topic Re: Anyone have an immersion blender? in Kitchen

Anyone have an immersion blender?

LonestarBabs — Wed, 21 Feb 2018 01:42:43 GMT

I have a delicious recipe for Butter Chicken in the InstantPot that calls for use of an immersion blender (handheld stick blender) when making the sauce. I've never used one of these, and am shopping around. Any of you have/use one of these?

Re: Anyone have an immersion blender?

Texasmouse — Wed, 21 Feb 2018 01:47:19 GMT

@LonestarBabs I bought one to use for taking lumps out of sauces, gravies, etc. It works great for that, as well as for making milkshakes and many other things.

Re: Anyone have an immersion blender?

LonestarBabs — Wed, 21 Feb 2018 01:50:58 GMT

@TexasmouseWhat brand do you have? I'm seeing several, and a few brands are designed so that you have to hold down buttons/switches at the same time which seems rather unwieldy instead of convenient.

Re: Anyone have an immersion blender?

Texasmouse — Wed, 21 Feb 2018 01:52:23 GMT

Yes, I don't know why they do this and I can only assume it's for safety reasons. I have a Cuisinart and unfortunately, it does have that system. It takes a bit of getting used to.

Re: Anyone have an immersion blender?

JeanLouiseFinch — Wed, 21 Feb 2018 01:57:08 GMT

I have a Cuisinart and use it from time to time in this way.

If you don't want to purchase one, I wonder if you could pour the liquids into your blender and puree them all that way? If you have a blender, that is.

Re: Anyone have an immersion blender?

LonestarBabs — Wed, 21 Feb 2018 02:01:54 GMT

@JeanLouiseFinch The idea is to avoid transferring the hot liquids from InstantPot into a blender and then back again. The recipe's author tries to keep things pretty simple with minimal use of pans/dishes/bowls, etc. I do have a blender.

Re: Anyone have an immersion blender?

Kitlynn — Wed, 21 Feb 2018 02:56:42 GMT

I have one and it works great however just a little warning for you. You need to make sure it is down in a deep enough pot or bowl otherwise you get a lot of messy splatter.

Re: Anyone have an immersion blender?

dex — Wed, 21 Feb 2018 03:22:19 GMT

I love mine.I stick it in the soup pot to thicken.use it to pure my homemade applesauce,homemade salad dressing ,whip up smoothies,mash up cottage cheese to make sour cream and on and on.

Re: Anyone have an immersion blender?

JeanLouiseFinch — Wed, 21 Feb 2018 03:40:55 GMT

@LonestarBabswrote:
@JeanLouiseFinch The idea is to avoid transferring the hot liquids from InstantPot into a blender and then back again. The recipe's author tries to keep things pretty simple with minimal use of pans/dishes/bowls, etc. I do have a blender.

@LonestarBabs- I understand that, was just trying to come up with an alternative if you didn't want to make the purchase.

Re: Anyone have an immersion blender?

janeec — Wed, 21 Feb 2018 04:21:00 GMT

I bought mine on QVC years ago. It is a KitchenAid one in a case. I don't use it all the time, but when I need one, it is a dream. As previously mentioned by Kitlynn, keep it near the bottom of the pot or your food will be everywhere! I love using it to thicken and cream soups. It is so much easier than putting things into the blender.

Re: Anyone have an immersion blender?

ID2 — Wed, 21 Feb 2018 11:30:12 GMT

I received one as a gift many years ago. It sat in my cupboard for just as many years. I've started using it (finally) and wonder why it took me so long to discover this time saver!! Great invention!

Re: Anyone have an immersion blender?

nyc1 — Wed, 21 Feb 2018 11:53:31 GMT

@JeanLouiseFinchwrote:
I have a Cuisinart and use it from time to time in this way.

If you don't want to purchase one, I wonder if you could pour the liquids into your blender and puree them all that way? If you have a blender, that is.

@JeanLouiseFinch I have an immersion blender, but I actually prefer doing as you suggested. If I'm making a beef stew in my pressure cooker, when it's finished, I ladle some of the liquid into my Vitamix and add some of the vegetables. After blended, I put the thickened liquid back into the pressure cooker and it thickens everything beautifully, and is so easy.

Re: Anyone have an immersion blender?

Slainte — Wed, 21 Feb 2018 11:59:07 GMT

I have a Cuisinart stick blender I use most days to make fruit smoothies. I have also used it to blend ingredients in the soup pot or to smooth out mashed sweet potatoes for a casserole. For me, it's much easier using the stick blender than trying to transfer food to a blender or a processor.

Re: Anyone have an immersion blender?

Rockycoast — Wed, 21 Feb 2018 12:12:32 GMT

Yes, we have had our immersion blender for close to 10 years. It is a Braun. It came with a separate small chopper cup. We used to use that cup frequently when we first got it but now I couldn't tell you where it is in the pantry. We do use the immersion blender frequently. It really does make cooking a lot easier! You can smooth out your liquids right in the pot. No transfering hot liquids to a stand blender. The motor is still powerful enough to get the job done even after all these years. I can a lot of foods also. Great time saver. (along with my Vitamix).

Re: Anyone have an immersion blender?

shoptheQ — Wed, 21 Feb 2018 13:55:36 GMT

I use my KitchenAid immersion blender daily. I purchased it from Home Depot. It is very well made and less expensive then cuisinart. I pulled up immersion blenders on line and researched customer reviews for various brands and decided on the KitchenAid.

Re: Anyone have an immersion blender?

Shawnie — Wed, 21 Feb 2018 14:41:01 GMT

I have a Wolfgang Puck immersion blender that I bought some years ago. But since I got my Vitamix I most often will transfer my liquid carefully into the VM and purée. Never do this in a blender that has a glass container.

Re: Anyone have an immersion blender?

Chihuahualuv — Wed, 21 Feb 2018 14:54:33 GMT

I have a Kithenaid and I love it. I use it to use PW's spinach soup, avocado pasta sauce and a lot of other things!

Re: Anyone have an immersion blender?

summerwind — Wed, 21 Feb 2018 15:01:56 GMT

I also have a Braun with chopper cup, bought for making baby food, so, either 25 or 35 years old. Haven't had use for it lately, but it was handy at the time.

My Kitchenaid hand mixer has a "blender rod" attachment that might work as one, but I've never used it, so can't speak to that. It would be easier, as you can control the speed.

I do suggest that if you purchase an immersion blender, get one where the blending part separates from the motor part, mine didn't, it isn't the easiest thing to clean. Maybe they don't even make them in one piece anymore, idk.

Re: Anyone have an immersion blender?

spot555 — Wed, 21 Feb 2018 15:14:09 GMT

I recently bought a Braun, & I LOVE it. I got a specific model # because of the reviews I read (not all of the models were liked, but this one was). I got it on sale at BB&Beyond.

I bought mine to make homemade mayo. I wish I known about this years ago- it's insanely delicious!!! It takes all of 20 seconds to make amazing mayo with an immersion blender- isn't that crazy?

Re: Anyone have an immersion blender?

LonestarBabs — Thu, 22 Feb 2018 22:41:31 GMT

Well, I did a lot of research. WHEW Who knew? Anyhoo....I ended up getting a Braun at Bed Bath & Beyond using a 20% coupon.

Got my special ingredients for the new recipe, so I'm all set now! It's been raining here for days with more to come, so staying indoors to cook and stay cozy is in the plan!