Braun MultiQuick 5 Hand Blender In-depth Review
Overall Verdict
The Braun MultiQuick-5 is the model to turn to for high quality at an affordable price. It is solidly built, has moderate motor strength, and most importantly it performed admirably in our hands-on testing.
Of all the mid-range blenders we’ve tested, it is by far the most well-rounded one allowing us to achieve a wide range of textures with ease. We liked all the testing outcomes its blending wand delivered, including the creamy soup that was created in seconds and the smoothie that was entirely chunk-free. The whisk attachment also did a decent job of beating eggs and making mayonnaise as well.
Overall, we can say that there are more excellent hand-held blenders on the market today than ever before, but the Braun MultiQuick-5 is the model we would recommend for every kitchen.
Things We Like
- Consistent performance with minimal splashing
- Nearly as efficient as the higher-priced Vitamix
- Ergonomically-designed handle ensures a confident grip
- Doesn’t get hot even under heavy-duty use
- A generous set of accessories means greater versatility
Things We Don’t Like
- The metal blending shaft and whisk may damage non-stick coatings
Although a variety of Braun products have been on the market for more than 70 years, most people think of them as a razor company. However, it would make sense that a company which makes good razors would also make the best immersion blenders. To find out if that hunch was correct, we bought a Braun MultiQuick-5 and put it through a series of tests, and we’re sharing our metrics to help you decide whether it’s a good buy.
8.8 Performance: More Than a Little Surprised
After a course of testing, we’re confident to conclude that the Braun MultiQuick 5 is the choice for most people, especially those who want the best bang for their buck. It’s the best mid-range blender that has more than enough power for your daily blending tasks, from frozen fruit smoothies to any recipe involving leafy greens. And with the handy whisk attachment, it saves you from buying a hand mixer for beating egg-whites and emulsifying sauces.
8.5 Hot Soup Purée
The quality of blade’s material is impressively sturdy for the price, and that combined with a heavy-duty motor give the Braun MultiQuick-5 a great pureéing capability. As hard-to-blend as it was, our hearty soup wasn’t a challenge for this blender. In the span of 30 seconds, a two-serving pot of chunky soup became soft and creamy. For most people, this result might be fine enough, but draining it was still necessary to separate the remaining solids if you want the most silky, restaurant-quality soup.
8.8 Frozen Fruit Smoothie
The Braun’s 13,700 RPM motor did a fine job at this test. It even worked as fast as higher-priced models, namely the Vitamix 5-speed, Breville Control Grip, and the All-Clad, churning out a serving of icy smoothie in only one minute.
Most importantly, of all the blenders we tested, this blender is the only one that blended without too much trouble. With the remaining blenders, some had a hard time blending through the frozen fruits, while others created tight suction that made it pretty difficult for us to lift the blending shaft. The texture and consistency of its smoothie was also better than most. It was nearly as silky as the Vitamix—our best value immersion blender, with just a couple tiny chunks of unprocessed mango.
8.3 Mayonnaise
The Braun’s manual instructs that its whisk attachment should only be used for whipping cream, beating egg whites, making sponge cakes, and ready-mix desserts. This is certainly an unusual specification, as whisks are commonly used for other purposes - such as making mayonnaise.
Regardless, we stuck to our plan and used the whisk to make mayonnaise. As it turned out, it performed about as well as its competitors’ blending shafts in terms of emulsifying time and texture.
Most importantly, our mayonnaise was rich and very creamy. It was a great example of how this blender can be an alternative to a hand mixer to top off your favorite meals with inspired sauces.
9.3 Almond Milk
In this test, the Braun MultiQuick -5 took just 47 seconds to produce one serving of almond milk. It grinded relatively evenly to dissolve the nuts’ sugars and proteins into the water. Thanks to that, even when our recipe is sugar free, we got a drink with a mildly sweet and creamy taste. Suffice to say, this blender will have you ditching store-bought plant-based milk without reluctance.
10 Whipped Egg-Whites
Of all the blenders we tested, the Braun is among a few ones that passed this test, as it included whisk attachments ideal for beating egg whites. Using the ordinary blending wand, the remaining blenders couldn’t draw enough air into the egg-whites, which prevented the egg-protein from forming a stable foam.
Compared to the rivals, our Braun MultiQuick-5 was 30 seconds faster at creating an airy, fluffy egg foam. Although there was barely any difference between their outcomes, the speedy whisking process of the Braun MultiQuick-5 did help it avoid overheating, which should make it more reliable.
8.1 Design: Fine for the Price
The Braun MultuQuick-5 has a friendly-user design. Its 300-watt motor powers a removable blending shaft quite efficiently . Depending on the recipe, the motor can also work with the whisk attachment, which is not something you get with most mid-range household blenders.
It, however, cannot run continuously more than a batch. To avoid being damaged, make sure you let your machine cool down for a couple of minutes between its operations.
In the Box
- Motor body
- Blending shaft
- Whisk attachment
- 20-oz beaker
- User manual
The Braun MultiQuick-5 set includes 4 pieces: a blender motor body, a blending wand, a whisk attachment, and a 20-ounce beaker. Given more accessories than most other brands do, we supposed Braun is attempting to go head-to-head with its rivals, not just in blending performance, but with the overall versatility.
Dimensions
At 1.59 lbs, the Braun is nearly a pound lighter than the Vitamix 5-speed — we tested recently, which felt quite heavy in the hand by comparison. Compact and portable, it has a footprint of 15 by 2.2 inches, and it looks identical to the promotional images.
8.0 Build Quality
The Braun MultiQuick-5 makes a strong visual impression out of the box. As a mid-range blender, it’s only about half the price of the premium ones. Despite that modest price point, it is made of quality materials and seems built to last.
It also feels good to hold regardless of hand size, thanks to its ergonomically-designed handle and BPA-free silicone coating that’s meant to ensure a slip-proof grip.
The interface is very intuitive with only two buttons so we even could figure out how they worked before reading the user manual. As a handy add-on, this blender also features Easy-Click release buttons, which allow for effortless accessories removal.
7.5 Blending Shaft
The 2-pronged blade that sits permanently at the bottom of the metal blending shaft is powered by a 300-watt motor. Made of standard stainless steel, it is sturdy and can withstand regular use without compromising on efficiency.
10 Beaker
Included as an additional accessory, the beaker is free of harmful chemicals. On the side, there are measurements clearly marked in milliliters and ounces. Due to its small size, this add-on is not suitably used for making hot-liquid-based foods since splattering will possibly occur, causing severe scalding and burns. Instead, you can use it to quickly prepare small batches of soups, sauces, smoothies, and dressings.
Regarding its durability, since we don’t have any chance to hands-on our beaker, it’s hard to tell at the moment. This accessory had been broken when we took it out of the box, resulting from the long shipping distance.
10 Power Cord
The Braun MultiQuick-5 has a 2-prong, 4.9 feet (1.5 m) power cord that plugs into any standard power supply rated to 120V AC.
Extra Accessories: Whisk Attachment
The Braun MultiQuick-5 is among a few hand blenders on the market that are shipped with a whisk attachment. This special add-on means to promote greater versatility, saving you from buying a hand mixer for beating egg-whites and emulsifying sauces.
Speed and Controls
The Braun MultiQuick-5 offers only two speed options: Low and Turbo. This means you have less fine control than with multi-speed blenders, but it’s easier to switch between modes.
To blend, just press and hold the appropriate speed button until the perfect texture is achieved. That said, both the buttons demand a relatively high pressing pressure to activate, which may be trickier for those with weaker hands or long nails.
8.7 Usability: Not Perfect but Great Enough
This blender is designed to be extremely comfortable to hold and use, even with just one hand. Not only that, but it also doesn’t demand us to use too much elbow grease on food tailings when it comes to cleaning.
8.6 Ease of Use
The Braun MultiQuick-5 may not be any better than certain other models in terms of efficiency and durability, but it could be the easiest to use if its buttons are improved to give a greater sense of control.
It didn’t take long for us to figure out how the blender worked due to its straightforward construction. Speeding up also wasn’t as complicated as we experienced with the Cuisinart Smart and Muller Ultra-Stick.
The only drawback is that both the buttons demand a relatively high pressing pressure to activate, which may be trickier for those with weaker hands or long nails.
Regarding our own using experience, this blender didn’t create suction or cause splattering throughout the soup-making procedure, even at the highest speed setting. As such, it enabled us to start low and smoothly increase the speed as we went instead of being distracted by the spatters.
However, it somehow suctioned tightly to the vessel’s bottom, causing excessive splatter when we struggled to move it around for an even milk blend. Furthermore, since this blender couldn’t sustain a good vortex, the liquid overflowed violently when we increased it to a higher speed. If you’re going to use this blender to make nut milk, we would recommend a taller beaker than the one it comes with.
We also very appreciate the blender’s blade housing. It’s specially designed to prevent fruits clinging to the blade backsides. Thanks to that, we didn’t have to use a food scraper when making smoothies.
9.5 Blade Assembly
The Braun MultiQuick 5 has accessory ejection buttons on the motor body — a handy function that even higher-priced models lack. These buttons are very clicky with great sensitivity; as soon as you press them, your blender shaft or whisk attachment will effortlessly push itself out from the motor body.
It’s very easy to attach the accessories as well, as long as your hands are dry. Simply align the main body with the attachment until they click together.
8.5 Handling
We especially like the silicone layer coating the main body, which offers a comfortable grip, reducing hand tension and slippage. So far, we haven’t haven’t found much to complain about with this design.
9.0 Cleanability
Although all the removable accessories are dishwasher-safe, we cleaned them manually to prevent discoloration caused by abrasive dishwasher detergents.
By just holding the blending wand under the running tap, both the soup and smoothie remnants were quickly removed, though we still wiped down the blending wand with dish soap to avoid cross-contamination. Thankfully, it wasn’t so difficult to scrub the backs of the blades.
Cleaning the whisk attachment was nearly as simple. We had little difficulty wedging soapy sponges between the loops to wipe off the residue.