Please recommend a durable and robust immersion blender.

June 21, 2020 11:30 AM

I'm in the market for an immersion blender. Many appear to have reviews criticizing their flimsiness and poor durability. Please recommend an immersion blender that is durable and robust - and ideally not nightmarish to clean. Thanks!
posted by ClaireBear to Home & Garden (27 answers total)

I've had this Chefman one for two years and have no complaints. The entire blade attachment can go right in the dishwasher.
posted by showbiz_liz at 11:34 AM on June 21, 2020

I'm in here with an anti-recommendation: if you're considering one of the Cuisinart models, please believe the Amazon & other reviews re: the very poorly designed safety lock. It makes it hard to use to the point of causing hand pain. I'm about to throw mine in the trash.
posted by BlahLaLa at 11:34 AM on June 21, 2020

We use this Braun one and it's been great. I make a lot of tomato soup with it. The only non-blender-attachment to it we use regularly is the food chopper, and it does a very good job. To clean, we just wipe down the part with the cord, and throw all the rest in the dishwasher.
posted by invincible summer at 11:38 AM on June 21, 2020 [2 favorites]

I have this KitchenAid one and have been very happy with it. It seems out of stock in most places, so maybe it's been discontinued (although Target apparently still has it). It appears heavy-duty, but is also easy to use and the bottom part seems dishwasher-safe (although I usually just run it for a few seconds in a cup of soapy water and that cleans it well).
posted by Betelgeuse at 11:42 AM on June 21, 2020 [1 favorite]

I have an old simple Braun one (no attachments, one speed) that I bought at a thrift store maybe 5 years ago and it’s never given me problems. It can be a little annoying to clean but it’s easier if I let it run in a mug or bowl of clean water for a little bit before unplugging.
posted by needs more cowbell at 11:51 AM on June 21, 2020

I really like this Epica blender "kit". When I bought it a few years ago there wasn't much else out there in its price range that was nearly as good or highly rated, and it had similar specs to those of more expensive big-name brands. I see that's changed a bit - there are more powerful products out there in the under-$50 range. But it seems plenty powerful to me, it's quite sturdy, and the attachments are dishwasher-safe (and have turned out to be really handy).

My favorite use of it is to instantly whip up a batch of dense and silky-smooth aioli. (Pro tip: add just one or two dashes of Liquid Smoke at the end for the barest hint of sweet smoky flavor!)
posted by Greg_Ace at 11:53 AM on June 21, 2020

We have a KitchenAid one we’ve used for well over a decade. The newer one we bought for my sister-in-law seems to be doing just as well, so I’d feel pretty comfortable recommending them.

Cleaning has been trivial too, pop off the bottom and hand wash. It might be dishwasher safe, but we don’t have one.
posted by advicepig at 11:59 AM on June 21, 2020

I have a basic Hamilton Beach one that I got at a secret Santa event back in 2000; it's still going strong in 2020 and I've used it at least a few times a month pretty much throughout. No bells or whistles but it does is job and is easy to clean (just be sure it's unplugged before touching the blades).
posted by DingoMutt at 12:01 PM on June 21, 2020 [1 favorite]

I've used a Bamix for over 20 years and it's still going strong. Expensive, but worth the money.
posted by essexjan at 12:02 PM on June 21, 2020 [1 favorite]

I'm a big fan of our Bamix, which is ridiculously easy to clean. Cons - expensive, the distributor situation in the US seems a little unclear at the moment, and the whisk attachment is, while effective, somewhat… idiosyncratic.
posted by zamboni at 12:06 PM on June 21, 2020 [1 favorite]

For years now I've had the same Kitchenaid as Betelgeuse links above, and it's been dang handy.
posted by aramaic at 12:09 PM on June 21, 2020

I think the biggest problem with the Cuisinart one I had was that the blades seemed to get pretty dull after a while, so I'd end up with this mass of fibrous stuff wrapped around them.

But that's how I stumbled upon a cleaning hack - just take a tumbler or a jar, and fill that with water and a squirt of dish soap. Stick in the blender, turn it on and let it run for a few seconds - then it's just a matter of wiping and rinsing.
posted by EmpressCallipygos at 12:21 PM on June 21, 2020

I have a cheap Cuisinart single-speed (I don’t think it even has a lock) and I’ve never really had a problem with it but I probably don’t work it very hard - smoothies, the occasional puréed soup, batter for Dutch baby pancakes. I don’t find it hard to clean, so long as I clean it (or at least put it to soak) right away. The blade part goes in the dishwasher so I give it a good rinse after use and then let the dishwasher do the rest.

Also I strongly prefer a blender where the blade part comes off because I feel much safer washing it when I 100% know the blades are not connected to the motor.
posted by mskyle at 1:22 PM on June 21, 2020 [2 favorites]

We bought a used Braun in 2005(!) and it’s still going strong. 100% would buy again. At a friend’s house I used a slightly fancier and newer one and something about the design of the, er, cup thingie made it less likely to splash. I’m kind of hoping that ours finally dies so I can upgrade.

It looks like all of the Braun models available now have that design. Go forth and blend!
posted by chocotaco at 1:36 PM on June 21, 2020

I've had this Kitchenaid blender for several years, which I use to make smoothies multiple times a week with frozen blueberries, strawberries, half a banana and kefir. The blender crushes everything up with no problem, except sometimes l microwave larger frozen strawberries for 15 seconds so they are not too much trouble to bust up. The blender has held up well, is easy to put together and take apart, and washes up nicely in the dishwasher.
posted by Serene Empress Dork at 1:41 PM on June 21, 2020

I've had a Cuisinart Smart Stick Two-Speed since 2015, and it's served me well. I get the impression they significantly changed the design in 2018 and made it less usable, and may have reduced build quality too, so your mileage may vary on this one.
posted by jackbishop at 1:56 PM on June 21, 2020

Anti-recommendation: the Breville Control Grip has an oval-shaped head that prevents it from fitting into a wide-mouth mason jar, which is inconvenient.
posted by Lexica at 2:10 PM on June 21, 2020

I have two homes, and thus two immersion blenders. One is a very expensive Bamix with few free add-ins and some very expensive extras. The other is the cheapest Bosch blender which came with a lot of extras. Both are 10+ years. I can't say which is best. The Bamix is pretty and sits on my counter, the Bosch rests in a drawer. There's never been any problem with any of them, and both my kitchens see a lot of heavy use. One thing is that I cook for many, often, another that several inexperienced young people use my stuff and often break things.
I love the whisk that goes with the Bosch for making mayo, though.
On the other hand, where I have the Bosch, I also have a food processor. I'd guess Bosch can't make stuff like hummus, but I've never need to test it. Bamix can handle everything.
posted by mumimor at 2:20 PM on June 21, 2020

I have the Breville control group that Lexica links to and love it. Blends well and the chopper is great as well- I didn't think I'd use the chopper but have ended up using it more than the blender, as it's easier than dragging out the food processor. I've find it easy to clean as well, as the part that immerses in your food disconnects from the part with the cord
posted by matildatakesovertheworld at 6:28 PM on June 21, 2020 [1 favorite]

We have a Cuisinart Smart Stick and love it dearly. Efficient and easy to use. We like it so well that when it broke (after year as of use) we bought *two* to replace it. What if they stop making it? We're covered.
posted by SLC Mom at 7:11 PM on June 21, 2020

I love my Breville and every Breville appliance I have ever owned.
posted by If only I had a penguin... at 7:36 PM on June 21, 2020

I also have the Breville Control grip (on recommendation from Wirecutter) and am very happy with it in terms of durability / usability / cleanability.

The oval head wouldn't fit into wide-mouth jars as Lexica points out in the anti-recommendation, so it just depends if that is something you'd do - a round one could be just as problematic depending on size.

I did break a piece of it recently on panela sugar lumps that were literally as hard as concrete - it broke the mini chopper container blade but in the plastic shaft where I believe it is designed to, as a failsafe to stop the blade breaking in a dangerous way. I don't think it would break under regular or other tough usage, this was just really too far!
posted by AnnaRat at 8:06 PM on June 21, 2020

I have had a number of immersion blenders over the years before buying a Bamix around five years ago. The Bamix works orders of magnitude better than all the others I've owned or used, and because it is easier to use and clean I use it around 20 times more frequently.
posted by slkinsey at 8:25 AM on June 22, 2020

I just drove myself insane trying to suss out the best immersion blender! I decided on the Philips ProMix because:

-it DIDN'T come with all that extra crap (whisk, chopper) that I won't use but will feel bad about immediately throwing away. I won't be whisking with the thing, between owning an analog whisk and having a stand mixer for big jobs.
-It had 300 Watts which feels kind of like the minimum that a immersion blender should have. Note that most of the Bamix ones are 200 watt and below, which led me not to buy one.
-I found one new on eBay for $80 - if you hurry it looks like you still can!
-The blender can be detached so it can be more easily stored in a drawer, another ding to the Bamix and the AllClad ones.
-There was some availability issue with the control grip at the time I was looking to buy, but I suspect that one will be just as good.

I was temped by the Mueller one that is 800 watts and less than half the price, but I'm hoping (HOPING!) that this one lasts twice as long.

And I received it last week! My impressions:

-It has a good heft and is nice for one-handed use. I haven't noticed it ever getting hot, and it looks handsome. It feels powerful but not uncontrollable
-It is good at smoothies, soups and batters. Exactly why I bought it. There appears to be some magic with the blade and hosing design where it doesn't suck itself down towards the bottom of the container when I run it full blast, giving me more control to move the blender around.
-Based on the build of the blade, I would not try to attack big chunks of ice or hand, dry things. There's an accessory for that, and maybe I'll break down and buy it, but probably not.
-Cleaning is fine? Just run it for a few seconds in soapy water and it's clean.
posted by Dmenet at 9:41 AM on June 22, 2020

This is great because I was dealing with question about a month ago.
We bought one a year ago (OXA) and the hand blender fell apart within a year. The metal blade slid and there was no way to fix it.

Just bought a 1980's Braun immersion blender. for $20 in facebook marketplace. Works great and have accessory for foaming milk and chopper which doubles as coffee grinder. This one on amazon looks like the one we got.
posted by radsqd at 12:30 PM on June 22, 2020 [1 favorite]

We have an old-school Cuisinart Smart Stick from like... 2008? Occasionally we've had to purchase a $25 dollar blade replacement when the innards seize up (probably due to us allowing some water inside when washing). I've been very happy with it and am sorry they've changed the design. The old one doesn't have the lock button in the goofy new placement, and you can still find them on Amazon.
posted by oneirodynia at 6:34 PM on June 23, 2020

Argh, meant to say EBay, not Amazon.
posted by oneirodynia at 6:57 PM on June 23, 2020