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Ever splashed flour all over your kitchen by cranking up your KitchenAid stand mixer too quickly? You’re not alone; it’s a shared kitchen mistake.
Thankfully, there’s a simple solution: mastering the mixer’s speed settings. While most recipes use terms like stir, low, medium-low, medium, medium-high, and high to describe mixing speeds, KitchenAid assigns numbers from 1-10. Occasionally, the “1” is marked as “stir”.
Knowing which KitchenAid speed setting to use can be confusing. Do you mix bread dough on low or high speed? What about cupcake batter? Egg whites?
Let’s take a deeper dive into KitchenAid speed settings and how to use them.
KitchenAid Mixer Speed Chart
Before we get started, here is a KitchenAid mixer speed chart breaking down all the speeds, the attachment you’ll need for that speed and what to use that particular speed for. You can refer back to the chart throughout the article.
NOTE: KitchenAid’s new 7 Quart with Premium Touchpoints Mixer has 11 speeds, including a ½ speed for really slow stirring.
KitchenAid Mixer Speeds
Okay, so now that we have a visual chart of all KitchenAid mixer speeds, let’s dive a little bit deeper into each speed and what they mean.
As we know, KitchenAid has 10 speed that go up in increments of two. Speeds 2, 4, 6, 8 and 10 are the speeds you’ll use as default. If you want even more precise mixing, you can set your mixer to speeds 1, 3, 5, 7 and 9 by pulling the lever only slightly. You can use these speeds for some fine-tuning mixing, but generally, you won’t use those speeds as much.
Where it can get confusing is in recipes. As I mentioned above, recipes won’t tell you which speed to use by number. Instead, a recipe will say to ‘beat on medium to high speed’, or ‘whisk on high speed’, or ‘knead at low speed’.
Speed number 1: Corresponds to the recipe instruction stir and is ideal for mixing dry ingredients before introducing the wet ones and vice versa or gently folding ingredients together. This is also the speed you want to start any mix with and gradually bring it up to the desired speed.
Speed number 2: Aligns with recipe instructions like slow-mixing, low speed, fold, stir or knead. It’s your go-to when cutting butter into flour for delectable crusts and crumbles, mixing batter for fluffy waffles or pancakes, or mashing. You also want to use speed 2 for kneading doughs. Do not attempt to knead dough at a higher speed as you can really damage your mixer.
Speed number 4: Relates to recipe terms such as ‘beating on medium speed’, ‘medium-low’, and ‘mixing’. Use this speed when mixing cake batters, prepping eggs for a delightful quiche.
Speed number 6: To be used for ‘creaming’, ‘medium-high speed’, and ‘heavy-beating’. Opt for this speed when creaming butter and sugar for those irresistible chocolate chip cookies or whipping up delicious cake batter.
Speed number 8 and 10: Matches recipe phrases such as ‘fast beating’, ‘high’, and ‘whip’. Turn to this speed for churning milk cream into butter, whipping up a delicate cream topping, crafting velvety cake frostings and fillings or making meringue.
The key takeaway from KitchenAid speed settings is if you want to mix thin batters, knead dough or shred meat, go low and slow. If you want to aeriate mixtures, go fast and high.
How To Adjust Speed On Your KitchenAid Mixer
Adjusting your speed on your mixer is easy. Firstly, plug your mixer into the wall. Turn the speed lever one click to the right to the lowest speed which will either be ‘stir’ or 1. Always begin every mix at the lowest speed.
Once your ingredients have been incorporated for a few seconds, keep moving the lever up every few seconds until you get to your desired speed.
The great thing about KitchenAid is that most of their mixers have a soft start feature. This feature gradually brings the mixer to speed, preventing the dreaded clouds of flour and batter from splattering everywhere.
KitchenAid Mixer Speed Control Problems
Problems can always come up unexpectedly and can cause complete recipe disaster. These problems range from operator error starting out at too high of a speed to not having the bowl attached correctly.
1) Operator Error
For the most part, issues with the mixer speed will be due to us starting at an excessively high speed or not securing the bowl correctly.
Always initiate the mixing process on a lower speed and ensure that the bowl snugly fits into the slots on the mixer’s base.
2) Mixer Speed Inconsistencies
Some KitchenAid owners have reported that their mixer remains stuck on a high or low setting. If this happens to you, there are a few things you can do to fix it.
- Restart the mixer by setting the speed lever to off and unplugging the unit for about 5 minutes. Plug it back in and check if the issue is resolved.
If the problem persists, it’s time to check the control plate as it might be loose.
- Unplug the machine.
- Using a Phillips-head screwdriver, remove the rear cover.
- Tighten the three screws securing the plate and the two screws near the machine’s end.
- Replace the cover and test the mixer.
If tightening the control plate doesn’t work, you might need to replace the panel.
3) Loose/Broken Speed Lever
KitchenAid’s speeds are controlled by the lever, so if you encounter any speed control issues, it might be caused by the lever.
- Disassemble the mixer.
- Remove and replace the speed lever.
- Reassemble the mixer.
Note: Ensure the speed lever is in good condition. If broken or worn out, consider getting a replacement.
Remember that if your mixer is still within warranty and the issues are mechanical, you can send your KitchenAid mixer back to be fixed.
To find out how to take your mixer apart and put it back together, take a look at the video below!
When to Seek Professional Help
Despite our best DIY efforts, there are times when the expertise of a professional is necessary. If the troubleshooting steps don’t resolve your issue, it’s recommended to reach out to KitchenAid Customer Service. Their “Contact Us” feature, especially the chat option on their website, offers invaluable assistance to get you back on track with your culinary ventures.
