"One of the best kitchen tools to have in your kitchen especially when you are making soups and purees!"
What Is A Hand Blender?
A Hand Blender is one of my favorite tools in the kitchen. Sometimes called an immersion blender, this versatile tool can be used to blend, whisk, emulsify, and puree soups and sauces.
What I really like about hand blenders is how easy they are to use and clean. No longer do I have to transfer the contents of a soup or sauce to a food processor to puree, all I do is plug it in and bring the hand blender to the pot. It is a heck of lot easier to clean too. And for emulsifying salad dressing, it's a snap.
I own a Braun Hand Blender that came with some additional accessories including a chopping attachment, whipping disk, and a wall mount. This is a "must have" tool for all us novice cooks.
What To Look For
Here are some important features to look for when considing purchasing your own hand blender:
Power - If you puree a lot of soups and vegetables, you want a hand blender that is up to the task.You might have to puree a gallon of soup or puree the vegetables in a Dutch Oven pot roast recipe to make a sauce.
Cord or No Cord? - When I purchased my hand blender, they didn't have cordless models. Sounds like a great idea but you do loose a little power. You choose.
Design - The hand blender should feel good in your grip and the cord should extend away from it so it doesn't get in your way.
Attachments - Some models come with lots of extra attachments that you may or may not need. If you already own a food processor, there may be no need for chopping blade or chopper/grinder attachement. And let's face it, a hand blender chopping blade is not going to do the work of a standard food processor.
Clean Up - An advantage of a hand blender is clean up. You can wash it under warm water right in the sink (unplugged of course) and some of the new models have detachable shafts that are dishwasher safe.
Who Makes Hand Blenders?
When they first came out, Braun was the only one making them, but now that they are so popular and essential in every kitchen, other familiar names are also producing them including:
KitchenAid - Cuisinart - Viking - Braun - Breville - L'Equip
onlinesources: Hand Blenders
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