other options - you can get a lot of blenders "inspired by Vita-mix and Blendtec" (sounds nicer than blatant copies) from China and other countries. As some of these are in the 30 $ price range (instead of 300), I guess you could buy a few and ignore it when they break down. However, there are 2 Taiwanese companies (Saro and JTC Omniblend) that I have found for sale in companies catering to restaurants in Germany, that are offered with a 2-year-warranty that is even valid for restaurant use. So I guess that these are solid enough to warrant the price (sold in the 250 EUR price range in Germany, as opposed to the 650 EUR that you have to pay for the Vita-mix, and the completely ludicrous 1000 EUR that the Blendtec importer is asking for).

Best regards,
Andy

[tickled onion]

I have the Enpee commercial blender and i love it, it's like a vitamix without the price tag. It's 3HP, 2200w and fast and loud. it does everything the more expensive ones do and right now you get a free smaller jug too http://www.enpeefurniture.co.uk/enpee-blender/enpee-commercial-blender.html. I also have a waring pro blender that i bought first for £100, it's lovely, nice glass jug, nice shape, looks very stylish on the counter.... but it's defunct in the cupboard now as it isn't in the same league as the Enpee. there are plenty of youtube videos showing the enpee at work.

[Egesa]

RW that's a great review. You really have me thinking about how such a blender could "open up worlds" for me too.

[Robinwomb]

RW that's a great review. You really have me thinking about how such a blender could "open up worlds" for me too. Thanks Egesa! I had forgotten about the preprogrammed dials on the Blendtec as Andy mentioned. If I just want to blend something generally for a few seconds I use the pulse button, otherwise I use the programmed buttons which automatically adjust the speed and power as it blends. Off the top of my head I remember it has a soup button, one for ice cream, one for smoothies, one for dips, spreads, batters, etc. I love being able to make my own flours. My Mom eats gluten free and I like to bake things for her but I don't necessarily want to spend a lot of money on different gluten free flours I might not use again for a long time. I do however like to cook with millet and quinoa seeds, buckwheat groats, almonds and so on and I can also grind these nuts and seeds and other grains to flour, using just the amount I need for the recipe. I do the same with nut butters or hummus because I can not keep a jar of those in my house. It's too dangerous lol. I can make just enough for a few servings to bake with or use on a few sandwiches.

[vegandingo]

My son has the new Vitamix which cost him nearly a grand here in Australia. I bought two Omniblend V machines for about the 2/3's the money total and the blenders are absolutely on par with the Vitamix, with the exception that the Omniblend is quieter and has a more powerful motor.

Oh, and the amazing high-speed blending has changed my diet. I live on fruit smoothies and salads with pepita seed dressing.

I wish I had eaten like this when I first turned vegetarian forty years ago.

[Egesa]

I used to grind my own flour with a hand-wound mill. It was good exercise, but very time consuming, and only for dry ingredients. I hadn't though that such blenders existed for home use. I will have to try ebay, as the full price would cut into my holiday budget. Which particular model is yours, RW?

[Robinwomb]

I used to grind my own flour with a hand-wound mill. It was good exercise, but very time consuming, and only for dry ingredients. I hadn't though that such blenders existed for home use. I will have to try ebay, as the full price would cut into my holiday budget. Which particular model is yours, RW? I have the Total Blender Classic Wildside model.

[resiak]

You can buy the Vitamix refurbished with a 5 year warranty rather then 7 year. Here is the link,

https://secure.vitamix.com/Certified-Reconditioned-Next-Generation.aspx

[Arbor Vitae]

Quick note about nutritional value when using a high speed blender.

Since most high speed blenders spin over 20,000 rpm, they create a vortex that puts all the contents in constant touch with oxygen and thus causing more oxidation.