BBC Good Food - 04.2020

APRIL 2020 bbcgoodfood.com 115

skills

Hand mi xers

An electric hand mixer is a useful

bit of kit for cake-making and

whisking cream or egg whites

ON TEST

BEST

BUDGET

NAMEFearne by Swan

5-speed hand mixer

PRICE from £16.99

A big pro for the

Swan is its balloon

whisk attachment –

egg whites whipped

with this are more

voluminous than those

mixed by the beaters.

It also performs very

well in kneading dough

with sturdy attachments

that cope well with the

weight. While there

is no turbo or pulse

button, it is powerful

and has ive speeds.

BEST

BLOWOUT

NAMEDualit CC810

PRICE £59

With its retractable

electric cable, the

Dualit oers the neatest

storage solution of all

the mixers we tested.

At 400W (like the

Fearne), it has decent

power, and its extra-

long beaters are ideal

for reaching to the

bottom of deep bowls

and jugs. It is quite

heavy compared to

other mixers, but the

weight is balanced to

rest easily in the hand.

Weight and balance:We

looked for mixers that were

easy to hold for several minutes

of whisking, that didn’t tilt up

and weren’t too heavy.

Handle:This needed to be

comfortable and not too broad

or sharp-edged. We favoured

those that were non-slip.

Ease of operating:It should be

possible to hold the mixer and

change the speed setting with

one hand. This leaves the other

hand free to steady the mixing

bowl and add ingredients.

Speed:The speed settings

should be distinctly dierent,

with gentle speeds for

softly whipping cream and

faster settings for tackling

buttercreams and thick batters.

Quality:We looked for sturdy

attachments that clip easily

into the mixer.

Vibration:We rejected mixers

that vibrated too much as this

can be uncomfortable.

Storage:We looked for

clever storage solutions for

attachments and cords.

Egg whites:Each mixer was

used to whisk 100g egg whites

to stipeaks using the beater

attachments, then again with

the balloon whisk attachment.

We noted how fast the eggs

whipped, what theinal volume

was, the thickness of the foam,

plus the size and regularity of

bubbles and overall glossiness.

Double cream:The second test

was whipping 200ml double

cream with beaters, then with

the balloon whisk. Cream is

easy to overbeat so this was

to test that the lowest speed

setting was gentle enough.

Buttercream:This was to test

the speed and power of the

hand mixers – achieving soft

luy buttercream takes a lot

of beating. We looked out

for overheating, dragging of

the beaters and unhealthy

motor sounds.

Kneading:Each mixer was

used to knead a dough made

with 250glour. We looked

at power, sturdiness and

ease of control.

WHAT WE LOOKED FOR HOW WE TESTED THEM

STAR BUY

NAMEKenwood HM535

PRICE £32

Prices correct at time of going to press

For more kitchenware on

test, visitbbcgoodfood.com/

feature/reviews

This lightweight mixer has a rounded handle that is very

comfortable with limited vibration and there’s a sliding switch

for speed that’s easy to operate with one thumb. Though it’s not

as powerful as other models, the Kenwood performed well in

all our tests. It doesn’t come with a balloon whisk attachment,

but the low-speed setting is gentle enough to softly whip cream

using its twin beaters. In our test, it quickly whisked egg whites

into a thick foam with lots of small, stable air bubbles.