Today’s question is from Amber:
Is a Vita-Mix blender worth the money? If you have a Vita-Mix, what do you use it for? -Amber
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We love ours! We use it EVERY DAY and it can chew through whole frozen strawberries without a problem. I bought a refurbished one, and it has the same warranty, and I’ve been very happy with it (and saved $$). Also, beware that the costco and shopping network versions have a shorter warranty, so check! If you buy from Vitamix, it’s a 7 year warranty. It made sense for us after burning out about three $80 blenders.
Yes! Other lower priced blenders will not liquefy till smooth. it will also emulsify oil and make hot soup out of whole ingredients. Like fresh peanut butter? I could go on…
The Vitamix can replace a lot of appliances: blender, grain/seed grinder (both dry and oily), coffee grinder, ice crusher, juicer, food processor. You can even make liquid compost and natural pesticides if you have a dedicated separate container. I do have the dry blade container and for a year ground wheat. I found that grinding 2 cups at a time gave me the best consistency. The flour does get warm but I’ve ground several batches at a time without the appliance getting over heated. After a year I got a Wondermill for grinding grain and honestly the Vitamix is able to give me a finer flour, but I am doing very large quantities if flour now and the Wondermill is quicker and easier. Part of the selling point of the Vitamix is the “whole food” concept. The blender is able to handle things like peelings and seeds you would normally discard that have nutrients that are beneficial.
I’ve had my Vita Mix for 28 years now. Have had to replace the rubber gasket once. Which I DID NOT have to pay for. Love the machine. Use it pretty much daily for all these years and with eight kids thats’s a lot. Smoothies shakes, dressing, our family favorite, cottage cheese pancakes, peanut butter, etc. Definitely well worth the money.
I haven’t read EVERY comment, but I think the bottom line is this: I haven’t found anyone who has a Vitamix that doesn’t love it. Everyone who says they are too expensive, or that their current blender works just fine, has never tried one. Basically, I’m saying that they don’t know what they are missing.
Your comment cracked me up. 🙂
That’s exactly what I was thinking as I read them. I’ve been trying to decide about a BlendTec for about a year now…but after reading these comments I’m now wondering if a VitaMix is the way to go. I need a BlendTec vs. VitaMix post now. 🙂
Def worth it!!!!! We have had ours for about 7 years now. And my grandmother had one that was over 30 years old and worked. We bought it for my oldest son who is fed thru a tube in his stomach. The Vitamix blender was the only one that we found that could blend anything fine enough to go down his tube. And of course we use it for the smoothies!!!!!
YES! Although I don’t actually get to use it. My husband bought it and I about fell over at the price. However, he is extremely healthly and makes veggie/fruit drinks in it almost daily at his fire stations. He totes it around everywhere with him in his truck. He did allow our friends to use it for a special 2 week diet they did and then promptly picked it back up. They were so sad because they loved it too. 🙂 I will have to begrudgingly say that it really has been worth the money. He used different blenders and juicers in the past and unfortunatley they have all been sold in a garage sale.!!
100% worth the splurge. I use my Vitamix Every.Single.Day. Best kitchen appliance I own. I make simple soups for dinner (and healthy), smoothies, peanut butter, and other stuff…
Seriously worth the cash.
Would you be up for starting a recipe list? For Vitamix users? 🙂 Would love some tried and true suggestions for gluten free and dairy free options!!!
Thank you!
I’m with you on that! I never realized people made their own dairy-free milks and all the things that people have mentioned here! I would LOVE to know how to do that since we are gluten-free, dairy-free for my daughter. If I could make more, it would save us more money since several things we buy are a bit expensive.
i should have added… we got ours from my mother-in-law… it’s over 12 years old and still can handle anything! look on craigslist or at garage sales, like some of the others have mentioned 🙂
100% worth the cost!
I inherited a Vitamix when my mother passed, and I have to say it’s by far my favorite appliance. It’s about 10 years old and still runs like new. I use it to make smoothies, blend soup, make hummus, grind stuff – you name it. I definitely think it is worth the money if you can afford it. I can’t imagine going back to a regular blender after owning one of these. As recommended previously, leave it on the counter and you’ll find a use for it almost daily!
Our Vitamix is a life saver literally. My 2 and half year old son was diagnosed two years ago with a chromosome deletion along with failure to thrive. He was on commercial formula which was causing him to be severely constipated and his tummy would get really really bloated. If it was not for a Vitamix he would still be on the formula, but the blender is so high powered that it can puree anything and he is able to eat all of his food, at one point through a feeding tube, and now through a bottle. He has gained about 5 pounds from making the switch when before the food he was still not gaining weight and was so skinny. We use it too, each morning I make a juice for me and my 4 year old and it gives us our fruits and veggies easily in a sweet juice with everything still right there the pulp and everything. Whereas a juice would remove the skin and pulp which is where a lot of good nutrient are at.
I have owned my only Vitamix for about 10 years – it took me 3 years to decide to buy it due to cost. I can unequivocally say it is the best tool I have ever bought. If you only want to use it as a smoothie machine or blender, there are less expensive options that probably do a great job – but I will say that there is absolutely nothing that I have put in my Vitamix that doesn’t come out silky smooth. And truthfully, this is what I used it mostly for the first few years. Lots and lots of smoothies. But then I gave it a place of honor on my very small counter, and I use it everyday, 2-3 times a day. I make coconut or nut milk a few times a week, ice cream, soup, grind my coconut flour, make hummus, grind coffee, make batters, chop hard cheese or the occasional onion (I still like to chop by hand), make coleslaw, etc. I have ground wheat in it, but I am not using wheat right now, and I second the commenter that said it is a little nuttier and it gets warm.
Because I am able to make so many items from scratch (and I personally enjoy doing it) I have saved and continue to save untold grocery $ (we buy copious amounts of fresh fruits and veggies). And the convenience cannot be beat.
For those posters that say that the Vitamix is too expensive and they wouldn’t recommend it – there is no doubt it is an investment, but I noticed that none of them mentioned that they have one or have used it. It is in the using that that you realize the power and versatility of the tool, so unless you have used one, it would be very hard to genuinely assess its value to someone else. I know that I would replace mine in a heartbeat if something happened to it. And it would certainly be a $ pinch. I bought mine for about $375, have had it about 10 years, so I figure that is $37.50 per year, or $3/month and its still going strong.
One last thought – because using it is so easy and we have the habit of using it so much – much of our diet is fresh. I am 48, my husband is 64 and neither of us are on any medication, we are at normal weights, have far more energy than many of the folks we work with, and the we are often asked what we do to stay so healthy looking. I attribute much of that to our diet, and the impact that the Vitamix has in that.
If it is on your budget, and you plan to explore the uses of the tool – you’ll probably be like the rest of the owners, and be very pleased with your purchase. 🙂
i really encourage you to evaluate why you want one- what do you want to do with it and do you have other machines that will do the job? we bought one last summer at costco. we had looked at them for a few years and i decided i would not buy another cheap blender. i had looked at food processors but also decided that i would not do that because i felt saving that money for a vita mix would be a better investment. i really like it. i am dairy and wheat free. it makes great whole food smoothies/juices and is simpler than using a juicer (thou they have their place). i make sauces and soups sometimes. I’ve concocted some dairyfree shakes and “ice cream”. i’m thankful we had the money to get one. but i did look around at the costco demo and wonder if some people who were buying would really use it or if it would become just another fad appliance.
I’ve owned a Vita Mix for around 14 years now (you can read about my adventures with it at my blog: veganfootprints.blogspot.com). I’ve read all the comments (right now, about 124 and counting) so far. I don’t think that I’ve read that anyone bought theirs because they were sentimental for the Vita-Mix brand. Kind of like when many women pine for a “KitchenAid” (stand mixer). I also owned one of those for awhile, but I didn’t do a lot of baking, so I sold it (attachments and all), believe it or not. I actually liked kneading my bread dough by hand anyway.
I pined for a Vitamix for a few years after I was married. When we finally bought one, I didn’t use it as much at first as I do now. It’s been through 2 babies, many moves (including to Ghana, West Africa and back), dietary changes (from ovo-lacto vegetarian to vegan, to gluten free, from more processed foods to more raw and whole foods based), . We literally use it more that our stove and oven. Yes, and daily green smoothies too, complete with apple & pineapple cores, chia/flax seed, entire whole leaves of both collards and kale. Smooth as silk. We like to make a vegan “cheese” sauce with it now and again. Soups, sauces, salsa, etc…
I have never owned another blender, so I couldn’t tell you how it compares (I was blender-less for our first 5 years of marriage). I have never owned a microwave either. Owning a Vitamix is fast food at it’s finest! =)
I had my eye on a Vitamix for awhile before we bought ours. It is an investment. One that I don’t mind making. They have excellent customer service and a great warranty. I’m actually on my second one. Although I like to think I put it through it’s paces, the reality is that I took my originally refurbished one overseas and had to use a converter to run it and I think the non-stable electric current did a number on it. I actually now live less than 2 hours away from the Vitamix company. So when we needed to replace ours, they were having an open house and gave a nice discount for turning an old one in toward another, so that’s what we did.
There are some things that it does better than others. It’s great at blending. I recently bought a food processor to handle the dry chopping of veggies (like for chunkier cole slaws or nice carrots shreds) and mixing fruit & nut mixes better (think homemade larabars). I make my almond butter with my Cuisinart food processor. I do use the vitamix for making non-dairy milks (almond mostly). I still own a juicer, so I don’t have to strain things out, but it all depends how much you use things and what foods you eat or would like to make.
I’ve ground wheat (before going wheat-free), but you can only do about 2 cups of grain at one time in the Vitamix. If you want it fine, you must run the Vitamix longer, which translates to a much warmer flour than I like. I think stonemilling for grains is better, personally. A metal blade (Vitamix) running that fast will always heat up your grain much faster.
Anyway, just wanted to put my vote in for happy customers. I hear a Blendtec is very similar. I just hadn’t heard of it until just a few years ago.
If the money isn’t there to buy something like this, then don’t. Try the other machines based on what they work best for. I have to say that unless you want a blender, don’t buy a Vitamix just for the kneading/grinding grains ability, or veggie chopping ability, etc. Buy it first and foremost because it is a good blender. Everything else it does is just gravy (a nice benefit).
=)
I use my vita mix all the time. One of the best purchases I have ever made. Some good advice someone once told me “If you buy it and put it out on the counter it will get used but if you put it in a cabinet it is often forgot.” We make applesauce, smoothies, soups, sauces, spaghetti sauce, butter, ice cream, breads, baby food (when we had a baby in the house), peanut butter, salad dressing, and so much more. We love it and have had ours for probaby four years. Oh did I mention their whole fruit margaritas are awsome.
If you can pay cash – yes, yes, yes and yes it is worth it – saves lots of money in the long run – it saves on baby food, ice cream, bread, smoothies, nut butters, soup – and most importantly TIME!
I purchased a Vitamix on a promotional sale at BJs a couple years ago, and besides my kitchenaid professional level mixer, this is the second best kitchen purchase I ever made. I use it just about daily, and often several times a day. It has saved me so much time and clean up is a breeze. I bought it to replace a kitchenaid blender and food processer that were fizzling out, and these were the second ones I had owned after my first burned out. The vitamix can do far more than both those appliances combined. I HIGHLY recommend investing in one, it’s worth every penny!
Love it–you can grind up wheat berries to make awesome bread in less than 5 minutes, no kneading.
I got a Ninja Blender for about $80 after sales and it will blend ANYTHING! I’d say it’s a good second option and honestly might do just as good a job or better than a Vita-mix.
I bought the Ninja about a year ago and it is much better than my Oster for smoothies and such, but I have not tried it for grinding grain – maybe I should. From what I have read the Vita Mix goes way beyond a ‘blender’ and if I did as much as some of the commenters say they do, it would be my go to machine too. Too pricey as a smoothie maker though.
We’ve been looking into a good blender at our house, but, since we have small kids who help with the dishes, we ruled out the Ninja. Too scary for our house of little helpers…
We’ve had ours for two years and I use it at least once daily. I use it for all the things people say above. If you are trying to be cheap it is a lot cheaper to make your own nut/seed butters, nut milks (coconut milk, yum), ice cream, etc. It’s just way healthier and cheaper to feed yourself healthy food with a Vitamix.
I have two material loves in this world that I will tell anyone about given the opportunity: my Vitamix and Nike free running shoes (I’ve been running anything from sprints to 1/2 marathons in them for 4 years, LOVE them, but not as much as my Vitamix).
We love our vitamix that we have had for 4 years and use it almost every day. We make smoothies, soups, salad dressings, baby food, etc. I would highly recommend it to anyone!
Four hundred+ dollars for a blender is crazy to me! I use my oster blender to make green smoothies every day and it works just fine. When I really want something but I’m not sure if it will fit in my lifestyle I go for a cheap version. Sometimes the cheap version works great, and if not I know more what I’m looking for when it’s time to spend the dough.
I am not much of a cook but I think it pays for itself in smoothies alone. I love it and would buy a replacement one in a second if needed but it is TOUGH so I don’t expect to have to replace it anytime soon.
I consider Vitamixs to be high quality but overpriced. I’ve had a $50 Krupps blender/4c. food processor for about 12 years, it’s never needed a replacement part or fix. It’s blended frozen berries, smoothies, breadcrumbs, soups, and so on quite nicely. Great bargain.
I love ours and think it is is worth every penny. In college I tried to make do with various cheaper versions, and they all burned out. I finally now have a vitamix and we use it almost every day–making everything from smoothies to hummus and grinding flour!
I’ve had my Vitamix since Christmas of 2000. LOVE it!!! Use it EVERY day! Mostly smoothies, but I also chop carrots, blend soups, make corn gravy, etc. It was actually a gift, but I’d totally buy one again.
It depends on what you think you will use it for.
I LOVE mine!!! I use it everyday for at least one green smoothie or juice. I love it because it thoroughly grinds up the entire fruit/veggie so I get all the pulp and fiber.
I use the dry blender to grind grains for my homemade bread. I grind soybeans to make my own soymilk. One can also use it for other nut milks.
You can turn veggies into wonderful soups quickly. I use a can of tomatoes, some spices, and a half can of water or (soy)milk to make tomato soup. There’s so many recipes for quick and easy soups.
You can make your own ice creams, fruit slushies and fruit pops for the kids.
My hummus and baba ganoush turns out incredibly smooth….better than when I used to make it in a blender.
A VitaMixer gives you the ability to control what goes into your food. I wish I had been more evolved when my son was born and I would have made all his baby food.
I think that if you’re interested in making a lot of your own food and doing juices/green smoothies, you will be very happy with a VM.
The only thing I regret is not getting mine sooner.
Like anything it depends on your lifestyle and your needs. I am dairy free and gluten free, and I can honestly say that the Vitamix has saved me hundreds of dollars in just the two years I’ve owned it. (It was a gift I’m eternally grateful for).
I crave ice cream, but can’t eat “real” ice cream, and “fake” ice creams are $3-8 depending on what size you get. I bake often and therefore use large quantities of “milk” which will run between $2-4 per half gallon depending on what you get, where you get it and what coupons you have on hand. Which in my family translates to $6-8 per week on substitue “milks.” It all adds up. Owning a Vitamix I have cut out $5-15 per week from my grocery budget, no that is savings! At this rate you’ll pay for the blender in 6-12 months, and everything from there is money in your pocket. Even better if it’s a gift, refurbished, or a second hand steal.
With the Vitamix I make my own milk from 1/2 cup of brown rice and water. So pennies verseus dollars. I also make my own sorbets and ice creams and never feel like I’m missing out on treats. The list could go on, but if you actually cook / bake often AND are on a restricted diet this will not only be an emotional lifesaver it will pay for itself and pay you back in a short amount of time.
If you are allergic to dairy and yet still want a “normal” lifestyle and diet it’s hard without a very powerful blender. I had 2 kitchenaid blenders and both burned out (each after only one year). The Vitamix will last when other less industrial strength ones will fall to the wayside.
Is it right for everyone – no. Is it amazing if you need to make your own dairy products – yes.
Rebecca,
I have a Blendtec and whole heartedly agree. I’ve yet to try to make dairy-free milk but would like to. Do you have any tried and true dairy-free recipes for ice cream that don’t involve non-dairy creamer or soy? We too are dairy-free and are still working to find a good recipe with these exclusions.
Thanks!
Jennifer
Jennifer –
I tend to make sorbet because it’s naturally dairy free and delicious. My favorite recipe is as follows:
* 1 pound frozen fruit
* 1/2 cup water
* 1/4 cup agave / honey if desired (I never do, but others like it)
Blend in a Vitamix or really strong blender. You will need to use the tamper to push down on the frozen fruit often, it will be loud, but in 2-3 minutes you’ll have frozen, creamy, fresh sorbet. It’s ready when the texture turns from chunks to creamy-goey goodness.
You can alter the recipe this way:
* 1 pound fruit (not frozen)
* 4 cups ice
Blend in Vitamix or other really strong blender. Mango is my absolute favorite because the texture is delicious, and well – I like mango. Other great combinations are: strawberry-mango, pineapple-strawberry, pineapple-mango, blueberry-blackberry …or whatever you love. Throw in a chopped up carrot for extra sweet, yet healthy addition.
I also make non-dairy ice cream:
* 3-4 cups rice milk (freeze it first, then thaw a little bit to make it really cold right away)
*4 cups ice (if the milk is not frozen already)
* 1/2 – 1 cup flavor
Once blended split into individual portioned containers and freeze. Or, use frozen rice milk and enjoy right away. Too thin? Needs more frozen ingredients (add a frozen banana or more ice). Too thick? It needs more liquid…
For flavors add your family’s favorite: chocolate bars/syrup or pure cocoa powder+sugar, berries, peanut butter, peanut butter + chocolate, your favorite chai tea mix…whatever your family loves. Tweak the portions til it tastes “just right.”
I hope this helps!
Rebecca
Thank you!
We L.O.V.E. our vitamix. We waited to get one and finally bit the bullet. We did buy it at Costco, which saved us a little bit. It is one of those kitchen tools we use a LOT. I just said this week, that if it ever dies, I will definitely have to replace it right away. We make healthy smoothies, ice cream, shakes, margaritias, and there are still a ton of recipes in the Vitamix cookbook that I would like to try. I highly recommend it!
Nope. They are just waaaaay too expensive. If you have the money to blow, go for it, otherwise there are better options available. Or scour the ‘net for a good condition used one. That’s just my opinion, but I’m kinda cheap… 😛
Rose
so very worth it! probably more than anything in the kitchen, as long as you use it. you can make smoothies, soups, grind grains and other dry ingredients. when you use this to make fresh food, you are saving more money that in it worth in your health care costs for sure.
What model number do you have? Do they all make ice cream and warm soup?
All Vitamix models make what everyone is describing, except grind flour, which requires the dry blade container. If you are buying a new one, it will be a model 5200, and if used, it might be a 5000. The differences are minor (old one is supposedly louder, plastic container is a different kind of plastic, lid is shaped differently, newer model has a pour spout) but they should both function the same way. When buying a new I believe there is a 5200C model available, which just has a smaller capacity.
I found mine on Craigslist for $30. So, it’s hard to think about spending full price for one. I really wanted it so I could have one machine to grind wheat and blend. I too use it everyday. Not sure it’s the best wheat grinder though. My flour seems a bit more nutty than I would like. But for $30 it was worth it! 🙂
Yes! We saved bday, random change, ect for 6 months to purchase a BlendTech and they are the best!!! Worth every penny. I make smoothies everyday, dressings, sauces, soup, ice cream. I also use it as a food processor.
I purchased a Vitamix 2 years ago. Due to the cost, no one in the house was allowed to use it except me lol. A year later when I bent the rules and decided to let the hubby use it, the 1st time he used it, he left a spoon inside and bam the blade completely chewed it up and I had to buy a new container! You can imagine my pain. I bought the replacement through Amazon, my blade was fine. Originally I got it from QVC the first time they showcased it. love it for everything named above. I use it for juice feasting too but I strain my juice with a milk bag/paint strainer bag to get some of the extra fiber out when doing green juices. All other juices the extra fiber doesn’t bother me. So far the milk bag works well and i’m happy with my Vitamix!!!
I have had my Vita Mix for over 15 years too! I have used it for everything from grinding grain, ice cream, fruit smoothies, making bread dough, soup, etc. It is well worth the investment. I have only had to replace the rubber seal in the lid once. I just made fruit smoothies today after school and it is still working great!
We just found a VitaMix 5000 for $3 at a yard sale. I don’t think it has all the accessories, but it’s working great as a blender!!
vitamix doesn’t have attachments, etc. Just the wet-blade containter/blending container can do so many things. Go to their website and watch the videos :).
What a steal you found. Way to go. 🙂
Are you KIDDING ME Laura? WOW. That’s all I can say. What a find! I love my Vita Mix, use it every day, and think it’s worth every penny I paid for it, but you sure saved a lot of pennies!
Best purchase this tight cheap-skate has ever splurged on!! I use it several times every day to grind grain, make muffins, breads (mostly gluten free), soups, sauces, pestos, refried beans, etc etc. and to feed my children veggies, fruits, and superfoods via 10 minute green smoothies.
I couldn’t live without this time and money-saver: we can make our own healthy versions of applesauce, ice cream, dressings, fudge, and numerous other convenience foods that cost so much in the store. I can avoid all kinds of additives, sweeteners, and other ingredients I don’t want by just ordering bulk foods from places like Azure Standard, harvesting things from my garden, and making my own whole foods in the Vitamix.
Quick to use and clean, it’s a lifesaver for this busy homeschool mom of 5!
Tell me about vitamix fudge. One use I found was it will turn slices of raw unpeeled pumpkin into pie filling in about 90 seconds. Add pie spices before you blend. I used apple juice for the liquid.
Hi Kim – I’d love to learn more about all that you posted! We just went gluten-free. We eat a lot of whole foods, but I want to do more. I am interested in hearing about how you do it…the grinding, Vitamix and Azure Standard. Even a quick 10 min on what you typically buy and from where and make would be so awesome! I need to make sure I’d use a Vitamix before investing in one! Thank you for your time in advance!
I have been looking at both blendtech and vitamix. I seen the blendtech in action at my local Sam’s. For the use of grinding wheat etc, how does your machine fair? Does the motor get hot? If so, how many cups of flour will it grind before getting hot? (previously used kitchen aid with grain grinder attachment but after about 6 cups it HAD to cool, or it could have just been my machine).
Crossing my fingers these machines will do at least 6-8 cups without motor getting hot…
I have a Kitchenaid blender, 100$. It blends really smooth green smoothies and frozen fruit and bananas also do great in there. I don’t make my own pb, nut milk, or grind my own wheat though. Just a brand recommendation! I use it at least once a day for a green smoothie and it does a great job! If my hubby bought me a Vita-mix for Mother’s Day I wouldn’t return it though. 🙂
I have the Blendtec which is similar to the vitamix and use it – literally – everyday! I had a hard time spending the money at first but then once I got it, can’t believe I waited! LOVE, LOVE, LOVE it!
We use ours daily as well. Smoothies, homemade salad dressings, pretty much anything. I blew up 8 blenders throughout the years so Yep, it’s definitely worth it!!
I’ve owned a Vita Mix for over 15 years and would not be without one. I make smoothies, ice cream, frozen yogurt, fruit sorbets, soup, peanut butter, and more more food items in it. I have never found a blender powerful enough to do what my Vita Mix does.
I would love to try the Vitamix to see if it is worth it, but for what I need I can use my blender, food processor, and ice cream maker. I bought all three for around a hundred dollars on sale. Granted these appliances take up more room than a Vitamix would; but until they stop working I won’t invest the money.
(Beth) We have had our Vitamix for a few months now, and it is used at least once every two days. Mostly for smoothies, sometimes soups and ice creams. The best part is, my kids and HUSBAND love using it! My husband doesn’t even like to peel his own fruits, but he loves popping frozen fruit in with liquid. It is an easy way to get added nutrition. Yesterday my 11 y.o. girl made applesauce, and 16 y.o. boy made ice cream for dessert. As long as they clean it, they are free to use it. It is a great blender, but there are things it can’t do. It won’t replace my food processor, which keeps things chunky, chops things better, and grates cheese and slices. I have a friend who uses hers for grinding wheat. She recommends definitely buying the separate dry container, and not to use the wet one, because it permanently scratches it. I do like their warranty. Another friend, who had one for over a year, ruined it blending squash. Vitamix replaced it free of charge. Even though it won’t replace the food processor, I still think it is a great machine and a good company.
Totally worth it! The thing works really well! I made my own brown rice baby cereal and it was able to grind it to super fine powder. So many other uses, if you can afford it or get it cheaper. I’ve seen them on Craigslist at discounted price.
But here’s the deal killing question – can the removable parts like the blade, container, etc. be washed in the dishwasher?
The blade isn’t removable, at least not on mine, and you can put dish detergent and water in it and turn it on for a few seconds to clean. I don’t think dishwasher is recommended.
It does not come apart like other blenders and there would be absolutely no reason to put it in the dishwasher. It is basically it’s own dishwasher. It would be almost more hassle to put it in the dishwasher than to just water and soap in it and blend for 30 sec which is how you are supposed to clean it and it works great.
I received mine as a Christmas gift (I know – lucky) from my parents. I was kind of like, “uhh, we already have a blender.” Then I went on YouTube and watched videos of people using them, then tried it myself.
Oh.my.word. I immediately called my parents and thanked them profusely. I know a lot of people put veggies in their kids’ smoothies, but how many blenders let you put RAW carrots in and the result is as smooth as juice? Or a quarter of a FROZEN pineapple, with core (not frozen chunks, one entire quarter segment of a pineapple) and it blends it smooth. My kids are getting 10x the veggies than they were before because of this thing.
There are also so many things you can use it for. I shred lbs of zucchini in seconds, make powdered sugar when I find at the last minute I’m out, and have also made coconut milk when I just needed a little for a recipe. I also have lots of recipes that call for just one cup of broth, and it can take forever for a bullion cube to dissolve in water. Now I throw the cube in with a cup of water and it mixes the broth in seconds, plus I can let it run a few minutes and soon it’s steaming hot! I have three kids 3 years and under and when I’m making them lunch, I throw leftover potatoes and veggies from the night before with a little broth and let it run. Then I get a delicious, hot homemade soup for lunch with almost no effort (plus it takes care of last night’s leftovers).
I’m sure I’m forgetting some uses, but I definitely use mine several times a week, and sometimes several times a day. I love that the motor has a 10-year warranty, though my parents had theirs for 36 years and only got a new one last year (the old one worked fine, they were just jealous of the brand-new one they bought me). If and when my Vitamix breaks, I won’t hesitate to pay for a new one. I figure that even at $450, if I’m guaranteed it will be with me at least 10 years, $45 a year is a small price to pay for the convenience it provides.
Can you tell me about cleaning it? Using it multiple times a day, with 3 small kids, are you hand washing it a lot?
You can put a drop of dish detergent and water in it and run it for a few seconds and that gets it pretty clean. I still wipe it out, though, but those are the directions they give for self-cleaning.
What Diane said. I’d say I wipe it about once a week, just so it gets a thorough cleaning. Otherwise, just a few drops of soap, water, and run it for about 30 seconds, which is what the manufacturer recommends. The blender is so powerful that you can sit there and watch gobs of peanut butter getting scrubbed away!
That is one of the things I love about it so much! Just a drop of soap and some water and blend for 30 seconds and you are done. So much easier than cleaning my old blender which I had to take apart and wash in 3 different pcs. They say it is basically it’s own dishwasher.
I LOVE my vita-mix. Really. I am a frugal gal and don’t spend carelessly on items. I debated my purchase for a few years before I saved up and bought one. I am SO glad I did. BUT, I cook a lot and love my appliances and use them heavily. Before this blender, I’d wear one out every few years — even an expensive kitchenaid one and an oster one, too — and that was before I got really serious about throwing things in a blender — Ha! I use it for sauces (apple, fresh tomato, hollandaise, etc…), smoothies, frozen drinks (it grinds the ice perfectly smooth), crepe batter, salad dressing, etc. It lives on my counter and takes up a chunk of space but I’m OK with that. My husband was shocked at the price but he’s learned to roll with me and my kitchen tools — they reap good things in the long run. 🙂
Lol, just sipping on a green smoothie that my son made for snack! How timely this post is.. We just bought a Vitamix at Costco because for the 4th or 5th time (I’ve lost track) our cheaper blender bit the dust. As soon as I can lay hands on some peanuts, I’m making peanut butter!! 🙂 I can’t talk long term since we just got ours, but since we’ve had it, I’ve used it 2 or 3 times a day for making smoothies, grinding grain, making quick breads, etc. Here are a few things I really appreciate about the Vitamix – *There is a 7 year warranty
*The gears that turn the blade are metal, not plastic
*The blender container is large, 64 oz. – we can make 1 batch of smoothies and it is enough for all 6 of us to have a full glass. It seems though that different size containers are sold, so check on this first
*It really pulverizes well…You can stick a kale, flax seeds, pineapple (just minus the rough outer part), oranges (with peel), etc. and it is all blended into a wonderfully smooth consistency.
*I love the fact that I’m getting a lot more nutrients into my kiddos and me! My 2 year old would NEVER eat kale off his plate (I’ve tried) but yet he loves the green smoothies that we make. That to me is totally worth it!
So yes, I believe it is a worthwhile investment if you are going to use it…like someone else said, if you don’t use a blender or processor regularly then probably not.
We have a Blendtec, similar to a Vitamix, and I LOVE it. I use it every day for making all sorts of things…homemade almond butter and peanut butter, batters for pancakes and waffles, smoothies, salad dressings, soups…they even have recipes for kneading bread in it. We see it as an investment, but we definitely think it’s been worth the cost.
I think it depends on what you make at home. Before we started making everything from scratch, including grinding wheat, smoothies, dressings, etc, we never used our blender. But then we started going back to the basics and burned up two blenders in about four years. I didn’t see why one would pay so much for a blender until my husband urged me to look into it. The power and wide range of usage provoked us to invest in one and we decided to buy a Blendtec. We have been overwhelmingly pleased! I have never used any small appliance as much as I use the Blendtec! We make everything people mentioned above. It gets used at least once per day, usually multiple times! I have never owned any appliance that can do what it does!
Absolutely worth every penny!
We got one about 2 years ago. My daughter is g-tube dependent and we got it to use for making her homemade formula. We wanted to get her off the canned formula and onto real food. She’s got the most healthy diet in the whole family. Vita-Mix sells at a reduced price when you have a doctor’s prescription for it. Even with that reduced rate, it was still very expensive.
It’s a real workhorse, though! Tough! It’s made ALL her food for these last 2 years plus peanut butter, ice cream, lots of smoothies (which my husband has daily, made from frozen fruit), soup, and chopped onions. I’ve almost overheated it a time or two and it stopped working, but I found that what I’d read was true. After it cools off, it’s ready to go!
If we didn’t need it for her formula, we’d not have bought it. But, when you’re looking at using it possibly for a lifetime, it’s worth every penny!
Love it! Bought mine 26 years ago and have never had a problem.
hi! i make a lot of smoothies and my cheapie blender wasn’t so great so i spent $50 for a ninja at sam’s and it’s been great. my husband has used it as a food processor too and he likes it. i use my cuisinart for food processing ‘big’ stuff. the ninja came with 4 different pitchers, 3 different blades but only 1 lid for all 4 pitchers. (i wish they had included 1 more lid.) the vitamix is way too expensive for my budget but at that price, i’m guessing it is awesome. good luck
We have one and our family loves it. We just bought it a few months ago at the Home and Garden Show. We use it for smoothies, ice cream, grater, soups, and salad dressings. I haven’t tried to make peanut butter, milks, or grains however that is on my to-do list. We have an 8 year warranty that comes with it, which was nice. During the presentation an option that was offered at the home show was they would let you break the cost up into payments. I love the fact that I don’t waste as much fruit as is used to. When I had my other blender it wouldn’t process whole fruit. The Vita-Mix pulverizes all my fruit for smoothies. I think it was a great investment for us.
I’m so glad you asked! 🙂 We love ours, which was given to me by my Mom. My husband, who is usually the very practical one, said if it ever broke, we’d go out and by one out of our own pocket. We use it at least 2x per day for smoothies and shakes. I use it at least 1x per week for hummus, salsa, puree fruits and veggies I intend to hide in our food. We have used it in the past to make baby food. And like others have mentioned, the consistency is sooooo smooth. We previously had an Oster which blended just fine but cannot hold a candle to the ability of the VitaMix to chop the little seeds in many fruits such as blackberries and strawberries. If you have picky eaters than this could be a huge blessing!!!
Have you ever tried blending Lactinato Kale in an Oster???? No way that’s coming out smooth!
Are they worth it?? Way! Way worth it.
It is so much more than a blender. We bought ours about 5 years ago with our income tax return and am so glad we did.
We only consume coconut and almond milk in our home. We are also a grain-free family & mostly bake with almond and coconut flour. Due to our lifestyle, we made the strategic decision to invest in a Vitamix. We will make back the cost of our machine within the first 2-3 years just by making our own milks and flours, and with the 7 year warranty, it was a no-brainer for us!
In addition, we use it EVERY morning for smoothies & it makes the most incredible smoothie I have ever tasted! I also use it for frozen coffee drinks, purees, hummus, salad dressings/dips…
I seriously use my Vitamix at least twice a day. Having killed so many junky blenders in the past, I am thrilled to have one that finally lives up to the challenges I use it for. 🙂
If your family doesn’t currently use a blender on a regular basis, I don’t think I could recommend this purchase. In addition, if you don’t plan to make items in the Vitamix that would save substantial money in both the short and long term, I’m also not certain I could recommend it.
In the end, you have to make the decision that makes the most sense for your current lifestyle! 🙂
I meant to add that we also consume a lot of raw food in our home…we use the Vitamix more than we use our oven!
You too? I guess we’re not the only ones! =)
How do you make coconut flour? From unsweetened shredded coconut?
Here’s how I make mine: 🙂
1. I add one cup of shredded unsweetened coconut (non-sulfured) to my Vitamix with 4 cups of purified water.
2.Then I process the mixture for 3 minutes on high speed.
3. Once completed, I strain the coconut through a nut milk bag to separate the coconut milk from the pulp.
4. Next, I dehydrate the coconut pulp (you can either use a dehydrator or your oven set at its lowest setting). This will take a good number of hours depending on which method you use. I freeze my coconut pulp until I have enough to justify running my oven for 8 or 9 hours.
5. Once the coconut is dehydrated, I pulse it through my Vitamix one last time.
Perfect coconut flour every time!
**Caution: Do not try to make coconut flour by simply placing coconut shreds in a blender. It won’t produce flour. It will, however, make a beautiful batch of coconut butter!! 🙂 I have made this in my Vitamix as well, and it is amazing! (And so much cheaper…about $3 or $4 dollars to make compared to $12 or more purchasing at the store).
Hope this explanation helps!!
Yes, thank you!
Thank you so much for posting this! I totally have been wondering if this could be made at home because I have seen lots of recipes with that I’d love to try, but never knew how to make it.
If you don’t have it in your budget, don’t do it. You can make hummus and frozen-banana ice cream in a $20 food processor. I use a $30 stick mixer (immersion blender) for baby food and milkshakes and liquefying chunky soups and applesauce right in the pot.
I would love to have one; I am a kitchen gadget person. But you can live just fine without it.
I am an avid cook, made all of my own babyfood for my three children, and make nearly every meal for our family. We have never owned a vitamix, and I can’t say that I long for one, either! We do make smoothies, but I’ve found our blender works just fine!
This is how I feel. We’re getting by fine without one, so why bother spending the money?
We have a Vitamix and LOVE it! I make green smoothies and put raw baby carrots in them and you can’t tell at all! Also, all my fruit is frozen and it takes about 10 seconds to make a fabulous smoothie! We also love making the chicken tortilla soup in it…put all the ingredients in and under 10 minutes later you have a hot soup! It’s amazing!
I kind of want one, but they just cost so much, and I’m getting by fine with my Oster blender. I just can’t justify the expense.
I use a wheat grinder to grind my wheat. Smoothies don’t always come out perfectly in my blender, but if I add a bit of extra water, they’re usually fine. I figure if it can fit through a straw, we’re good.
I’m hoping to get one someday! My blender cannot handle some things that I would like to put in my smoothies. (Ice, spinach, oatmeal) I’ve heard that they have a good price at our county fair, so I’m hoping to save up enough to purchase one in my (hopeful) price range.
My mom had one that broke, it was about 30 years old!
If you break down by cost per use, we absolutely have recouped out investment. We use ours about 5 times a day – a couple rounds of smoothies at breakfast or lunch, grinding grain, and usually some type of dinner prep. A blender might suffice for smoothies or dinner prep, but I never actually used mine for anything.
As far as grinding grain, it does only make small amounts (2-3 cups at a time) but even with 5 kids I have found it to be sufficient and convenient. I know that most people keep their grain mills out of the kitchen because they cover everything with dust. The vita-mix doesn’t produce dust when grinding wheat.
Be aware of the source if you buy used. We had some friends buy a used one from a juice bar and the motor was nearly burned out by the time they got it.
I wouldn’t trade my vita-mix for anything. I use it at least daily. We make lots of smoothies, rice/nut milks, peanut butter/nutbutters. I grind my rice in it to make rice flour, almonds to make almond flour.
I puree my squash and then freeze it so I can make pumpkin pie. I make “pudding”(dairy free), but putting 6-8 pitted dates, 1 avocado, 1/4 Cup of cocoa powder, and enough water to blend to pudding consistnancy.
We have a Blendtec and really love it. I saw demonstration of Vitamix in Whole Foods after I bought my Blendtec. They are very similar. The kids whip up their own smoothies. I ground my rock sugar to powder! Made very fine bread crumbs, ground nuts into nut flour, made shaved ice, ice-cream; I now use the Blendtec to make the wet ingredients of cookies, then pour it to the dry ingredients. Best of all, so easy to clean up. It is very expensive. But it does pay off if you use it often.
We use ours everyday, often several times a day. I think it depends on what you plan to do with it? I personally wanted less clutter in my kitchen/ cabinets and sold all of my “other” small appliances that individually did what my viatmix does about 7 items…food processor, graters, smaller blender, mill etc. and we eat a diet very different from the standard american so yes for us it is and was definitely worth the money and the warranties are great. I would suggest scouring craigslist though. Also blendtec are very comparable and are a bit cheaper, costco often does a promotional thing where they’re about $100 cheaper than online too but I’ve notices the containers are smaller.
For me, I cannot afford it, but I can definitely see the value of it. It is much more than a blender. It can grind wheat or other grains into flour if you have the grain blender, you can make juices from the whole fruit without burning up your blender and grind stems, seeds, skin so small you do not taste it at all. My mom has one that she uses all the time, for me, I cannot afford the fruit to grind up and I have a Bosch mixer that has an extra powerful (800 watts) blender on it, but it is for sure more than a blender.
I think it depends on your lifestyle and eating habits. Someone who has a health issue and needs to be on a special diet with smoothies, juices and whole foods all the time, it would be a must. For someone on a low money budget, it would be fun, but not a need.
I just got mine a few months ago and I love it! It think it is worth it if you use it several times daily. We eat a whole foods plant based diet with lots raw foods so it works great for us. There is no comparison between this and a regular blender for green smoothies, nut based dressings, almond milk, etc. I also love it to chop onions, carrots, etc. If you are just making your run of the mill smoothie with no greens and don’t use a blender that often then it is nice, but not worth it. If you eat lots of green smoothies, nut milks, nut based dressings, etc. then if you can afford it go for it.
Sounds like you are on a similar food-style as our family, Elizabeth! I’m saving up for a Vitamix for all those things. Right now i have a fabulous Kitchen Aid Blender that works wonders for average stuff but just doesn’t have the power for some of the hardier items – or room for large batches. Glad that you posted, it makes me want to stick to my saving for one! 😀
You will not be sorry. It is amazing!!
I saved for mine for a long time and it was hard to part with that much money for a blender, but it is totally worth it for the way we eat. We use it at least 3 times a day if not more.
I completely agree with Elizabeth – if you foresee yourself using this appliance frequently, and for some of the preparations noted in the previous and subsequent comments, it may be worth considering. I killed my blender last summer when I started making green smoothies, and, after a great deal of consideration, my husband & I decided the Vitamix was worth the expense. We use it on a daily basis for frozen fruit smoothies for our children, and I make green smoothies several days a week – the consistency of the green smoothie is far superior to the finished product from my previous blender – so much smoother! We also use it for almond milk, peanut butter, various juices (oftentimes made from full vegetables, as chopping/slicing is often not needed)- tomato, carrot, _V8_-like beverage, applesauce, and we are gearing up for lots of baby food purees with a new baby arriving this fall. We looked at the purchase as an investment – and I mean MAJOR investment, as it is terribly pricey – but we have been incredibly happy with it. I do agree with comments above, though, regarding scraping food off of the bottom of the blender – it can be somewhat difficult.
Works so much better for making things like tofu cheesecake and vegetarian pumpkin pie. When I had a regular blender, I had to blend in batches because it would not all fit in a blender (1 large cheesecake or 2 pumpkin pies). I also had to stir constantly while it was blending and my batter was never completely silky smooth. The Vita-mix fixed all that. I use it every day for smoothies/shakes. It blends up frozen fruit like no other blender I ever used. I agree with a poster above, though, about not using it as a food processor. I use an old blender with a small food processor attachment for occasional small jobs. I don’t do much of that, plus I have a salad shooter, so I don’t need any more.
I think it depends what you’re going to be blending. My mom got one when she need a super-healthy all-liquid diet. I suspect most ordinary blenders wouldn’t have handled the stuff she was turning into “smoothie,” or would have burnt out in the process.
If you have the money or can patiently save the money without it being a burden, then yes. I think ours is worth it just for the ease of getting extra nutrition in. Yes, a blender or food processor can do most of the things the Vita Mix can, but a regular blender has nothing on the capabilities of a Vita Mix. And a Ninja has nothing on the long life or warranty of the Vita Mix. Like another poster said, I still use my food processor for things because it is easier to scrape things out of. Another great thing about the Vita Mix is that it has an automatic shut off to prevent it from burning up the motor (though I’m sure you could find that on another nicer blender); I’ve watched smoke come out of my mom’s Cuisinart blender when she tried to make a smoothie with some frozen fruit. The Vitamix makes purees/juice out of completely whole fruit. It makes ice cream and sorbet in minutes. For those reason alone I love it!
Our Vita-Mix was totally worth it, even for smoothies alone. I used to go to Jamba Juice on a regular basis, but since buying the Vita-Mix 2 years ago (which is the kind they even use at JJ!), I’ve only been there a couple of times, so I think of how much each smothie would have cost me at the restaurant compared to the ingredients I buy at the grocery store. We’ve also saved tons of money by making applesauce instead of buying it. Those have been our main 2 money-saving recipes, but the Vita-Mix is totally worth it. I’d recommend buying it at a demo (we got ours at Costco) since they’re a lot cheaper than buying them full price!
I don’t have one, but I am amazed at how much I can do with a $14 immersion blender.
How long have you lived without it? If you’ve made it for a while without one and haven’t missed it, I would not get one.
(I use my $40 blender everyday, and it works just fine. I’m not convinced that an extra $400 would improve my quality of life.)
I’ve had the same Hamilton beach blender since college and it works great. Never has broken down.
I use a kitchen-aid immursion blender almost daily. It is so easy to make smoothies, blend soup warm right in the pot, mash potatoes, hide (I mean add) some avocado and veggies to my toddlers yogurt. I got it on sale for around $30 and have used it about 6 months with no problems.
I was going to say the samething! I have a cuisinart immersion blender. Much easier to clean. May not make ice cream, but I have never liked anyone’s homemade ice cream anyways. 😛
Wow! I thought our blender was expensive! We bought the Ninja blender for about 80 bucks and we love it. So far I’ve been able to make baby food, shaved ice, smoothies, we’ve also done the ice cream with bananas and milk, and I’ve ground coffee beans. I would try to find reviews not from their site, and as others suggested maybe look for one used for cheap. The only other time I’ve heard of that blender was when we were going to buy our Ninja, it came up in a few reviews negatively, but I never looked into the actual blender. I would say it isn’t worth it, but then again I’m not the type of person to spend large amounts like that… My husband constantly talks about wanting the blend tech, because they have a series on youtube called “will it blend” and they’ve literally blended up everything from cubic zirconia to full TV remotes. Again though, I would never spend that much on a blender so he can keep dreaming 🙂 Good luck with whatever you chose!!! 🙂
We have the Ninja also and it works great for us. My husband mostly uses it to make milkshakes. He thought it was going to be a piece of junk because it has its own infomercial but let me tell you, when he blended up a chocolate milkshake in it he was impressed!
Your husband sounds like my husband- he would want to buy the Blendtec to just throw random household items in it to see what it could blend. Men never seem to grow up, do they? : )
I have a brand new Ninja that I paid $10 for and am thrilled with it. I still want a Vitamix since I want to move to grinding my own flour and peanut butter but what I have does most of what I want very well. I am also seeing how often I am doing stuff that the Ninja can’t handle vs. Vitamix.
We also have the Ninja blender and I think it is very comparable to a Vita-Mix. I paid under $100 for mine, and I use it every day. It grinds flaxseeds, frozen fruit in smoothies, whole veggies for salsa, hard dried bread for breadcrumbs – you name it. We also use it to crush ice to make slushies. I haven’t found anything it can’t handle. I’d highly recommend one for someone who’s looking for the performance of a Vita-Mix without the price.
I’ll chime in and endorse the Ninja too! I got one at Wal Mart for around $70 and it has held up great. I just made cashew butter in it the other day.
We have a Ninja, too. Love it! Use it for smoothies, coffee drinks, purees, etc. I’ve used it for cookie dough and key lime pie (pie and crust), too. Love making ice turn to snow and for making whipped cream—it takes about 20 seconds! 🙂
I found one for $2 at a garage sale! We love it.
Now $2, I would pay!!
My mom found one at Goodwill for $7 for my sister shortly after I bought mine. I was so mad! 🙂
I am TOTALLY jealous of you guys! I think I would have a heart attack if I saw one for $2 or $7.
If you buy rice, almond or cocnut milk it can be easily and cheaply made in a Vitamix. At $3+ dollars a half gallon, it would certainly be worth it. Also grinding flours for those with a gluten intolerance would make it worth it. I bought mine used for under $150 on Ebay!
I would like to hear what people think about the Blend-tec too! I am trying to decide between the 2!
I have and LOVE my BlendTec. I use it daily for green smoothies, fruit smoothies to turn into popsicles for the kids, peanut butter, etc. It is noisy, but it works well, is portable (we take it with us when we travel). It’s a bit less expensive than the Vitamix, but with as much as we use it, I could probably have justified the cost of that also!
We have been very, very happy with our Blendtec. We purchased it when Costco had their promo deal, so it was about $150 cheaper than the Vitamix. I don’t use my food processor, ice cream machine, or baby food maker anymore, and all combined, the Blendtec cost the same as those three appliances.
We recently looked into it because our blender is on it’s last leg, but we didn’t pay much for it almost 13 years ago so I think another inexpensive ($50 or less) is the way we are going. We make hummus, smoothies, and baby food in it without a problem and mash beans for chickpea burgers. It would be a huge budget stretch for us and I’d rather save the money for possibly a bigger stand mixer.
Great question! I can’t wait to see the comments.
Love my Vitamix! After several years of wanting a Vitamix and buying less expensive blenders, only to have them break down within a year or so, we finally broke down and purchased one from the company a little over a year ago. I love the fact that if I breaks down, we can return it and have it replaced at no cost within 7 years. I use it almost every day for smoothies, ice cream, soup, salad dressing, etc… It works fabulous and is so easy to clean. I wouldn’t hesitate to recommend it!
I agree with this! The older I get, the more I see that it sometimes pays to buy something of quality if you will use it and it is something that will last! A Vitamix can be very cost effective if you use it alot–it is made very well and will last for years! My college-aged son love to make his workout “power smoothies” in it–I keep it on my counter and it’s a breeze to clean! It was a good investment!
I’m looking forward to the answers as well and/or if there is something a little less $$ that is comparable. But the 2 blenders we have aren’t doing so well these days and don’t want to purchase another one unless it is going to last.
I might be more expensive now, but if you use it alot it will be worth it. I have had mine over 7 years and not one problem. My sister bought a refurbished one. They come with a 10 year warranty (at least they did 7 years ago).
They come with a 7 year warranty, but you can pay extra to bump up to a 10 year. I bought a refurbished one and it is just the same as a regular one. It has the same warranty and a new container and if it was used they totally check it over. I think it saved about $80 or $100
Never even heard of it! My blender works just fine. 🙂
I was thinking the same thing! My KitchenAid mixer makes great smoothies. Now it doesn’t process the core of an apple or anything like that . . . wonder if that’s why the Vitamix is supposed to be superior? I’ve been tempted by their demos at Costco, but have so far resisted . . .
I just can’t see paying that much money for a BLENDER. Really? I guess being naive to some pricey extravagances can be money saving, too! 😉
If you make baby food or use frozen fruit in smoothes(or even if you don’t use frozen fruit) your blender will burn out very quickly. I burnt out about 3 blenders in one year before I broken down and bought a vita-mix. I would say that in the long run it is worth it for someone like myself who uses the vita-mix multiple times a day. It makes a difference in some foods when they are blended smoother. I know that may sound crazy, but I wouldn’t have believe it if I hadn’t had a vita-mix.
I’ve been using a $40-50 Oster to make smoothies out of frozen fruit for over 3 years! 🙂 But maybe I’ve just gotten lucky!
My Krupps blender/4c. food processor has lasted me 12+ years, doing food purees (which is what baby food is), frozen berries, soups, smoothes, etc. Plus occasional veggie chopping with the food processor.
Vita Mix is for people who like to grind their own flour or flax seed and make peanut butter, milk substitutes, and such. A regular blender is just not powerful enough to do peanut butter!
Ahhh, I suppose grinding your own wheat, PB, etc makes the difference to use this. I couldn’t figure out what all the hype was…interesting.
I do peanut butter in my food processor and it works fine! I don’t think my blender would do it, though.
It actually saves me money. The VitaMix is more than a blender. You can make anything from ice cream to juice to smoothies to soup. That’s where the money savings comes in, we are more conscious of left overs. For example, I will buy a $5.00 Costco roasted chicken. We eat it one night. With the left overs, I pull the rest of the chicken off and use it for a yummy chicken and potato soup the next night. Then I boil the carcass and use the chicken stock for other soups or veggie smoothies. You can make your own flour, peanut butter, hummus, sauces/dips. And the best part, all make with whole fresh foods not already processed. So it’s healthier! We use ours everyday for something. I didn’t understand how you can make ice cream AND soup in the same machine, but now that we have it we do it. I simply used my Costco rewards this year to buy one. If I had to quickly leave my house and pick one thing from my kitchen to take, it would be my VitaMix.
We love ours. I use it almost every day for smoothies, soups, ice cream, hummus, etc. I found it on Craigslist for $50, so I would recommend checking there every so often. I did recently buy the dry container so I can grind wheat.
We bought a vitamix a little over a year ago and we love it. I can’t imagine cooking without it. We use it to make smoothies, coffee drinks, soups, ice cream, salad dressings, hummus, fruit purees, etc. I was skeptical but we actually still use it several times a week. My three year old loves the smoothies and we can even “hide” spinach in it. The best part is that it purees everything so that there are no skins or seeds.
Maybe. If you can’t easily afford it, I wouldn’t worry about it. Most of human kind has lived just fine without one – that’s what I tell myself when I am considering buying something. Helps to keep things in perspective.
I do have a $40 Oster blender which is great for smoothies and more. I grind my wheat in a wheat grinder. I’ve heard that although the Vitamix does grind wheat, it only does a small amount at a time, so if you’re using a lot of flour at once, it’s not the way to go.
If there is something that the Vitamix will do much better than other products – and is something that your family uses frequently – then it may be worth the money.
Love this perspective. It’s hard sometimes to keep it in perspective.
Well said, Heather.
I think it is well worth every penny. We bought one used, off of Craigslist for about half price. We had to wait for about 4 months, until someone listed one. We make green smoothies almost every day. I also use my VitaMix to grind seeds, make treats (food processor), soups (you can cook your soup until it is steaming in the VitaMix), baby food, salad dressing (homemade is so cheap and healthier compared to store bought), healthy ice cream (frozen bananas and a splash of milk makes a frozen yogurt consistency), and so much more. It is my favorite kitchen appliance.
What she said 🙂 I love it. No blender I ever owned worked like this. Frozen fruit, skins, seeds – all smooth. I hate it as a food processor though, too hard to scrape stuff out from the bottom. I would rather whip out my kitchen aid. But otherwise I use it all the time for smoothies, ice cream treats for the kids, coffee drinks and I have for soup and peanut butter too!
Christine, did you buy a different blender container to grind your seeds or do you use the same container for everything? I thought there was a separate one for grinding things. Do you grind wheat, too?
I don’t have the dry blade container, though I definitely want to save up for one. I have been able to grind seeds like flaxseeds with no problem in the regular VitaMix container. I don’t generally grind up hard seeds, as I am concerned that they may mess up my container. I use mine for making oat flour, and it grinds it up into a fine powder.
Not sure if flax seeds count, but with the information that came with my Vita-Mix, if you grind things that have oils in them, it nulls the warranty. I guess if you got it from craigslist though, there is no warranty. 🙂
(But this information may be good for someone else)