KitchenAid Cordless Hand Blender In-depth Review
Overall Verdict
As a battery-powered device, the KitchenAid KHBBV53 Cordless hand blender is more mobile than most. It expands your culinary space and maximizes the convenience of hand blending. However, in terms of capability, this is just an average hand blender with very little that makes it stand out from the crowd. And realistically, battery power translates to limited power, you should be ready to improvise if its battery runs dry while the blending is still in progress.
Things We Like
- It can quick-charge in only 20 minutes
- A beaker is included for greater convenience
- Ergonomically-designed handle provides secure grip
- Simple battery charging
- The included pan guard will prevent damage to non-stick cookware.
Things We Don’t Like
- Its performance is often inconsistent
- Not as efficient as other similar blenders
KitchenAid is one of the best-known brands in the world of cooking tools. Founded in 1919, it has introduced a range of kitchen appliances in different categories, one of which is a collection of stylish blenders. In this post, we will provide a brief overview of the cordless KitchenAid Various Speed KHBBV53 with particular focus on its efficiency and usability. We bought this blender of our own accord and tested it for weeks in order to bring you authentic and dependable critiques on its use.
7.9 Performance: Top of the Segment
KitchenAid’s manufacturers advertise that their cordless stick blender can do just about anything, but our hands-on testing suggests otherwise. Although our KitchenAid KHBBV53 could easily power through frozen fruits to create an icy smoothie, it failed to properly whisk egg whites. On the upside, it is simple to use and is powerful enough for light-duty tasks like making hot soup, emulsifying sauce, and grinding soaked nuts.
8.5 Hot Soup Purée
This stylish hand blender worked quickly and made acceptable puree soup without a struggle. The sharp stainless steel blades allowed it to hot blend root veggies quite uniformly. Even fibrous ingredients like celery and onions ended up fully incorporated into the mixture.
Although the KitchenAid KHBBV53 didn’t create a perfect puree, our soup looked good and was much silkier than that produced by its competitors, such as the Mueller Ultra Stick and the Hamilton Beach 2-speed.
9.0 Frozen Fruit Smoothie
Featuring multiple speed settings, this KitchenAid KHBBV53 pulverized all the ingredients with ease, which was really surprising.
The blending process also went as smoothly, though, at certain points, fruits got trapped under the blades, demanding us to stop the machine and dislodge the food. Plus, to achieve an even blend, we had to move the blending wand as constantly and consistently as we could. However, that didn’t make us feel frustrated, especially given that the result was exactly what we’d like — it looked silky and more than appetizing. If you buy this blender, we believe no smoothie recipe could overwhelm it.
6.5 Mayonnaise
As a battery-powered blender, the KitchenAid KHBBV53 didn’t work as quickly as its corded counterparts. In fact, it was about 50% slower than the fastest Cuisinart Smart Stick even though it sells for nearly double the price.
On the bright side, the KitchenAid produced acceptable mayonnaise. Although the sauce didn’t look as creamy as we’d like, its smooth and fluffy texture would be enough for any salad.
8.3 Almond Milk
The KitchenAid KHBBV53 is adequate for preparing non-dairy milk, but isn’t deserving of much praise. Of all the blenders we tested, this was the only one that created a foamy texture as a result of too much incorporated air. We removed the foam during the straining process so it didn’t impair the milk’s quality in the end. But it’s worth noting that the milk would have overflowed onto the countertop if we hadn’t paused periodically to stir it back into the jar with a long spoon.
Moreover, this blender didn’t blend as evenly or as consistently as its mid-range counterparts, namely the Braun MultiQuick-5. Consequently, our milk didn’t get all the flavor out of the almonds. It was still an acceptable alternative to store-bought almond milk, but not ideal.
Failed Whipped Egg-Whites
The KitchenAid KHBBV53 was doomed to failure in this test since there was no way its blending wand could draw enough air into the egg-whites to form them properly. As a result, it left us with a cloudy cup of two separate layers: bubbly film and eggy water. Other blenders with whisking attachments, on the other hand, achieved stiff peaks quite easily.
8.4 Design: The Way a Mind-Range Product Should
Although the KitchenAid KHBBV53 isn’t as efficient as most corded blenders, it carves out a distinct identity in terms of overall construction. It looks trendy, appeals to us aesthetically, and feels very solid. And its straightforward design impressed us in ways none of the others did.
In the Box
- Motor body
- Blending shaft
- 24-oz beaker with lid
- Pan guard
- Charger adapter
- User manual
The KitchenAid KHBBV53 set includes 6 pieces as outlined above. If you’re looking for a more versatile blender, consider upgrading instead to the KitchenAid KHBBV83. That version works just as efficiently but comes with the whisk and chopper attachments to further enable your culinary creativity.
Dimensions
The KitchenAid KHBBV53 is well-balanced with a satisfying, weighty feel. It’s really comfortable to hold and the long blending shaft can reach deep into large pots.
8.5 Build Quality
The KitchenAid KHBBV53 is quite an expensive blender, so we’re happy to say its solid construction delivers on that price tag. As a mid-range blender, it doesn’t look as sleek as the premium ones (for example, the Vitamix 5-speed), but this doesn’t mean it’s less durable. Although it is mostly made of plastic, it seems to be high quality and the metal parts resist corrosion pretty well. So far, we haven't noticed any damage on the exterior, even though discoloration is fairly common among immersion blenders with plastic components.
The blending shaft, on the other hand, leaves a bit to be desired. Its blade guard is made of stainless steel but looks relatively flimsy and doesn’t have a good finish. It is flecked with countless black spots which can’t be wiped off. That certainly ruins the interior’s shine but doesn’t impair operation.
7.8 Blending Shaft
The KitchenAid KHBBV53 features two-pronged blades which can withstand consistent use pretty well but don’t look as impressive as the higher-priced counterparts, such as the Vitamix.
Blending with this blender is a pleasure since its blade housing helps limit the splattering. Although the guard is made of metal, it won’t leave scratches on your cookware’s interior if you attach the included plastic pan guard. In our initial soup test, we immersed our blender — with that pan guard attached — into a glass pot and noticed zero damage.
Speed and Controls
This blender offers multiple speed options and its trigger switch is extremely responsive. In a departure from most, the speed is determined by the amount of pressure you apply to the trigger. Your blender will run at its highest speed if you press the controller all the way down.
There is also a palm switch on the blender’s backside which acts as a safety mechanism. To blend, you must hold that switch down along with the trigger switch. We personally appreciate that idea since it helps prevent the motor from being accidentally engaged and hurting someone.
Although the KitchenAid KHBBV53 doesn’t feature a separate switch for a pulse function, you can also get plenty of control over your chopping preparations by pressing the trigger in short bursts.
10 Beaker
Our set included a single-serve jar which is BPA-free and top-rack dishwasher-safe. As a nice bonus, the jar features a thin rubber ring on the bottom to keep it stable while blending. It also includes a tight-seal black lid for fresher on-the-go drinks.
10 Battery
The lithium-ion battery can keep the power going long enough for approximately 25 medium bowls of soup if fully charged for 2 hours. The 0.5-amp charger ensures speedy recharging for the first 20 minutes (that takes it from 0% to 30%). With a quick charge, your blender will be set for a batch of purees or smoothies. Our real-world experience, though, suggests that the advertised charging performance can only be achieved at room temperature rather than in the cold of winter.
The light on the top indicates the battery status. It turns green when the blender is fully powered and reminds you to consider charging when it turns yellow or red.
Extra Accessories: Not Included
This blender set doesn’t come with any extra blending attachment.
7.8 Usability: Issues with Head-Suction
Out of all the blenders we tested, this one’s simplicity makes it the easiest to use. However, it challenged our hand movements throughout the operations due to its bad suction control. It also has some significant drawbacks that caused most of our professional cooks to reject buying.
7.9 Ease of Use
The KitchenAid KHBBV53 is intuitive to use but maneuvering it isn’t as easy. More often than not, we had a hard time with our blending motions since this machine created a bit too much suction. Every time it sucked tight to the blending container’s bottom, we would hardly stir or draw it up without causing a mess.
Additionally, it took us a bit of practice to be proficient at using the speed controller. To hit the maximum speed, we simply press the switch all the way down, but things are complicated when you want a mid-range speed.
Not only that, but we also felt quite apprehensive trying to figure out how to speed up or slow down on our own. The user manual doesn’t provide any instructions for that. It even doesn’t explain that the speed trigger switch is pressure sensitive.
7.5 Blade Assembly
We set up our blender by aligning the blending wand to the motor body until they locked in place. To disassemble, we turned the attachment counterclockwise and then pulled it out from the body. That sounds as easy as one-two-three, but since this blender doesn’t include a release button like most others, removal demands more pulling force, which may be trickier to do if your hands are oily.
7.5 Handling
This blender is comfortable to hold thanks to the ergonomically-designed handle, but the slick, polished finish will be slippery when it’s oily or wet. This can make your grip unstable, especially if your hands fatigue quickly.
8.0 Cleanability
The blending wand is dishwasher-safe, so cleaning will not be a challenging task. However, if you clean it manually, getting the blades’ backsides to sparkle again is almost impossible without a bottle-cleaning brush.
Following each test, we used a soapy sponge to scrub away the food tailings and most of the residue rinsed off easily. However, we couldn’t simply wipe away all sticky remnants (like mayonnaise) that clung stubbornly in the back of the blades. Instead, we had to use a straw-cleaning brush to get into those hard-to-reach spaces.