There is nothing as refreshing as an evenly mixed protein shake with ice and as thirst quenching and as the body needs replenishing after a tiring workout or hot day. And purchasing frozen drinks may appear costly in the long run, considering that, you have to make the same drinks with refined ingredients.
If you are making ice and frozen drinks at home you may end up with a normal blender with pieces of unblended fruit. To help you get through this, you must settle for the best blender for ice and frozen foods. As for the blenders in the market, the ice crushing feature is not a standard one for most blenders. To guide you to the right blender for ice blending and other features that you should consider when buying the best blender we’ve got a list of the best blenders for blending ice below.
What is An Ice Blender?
An ice blender is a specialized machine that mainly operates on ice crushing function. It is very much like the normal kitchen blender but with a more powerful motor and an automatic mechanism to shut down the motor when it over heats or after use. Also, it has an additional feature of an ice blender which has an angle blades for crushing ice.
An ice crushing blender can be used in blending of smoothies and other frozen items at your home. Different from other blenders they can easily blend ice and other frozen meals such as berries, fruits among others. However, it may be noted that some blenders come with pre programmed blending cycles such that you do not have to learn how to operate the blender.
With this in mind, let's look at the best blenders in this category.
1. Ninja BL610 Professional Blender
- PROFESSIONAL POWER: 1000 watts of professional power can crush...
- XL CAPACITY: The 72 oz professional blender pitcher is excellent...
- INTELLIGENT TECHNOLOGY: Total Crushing Technology delivers...
- ICE CRUSHING: Blast ice into snow in seconds and blend your...
- RECIPE INSPIRATION: The included recipe guide provides drink and...
The Ninja Professional blender is built with a power of a 1000-watt motor to chop ice and puree frozen or difficult dials. It comes equipped with the 72 oz.* Blender Pitcher with the maximum liquid capacity capacity of 64 oz. It is perfect for blending scrumptious and thick, creamy smoothies and frozen drinks of a family sized portion for everyone.
This professional blender features total crushing technology along with stainless steel blades which reduces ice in mere minutes. The blender also comes with 5 simple to understand buttons namely, power on/off, low, high, pulse, and pulse control. This makes it a user-friendly machine.
If you desire an ice blender that is value for the money, then the Ninja BL610 professional blender will suit your need. The pitcher is BPA free so you can wash it in the dishwasher when is needed. In the package, there is a recipe book which will make available more food and drinks options.
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2. Vitamix 5200 Blender
- Variable Speed Control: Easily adjust speed to achieve a variety...
- Large Batches: The size and shape of the self-cleaning 64-ounce...
- Hot Soup: The blades in the Vitamix container reach speeds fast...
- Hardened Stainless-Steel Blades: Our aircraft-grade stainless...
- Self-Cleaning: With a drop of dish soap and warm water, your...
The Vitamix 5200 blender comes with one-touch variable control so that it is easy to set the speed at which it blends. This contributes to attainment of several textural effects. Also, the speed control dial is adjustable concerning the angular speed and can be rotated at any time during blending.
This blender model is equipped with a 1500 watts motor. This ensures its capacity for crushing ice and all other frozen additions to a drink. That is if you want to make a large number of frozen drinks at one time, the Vitamix will suit you best. This is because the self-cleaning blending container has a carrying capacity of about 64-ounces.
This blender has a special radial cooling fan and thermal protection system in order to protect the blender from damages due to overheating. They are aircraft-grade stainless steel, and they grind even the most challenging ingredients to offer a comparable texture that the blender produces. Besides, the blades in the Vitamix container spin to the speed that is fast enough to heat cold ingredients through friction heat making them steaming hot in quite some time.
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3. Blendtec Classic Original Blender
- Elevate Your Blending Experience: High quality blender for...
- Patented blade/80% thicker stainless-steel forged blade with...
- Large batches BPA-free four-sided jar is a 75 ounce volume jar...
- Warming Soup Blendtec blenders heat soups and drinks through...
- 2 Year Warranty/American Company: Family-owned and driven to...
The Blendtec original blender provides a wide range blender that froth ice and frozen food such as shakes, smooth and cocktail drinks. However, there is nothing problematic with the blender as it has an incredibly powerful 3-peak horsepower motor which is equal to 1560 watts. This makes it to work more effectively in crushing frozen fruits as required.
This blender is particularly easy to assemble and use and also rather easy to clean. This includes blending cycles which are already pre-programmed to allow for easy use, shut-off mechanism and digital touch pad controls. If control features and an overbearing interface are not among your favorite things, then you will like this blender. It has some buttons whereby you can choose your desired blending speed and it switches off as soon as blending is over.
The Blendtec classic original blender that is our topic of analysis comes in an ultra-modern design that makes it eye-popping on the countertop. This has 2 stainless steel prong blades that can spin at a speed that would make short work of almost any food stuff hardened as they may be. Further, the jar, made of plastic that free of BPA, is designed in a way that will enable ingredients to fall close to the blade, and thus, the appliance does not require a tamper.
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4. Ninja BL660 Professional Blender
- Ninja professional blender with Nutri Ninja Cups has 1100 watts...
- 72 ounce total crushing pitcher pulverizes ice to snow in seconds...
- 2 16 ounce Nutri Ninja cups with to go lids are perfect for...
- XL. capacity to create creamy, frozen drinks and smoothies for...
- Dishwasher safe and BPA free parts single serve blade assembly
With Ninja Nutri-Blade Pro blender, program controls are three; pre-set speeds, a single serve, and a pulse. It has a 72-ounce pitcher and will pulverize ice into snow within a few seconds for cold, creamy mixed drinks and smoothies. Besides, you get 2 16 ounce Nutri Ninja cups with lids, so that you can carry the blended content with you.
This blender model has a power of 1100 watts as the motor power needed to create a professional-quality end product when it comes to the crushed ice. This BPA-free plastic pitcher is XL-sized to combine family-friendly healthy creamy drinks on a large scale.
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5. Hamilton Beach 58148A Blender
- 700 watts: Peak blending power for powerful ice crushing.
- Wave action system: 700 watt power blender continuously pulls...
- 12 blending functions: Multi-function blender with only 5 simple...
- Easy to clean: Blades remove for easy cleaning. Jar, blades, and...
- Clean, easy pour: Multi-function blender with unique, no mess...
We have the Hamilton 54220 blender as our last blender of the list. It however has a less powerful motor of 700w, which makes it different from other ice blenders on our list. Though it does not operate like a blender should, it is a great ice crusher and very portable, which makes great for general use if you don’t want to invest in a blender.
The Hamilton blender uses a wave action system that helps in drawing all the contents of the ingredients downwards into the blades that means you are sure that you will not have some chunk that was not worked on in your drink. also this multifunction blender has a versatility of 12 powers combined into 5 buttons of blending. This make the blender suitable for power blending.
The parts of this blender are easily detachable to allow easy cleaning. Not only the jar but also the lid is suitable for the dishwasher. In addition to this, there is a patented mess free blenders spout and this blender has a convenient cord storage to keep the process of assembling easy.
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How Do You Choose the Best Blender for Ice?
The choice of blenders on the market is tremendous, so choosing the right one for ice can become a real problem. To assist with that, below are a few important things that you should consider before purchasing an ice blender.
1. Powerful Motor
Motor power is important when searching for a machine that will crush ice without much effort. A motor with a rating of not less than 1500 watts is better in the best blender for crushing ice and frozen fruit. Having said that, a low-wattage motor is cheaper to run than a high-wattage motor, but a low-wattage motor simply will not defrost the frozen foods, not unless you leave them out to thaw first.
As for the motor power, you should also take into account such aspect as safety, regarding plugging the blender to the power socket. These blenders usually contain some components that are very hot when crushing ice into fine snow and therefore some blenders contain a cooling system whereby the blender motor can cool either during use or after use. This makes it possible to avoid damage to the motor, or particular burnout resulting from overheating. It also makes you safe in the event of any electric hitch.
2. Blades
The blades are an essential component of any blender because they determine the consistency and texture of your blend. The type of blades that are designed and the material that are used to develop those blades determines the kind of blender that will be able to crush the frozen ingredients. More so, it is made with stainless steel blades which are more lengthy lasting as oppose to the others.
Strong blades are also required as they will not chip on frozen food and are long lasting tools. Conversely, if you need a versatile blender then sharp blades are preferable available in the market. Besides, you need to make sure that a blender has its blades placed at the base of the jar as well. This will also prevent ice and frozen fruits to be allowed in without being chopped first.
3. Design and Material of the Jar
The design of the blending jar is also important for the efficiency of the machine and is also designed to perform the task. In food blending the content of the food is always pulled towards the blades, through the bottom of the container to a stage where it is pushed towards the walls of the vessel until all the ingredients are mixed. A wide base pitcher will have the food contents freely falls onto the blades while those with narrow jars may need you press the ingredients with a spatula.
4. Durability
The best blenders for crushing ice should be one that will last for long time use in the kitchen. Consequently, the lifespan of the machine will depend on the overall materials that are employed in the construction. For instance, a good blending jar should be constructed from impact-resistant glass or dense poly carlite material. These materials used in the construction of the jar helps increase the product’s capacity to handle the pressure when crushing the ice cubes.
Other such materials as stainless steel, tritan plastic are preferred qualities used in its construction of blenders. Also, backed up by an integrated motor cooling fan and automatic overheat protection, the blender functions optimally and for a long time.
5. Ease of Use
Usability is always a significant feature of any given kitchen appliance is a necessity because it simply gets rid of all the guesswork. As a result, the best blender for ice and frozen ingredients is one which can be easily assembled and disassembled. Besides that, it should have a normal interface, like separate buttons or presets for operation.
If you prefer an easy-to-use blender, then there are blenders that have pre-programmed buttons such as a smoothie button to remove all guess work. But, in any case, a feature-heavy interface will prove effective if you are ready to accept lengthy manuals and control processes. Besides, the blender that should effectively crush ice should also be easy to clean.
6. Capacity
If you want to make the most out of blender or if the blender will be used frequently, you may try adding the size that will fit the size of the food you want to prepare. For instance, a blender that has a larger total capacity will be useful if you wait for a big family. On the other hand, if you would want to prepare just enough for one time, one might wish to get a personal blender.
8. Price
Ice and frozen fruits blenders are priced differently due to the additions made to the blender and the manufacturer. As a result, we will advice you to compare different blenders in order to determine the features and prices that you want for the blender.
Frequently Asked Questions
1. Can blenders blend ice?
Though regular blenders try to shave ice, they do not completely crush it. For that reason, if you want to pulverize ice then it is wise to buy an ice and frozen fruit blender because this blender is uniquely designed to crush ice.
2. Can I blend frozen fruit?
If you place the fruits that have been completely frozen in the blender it will end up with lumps in the frozen drink. Further, this has a long term consequence of wearing down the sharp edges of the blades. To bypass this, you can simply let your fruits sit at room temperature, or place your fruits in a ziplock bag and immerse it in water, to thaw. You might also want to also look at a blender specifically for blending frozen foods such as fruits.
3. What wattage blender do I need for ice?
Ideally, a blender should have a powerful motor and the recommended watts should be ranging between 1000 and 1500 watts.
