Making cakes, kneading dough, beating eggs – whatever you’re baking, an electric food mixer can make the process a whole lot easier on your arms, and a whole lot quicker too. Thanks to the wide array of electric stand mixers available to budding bakers, their attachment selections and bowl capacity, there are many budget options which mean you can get bakery quality goods without leaving the house, or breaking the bank as all our recommendations are under £300!
What Considerations To Purchase A New Electric Stand Mixer
Capacity: If you’re the feeder of the family, or have always got places to go and people to see with a batch of cookies under your arm, then an electric stand mixer with a bowl on the larger side will be your best bet. But bigger doesn’t always mean better, and a big unit can stick out like a sore thumb in your kitchen.
Versatility: Many electric food mixers on the market today will claim to be able to do everything from making cakes and cookies, to prepping pasta and burgers. More often than not you’ll have a cupboard full of different attachments you have to sift through every time you want to beat an egg. However, this might be just as much up your street, so your electric stand mixer can be by your side whatever you’re up to in the kitchen.
Weight and Noise: If your cooking space is on the smaller size, or you’ve got neighbours with particularly good hearing, you’ll also want to be aware of the dimensions, weight, and noise of your new electric stand mixer.
Use: Think about what skill level are you at in the kitchen, because there’s no point buying bakery grade food mixers in 2021 if you just fancy making a few scones. But if you’re head chef in your household and plan to get the most out of your mixer then go for a more souped up model.
Aesthetics: How do you want your kitchen to look? Do you mind if your stand mixer doesn’t exactly match the overall theme of your kitchen? In this case it might be worth checking the different colours the stand mixers are available in, as well as the overall shape.
VonShef Stand Mixer
Power: 1000W
Speed Settings: 8
Capacity: 3.5L
This dinky little electric food mixer is the cheapest on this list, and for what is a particularly bargain price you’ll be surprised just how much this thing can cope with, with its 1000w motor, but you may have to wait a little longer for larger loads.
This definitely is not the mixer if you’re batch baking or need to cook up a big meal, but the 3.5 litre bowl is perfect for the occasional cakes. Its plastic casing makes it lightweight, so moving it around the kitchen to suit you is a definite benefit. However it may be slightly more susceptible to chips and scratches, so you may need to take better care than you would with a more heavy duty electric food mixer.
Russell Hobbs Go Create Stand Mixer
Power: 1000W
Speed settings: 10
Capacity: 5L
What it lacks in aesthetic capability, it certainly makes up for at that delicious price point. The mixing bowl and stand mixer as a whole have a plastic base, which is great for carting this stand mixer around your kitchen, but it could be susceptible to wear and tear if you’re not careful.
However, the good thing about this electric food mixer that the individual parts are all dishwasher safe, so cleaning can be a much quicker ordeal – especially considering the generous 5 litre mixing bowl that this mixer boasts, which reduces spillage to a near minimum with the handy lid. It also comes with an extra maximum speed setting, to provide a burst of power to finish off your dough or batter.
But, beneath the no-nonsense plastic outing, lies a good yet affordable kitchen assistant, with an impressive range of speeds. The downside to this however is the noise that the fastest speeds can generate, and sometimes the arm can be a bit stiff, so you may need to use some force.
Crux Bake and Blend Stand Mixer
Power: 1200W
Speed Settings: 8
Capacity: 5.5L
This mixer is slightly on the larger size (especially if you’re planning on using it to blend food) as the attachment needs some height between your kitchen counters and cupboards, but if you’re saving space on an additional food processor then it may be worth it.
The good thing about its large and stainless steel exterior means it’s very reliable, and likely to serve you for a long time. Considering the power input, you might expect it to have a wider variety of speed settings, however it covers all the necessary areas, and the 5.5 litre mixing bowl means bigger batches are more than doable.
The glass mixing bowl is heavy, just like the rest of the unit, and is not dishwasher safe. However, once again, the metal casing is easily wipeable with a cloth and water.
PHISINIC Stand Mixer
Power: 1800W
Speed Settings: 6
Capacity: 6.5L
Considering the power pull on this particular food mixer, its wonderful energy rating might surprise you, and its penchant for efficiency covers nearly all of its parts. With an almost minimal 6 speed settings, you get perhaps slightly less choice when it comes to what you can do, but it doesn’t need it to beat eggs, cream butter, and knead dough to perfection.
Coming in a stylish red as well as black, the colours, aluminium body, and non slip feet, make this the perfect permanent feature in your kitchen. But while it is robust, its also pretty heavy, and so moving it in and out of a cupboard might not be the best move when it comes to this stand mixer.
The electric food mixer in itself is perfect for batch bakers, or big families, and the 6.5 litre capacity will give you more than enough room to cook up as many baked goods as you can eat. It also comes with 3 separate dishwasher safe attachments (dough hook, beater, and whisk) to further perfect your baking skills.
Cuisinart Precision Stand Mixer
Power: 500W
Speed settings: 12
Capacity: 5.2L
This is one robust workhorse of a mixer, sporting a sleek monochromatic appearance. The high price tag may look out of place when you consider the 500 watt power take, but this mixer is really for those perfectionist bakers, who need a kitchen helper who can follow exact specifications. With 12 speeds, whatever you need to get done this electric stand mixer can do it, and with minimal spillage thanks to the 5.2 litre, stainless steel bowl with high edges.
Perhaps, considering it’s the most expensive on this list, it should come with more attachments. However, it only comes with the three favourites, the whisk, beater, and dough hook. All of them are dishwasher safe, and what these have on other competitors is the ergonomic designs of the attachments, clearly sculpted with chefs in mind.
It does come with some unusual extras, the splashguard and spout to mention a few, however they may cause more problems than they solve, as the stand mixer needs to be in one fixed position to support these attachments. The lower power output can sometimes be the downfall of this particular electric stand mixer, big batches may take slightly longer, but it’s a steady, suave instrument that can make a better dough than most.