A stick blender is a type of hand blender that is inserted into the food being blended. The common name comes from the shape, which is roughly sticklike. Stick blenders, especially when they come with a variety of attachments, can be extremely useful in the kitchen for a variety of tasks. Stick blenders, also known as immersion blenders or hand blenders, are available at most kitchen supply stores. If you can’t find a good supplier in your area, you can order stick blenders directly from the manufacturer.
The design was created in the 1950s in Switzerland. The inventor of the stick blender realized that a blender or food processor is inconvenient in some situations where food must be transferred into a container for blending. A blender, on the other hand, is extremely useful for tasks such as pureeing soup or emulsifying sauces; a whisk is often insufficient for these tasks. As a result, he created a blender that could be immersed in food, which was a rather ingenious solution to the problem.
By the 1960s, many European kitchens, including professional kitchens, had adopted the stick blender. The concept gained traction in the United States in the 1980s, and many recipes now call for the use of a stick blender all over the world. The device may appear strange and amusing, but it can save a lot of time and energy, as well as reduce the number of dishes produced during the cooking process.
To use a stick blender, the cook selects and attaches the desired attachment. The stick blender can either be battery-powered or plugged into the wall; in either case, the blender is inserted into the food and turned on. Many cooks prefer to blend in a high-sided pot or bowl to reduce splashback. Some stick blenders come with splash-guard attachments, and most take a few seconds to reach full speed or have multiple speed settings to prevent food from flying everywhere.
Make sure to read the care instructions before purchasing a stick blender. A stick blender should ideally be fully immersible in water for thorough cleaning, and the attachments should be simple to remove for cleaning. You might also want to consider a stick blender with heat-resistant attachments that is designed for stovetop use. Stick blender attachments are easy to misplace because they can slide beneath larger kitchen utensils; you might want to keep them in a box or tray with other small kitchen gadgets.