How to choose an electric meat grinder for the home?

It is impossible to imagine modern kitchens without various household appliances, which greatly facilitate the life of current housewives. In particular, this applies to an electric meat grinder. It helps in just a few minutes to grind a large amount of meat, make cookies, noodles, home-made sausages, mashed potatoes or juice from fruits and vegetables. To get the opportunity to use all of the above functions and other additional options of modern technology, you need to understand how to choose an electric meat grinder for the home, which we will do in this article.

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The main functionality of a home meat grinder

Many of us are accustomed to mechanical meat grinders, which are very convenient in terms of care and maintenance. Electrical analogues also have their obvious advantages:

• It is not necessary to exert a large amount of effort to grind products - just press one button.
• You will also have to periodically throw finely chopped foods into the funnel.
• Electrical appliances have a wider functionality in comparison with mechanical “brothers”.

Important! You can find on sale even models that can replace a full-fledged food processor. With their help, you can not only grind meat, but also make blanks for flour products, squeeze juice from fruits and berries.

Determining which meat grinder is the best, you will probably think about which model to prefer - budget or brand:

• If you plan to use the device only for cooking minced meat for dumplings, sausages, meatballs, then an inexpensive domestic appliance is suitable for you.
• For everyday intensive use, cooking in large quantities, it is better to choose something more powerful, reliable and expensive.

Important! When checking the operation of the device in the store, do not be afraid of the too loud sound that it makes. This is due to the presence of an electric motor inside it. The sound level also depends on the brand and model of the device. Perhaps this is the only drawback of the electric meat grinder.

Such devices, as a rule, have a case with a wide base, which is equipped with rubber nozzles on the bottom that protect the legs from slipping. Also note that electrical models are much heavier than mechanical devices. They need such weight for a reason - they must be as stable as possible. Agree, it is better to transfer a heavy meat grinder than to constantly screw a mechanical device to the table.

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How to choose a meat grinder yourself?

At the moment, there are a huge number of models from different price categories, from different manufacturers, so it’s difficult to determine immediately which is the best meat grinder.

Relying solely on these factors is impractical. It is better to pay close attention to other parameters that affect the comfort and productivity of working with such devices. There are several basic criteria that really matter. Thanks to this, you will buy a quality meat grinder, you can avoid unnecessary financial costs.

Important! We have prepared a separate review that will help you choose the best model of a meat grinder. Find out more in our post. "Rating of meat grinders for the right choice".

Performance and power

Remember that you will have to work exclusively with tough foods, including fish, meat, vegetables.

Important! Many household appliances have a rated power of 400-700 watts. But in addition to the nominal manufacturer, it indicates the maximum power.

So, the larger it is, the more serious the load can be sustained by an electric meat grinder. What is the best power? The performance of the device, that is, the processed amount of meat in the meat, depends on this indicator, but not only on it.

Important! Remember the main pattern: the more powerful the motor, the faster the device works, respectively - you get more stuffing in less time.

But there are some nuances:

• Some cheap devices also have high power, but they only last a very short time.
• There are other situations where well-known manufacturers produce high-quality reliable equipment, which, despite its low power and low speed, can last without interruptions for many years.

Therefore, think carefully about how often you will need to grind a few kilograms of minced meat in a couple of minutes.

Energy saving

The cost-effectiveness of the device depends on its power:

• High rates indicate only one thing, that you can process products quickly, but you will have to pay a lot for electricity.
• Budget models often have only a few speeds and can save a lot of money. But only on condition that the manufacturer deserves attention. There may be a situation where the declared power does not correspond to the real value, as a result - either the device itself will not perform its functions, or it will quickly fail, or the wiring will burn out altogether. Be careful!

Important! When buying, it is also important to find out whether the meat grinder of your choice will be able to work continuously with a certain power indicator. It all depends on the mode chosen and the quality of the products. Manufacturers mainly indicate in the annotation the time of work with raw ingredients, therefore more often this work without stopping lasts for 10-15 minutes.

Case Shape and Material:

• All internal elements in the meat grinder are made exclusively of metal, because it is they that bear the greatest load.
• The case is a good electric meat grinder for the home can have a plastic or made of light alloys and stainless steel.

The most important thing here is:

• The resistance of the material to the negative effects of food acids, moisture, its protection against corrosion.
• The material chosen for the manufacture of the case is of great importance not only from the point of view of hygiene, since it affects the appearance of the meat grinder and its mass.

All this in combination affects the convenience and safety of storage and use of the device.

Important! It is better to take such a device, to which it would be close to substitute the capacity for the stuffing. The height of the neck also matters, it is better that it is slightly longer than your fingers.

Options for blocking the motor and reverse

How to choose a quality meat grinder if you do not understand them at all?

• Take into account that good manufacturers supply their equipment with a reverse mode. When it starts, the auger rotates in the opposite direction, which allows you to get a jammed core or bone out of the mechanism. The reverse simply pushes foreign objects toward the inlet.
• One of the important additional features is motor protection. If available, the device is automatically disconnected from the network in the event of hard particles or too long work.
• A mechanical lock directly on the neck is also often used.
• Almost all of the latest models are equipped with an emergency shutdown function in case of overheating of the device, which will protect it from combustion and extend the life of the device.

Nozzles

Naturally, all meat grinders, without exception, are equipped with meat grills.Which are better for home - devices with a minimal or extended set of nozzles? It is up to you to make the decision - it all depends on why you are buying the device, which products you use most often.

In addition to standard grilles, the kit includes the following nozzles:

• Press for soft vegetables and citrus fruits.
• Grater.
• A device for the formation of sausages.
• Nozzle for creating curly cookies or noodles from dough.
• Vegetable slicer and shredder in the form of cylinders.

Important! Naturally, the more nozzles in the device, the more functional it is. Be sure that in any good meat grinder there must be a platform tray that is attached to the neck - there are products prepared for processing.

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Manufacturer

The most difficult thing is to decide which company to choose an electric meat grinder:

• According to consumer surveys, models of the BOSCH brand have the highest quality.
• Slightly inferior to them in some characteristics of the Philips device, which are distinguished by a high level of functionality and compactness. In terms of cost, among them you can find both cheap and expensive options.
• No less worthy candidate is the manufacturer “Brown”. Although marriage is periodically found among its products, it is still in demand. This is due to an acceptable cost and carefully crafted ergonomics.

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Stock footage

As you can see, you don’t need to know much about the technical nuances of a meat grinder in order to choose a convenient, functional, reliable electrical appliance for home use. In this article, we drew your attention to the main points, we hope that now it is much easier for you to make a decision in favor of a particular model.