When it comes to getting the most out of your kitchen, few tools are as versatile and useful as a KitchenAid stand mixer. And if you thought your mixer was only good for making cookies or whipping up meringues, think again. With just a few simple attachments and a little creativity, there are so many different KitchenAid stand mixer uses.
With its wide range of attachments, your trusty KitchenAid appliance can handle just about any task in the kitchen – from kneading dough to whipping up heavy cream to even mashing potatoes. Whether you’re an enthusiastic home cook, professional chef or you’re just starting out and want to learn how to use a KitchenAid stand mixer, there is undoubtedly a way to use your KitchenAid that will make your life easier and more delicious. So, what can you do with a KitchenAid mixer? Keep reading to find out!
Love A Good Deal?
Who doesn’t?! Here are a few KitchenAid attachments I think you’ll love!
What Is A Stand Mixer Used For?
A stand mixer is one of the most versatile kitchen appliances. Whether you’re a baking aficionado or just looking to save some time on dinner prep, a stand mixer can be a lifesaver. But what is a stand mixer and what can you use it for?
The answer, it turns out, is quite a lot. With the right attachments, a stand mixer can be used to make everything from fresh pasta to homemade ice cream. And of course, it’s also perfect for whipping up batches of cookies, cakes, and breads.
Ways To Use a KitchenAid Mixer
There are many things to make with a stand mixer, especially a KitchenAid.
When it comes to what you can do with a KitchenAid mixer, the possibilities are endless. The various KitchenAid stand mixer uses depend on what attachments you use. Your basic attachments, like the flat beater or wire whip, will help you with most of your sweet baking creations, while attachments like the grinder or shredder will help you achieve savoury delectable goods.
While there are so many KitchenAid stand mixer uses, here are 15 of my favorite things to do with a KitchenAid stand mixer.
Mixing Batters
For most of us, the first thing that comes to mind of what a stand mixer can do is mixing. After all, it’s in the name! When it comes to mixing batters, the stand mixer can save you a lot of time and effort.
The key is to use the paddle attachment, which is specially designed for mixing batters. Simply add all of your ingredients to the bowl and then turn on the mixer, starting on low speed and gradually increasing to high. The paddle will do all the work for you, ensuring that your batter is smooth and lump-free.
You can mix all sorts of batters with your KitchenAid. From mixing cake batter, cookie dough, cupcake batter or muffin. But that’s not just it. You can go as far as mixing minced meat, salads and even make delicious dips. One of my favorite KitchenAid stand mixer recipes is this mouth-watering New York cheesecake.
Whisking Egg Whites
Whisking is another popular baking method that can be easily handled by your KitchenAid mixer. Simply use the wire whisk attachment to quickly and efficiently whip egg whites into stiff peaks for delicious meringue, angel food cakes, or pavlovas. I religiously use my KitchenAid stand mixer to whip up Italian or Swiss meringue.
Check out the KitchenAid in action!
Whipping Heavy Cream
If you’re making a recipe that requires whipped cream, using your KitchenAid mixer can be a real time-saver. The whisk attachment makes it incredibly easy to whip up heavy cream in just minutes.
Just remember to add the heavy cream to the bowl while it is still cold, and if you want to make sure you get the best whipped cream, chill your bowl and wire whip too.
Folding Light Batters or Flour
Folding is a very gentle way of mixing light batters with heavier batters. When mixing a light batter into a denser one, the key is not to knock out any of the air pockets. Using your paddle attachment on a very slow, low speed and folding gently can help you achieve the perfect fluffy and light texture.
This technique is used to make, genoise, soufflés and lava cake, to name a few.
Creaming Sugar and Butter
The creaming method is a popular technique used in making cookies or cake batter. Creaming together butter and sugar can’t get any easier with your KitchenAid stand mixer.
Simply add room temperature, soft butter and sugar to your mixing bowl with your flat beater attachment. Turn your mixer on to a medium-high speed and let it do its thing until the sugar and butter have come together nicely.
Here is my favorite KitchenAid stand mixer recipe for making the richest buttercream frosting.
Knead Your Own Dough
If you’ve ever tried kneading dough by hand before, then you know it’s a tedious task. Luckily for you, all KitchenAid stand mixers come equipped with a dough hook that is perfect for creating homemade breads, pizzas, brioches, donuts, pretzels, bagels… Do I need to keep going? You get the jist!
Just bear in mind that how well your KitchenAid kneads dough depends on how strong your KitchenAid stand mixer is.
If you want to learn a thing or two about making the best pizza dough using your KitchenAid stand mixer, take a look at the video below.
Mashing Potatoes
Mashing potatoes by hand is such a mundane job that takes way too long to make for what it is. Even with the best masher, you still can’t avoid getting large lumps that will just not go away no matter how hard you try. But, did you know you could do this with your trusty KitchenAid mixer? Yes, it can be a bit of a pain bringing out your mixer just to mash potatoes but if you want silky, smooth and lump-free mashed potatoes, then it’s definitely worth the effort of turning on your stand mixer.
To mash potatoes, the best attachment to use is the flat beater (paddle attachment). If you don’t want to keep taking out your stand mixer for this job, the hand held mixer also does a great job too!
Shredding Chicken and Pork
You just can’t go wrong with shredded chicken or pork. I’m just drooling thinking about it. But, if you’ve ever shredded meat with two forks, then you know how long it can take. And if it’s your turn to host the dinner party, the last thing you want to do is spend the night shredding chicken like that!
If it wasn’t for my KitchenAid, I probably won’t be shredding meat as much as I do. Shredding meat and putting it in the freezer, using it in soups or using it as sandwich fillings has been a total game changer.
You can either use the flat beater or the dough hook to shred meat. I definitely find that the flat beater is a lot easier and covers more surface area, so you’re guaranteed that the mixer will shred every inch of the chicken or meat you are shredding.
Slicing, Shredding, Spiralizing and Dicing Fruit and Veg
If you don’t already know, KitchenAid has an array of different attachments. As well as your standard dough hook, flat beater and wire whip, you also get other attachments and accessories that fit into the universal hub located at the top of every KitchenAid stand mixer, regardless of the model.
One of these accessories you can attach to the universal hub is a food processor. The food processor comes with various discs, transforming your KitchenAid into a slicing, shredding and dicing machine.
From dicing tomatoes for salsa to slicing veg for a hearty soup on a winter’s day, the food processor will become your most used attachment.
You can also get the spiralizing attachments which you can use to make healthy zucchini pasta or delicious curly fries.
Grinding Meat and Veg
Grinding my own meat was something I never really considered. I always thought it was too time-consuming, or that it required a special tool. So, I just left it up to the experts to do it for me, or I would buy minced meat from the grocery store. It wasn’t until I discovered the KitchenAid grinder that I thought I would give it a try.
Grinding meat with the KitchenAid grinding attachment could not be any easier. It completely transforms your appliance into something so much more than just a baking appliance. Now, you can make wholesome meals, with high quality meat.
Don’t limit yourself to just grinding meats, use the grinder to grind chickpeas for tasty falafel or use it to grate stubborn cheese.
Making Homemade Pasta
You just can’t go wrong with a pasta dish. Everyone loves it, especially when it’s fresh and homemade. Making pasta is one of the most popular things people do with their KitchenAid stand mixer. The mixer gives you the ability to literally make everything, from making your own flour with the mill attachment, to mixing the dough with the dough hook attachment and then choosing your favorite shape with the pasta rollers and cutters.
Juicing Fruit and Veg
If you’re looking for a quick and easy way to add fresh fruits and vegetables to your diet, your KitchenAid stand mixer can help you get there. By using the juicing attachment, you can quickly and easily create nutritious fruit or vegetable juices with just the touch of a button.
Whether you want a refreshing glass of orange juice in the morning or an immune-boosting green smoothie after your workout, this handy kitchen tool is sure to come in handy when it comes to incorporating more healthy foods into your diet.
Make Mouth-Watering Ice Cream
KitchenAid doesn’t just have attachments that fit into the universal hub. You can make ice cream using their ice cream maker which attaches as a bowl to the base of the mixer. The ice cream is churned constantly to keep it light and airy while the ingredients are being added. Plus, you can choose your own mix-ins such as sauces or candy pieces so that you get exactly what you want in each bite.
Not only that, the ice cream is ready in just under 30 minutes!
Temper Chocolate
Tempering chocolate is one of those things that you think only the professional patisserie bakers know how to do. But what if I told you you can also do it, without needing to spread chocolate all over your kitchen bench? KitchenAid came up with the Precise Heat Mixing Bowl for that exact reason and it lets you really get creative with your bakes.
Shaving Ice
Have you ever watched a frozen daiquiri being made and thought I would love to be able to make that? Your KitchenAid stand mixer can shave 500ml of ice or other frozen treats in just 60 seconds with the new shave ice attachment. This is the perfect attachment for a hot summer’s day when you need to quench your thirst with a cocktail.
What Delicious Treat Will You Make With Your KitchenAid Stand Mixer?
I could be here all day listing all the delicious things you can make with your stand mixer. There are an infinite amount of ways to use a KitchenAid mixer if you have all the right accessories and attachments.
Collecting every single KitchenAid attachment and accessory can become an expensive hobby. If you want to get a little bit more creative with your mixer but don’t want to spend much, consider getting third party KitchenAid attachments.
Now that you know what to use a KitchenAid mixer for, get creative!
