Having pined after a stand mixer for as long as I can remember I was finally in a financial position to start shopping around for one earlier this year. My initial instinct was to go for a Kenwood, the stalwarts for the stand mixer industry. I did shop around and looked at KitchenAId, Andrew James and few lesser known brands but what swayed me was the longevity of the Kenwood brand and the sure proliferation of their of their mixer products which gave me some sense of assurance that if the product was to break or fail at some point in the future I'd be able to get spare parts.
So why did I choose this particular model? The choice was mind boggling, I must admit. I'd never owned or even used a stand mixer before so really had nothing to compare it to. I had a limited budget and I needed a food processor too. When I noticed that this model had a food processor attachment that was a big part of the decision. I'd also seen it in stock at Amazon Warehouse at £250 instead of the advertised £400 so it seemed like I was getting a good solid brand which was going to be a workhorse without taking up loads of space of several different appliances, the styling seemed fairly steady (I wasn't after a fashion item) and above all it was at a bargain price.
I've had it now for a couple of months and its been put through its paces - I'd say I use it 2-3 times a week on average - so thought it was time to comment on how satisfied I am with it. I have to say first that I have not used the blender, spice mill or the julienne grater attachments. All I can say about the blender is that it is made of very heavy glass and feels very robust but I can't comment on its functionality. I don't have anything to say about the spice mill. It looks fine.
What I have used are the mixer bowl, whisk attachment, K-beater, flexi-beater, the dough hook, splash guard, food processor, large and small grater blades and the chopper blade. And what I would say is don't expect miracles. It does things very well but it does require some human intervention and some other kitchen appliances may do some of the jobs better. I suppose I was expecting some sort of of miracle machine and if you are of the same aspirations then I would advise you to adjust your expectations. That said it does enable you to have two hands free to do something else so it is by no means a useless item.
Mixer bowl and attachments
The stainless steel bowl has a large capacity and is great if you are mixing large quantities but if you want to mix smaller amounts consider either using an alternative appliance or buying a smaller machine instead. The mixer attachments struggle to reach the ingredients at the bottom of the bowl and even if making large quantities you still have to remove the bowl now and again to scrape the bottom. It helps if you mix things really fast but if making something like buttercream I'd advice making sure your butter is VERY soft before starting otherwise you may find it doesn't mix very evenly. I have on a quite a number of occasions tough my Andrew James hand mixer does the job much better and gives more control.
I like the stainless steel bowl because its light and easy to clean but if you are fussy about how your stainless steel looks you will be constantly buffing and shining. My favourite attachment is the flexi-beater as I tend to use it mainly for cake batter and buttercream. The paddles are slightly wider than the K-beater and I feel tackles those particular ingredients better. My greatest triumph so far has been in using the balloon whisk to make the stiffest and silkiest meringue mixture in seconds and I would concede that this machine does it better than my hand mixer. I have also made bread dough but I thought my bread machine does a far better job. I wouldn't dismiss this machine's capabilities out of hand and would certainly use it for bread if I was making a larger batch than my bread machine can cope with but I would move the bowl to a very warm spot to speed up the proving process. I absolutely LOVE the splash guard and it is a godsend. I make a lot of buttercream and believe me icing sugar has a way of coating the entire kitchen when you use a hand mixer, even on the slowest settings. The the Chef the result are a remarkable improvement. Its by no means perfect and I would caution against simply adding all your ingredients, whacking the machine up to full and expecting all the ingredients to stay in the bowl!
Food Processor
I love the fact that this now lives on my work top and with some very minor adjustments I have a food processor which I feel I can use without the great palaver of dragging my old one out of the cupboard. I've had a Kenwood food processor since 1987, still going strong but regrettably couldn't get a replacement grater shaft which got lost in a move. So I do have a direct comparison. Overall the Chef processor attachment feels much less robust and indeed I chipped the edge of the pusher the first time I used it. The bowl capacity is about two thirds my old one. But its a substitute and does everything I need, conveniently. And if I need to make a large batch I just do it in two goes which is hardly a hardship. I've seen reviews on here complaining that it doesn't grate the last piece - well get over yourselves - like I said don't expect miracles. Both grater blades are quite course. When I want a finer grate I don't use the pusher and just let gravity do the work. The harder you push the coarser the grate. Simple. I've made houmus using the chopper blade and because the mixture is quite thick you have to turn the machine of, scrape and re-process. Again I say to harping critics, a bit of human intervention is sometimes required. If you don't like that idea then maybe you need to just get in a chef, in person!
Overall I would say that, yes I could have lived without this item and yes there are some jobs that are better handled by a dedicated appliance and yes I have to keep all the attachments in a huge box which has to be stored nearby and yes it takes up space on my work top and yes it needs to be somewhere clear of cupboards and YES sometimes I have to do some of the work. But I have no regrets; its a great addition to my kitchen, possibly one I wish I could have had when my kids were small as I think it probably has more capability than I get out of it. And the fact that I use it so often is testament to its usefulness.
| Brand | Kenwood |
|---|---|
| Model Number | KM010021 |
| Colour | Silver |
| Product Dimensions | 40 x 22.7 x 29.7 cm; 7.7 Kilograms |
| Capacity | 4.6 litres |
| Power / Wattage | 900 watts |
| Material | Aluminium |
| Number of Speeds | 8 |
| Special Features | Detachable, Has Mixer Attachment |
| Item Weight | 7.7 kg |
