Let's talk about stand mixers: are they worth it and which one?

[KoreanBeauty]

I'll be honest, I don't think I need one but I would definitely like to have one. I absolutely love the look of a kitchen aid, I think it is a beautiful design object (on top of being a great tool and workhorse) that can last a very long time. That said, it is also very expensive and I have also heard that Kenwood is equally as good and often cheaper. I also like the look of the smeg one.

So which ones are the best and why? And what sort of style/model would I need? Realistically I would mainly use it for the occasional cake or muffins etc and to make dough for focaccia or flatbreads.

I have a Kenwood chef and a Magimix. Rarely use the Magimix. Often use the Kenwood, but I enjoy baking. I does live in the cupboard because I don't have counter space and I know that the KA is prettier but in our family we have always had Kenwood's for about 50 years. Mine is 20, it was a wedding present.

I love my Kenwood Chef titanium XL and do a lot of baking, however it’s a big machine so you may prefer a smaller one if you don’t have the kitchen space.

Kitchen Aid 100% used all the time. Great machine.

I have a kenwood chef, 10 yes old and came with the blender attachment. It's brilliant. Not as.pretty as a kitchen aid or a kmix but a total work horse.

It makes baking easy, to be honest. Creams buttercream icing perfectly. When I bake bread I use the dough hook. Wonderful.

I use the blender for making soups and milkshakes.

I daydream about upgrading to a prettier machine but I just don't need to.

It lives in one of my corner cupboards in the kitchen. In the bit where the tupperware lids used to congregate.

I love my kitchen aide. It’s fairly indestructible (mine is over 25 years old). It takes cakes up a level because it’s whisk is so whisky it’s all done in minutes. I have the pasta roller and a second glass jar with a lid that’s useful. I make cakes, bread, butter, sometimes mash if my potatoes are floury enough. It’s very strong. My only complaint is like a pp I bought the cheapest colour available at the time and would really like a pastel blue/green/cream one. I may just paint it one day. I wouldn’t be at all surprised if it went another 20 years.

I had a Kenwood Prospero about 15 years ago which sadly died after about 10 years and I absolutely loved it, did a brilliant job of everything, I had the food processor and blender attachments and used it all the time.

When it died I decided to buy a standalone food processor as I was cutting down on baking for health reasons, and bought a kitchen aid one, it is rubbish compared to the Kenwood. I did miss my stand mixer and on impulse bought the Lakeland own brand one when they had 20% off a couple of years ago, it looks good but isn't a patch on the Kenwood for ease of use or efficient mixing and it has no attachments and weighs a ton so I can't move it on the counter easily. I hardly ever use the food processor (I have a mini chopper which I use all the time though). So I kind of wish I'd gone for Kenwood again but you hear so much about the newer ones being rubbish, and I can't justify replacements. But if I was starting from scratch now I'd probably go for a used Kenwood Chef plus attachments and forego beautiful appearances.

I have a kitchen aid that’s 20 odd years old, still looks fab and works perfectly. I use it 2/3 times a week making bread, pizza dough, flat breads, pancakes and cakes, as well as mashed potato or anything that needs mixing. It’s heavy so it lives on my worktop which means I use it more than if I had to pick it out of a cupboard. It’s a good investment if you bake - or use attachments for pasta etc.

Thanks ladies, I think I would definitely pick the KA if I bought one as ultimately I just love it too much. Some great offers now with the black friday but still very expensive, I don't think I can justify £300+ for something I will use a couple of times a month at best :(
I do desire it a lot though

I’ve had my kitchen Aid longer than my 17 year old son, and it’s used several times a week. Definitely been worth it over the years.

Yes I totally get that it is a great investment. My only fear is that I won’t make the most of it. I would like to use it as an excuse to start making more of my own bread, pizza etc but what if I don’t? Currently I maybe bake once or twice a month and make flatbreads twice a month or so.
I am not very good at “dough” so have sometimes tried pizza or focaccia but they weren’t good and then gave up, iyswim?
Would the KA help me with that and make it fail proof?

I don’t think the machine will make it fail proof. You need to have the right grade of flower, fresh yeast, right oven temp. The machine just kneads the dough for you for a few minutes while you do something else

I noticed that Lidl have a stand mixer this week for £39.99 with a KA-inspired design, though at that price I wouldn’t expect it to be sturdy.

https://www.lidl.co.uk/p/silvercrest-black-stand-mixer/p10038917

Although I've just seen another thread about mixers and there are a few comments saying it's great!

Thanks for sharing. I am not a big fan of cheap copies though. I’d rather wait another year and get the real thing as I see it as an investment that will last me decades

see I'd get the £40 one @KoreanBeauty and see if it gets used, then if it does upgrade and invest. If not you know you've not wasted your time or money.

That's my plan, I've asked DH for the Salter bakes one for xmas, it is about £70 on sale at the minute. If in a year or 2 Its been used regularly then i'll absolutely upgrade to something higher quality.

Reading comments, I'd not get a cheap copy. I did that for a property we didn't visit often and it was okay but I think I'd have preferred to get those hand held mixer things rather than a whole cheaper big machine.
Even using it briefly it was so loud, didn't mix as well as my home kenwood did that it sucked the joy out of baking.

With baking breads and doughs, i strongly recommend getting to know your dough by hand. Then using a mixer once you're confident with the texture you're after. Mixers don't know when the dough is ready, you have to know.

This is the main question mark I have about dough, how do I ever fully understand if it’s ready!?

And I keep seeing many posts about kitchenaid atm and I was wondering why so cheap - there's classic and artisan - classic is weaker and suited for lighter bakes according to Google and artisan is for doughs etc because it has a stronger motor - my artisan struggles with some breads - can't imagine how a classic would manage! 🤔

Depends what bread you're baking 😅I started baking two decades ago (breads and minimal cakes) and back then it was a lot of reading, asking various grandmothers and through trial and error. Once you know, you know! You'll feel it in your hands and then you'll use those clues in a stand mixer by pulling at the dough to check consistency.

bosch mum
takes a lot less space than the kitchenaid
good extras
we use it a lot for baking but also for grating vegetables/cheese
and the bullet type attachment for pesto/smoothies/crushed ice

Another one using a 1960's Kenwood chef - wishing it would die

Its in a cupboard in the lobby - I rarely use it - but when I do, it does a fantastic job

I have a magi mix on the counter which I use more often

Back in the day I would bake but now rarely do

This beauty is currently winging its way to me - so exciting!
www.kitchenaid.ie/mixers/medium/859701515000/mixer-tilt-head-4-8l-artisan-with-extra-accessories-5ksm175-almond-cream

I have had both Kenwood (a Major) and KitchenAid. In the UK I think the Kenwood is still the better buy. The better series of KitchenAid models (the Professional) isn't sold in Europe and the Artisan can struggle with stiff doughs and large batches. We moved to the USA so couldn't take our electrics with us. My SIL took the Kenwood and it's still going strong after over 20 years.

I do bake quite a lot, though, I bake all our breads, cakes etc.

Get stainless steel whisk etc - dishwasher. That stuff allegedly has to be washed by hand!

I got a Kenwood and got rid of my food processor (it helped that it was losing its feet!)