Although Blender and a coffee grinder work almost the same way, they serve different purposes. Especially for coffee, you must understand the difference between them for a better grinding experience. Here, we will dive deep into the coffee grinder vs blender, to uncover which is best for grinding.
Usually, people use a grinder to break down dry spices and beans. With a blender, you can make juices, mix frozen produce, and some degree of grinding as well. But when it comes to coffee grinding there are a lot of things in play, like how fine the particles and consistency of overall ground coffee beans are.
Following that, let's jump into the detailed comparison showing a wide variety of benefits and drawbacks of these handy appliances.
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Benefits of using a Coffee Grinder
When it comes to a coffee grinder, there are two types of appliances available in the market. One has a flat blade just like a blender and the other one has two burrs that break down the beans rotating on top of each other. Both grinder types work towards the same goal which is breaking coffee beans. Here are some benefits of using a coffee grinder.
Saves Time:
Grinding coffee beans is tedious work. Especially if you are not a fan of pre-ground coffee. The coffee grinder takes the hassle and helps you with making outstanding coffee from fresh beans.
Better taste:
Oxidation is the main culprit that kills the natural flavor and aroma of fresh coffee beans. Store Bought coffee usually sits around your counter and loses vital flavor profile. When you grind fresh coffee beans and consume them quickly, it gives you the best taste of coffee.
Consistent brew:
Your brewed coffee can be different depending on the particle size. Finer particles tend to give stronger coffee whereas larger particles yield mild coffee. In contrast, a burr grinder helps to grind beans in consistent size or adjust the size according to your taste.
Affordable Price:
Compared to blenders, coffee grinders are much cheaper. The Burr grinders are even cheaper than the motorized coffee grinder. If you are a daily coffee guy, you won't have to invest heavily.
Grind as much as u like:
Coffee grinder and burr grinder can even take a few beans and grind them effectively. This significantly reduces coffee wastage and lets you grind the exact amount of coffee that you prefer. If you happen to have one on your countertop, you will be enjoying these advantages with a coffee grinder.
Drawbacks of using a Coffee Grinder:
We have talked about several benefits of a coffee grinder. Though it helps a lot in quickly grinding coffee beans, it does have some drawbacks that you should know. These are not deal-breaking issues, but it’s a good idea to be mindful.
Motor Issue:
Because coffee grinders are a bit small, manufacturers often install cheap or underpowered motors inside the grinder. That may lead to poor grinding results and other complications related to the motor.
Hand Cranking:
Manual Burr grinders don't have an electrical motor inside to rotate the burr. But it has a hand crank to manually rotate the burr. Every time you need a cup of coffee you need manual labor to grind coffee for about 60 seconds or so.
Straining issue:
If you grind too long on the motorized coffee grinder, you may end up with extremely fine particles. These fine particles sometimes slip through the mesh strainer and go into your coffee.
Benefits of using a Coffee Grinder
Undoubtedly, the blender is a remarkable appliance for households, restaurants, juice bars, and so on. To sum it up, it gives you access to a wide variety of healthy food and drinks with the press of a button.
The range of blade designs in the blender also yields different results from mixing, chopping, and even crushing frozen treats.
Convenience:
Compared to other appliances that help you with making food and drinks, the blender has the most convenience. All the mixing, chopping, and grinding work is done by the motor, and some cases with preset speed settings and duration. The only thing you need to do is plug in and press the button.
Mixing ingredients:
The blender is also very expert and efficient with mixing multiple ingredients. For example, thick ingredients like egg, oil, and also solid ingredients are easy to mix with desired consistency in a few seconds.
Reduce prepping time:
The preparation takes the most time to make any food. But with a blender, you just put the ingredients in the jar and press blend. That’s it! In a matter of seconds, your drinks and smoothies will be ready without much effort on your end.
Grinding:
Along with the mixing and blending, the blender also comes with a grinding jar. It’s usually smaller than the main pitcher and has a flat blade.
You can easily grind spices, nuts, and other solid ingredients to fine powder form. But in the case of coffee grinding, it also does a great job breaking down coffee beans into smaller particles.
Drawbacks of using a Blender
Blenders also have some disadvantages like every other appliance. But all these are easily manageable with the appropriate undertaking.
Costly:
There are highly affordable blenders as well as expensive ones. Expensive blenders usually come with better motors, speed settings, accessories, and overall better build quality. But not everyone has the budget to invest so they rather settle for models that fulfill the essential need only.
Inefficient Nutrient Extraction:
Although the blender does a great job at mixing, it can't extract nutrients as the juicer. So it's harder for some people to use a blender if they have strict nutrition intake rules.
No control over particle size:
With the grinder, it’s absolutely easy to grind solid ingredients. But if you want precision and adjustability in particle size, unfortunately, there is no option like that in a blender. This is an inconvenience for the coffee lover who enjoys a perfect cup of coffee with the right ground beans.
So, Blender vs Coffee Grinder: Which One Is the Best?
Now that you are aware of all the benefits and drawbacks of a blender as well as a grinder, you can draw a conclusion based on your preference. But if you want our opinion on the blender vs coffee grinder, it highly depends on you.
If you drink coffee every day and want the best taste, a coffee grinder is ideal for you. But if you are someone who doesn't mind a bigger coffee bean particle and you also love smoothies, then you should go for a blender that has a dedicated blender blade.
One crucial thing to note is the cheapest coffee grinder you can find on the market is a burr grinder. If you can manage the manual grinding, it’s really hard to beat the burr grinder with other alternatives.
Wrapping Up!
As we are at the end, hope this detailed comparison clears out any confusion. So next time you have to decide on coffee grinder vs blender, choose the best option that serves your particular situation.