How to choose a blender for smoothies? Review of the best for making smoothies

There are several ways to choose a smoothie blender. First of all, pay attention to the engine power, number of speeds and operating modes. There are other technical and consumer characteristics. Practical advice on choosing a suitable model is described in this material.

Operating principle, pros and cons

Unlike a traditional immersion blender, the smoothie maker operates stationary. The engine and mechanism are located at the bottom; a bowl with rotating knives is installed on them, in which the finished product is obtained.

The principle of operation is quite simple: to prepare a smoothie, the device is connected to the network and the required power is set. Place chopped food into the bowl and start the engine. Thanks to the intensive rotation of the knives, the components are thoroughly crushed and a homogeneous mass is obtained.

If we talk about what to make smoothies in, then this technique should be quite powerful and functional. The right blender offers many benefits:

• any dish, including mashed potatoes, drinks, can be prepared in just a couple of minutes;
• you don’t need to make any effort – just place the chopped products in the container and press the button;
• the tanks are large enough, you can cook 1-2 servings of food in them;
• all products are crushed carefully, without strong heating, so they retain maximum beneficial properties;
• If you correctly figure out which blender to choose for a smoothie, you will be able to work not only with soft, but also with hard ingredients, such as nuts.

On the other hand, there are also some disadvantages. Regardless of which blender you use to make smoothies, these are quite large machines. They take up more space and have significant weight. Another conditional disadvantage is energy consumption. But at home this is almost imperceptible due to the short operating time.

Criterias of choice

The choice of different models on the market is quite large. Therefore, it is not always easy to understand which blender is needed for a smoothie. To figure this out, you should study several criteria, for example, power, speed and others.

Power

This is the most important parameter. On the one hand, it is clear which blender is best for making smoothies. To do this, buy a stationary device, in which the bowl stands on a stand with a motor. But its power may vary (it often differs by 3-4 times between different models).

In general, they can be divided into 3 groups:

1. Within 250-500 W.
2. From 500 to 1000 W.
3. More than 1000 W.

The first group includes a smoothie machine that can well grind only soft ingredients, for example, fruits, berries and individual vegetables.

The second group is more powerful devices; they cope with almost all everyday tasks. So, with their help you can chop different types of nuts and ice.

Finally, the most powerful tools fall into the professional category. They are rarely used at home.Therefore, if we talk about which blender is better to prepare smoothies in, it is optimal to choose devices with a power in the range of 500-1000 W.

Modes and speeds

It’s clear what the smoothie device is called. This is a stationary blender with quite powerful motors. The mechanism allows you to develop high speeds. Modern models, as a rule, operate in 3-4 modes, which is quite sufficient for all household tasks.

It is also worth paying attention to the presence of additional modes:

• turbo;
• impulse.

The device's turbo mode allows you to make smoothies at maximum speed. This function comes in handy at the last stage of cooking, as well as when working with hard ingredients. If you turn on the pulse mode, you can avoid overheating.

Material and type of knives

The device used to make smoothies is usually equipped with one or two knives. They are made of stainless steel, so they work for a long time and do not rust. It is worth remembering that the more knives, the better the grinding process.

Smoothie making equipment has blades of different shapes. Often they are straight, less often they are curved. It is better to choose the second option - in this case, the resulting mass will be perfectly homogeneous.

Material and volume of container

When considering what kind of blender you need to make a smoothie, you need to pay attention to the bowl. Its standard volume does not exceed 1 liter. This is quite enough for purees, but is not suitable, for example, for soup and drinks (juices). Therefore, it is better to take with a reserve - a volume of 1.5-2 liters.

When choosing which smoothie blender is best to buy, not everyone pays attention to the shape of the bowl. It should have a wide, not narrowed bottom. Then the container is much easier to clean.

The bowl is made from different materials:

• plastic;
• metal;
• glass.

The rating of the best blenders for smoothies and cocktails is presented in different models. Plastic is often used because it is lightweight and convenient, and is also more affordable. Glass is less durable. The most expensive is metal. It is opaque and does not allow you to see how the process is going. But such a bowl is very durable compared to the same plastic and especially glass.

Nozzles

There is another question related to this. what attachment to make a smoothie. In fact, the stationary device is equipped only with knives. They are the ones who grind all the components well and allow you to get the finished product in just 2 minutes.

It turns out that there is no attachment for smoothies as such - its function is performed by sharp blades. Therefore, if you need to beat eggs or other mixtures, you should also buy an immersion blender. You can also use it to prepare minced meat.

Housing material

It’s clear which blender attachment to use to make a smoothie. There is no need to buy anything additional, since the knives included in the kit can chop any ingredients, including hard ones.

But in order for the device to last as long as possible, you should study what material the body is made of (the lower stand with the engine). It is usually made of plastic - it is a cheap but short-lived composition. Therefore, it is better to purchase a smoothie machine with a metal body. Moreover, in this case, the smoothie blender attachment does not matter, since it is the material from which the device is made that is important.

Thus, for preparing purees and other dishes with a viscous consistency, it is better to choose stationary devices. If we describe the characteristics of the device, what to use to make smoothies, the blender must be quite powerful and reliable.It can operate at only 2 speeds, but the motor must develop at least 500 W.