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HistoricFoodie
Admin Group Joined: 21 February 2012 Location: Kentucky Status: Offline Points: 4940 |
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Posted: 23 July 2017 at 06:27 |
After decades of coveting, and several years putting money aside for it, I finally ordered a VitaMix.
It was a hard choice, but, given the amount of blender time I put in (not all that much), I decided the cost of professional models wasn't justified. So went with their 5200, which is the standard machine. Along with it I ordered the 32 oz hopper and tamper to go with it. Can't wait until it arrives! |
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But we hae meat and we can eat
And sae the Lord be thanket |
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gonefishin
Master Chef Joined: 20 September 2012 Status: Offline Points: 1778 |
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Congrats! While I'm not familiar with the Vitamix blenders, it looks to be a real nice machine. It's nice when you buy a simple running machine with a superior motor and mechanics.
I look forward to hear how you like it |
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Enjoy The Food!
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pitrow
Master Chef Joined: 22 November 2010 Location: Newberg, Oregon Status: Offline Points: 1078 |
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Congrats! you're going to love it
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Mike
Life in PitRow - My often neglected, somewhat eccentric, occasionally outstanding blog |
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Hoser
Admin Group Joined: 06 February 2010 Location: Cumberland, RI Status: Offline Points: 3454 |
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I know that is supposed to be the cat's-ass of blenders. Sure wish you luck with it Brook!
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Go ahead...play with your food!
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HistoricFoodie
Admin Group Joined: 21 February 2012 Location: Kentucky Status: Offline Points: 4940 |
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.....the cat's-ass of blenders...
For what it cost, Dave, it darn well better be! Seriously, there's a reason it's the first choice among professional cooks. I haven't had much opportunity to use it, yet. Just a few shots. But, so far, I love it. I particularly like the tampers. I've torn up too many spatulas, in the past, not to appreciate that feature. |
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But we hae meat and we can eat
And sae the Lord be thanket |
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HistoricFoodie
Admin Group Joined: 21 February 2012 Location: Kentucky Status: Offline Points: 4940 |
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OK, time for an update and review:
There’s a reason VitaMix blenders are the standard used by professionals: They do the job; quickly, accurately, and with no errors. That can’t be said about many others. For instance, the biggest joke in the culinary world is slapping the word “professional” on the Ninja blending system. The Vitamix I choose is the 5200, said to be the standard, beginner model. There is, to be sure, a less versatile machine, the Turbo 2-Speed. But the 5200 is where the line of units we think of as Vitamixes begins. Given my level of blender usage, I didn’t think I needed any more than that. So far, I’m happy with that decision. What do I like about the unit? Pretty much everything; starting with the fact it comes with instructions. Actual directions, written down. No going on-line to find an owner’s manual. No purchasing separate books to guide you. No tearing your hair trying to figure out how to program it. Everything you need to know is part of the included book, “Introduction to High-Performance Blending." Not that you couldn’t do without them. All the operating controls are right there on the front of the power base. And they clearly tell you what they are. There’s an on-off switch, a speed control dial, and a function selection toggle. These are not digital displays, mind you, nor those membrane switches that tend to wear out. Each of them is an honest-to-God controller you operate with your hands and fingers. A giant technical step backwards that, to me, is a blessing. Without the instruction book you should still have no problems operating this unit. The only source of possible confusion is the function toggle. It’s marked “variable” and “high.” Some Vitamix models apparently have a series of numbers you can choose when in variable mode. The instruction book, in the recipes, directs which one to use in those cases. But there’s only the one position on the 5200, which makes on-the-job training actually easier. About 90% of the time, you put the selector on variable, start the machine at its lowest speed, then increase speed as necessary. The faster the speed, the smoother the finished product. Most products can be blended in less than 60 seconds. The exceptions are soups, which can be blended at high speed to the point where they actually heat up. This can take six or seven minutes. For extra speed, change the toggle to “high.” I have yet to find any need for that. This system works so well that soups, sauces and purees almost never , need further straining. That's how smoothly it blends them. For me, one of the highlights of Vitamix blenders, are the tampers. These fit through the covers, and reach down to just above the height of the blades. I hate to tell you how many spatulas and wooden spoons I’ve destroyed, in the past, trying to get thick or chunky ingredients to feed in to the blades while they’re turning. The tampers eliminate that problem. Used correctly, they cannot touch the blades. But they do a bang-up job helping to feed ingredients into the blades. The standard container has a whopping 64 ounce capacity. This is far more than I would usually need, for household cookery. So I ordered the optional 32 ounce one as well. This, as should be obvious, uses a different tamper, so I got one of those as well. So far, I’ve used the smaller hopper exclusively. Although my unit can grind grains and make butters, there is an optional unit---also 32 ounce---designed specifically for those purposes. Reason to not use the regular one? It seems that heavy use of such hard ingredients can cause scratching and marring of the container sidewall, especially the area even with the blades. I know I ran into that problem with my Kitchen-Aid food processor. In my experience, this is more a cosmetic problem than a mechanical one. The marring is unsightly, but does not affect performance. Glass would obviate this problem altogether; but then you'd have the fragility trade off. Clean-up is a snap. The Vitamix are, to all intents and purposes, self-cleaning. You fill the container about half way with warm water, add a drop or two of dishwasher detergent, and turn the unit on. Speed is adjusted until the soapy water just reaches the cap. And, voila! Rinse it out and you’re done. In theory, this would work with any blender. But others I’ve owned just don’t develop enough speed to accomplish this task. There is, near as I can tell so far, only one drawback to the Vitamix line. They are pricy. No question about it. They range from almost $400 to nearly $700, depending on model. Indeed, my optional 32 ounce hopper costs more than most other so-called high-end blenders. This is, frankly, a lot more than the typical home cook is prepared to spend on a blender. Indeed, it took me three years to save up for one. But, if you want the best (and why wouldn’t you?), Vitamix is the way to go. |
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But we hae meat and we can eat
And sae the Lord be thanket |
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TasunkaWitko
Admin Group Joined: 25 January 2010 Location: Chinook, MT Status: Offline Points: 9356 |
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Nice review, Brook - thanks!
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HistoricFoodie
Admin Group Joined: 21 February 2012 Location: Kentucky Status: Offline Points: 4940 |
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Hummus In The Vitamix.
So, I made a double batch of hummus this morning. Got to say, I have never had it come out so smooth and creamy. And I've made it in a range of blenders, including the original Oster Kitchen Center to, most recently, the Ninja. It's like I've never had it before. Absolutely no graininess. FWIW, here's the recipe I use: 1 cup cooked chickpeas 1/4 cup tahini Juice of 1/2 lemon (about 2 tbls) 3 small garlic cloves Salt Olive oil Reserved pea liquid In a mortar, crush garlic with salt to a paste. In blender, combine chickpeas, tahini, garlic, most of the lemon juice, and bit of reserved liquid. Blend until smooth, adjusting consistency and taste with more liquid and juice. Transfer to a sealable container, cover with a thin film of olive oil, and enjoy. Make sure to replace the oil, as needed, for as long as the hummus lasts. For our taste, this is actually too much lemon juice. So don't go hog wild with it. Add about 3/4 of the juice, then adjust to your own taste. If you don't have cooking water from the peas, water can substitute. Either way, you shouldn't need a lot of it. |
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But we hae meat and we can eat
And sae the Lord be thanket |
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