Magic Bullet Express 17-Piece High-Speed Blender Mixing System
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Our Price: $64.93 Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days Buy Used: from $44.99 (click here) Category: Kitchen See more product details |
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Kitchen and Housewares Reviews of Magic Bullet Express 17-Piece High-Speed Blender Mixing System
Customer Review: Does what it was built to do
Summary: 5 Stars
I'm a skeptic of anything on t.v. With two advanced degrees (Ph.D. and J.D.) I have little time and little patience for puffery. As one reviewer commented, yes, this little contraption had LOTS of hype and puffery attached to it in the infomercial, as one would expect. So, naturally, common sense would dictate, don't expect it to do everything in the informercial 100% as advertised. Hey, if you keep your expectations low, you are rarely disappointed, and life is good. This was my attitude when my wife convinced me to try this thing. And you know, I'm the one using it more often the she now that we have it!
First week we tried mixed drinks. The frozen daiquiris were perfect. This little blender does a great job with our big ice cubes. The sauces come out as they say in the recipe book too! But, be prepared, sauces taste very different when made fresh from scratch, and served fresh! The stuff in the can or jar just is not the same. So the recipies may take a little tinkering to get them the way you want them. But the dips and sauces, all true, all fine, and all fresh. If you like trying new foods, and healthier ways of preparing foods, this is a fun little gadget indeed.
For the last few months, we've been using it mainly to make fruit smoothies. This guy is a champ in this arena and its mainly why we bought it. I rarely have time for breakfast. But with a little advanced planning, I can be out the door in 5 minutes with the most nutritious breakfast I've ever had. Its so simple. Just buy 4-5 packages of frozen fruit next time you go grocery shopping (we wait til they go on sale). I use a mix of fresh fruit and frozen. At first we were afraid to use frozen food - fearing the motor would quit on us, so we played it safe and simply thawed the berries over night in the fridge. Then we got lazy and just threw 'em in there frozen. NO PROBLEM! Here's one that works well for me: half a fresh orange, half an apple, whole small banana, handful of frozen blackberries, 1-2 cups soy milk and a scoop of protein/vitamin mix. Shake it up a bit and blend. It keeps me going all the way through til lunch. 5 minutes, literally, and I'm out the door with a superb breakfast in hand - vitamins, protein, anti-oxidants from the best source, cofactors, minerals, fiber (raspberries, blueberries, etc) and all fresh. Yeah, I could waste time and gas driving to one of those fruit smoothie bars, plop down $5-$6 bucks for THE SAME THING, waiting in line, etc. But why?? For $10 of fresh fruit, a little chopping or pealing, and 5 minutes in the morning, I've go the same thing every morning. Would have cost me $30 or more, now costs me $1 per day or less. My wife needs to eat yogurt, but she hates it. Solution? Throw it in the cup with fresh fruit and a vitamin pill and she's got a perfect breakfast too! You can use soy milk, 100% Juicy Juice, OJ, even just plain water. It all works well.
Cons - chopping up fruit. Boy, I am lazy. Preparing breakfast takes time and effort no matter what you do. Which would you rather do - crack eggs, scramble, fry, clean pans, etc, or chop some fruit? Heck, you don't even have to do that if you use all frozen fruit.
The motor - yes, its not HUGE like the ones that cost 4-5 times as much. You want one that big? Then why are you buying this product??! That's not what this is and you can't expect it to be that. It works very well for what it was built to do. Plus, those bigger, more powerful blenders are just that BIGGER. We have an apartment and a tiny kitchen. This thing takes up like zero space on our countertop and its now there permanently.
The motor (again) - does it burn out? Yes, it does. But what did you expect? Its not HUGE. Use common sense and its no problem at all. Don't expect it to blend for 5 minutes straight, especially with very thick solutions. I've had it burn out on me while blending smoothies - once or twice. Why? Because I was being dumb and was in a hurry. The smoothie was way too thick and I didn't realize it. Solution? I waited, literally, maybe 4 minutes, and it worked again, no problem. Takes me that long to get my coat on and grab a brief case.
Cup size - for us commuters, would be better if the cups came with full lids with only a straw hole, and would fit into standard sized cupholders in cars. These cups kinda fit, if you jam them in there good. But really, they could have thought of this if they could think of the screw on lids, etc.
Things we wish we would have bought - the extra set of mugs and the extra blade. We use it so much that sometimes we have to wait for a full dishwasher load to get a clean mug. Also, we fear the blade will get dull on us. Should have bought two. After 2 months of continuous use - no problems with the blade yet. But we don't expect it to be perfect sharp forever.
Haven't tried the juicer yet or the big sized blender holder. But we don't expect it to be phenomenal or shockingly perfect, like ones that cost 4-5 more. Why? Because IT DOESN"T COST 4-5 TIMES MORE! Duh. Expect what you pay for. My guess is it will work fine for what it is and for our needs. If we want a professional grade juicer, we'll buy one. All we want is something that gets us what we need on the odd occassion we start making veggie juice, etc.
Overall, this being our first foray into infomercial products, I am surprisingly happy with this one. Its done more than I thought it would and we haven't even used it for the other bonus stuff yet. Well worth the money (only $99). But, don't expect it to work like those that cost 4-5 times more. Why would you? Use it with common sense and it will do the job well.
Customer Review: Here's a quicker way to clean up!
Summary: 4 Stars
I like this little guy! Is it perfect? No. But it's worth the investment! I got a $60 basic kit a.k.a. "Magic Bullet Express" at a local WalGreens Pharmacy with just a large cup, small cup, 2 blades, and 4 party cups (along with 2 shaker/steamer caps and 2 solid caps to store mixed stuff in refrigerator.
EASIEST CLEANUP:
I might have missed this in the other reviews, but after reading a dozen, I just had to throw this in. The easiest way to clean the machine is to fill the cup about half full of tap water and add a couple drops of liquid detergent. Then screw on the dirty blade and blend away! Pour out the gunk and the hard part is over. Just rinse, or repeat for a really hard job. Make sure you do this before the food has had a long time to sit and get crusty (i.e. clean up right after blending).
Alright, the reviews I've read have been on mostly on target, but I feel that a great number of people are NOT READING THE MANUAL! Case in point:
CHOCOLATE MOUSSE:
Whoever got bad results with their mousse is probably using regular milk. You're supposed to use cream; you'll get great results if you bypass the "light cream" and get a carton of "heavy cream" or "heavy whipping cream" (no, not the stuff that's already been whipped and put in a can or in a Cool Whip container). And don't use non-dairy creamer. With the flat blade, you'll have great chocolate mousse as advertised! In actuality, it's simply chocolate flavored whipped topping, but it still tastes great!
TECHNIQUE & MOTOR BURNOUT:
READ THE MANUAL! READ THE MANUAL! READ THE MANUAL!
Yes, I love to dig right in and start playing with my new gadgets. But after getting frustrated with the ideosyncrosies of the Magic Bullet, I read the manual and found that most issues were addressed. Be careful not to lift the canister out (upward) while the blades are still turning, as this ends up wearing down the plastic spinner on the blade attachment. You'll smell something odd and notice plastic shavings around the motor. Learn the proper 2-handed pulse technique and you'll never have to lift upward, thus causing much less wear on the blade spinner!
The trickiest part of learning to operate the machine is figuring out how to apply just a little counter-clockwise pressure to the screw-on base with one hand while using the other hand to briefly tap down on the top. Otherwise, the powerful blades tend to make the entire canister spin slightly clockwise into the full "locked" position, where it stays on continuously. By the time you get it unlocked from this position, your food is practically liquified like baby food! The manual is very clear about not leaving it on for prolonged periods of time and it cautions against overheating. It even tells you that overheating the machine will trip a breaker that will eventually reset after the machine cools down. Learn how to master the "pulse" technique and stop trying to leave the thing on forever like a typical blender!
Some of you will read this and feel that you now know enough to avoid reading the manual. So I'll throw in this other tidbit from the manual before someone finds out the hard way: remember that the party mugs are not intended to be microwave safe!
RECIPES I'VE TRIED:
The day my wife & I bought it, we went to the store with our recipe book. In one hour I'd made chocolate mousse, a couple fruit somoothies, guacamole (very nice indeed), stuffed muchrooms (slap-your-mama good), and nacho cheese.
Results: Wow!
Yes, according to the infomercial, this should have taken a total of maybe 3 to 5 minutes, but preparing ingredients and cleaning/scooping out mushrooms took awhile. The cheese is a bit challenging....and don't even try using Velveeta, but the rest was great! Another night I tried making quesadillas. Be careful not to over-chop the chicken; even so, it tasted great! And the frozen coffe drinks I made last night were AWESOME! I've been avoiding buying a coffeee grinder. How cool that one machine will grind the beans AND mix the drink!
I like to use grape tomatoes instead of cherry tomatoes since the fit better, but other reviewers are right about tomatoes getting pulverized before the rest of the ingredients. I still loved the fresh salsa taste (tweaked the ingredients/measurements to my liking). One complaint (besides the cheese): I've had the hardest time getting my small "boiler" onions ( I just used small Vidalias about the size of cherry tomatoes) to chop up at all when mixed the the other ingredients. It just seems to find a home in the center of the base and the blades twirl around it. This is why I give the product only 4 stars. Even so, I'm sure I can work around this quirk...maybe by cutting the onion first.
CONCLUSION:
We sold our old blender in a yard sale. How often do you really need all the in-between settings anyway? I have always just pushed the slowest speed button and continued sequentially upping the settings until I got to the highest speed--the pulse button. Might as well just use the pulse button the whole time, like the MB does. I'm ditching our small electric mini-chopper, too. Also, this has eliminated the need to buy a smoothie maker and a coffee grinder. Thus, the MB has replaced 4 machines (blender, smoothie maker, cofee grinder, mini-chopper).
I give it 2-thumbs up! :o)
Customer Review: A Great Little Blender
Summary: 4 Stars
According to the Amazon data base, I purchased the Magic Bullet in March. It is hard to believe that I've been using this blender at least twice every day since. I have used it primarily as a "frozen" drink maker--some would call them smoothies, I call them meal replacement drinks. I have also ground coffee beans to an espresso grind; made pesto, salad dressing, and use it to mix the wet ingredients for my seitan.
What I have learned: the heavier ingredients need to go into the cup first and then the lighter ingredients, whatever they are. When making pesto, this means that the nuts go in first, followed by the cheese (especially if you are using a chunk of cheese as opposed to shredded) and then the basil. If you are using olive oil, it should actually go in last. The reason for the importance of the order is that the blade, while it is put on top of the cup, is actually the bottom of the blender. Putting the heavier ingredients into the cup first help insure smoother blending action. The only time that the heaviest item should not go in first is when it is sticky: nut butter, molasses, etc.
My meal replacement, aka breakfast and lunch, is made from Blue Diamond's Almond Breeze, Unsweetened, Original, 32 oz.-- I use both the original and chocolate flavors depending on the other ingredients. I decided, some time back, that I did not like using ice cubes and began freezing the almond milk in ice cube trays. It works wonderfully well.
Breakfast Smoothie: So, into the cup goes:
about 4 cubes of frozen original flavor almond milk
2 oz of Torani Syrup, Sugar-Free Vanilla, 25.4-Ounce Bottles (Pack of 3)
4 or 5 oz almond milk
1 tsp Stash Japanese Matcha Powdered Green Tea, 1.06-Ounce Tin
1 tsp Source Naturals Spirulina Powder, 16 ounce
vitamins (I add acidophilus and Vitamin D)
1 scoop Nature's Plus Spiru-Tein High Protein Energy Meal, Vanilla 2.4 Pounds
a couple more cubes
4 oz almond milk
Blend until smooth. Yes, it is green but oh so tasty! And for kicks & giggles, I always use the green ring with my green drink.
When I make a chocolate drink, I do not add the green schtuff--but I may add berries. I make a drink before bed as well and always add my calcium powder (have you noticed that calcium tablets are horse pills?).
When I make pesto, I leave it in the cup and use the "storage" lid. I have found that it keeps very nicely for about a week.
What I do not recommend: While grinding coffee beans was successful, I was a bit concerned about the motor burning up. It may be because I was grinding the beans to an espresso grind rather than a drip--as they show on the infomercial. I also do not recommend grinding large quantities of cheese. Truthfully, it is questionable as to whether it is faster than using a box grater. I have also tried to grind medications and calcium tablets. It takes a very long time and the pills never really got powder smooth. They also stay "stuck" to the bottom of the cup when blending into a drink.
Advice: remove the rubber gasket for cleaning. When using berries, the seeds can slip under the gasket and cause a mess. Also, when using the Magic Bullet for mixing anything with oil or fats, I recommend washing it in the dishwasher (top shelf). I had no luck cleaning the "grease" out; however when blending just about anything else, it is very easy to clean with just water and a drop of dish soap.
Yes, I will buy another if/when this one dies of over use.
Customer Review: Very versatile appliance--we use it everyday!
Summary: 5 Stars
In our house, this appliance has replaced several bulkier, much more expensive appliances (our blender, smoothie maker, 2 coffee grinders (one was used to chop nuts and grains), juicer, and food processers. I wish the Magic Bullet had come out years ago!
We use MB every morning to make excellent, sugar-free smoothies of all sorts. With about 3/4 C milk, frozen fruit, and a packet of sweetener you can make a terrific shake-like smoothie. Just freeze any type of peeled fruit--it's a perfect way to use up all that fruit that is just a bit past its prime, but still edible! We freeze everything from grapes, oranges, berries, nectarines, to cantelope, even watermelon. I do recommend breaking larger pieces into smaller, cube-shaped pieces for ease of blending and to reduce wear to your bullet). By keeping gallon-sized freezer bags of fruit in our freezer for easy access and adding in a decent protein powder, we can make a nice, quick meal on-the-go. My three kids love starting the day with a made-to-order "milkshake" and, unbeknownst to them, they've already gotten at least two servings of fruit, and sometimes even a serving of veggies (a couple of baby carrots or slices of cucumbers added in still taste great)!
Use the same fruit/milk/sweetener combination, but with less milk, blend and return it to the freezer for a quick and terrific homemade ice cream!. I also freeze cubes of left-over coffee (with added creamer and sweetener) for a quick frozen coffee drink (just add a bit of milk to the frozen cubes, another pack of sweetener, and maybe even some chocolate sauce for a frozen mocha latte!). Frozen cubes of orange juice + some sweetener and a bit of milk makes a terrific orangecicle shake! By mixing packets of unsweetened fruit drink-mixes with low-cal sweetener and a quart of water, you can freeze cubes of flavored mix to blend into Italian Ice in less than a minute! As you can see, the possibilities are limited only by your own imagination.
We also use the MB to make everything from salsa to ground nuts to grinding our whole-bean coffee. The only problem with grinding coffee with the bullet is that, as coffee beans are highly acidic, the coffee will "etch" the plastic casing and also leave a flavor of coffee in its parts. We simply have designated one set of blades and cup for only grinding coffee.
I cannot say enough about the Magic Bullet's versatility! As a family with 4 members having allergies to gluten, and one with a dairy allergy, it has proved invaluable. Aside from the obvious convenience of being able to make some shakes with milk, and others with soy or milk-substitute, I can also grind up whole, non-glutenous grains or nuts to make my own wheat-free flours for baking. We use it to make rice-milk, almond-milk, whip up some soy-butter, you name it!
Now, the only bad part (things not necessarily limited to the MB): After a while, the blades dull, the rubber seal-gaskets start to give way (luckily, several extras are included!). If you're not careful to check the base to ensure it hasn't come loose (which can happen when you're blending things with large chunks or hard items), you can end up with a real mess on your hands. This has happened to me once or twice--the most notable being while using the larger blender attachment (the one with the optional juicer) to make margaritas. Months later, and despite a whole blender of margarita mix soaking the motorized-base, our MB continues to work well and withstand the rigors of being used several times every day.
At the risk of sounding like some silly paid-program, I have to say that for less than $50, you can't go wrong with the Magic Bullet. I've bought them for family members, who are also very happy with them, so I don't think my experiences with it are unique. Happy bulleting! :-)
Customer Review: There's No Magic in Low Quality Material & Engineering
Summary: 2 Stars
I've been using the MB for approximately 3 weeks. I had seen the ads repeatedly and, like most everyone, had been bombarded with the bombastic marketing put forth by the MB company. As a rule, I don't buy from TV ads or infomercials as I find the majority of products create trends to which they cater and/or offer inferior products.
The Bullet was given to me as a gift so I kept it ( initial impulse was to exchange it as I already have a complete line-up of quality blending and food processing equipment in my kitchen ). I tried the MB on several items including onions, avocado for salsa, chopping ham for salad, and none of the results were satisfactory, either being over-chopped to almost liquid or unevenly so. My next application was for a Smoothie - which it did extremely well. So for the past 3 weeks, I've been making Smoothies. Approximately one week ago, the rubber footed protrusions that lock into the base from the crossblade were literally chewed up over a period of a few uses. I ordered the part under warranty services. I have been using the single blade for the past couple of days - and today the same thing occurred. In other words, the MB works for a short time and, like all poorly engineered machines, fails to be capable of providing continued performance. It's a great concept, excellent size, but falls far short of being a quality product. The base and blade cup which sits in base are identical to any blender on the market, however because of its cheap construction, it doesn't last. I see where many folks have gotten 2 + years from their units --- those were made on a good day with perhaps higher quality control measures. Customer Service appears to be not so wholesome with this company, but before I say more, I am going to call again now. To be continued...
Now I'm convinced that the company is simply greedy. Customer Service is not accommodating. The company is making hand over fist dollars in replacements parts = all due to poor quality engineering. I find this repugnant as a whole; they cause more angst and anxiety and unhappiness in the world with their uncaring attitude --- foisting blame upon the consumer for not knowing how to use their product. Ha! Most of us have been using quality (and not so good quality) blenders for years and years --- and not until these blenders hit their 20s in age do they begin to show signs of disintegrating rubber parts. Homeland is naughty and not the kind of business that will thrive --- however, they are certainly cleaning up right now --- as long as another consumer comes along and takes the bait of their ever-so-expensive infomercials.
Update: Purchased a Tribest PB [...]. It was love at first sight upon receipt as you can see and feel the quality of the product. This is the real deal and should last for years and years. For [...], you can purchase a 3 year extended warranty on this item via squaretrade.com. No more annoying customer unservice people at Homeland telling you that you're doing something 'wrong' in the use of the stinky Magic Bullet. Tribest personal blender DOESN'T give you all types of advice within their manual of all the DO NOTS as its construction speaks for itself. As far as I'm concerned, the purchase of just about any product via an infomercial is merely paying for the gobs of dough it costs to air such fodder - and the quality of product is generally lacking.
Kudos to amazon for publishing such extensive and useful reviews. I base my choices on customer reviews foremost when making on line purchases and to date they have proved invaluable.