Types

Hand Mixer vs. Stand Mixers

Hand Mixer is a compact appliance that can be easily kept in the drawer or hanged on the wall with a hook. You can manually move the beaters over the ingredient’s that don’t get mixed controlling the path of the beaters. It is advisable to choose one which comes with a slow start to avoid spilling the contents all over. Though cheaper than the stand mixers and take less or almost nil counter space they are not as powerful and suitable only for mixing softer, thinner dough and batters.

A Stand Mixer is best at doing anything a hand mixer does plus mix hard, stiffer dough for cookie or bread. They have a base with a head that holds the beater attachments and a bowl with a lock placed beneath the beaters. More powerful than hand mixers, they are more expensive and will take counter space on your kitchenette. However, you can choose one which is a light enough so can be picked up and stacked in the cupboard. You can also consider opting for various accessories which will allow you to make ice creams and sausages as well. Though some companies will charge you extra for the accessories, it can be worth the price you pay especially if you cook often.

However, if you afford and are a cooking enthusiast, you can choose both these appliances as they have their own respective use.

Stand mixers are usually of two types: rotating disc and fixed beater.

A rotating disc has a single flat beater mounted on a rotating disc travelling a circular path around the bowl and simultaneously spinning on its own axis just like a planet orbiting the sun. This particular type facilitates more contact between the beater, inner bowl and ingredients; thus preventing them from sticking to the sides.

Fixed beater is the more conventional type that has one or two beaters fixed with a rotating bowl. These are slower than the rotating disc and need to be monitored after a few seconds to get the contents at the center and not allowing them to gather at the sides. They are however, cheaper than the rotating disc stand mixers.

Wattage

If you opt for a stand mixer, make it a point that you don’t choose anything below 250 watts otherwise it will not be able to handle even the soft dough and consider yourself lucky if you can use it successfully on pancake batter. 

Hand mixers typically are powered by 200 to 250 watts and for thinner mixtures you can use a motor with 200 to 225 watts of power.

Features

If you are someone who is good at multitasking, you can choose a one that features a countdown timer, allowing you to set a time to knead the bread dough for 10 minutes and turns off automatically after 10 minutes.

Some hand mixtures follow an oval path in the mixing bowl to ensure uniform mixing often referred to as the “planetary action”. Most of the hand mixers come with three basic attachments: a paddle for general mixing, a whisk and a dough hook. However, a hand mixer with a dough hook may not be powerful enough to handle the bread dough; all the same the activity will be uncomfortable holding the mixer on the bowl for that long amount of time.

Speed variations

It is always beneficial to have more speed variations if you want more control over the mixing. More speed options imply less shudder while switching the speed and the contents are less likely to spray everywhere. Slow speeds are used to mix dry ingredients without flinging them out of the bowl while fast speeds are used to whip cream or egg whites.

Bowl size

A stand mixer bowl hold bowls from 1.5L to 7L. You can even opt for metal bowls as they last the life of the mixer and can be difficult to clean and can rust if not cleaned properly. Most of the bowls come with a handle for convenient pouring.

Optional attachments to consider

With the new attachments you can easily convert your mixer into a multi-purpose appliance with an easy click-clack mechanism.

  • Juicers
  • Ice cream makers
  • Shredders
  • Grain mills
  • Meat grinders
  • Sausage stuffers
  • Can openers
  • Pasta makers

Give the chef in you a chance with a mixer that best meets your expectations. We hope we were of assistance. Give us your comments on your choice of mixer. HAPPY COOKING!