Last Updated on August 5, 2022 by
How appropriate it is to replace a mixer with a blender depends on the recipe being prepared. You can use a blender instead of a hand/electric mixer for combining cake batter ingredients. But can a blender replace a mixer when it comes to certain dishes?
When exploring the option of using a blender to replace a mixer, most people use their blender, instead of a kitchen mixer, for processing cake batters and still get a decent result. When we consider the vast difference between the mechanism of a Mixer and that of a blender, it is proper to conclude that they can not substitute each other. The rotation of blender cutting blades is actually different from how a mixer paddles to mix food ingredients.
But when it comes to mixing dough and other mixer-worthy food prep, it takes a very strong blender to have them done smoothly. Not all situations permit you to use a blender instead of a mixer. There are some recipes that compulsorily demands the use of a Kitchen mixer which includes whipping of eggs and all.
If you don’t have a mixer, and you don’t want to even think about the tedious act of using your hand to stir with a spoon, then a blender could come in handy.
Let me also warn again that you have to be sure of the limitations of such a blender. It is very important to keep in mind the right application of kitchen appliances so that they will last longer.
When To Use A Blender Instead Of A Mixer? (And When Will It Not Work)
It is evident that a blender can perform a majority of the tasks a mixer does, but it isn’t a perfect replacement. Looking at the operational method of a blender, we notice that the blade of a blender causes the content inside the blender jar to liquefy and become mushy. Meaning that most blenders can only work perfectly with liquid ingredients and soft solid that can easily be grounded.
But with a mixer, has a lower shear rate, and the hook, whisk, and blade combine together to slowly and evenly mix the ingredients. They don’t have the rapid chopping ability possessed by blenders.
A blender can perform some of the tasks that a mixer does. However, it is not a perfect replacement.
When it comes to some specific items like pancake butter, you can use replace the mixer with a blender, But the quality of the output won’t be as fluffy as when you make it with a mixer.
When looking to prepare the dough, you should be aware that the blender can’t be used. It might surprise you to know that while high-power blenders can easily grind ice and solid ingredients, they don’t have the efficiency to effectively mix ingredients like flour. So, blenders can’t be used to make bread or cookie dough.
Also, blenders can whip ingredients, so if you are looking to use a blender to whisk egg whites for meringues or beat them into a batter to make it fluffy, then you should consider using a mixer to carry out the action.
While the clear glass in a blender allows you to monitor the consistency accuracy of mixing in the container, a mixer bowl offers more space for a larger amount of food ingredients to be processed.
You need to understand the recipes that suit both appliances so that you don’t use them wrongly. Blenders are generally known to be the best kitchen appliance for making smoothies, blending soups as well as sauces.
On the other hand, you only get the best out of your mixer when you use them for cake batters, making different kinds of dough, and whipping up eggs or cream.
Each appliance is designed with dissimilar features in order to work in their respective mechanism to deliver smooth results. For example, the lid in blenders prevents any chances of splattering ingredients.
In order words, before you can decide on whether you can replace your mixer with a blender, there is a need to consider the recipe or ingredient you intend to process using either of the appliances.
When using a blender instead of a mixer, you want to make sure that your ingredients are not over whipped or over mixed in the blender. The two appliances may serve similar purposes but they obviously work quite differently.
It is for this reason that I will not just be answering the question on whether you can replace a mixer with a blender but I will also be showing everything you need to know about the application of these two appliances.
I have developed this guide to answer your questions and to also clear the air about the use of a mixer and blender while outlining their clear difference.
I hope at the end of this post, you will be able to identify when it is appropriate to use a blender instead of a mixer, their respective functions and mechanism, and proper maintenance.
You have just been briefed on the short answer to: “can a blender replace a mixer?”
But there is more to that. Before we can be sure of when to use a blender instead of a mixer, we need to know exactly what these two appliances stand for, how they work, their uses, their differences as well as relative subtitles.
As you read on, I am going to be explaining the concept of both appliances hand in hand so that you don’t get lost in the process. We shall begin by getting familiar with how a blender works.
How does a blender work?
So you are probably overly familiar with blenders. They are among the must-have kitchen appliances that make the cooking process very easy and less stressful.
There are two types of blenders which include standing blenders with Countertop and hand blenders.
When talking about replacing a mixer with a blender, we can relate both types of blenders in this scenario. So it is pretty much helpful that we don’t focus on just one type of blender.
For blenders to work perfectly well in liquifying or pulverizing your food ingredients, they have been equipped with some features that are, well, some are removable while some components are fixed. The components of a standard blender include the following
- Housing
- Blades
- Jar (for countertops blenders)
- Sealing ring
- Jar base
- Lid
So for us to really understand how blenders work, we need to take food ingredients as a sample. Upon hitting the start button on the body of your blender, there are so many technical works that take place for the sharp blades to move and hit again the ingredients in the jar.
For example, you want to make strawberry juice. You toss strawberry into the blender, plug the blender into a switch and push the “on” button or any other setting that you might be going for.
Upon hitting the button, it triggers the motor to start working thereby allowing the blades to rotate speedingly.
This action causes a motion similar to a spiraling tornado in the blender jar that shows how the fluid dances around the jar in a vortex form.
This mechanism is continued with the speed setting you have placed on the blender until your perfect taste of consistency is derived.
So on how a blender works, sharp blades, a durable motor, and a strong lid to prevent splattering ingredients is key in the mechanism.
What is a blender really used for?
Now that you know what a blender it and how it works, you are probably thinking that it could serve as a cool alternative to some of your kitchen appliances.
Like I mentioned earlier, the use of a mixer and the use of a blender may not be relative. So when we talk about one of the appliances replacing the other, we need to be sure of their uses.
Here are the things that a blender is ideally suitable for. If any function of a mixer is found among them, then the use of a blender to replace the mixer when carrying out such function would suffice.
Freshly milled Flour
You don’t need a heavy and huge machine to create freshly milled flour, especially when you have a powerful blender.
Modern blenders are now designed for multi-purpose functions which include creating milled flour. This is done with a blender by putting a couple of cups of wheat berries in your blender jar and allowing the blades to do the work.
So instead of buying whole oat flour, that powerful blender hiding in the cabinet can do the whole thing.
Smooth juice
Among the major reason why people buy blenders includes making nourishing juice. Having the best juicer does not guarantee that you will achieve this in a clinch. A blender serves the same function of a juicer which means it is a better alternative.
Other versions of blender which include a vacuum blender allow you to make less foamy smoothies and still preserve the nutrients.
Blending soups
Anyone with a blender in her kitchen should know that it can be used for making soups. However, you need a high-end blender to actually heat up the soups.
Blender models like Vitamix or Blendtec are designed with high-speed blades that are sharp enough to create friction that will heat up soups.
With a blender, you can easily puree soups and make raw soups without touching the stove in your kitchen.
For Salad Dressing
If you are looking for the secret behind a perfect salad dressing, then you should think of a blender. Chefs actually trust their blender appliance to take care of the pulverization of ingredients when preparing salad dressings.
A blender is used to pulverize items like herbs and fresh garlic as well.
You can’t afford to make the best Ceasar salad without the help of a blender – a good blender.
For Making fresh Butter
Thinking of making fresh butter at home? The first appliance toy should think of having is a blender.
The appliance is widely used for blending creams in minutes such that the butter solid separates.
You don’t need a heavy-duty blender to make fresh butter at home. Most benders come with recipe books that show you brilliant food concepts that the blender will work best for. This includes making fresh butter.
For Pancakes
While some people use a mixer to mix the batter for pancakes and muffins, it can be replaced with blenders.
Blenders work even better for mixing batter such that they come together too to be mixed well inside the jar.
Especially for buttermilk pancakes, results from using a mixer will not be as perfect as when you a blender.
How does a Kitchen mixer work?
The primary purpose of a kitchen mixer, either standard or hand mixer is to grind, beat, stir, and whip food items. So if you are choosing any other kitchen appliance that will work in place of a kitchen mixer, then you have to be sure that it serves a similar purpose.
A mixer has been developed to help in the tedious stirring process of food items using a spoon. With a mixer, you can simply mix food items effortlessly.
Just as with a blender, there are two forms in which mixers are made. We have hand mixers and stand mixers.
As for hand mixers, they are made with two whisks attached to it, and a stand mixer, which uses whisks, paddles, a dough hook, and other attachments.
You can choose to use any of the types of kitchen mixer as they serve the same function and works similarly. The only thing you should be bothered about when using hand mixers is that they could cause a lot of mess in the kitchen. This can be avoided if you make use of a really wide and deep bowl.
In addition, you may want to consider using a stand mixer as it is considered the best for mixing large quantities of heavy ingredients like dough.
But that doesn’t answer the question of how a kitchen mixer works.
In the case of a hand mixer, you attach two Ballon whisk to the appliance and then plug it to electricity. Fill the bowl with your ingredients and then insert the handheld mixer into the bowl and then set a certain speed limit.
Upon pulling the switch, the Ballon whisk begins to rotate as it is powered by an electric motor located inside the mixer compartment. This motor is rotatory and will begin to work when you switch on the mixer.
The mixer comes with a whisk attachment that is designed to mix, beat, or whip the ingredients.
We can relate the mechanism of a handheld mixer to that of a stand mixer but in the case of the latter, a bowl is to be attached to the appliance.
Stand mixers come in various attachments that are designed to give you your preferred result when you attach them to the appliance. This includes a dough hook for bread ingredients and a Ballon whisk for egg whipping.
A stand mixer works when the large motor allows the attachment to rotates thereby processing your food ingredients in the bowl.
What is a mixer used for?
When we analyzed how a kitchen mixer works, I mentioned that they come with attachments that allow you to get preferred consistency. Stand mixer features blade attachments which include a beater, a whisk, and a dough hook.
So if we are to outline the things a mixer is used for, it will fall under the uses of these three attachments in the processing of food items.
The whisk attachments for stand mixers are usually used for beating eggs and cream into fluffy peaks. You can also dare to use the whisk for making marshmallow fluff and homemade butter without breaking a sweat.
Secondly, a stand mixer can be used to mix the dough into perfect consistency, thanks to the dough hook attachments that are designed to knead any kind of dough you can imagine, this includes pizza dough and cinnamon buns.
Lastly, you can use the flat beater attachment for mixing cake batters and frosting. This is an aspect of a stand mixer that can be replaced with a blender. Well, I would like to exclude the mixing of cookies.
This beater is also useful for shredding pork and making meatballs. You can use a mixer for mashing boiled potatoes with butter and milk with the flat beater attachment
Having analyzed all the components and uses of both a blender and a mixer, I have created this table below to pinpoint the actual difference between a blender and a mixer to understand how they can be substituted for each other.
Identifying the sharp differences in the use of blenders and kitchen mixers
| Blenders | Kitchen mixers |
|---|---|
| Easier to crush ice and pulverize tough ingredients | Mashing potatoes, speed seven for beating eggs whites. |
| Breaks down whole fruit and veggies for juice | Mixing the meringue |
| Perfect for entertaining guest | Easier to wipe clean |
| Make all Favourite drinks and dips | Perfect kitchen appliance for frosting, creamy dressings, dough, and more |
| Perfect for juice and milkshakes. | Mixing consistency to prevent messes |
Conclusion
Quite a lot of people can conclude that a blender can replace a mixer, but this is not so.
When you look at the working mechanism of the blender as against the mixer and the core functions of each of them, you will realize that it may be difficult for one to replace the other.
You can always try to check each out for the other’s functions though, but then again, it would be very unlikely that you’d get the same effect as when you use each of them for their specific functions.
Have you used the blender as a mixer before? Did it work out well for you?
Let us know.
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