5 Blender Mistakes Worth Fixing

A blender is one of the most used appliances in any kitchen, and one of the most misused. None of these mistakes will break the machine, but each of them costs you results.

1. Loading it in the wrong order

Liquids first, then soft ingredients, then hard ones on top.

Most people tip everything in together, which leaves the blades spinning in solids with nothing to move them. Liquid at the bottom creates the vortex that pulls the harder pieces down into the blades.

Order matters more than power. A correctly loaded cheap blender beats a badly loaded expensive one.

1. Sealing the lid on hot liquids

Hot soup in a sealed blender jar builds steam pressure with nowhere to go. At best the lid pops and you lose half the soup up the wall. At worst you get a faceful of boiling liquid — this causes real burns and it happens more often than people expect.

Take out the small centre cap in the lid and cover the opening loosely with a folded towel. The steam escapes and nothing sprays.

Better still: let hot liquids cool to warm before blending, and never fill the jar more than halfway with anything hot.

1. Not using pulse

When ingredients wedge underneath the blades, the motor spins uselessly.

Short bursts on pulse lift the jammed pieces and drop them back into the blades. Continuous running just heats the motor and does nothing.

Pulse is also the right setting whenever you want texture rather than a purée — salsas, pestos, anything chopped rather than smooth.

1. Running it continuously

Blenders work better in bursts than in one long run.

Continuous blending heats the contents, which matters more than it sounds. Herbs turn bitter, dairy can split, and anything green goes dull. It also strains the motor.

Run it, stop, scrape the sides down, run it again.

1. Skipping the proper clean

Food trapped under the blade assembly is where smells come from, and the next thing you blend will pick them up.

The quick method: fill the jar halfway with warm water, add a drop of dish soap, and run it for a few seconds. Then rinse thoroughly.

Do this immediately after use. Once a smoothie or a purée has dried onto the blades it takes far more work.

Never put your fingers near the blades to clean them, plugged in or not. Use a brush.

One more thing

Do not fill the jar to the top, even with cold ingredients. Most blenders work best around two-thirds full — the contents need room to circulate, and a full jar just churns in place.