Best Stand Mixer For Beginners

A stand mixer, also known as a KitchenAid mixer or a hand-held mixer, is a type of electric home appliance used in baking and cooking. It consists of an electric motor which powers attachments to beat, stir or blend ingredients. Some modern mixers can also be used to knead dough, and some have enough power to double as a food processor. 

There are two main types of stand mixers, planetary stand mixers and tilt-head stand mixers.  

Planetary Stand Mixer: This type has a heavy bottom with three metal posts that have gears on them. The gears connect to a mixing bowl that is placed on top of the motor base and sits within the center ring. To attach the bowl, the arms with gears on them are fastened onto three of the posts and spun counterclockwise until one hears a click for each post. 

Tilt-Head Stand Mixers: This type of stand mixer has a motor and mixing bowl at the top and base, respectively. The motor housing is held in place by a metal tube around the post that attaches to the base. The cover for this tube is removable for attaching the bowl and/or attachments. 

You don’t! A stand mixer is an “on” type appliance. Plug it in, turn it on and you’re ready to go! There are several different stand mixers out there that offer variable speeds, so you might want to check that feature out if it’s important for you. 

Anything that requires mixing or kneading! If your recipe calls for “beat until creamy”, then you can use a stand mixer. Bread dough, cake batter, mashed potatoes, scrambled eggs… you name it! 

Yep! This is the only appliance that can take your bread dough from “sticky and shaggy” to “smooth and elastic” with just one push of a button. You don’t need a bread machine to make bread dough; a stand mixer will do just fine. 

Yes, but use the pasta machine attachment! You can find it online or at any appliance store. It’s usually very cheap too! The main purpose of this attachment is to flatten out your dough, and since pasta dough is thick and pliable, you can use your stand mixer as well. 

Yes. Some manufacturers even sell a special attachment for making creamy mashed potatoes! There’s also this little device called… drumroll please… the masher disk. Just crack open a few potatoes, add your favorite ingredients and process everything to a smooth consistency. 

Yes! You can either buy the ice cream maker attachment for about $30 – $40, or use this other device called… drumroll please… the freezer bowl. Just pour your ingredients inside, let the machine do its thing and you’ll have delicious ice cream or sorbet in less than an hour. 

Sure! There is no need to worry about being electrocuted or anything. A kitchen appliance’s job is to make cooking a safe and fun activity, so you can walk around while your mixer does all the work for you. 

It was true in the past, but things have changed! You can find a quality stand mixer for $100 or less. The prices go all the way up to several hundred dollars, and with that money you might even buy yourself a luxury dishwasher! 

Yes. They can be loud, especially if the dough hook is doing its job in a very large bowl! The noise doesn’t bother me, but if you want to use your mixer when you have overnight guests then this might not be the best idea. 

No. A stand mixer will replace all your other devices: food processor, blender and the like. Of course, you can always get a separate device if you feel that it’s necessary, but in most cases your stand mixer will be more than enough. 

Yes! Although bread dough is basically “baking”, there are a few recipes that require a stand mixer to be used. One example is cake batter, which will become super creamy and airy when beaten with a stand mixer. There’s also icing/frosting, meringue and whipped cream! The list goes on… 

Yes. Why? Because it’s a standard size and chances are that you don’t have a different one at home! Also, most bowls can be used for both mixing and kneading, which is not the case with other types of mixers. 

Yes. There are mixer bowls that are specially made for certain attachments, but you can also use any bowl that matches the standard size of your stand mixer! 

Not to be rude or anything, but I’m not here to teach you about physics. You’ll have to figure this one out on your own. Or you can ask your local physics professor, who will probably tell you that the standard size is anything between 4 inches and 8 inches… 

It depends on what kind of power your home has. If you live in the US then chances are that your house already has a 220 – 240 V range, so you’ll need at least 500W of power. If you live in Europe, then your house already has a 110V range and you’ll only need about 300W to get all the power you want!