There is nothing more comforting than a steaming bowl of soup on a chilly morning. To be able to enjoy such treat, you’d need a good soup maker at home. This type of appliance can make soup cooking fast and convenient. In fact, a typical soup maker can make up to four bowls of warm, tasty soup in less than 30 minutes.
Top Five Soup Makers
1- Morphy Richards 501014 Saute and Soup Maker – Brushed Stainless Steel
2 – Tefal Easy Soup Metal and White, BL841140
3 – Cuisinart SSB1U Soup Maker, Black
4 – NutriBullet RX 1700W
5 – Salter EK1689 500W Glass Jar Blender
There are plenty of good soup makers in the market today, but the following are arguably the best right now:
1 – Morphy Richards 501014 Saute and Soup Maker – Brushed Stainless Steel
The main selling proposition of this unit is its sauté function that allows users to prepare more delicious soups. There are four programs to choose from, including a Smooth function that can finish a soup in 21 minutes and a Chunky programme that creates a soup with thicker consistency in almost 30 minutes. You can also push the pause button so you can add herbs or spices midway through the cooking cycle.
This soup maker can also create healthy smoothies and juice drinks with its additional juice function. You can always refer to its LED countdown display to determine the tie remaining for the soup to cook.
To help you get started, there are 17 recipes included in the instruction booklet.
This is a very solid choice for a soup maker although there are complaints that the unit makes a lot of noise when in operation. But for its price, you can’t really find a better deal than this soup maker.
2 – Tefal Easy Soup Metal and White, BL841140, 1.2 L Capacity (Serves 4) with Four Automated Cooking Programmers
This is almost of the same price as that of the Morphy Richards 501014, although it has a smaller capacity of 1.2 liters. But Tefal claims that it is still good enough to serve four people.
This unit, however, is faster than the Morphy Richards 501014 when it comes to creating soups. It can create creamy soup in just 23 minutes and chunky soup in less than 25 minutes compared to the 501014 that can do so in around 27 minutes.
This is a user-friendly unit with a large display. It features dual layer walls that keep the soup warm and ready for serving. Once it is done cooking, the unit will sound off an audible alert to let you know that your soup is ready.
And it’s not just soup that you can create with this soup maker. With its compote program, you can also make delicious desserts, baby food, and smoothie using this soup maker. The package includes a recipe book that you can refer to, with 30 recipes that you can create using this soup maker.
Many people are in awe of the great features of this soup maker, except for the fact that it can be difficult to clean the unit.
3 – Cuisinart SSB1U Soup Maker, Black
Compared to the two models previously mentioned, this Cuisinart soup maker is a bit expensive. But you will realize that the price is justified what with the many features of this appliance which also doubles as a blender.
It features a rapid heating element and non-stick cooking plate. The unit itself is quick to create delicious soups, able to do so in 20 minutes. Aside from soups, the Cuisinart SSB1U can also be used for other applications like creating smoothies, cocktails, and even ice. You can also rely on this for creating dips, sauces, and dressings.
This unit has a capacity of 1.75 liters for cool liquid, and 1.4 liters for soup and hot liquid. Its thermal glass jar is designed to maintain temperature even after the cooking cycle has ended, so you can always serve soup that is warm and delicious.
Aside from the price, the only real downside of this unit is the difficulty in cleaning it no thanks to its fixed blade.
4 – NutriBullet RX 1700W Power Black Nutri Bullet Blender Mixer Juicer Extractor Food Processor
Another high-end model is this one from NutriBullet. It boasts of a 2.3 horsepower motor and 1700 watts of power. With that much power, it can extract whole fruits and vegetables into liquid easily without eliminating fiber and other essential nutrients.
A key feature is the integration of SMART technology, meaning that it can create hot soups and cool drinks with relative ease.
This is a powerful soup maker that can make soup from vegetables in just seven minutes. It’s relatively easy to use as well, with a button located up front and which you need to press to create delicious soups and mouthwatering smoothies.
But not all people are impressed with this appliance. A common complaint is that it tends to be noisy. However that is understandable because of the powerful motor of this soup maker. There are also issues about the unit wobbling easily, and an unpleasant smell that it emits.
5. Salter EK1689 500W Glass Jar Blender with 5 Speed Setting and 1.5Litre Capacity
View prices on Amazon UKThis kettle style soup maker is a cheaper alternative to the NutriBullet RX. It has a capacity of 1.6 liters, allowing you to fit in lots of ingredients. It also has an easy-pour lip so transferring soup should be mess-free. Soup should be ready to serve in less than 20 minutes on this soup maker.
There are three automatic settings in this soup maker – pure, chunky, and blend. It is equipped with an intelligent control system that prevents dry burning so you can let the soup maker cook and attend to your other chores.
This is an easy to clean unit with its jug detaching from the unit. It can feed up to four people.
Many reviewers on Amazon.co.uk give a good rating to this appliance although some aren’t happy with the noise that the soup maker creates.
Choose from any of these soup makers and you’ll have no troubles preparing delicious soups any time of the day.
Soup Maker Buying Guide and Reviews
There is nothing more comforting than a steaming bowl of soup on a chilly morning. To be able to enjoy such treat, you’d need a good soup maker at home. This type of appliance can make soup cooking fast and convenient. In fact, a typical soup maker can make up to four bowls of warm, tasty soup in less than 30 minutes.
Soup makers today are very versatile, able to cook soups but also capable of making other things like sauces, cold smoothies, salad dressings, and baby food. And there are soup makers that can even crush ice and make non-dairy milk.
Indeed, a soup maker is one appliance you should have in your kitchen.
Types of Soup Makers
There are basically two kinds of soup makers according to its design—blender style and kettle style.
The blender-style soup maker may actually be mistaken for a blender. But the difference is that it can heat ingredients in two ways – through a heating plate located in the base, and via heat produced by the blades spinning. Units that rely on spinning blades to produce heat would often need 6 to 7 minutes to generate enough heat. These models are also a bit noisy when in operation.
Blender-style soup makers can also be used for sautéing ingredients. This type of soup maker usually has a transparent jug, allowing you to see the ingredients as these are being blended.
You can get a blender-style soup maker for as low as £40, with high-end models in the £100 to £200 range.
The kettle-style soup maker, meanwhile, has its heating element located in the base. The blending blades are located in the lid and reach into the jug. Compared to the blender-style soup maker, it takes a lot longer for this type of soup maker to make soup. It does so in around 20 minutes, although users have the option of creating smooth or chunky soup.
Tips for Shoppers
While you cannot be blamed for buying a soup maker on the basis of price alone, there are a lot of things that you ought to look into when shopping for a soup maker. These factors include:
- Do you prefer a soup maker that can do multiple things like crushing ice or steaming vegetables, or one that is dedicated to making soups? There are soup makers that can do other things aside from creating soups, although most of these are usually more expensive. One function that you should look for is the sauté feature, which would allow you to make more delicious soups.
- The capacity of soup makers can range from just under 1 liter to more than 2.5 liters. The smallest soup maker should be able to make soup for one to two persons, while those with a large capacity can feed four or more individuals. Consider the number of people in your household in deciding the right type of soup maker.
- Ease of maintenance/cleaning. Cleaning the soup maker can be a hassle and time consuming, which won’t sit well for people who are always on the go. If cleaning is a concern to you, buy a soup blender which has dishwasher-friendly parts or even non-stick coatings.
- If you’re the type of homemaker who’s always pressed for time, buy a soup maker that can whip up soup in 6-7 minutes. There’s a downside though—the unit is more likely to be noisy.