My daughter gave me my first Magic Bullet blender about 12 years ago. At first I wondered what I was going to do with it. But it didn’t take long for me to realize that it has the perfect name. The time and effort I save with uses for the Magic Bullet seems magical.
I don’t consider the Magic Bullet a heavy-duty workhorse like my Vitamix. But the Magic Bullet can help speed up the process of creating fresh, healthy meals. It is a great assistant for chopping and blending, and it is lightweight and easy to clean. (You can read here how to mince garlic and ginger the easy way with the Magic Bullet.) As a bonus, it is small enough to leave out on the counter or quickly stash in a cupboard.
Which model Magic Bullet to chose
I wore out my first Magic Bullet in just a few years and immediately replaced it with the 17-piece set. I had really come to depend on this kitchen gadget.
There are several different configurations of the Magic Bullet. Here are just three (from Amazon):
All the sets include the Motor Base with various combinations of blades, cups, containers, and a Recipe Book. Our original set served us well, but we do enjoy the party mugs that came with the 17-piece set. And if this one wears out, I’ll get the 26-piece Express Deluxe set that comes with additional Ice Crusher blade, Pitcher/Blender, Oversized “To-Go” mugs and the additional Flip-Top Lids, which did not come in my 17-piece set.
A Handy Kitchen Helper
Years ago, when we started learning how fresh foods might hold some benefits over processed foods, I began to look for recipes for making my own seasoning packets. The Magic Bullet easily ground the harder ingredients, like caraway seeds, into powder for the recipes. I use a lot of caraway seeds in bread making, too. While I enjoy the flavor of caraway seeds, I don’t like them stuck in my teeth.
The Magic Bullet has come in handy on many occasions when I didn’t have an exact ingredient. Yesterday, for example, I needed a quarter cup of cornmeal for a rye bread recipe, but I only had a coarse grind on hand. So I put the cornmeal in the Magic Bullet and ground it into the finest cornmeal in no time. I can grind peppercorns into cracked, coarse, or fine … really any size I want. And I grind wedges of Parmesan cheese instead of buying prepackaged shredded Parmesan.
Easy Meals with the Magic Bullet
The Magic Bullet easily handles German Apple Puff Pancakes with a minimum of work. I place the eggs, milk and flour into the Magic Bullet’s Tall Cup. Press down, and in seconds its ready to be poured over the apples and popped into the oven. No bowls, whisks or mess. One Cup with ingredients and I’m finished. Magic, indeed.
Recipe: Apple Puff Pancake in the Magic Bullet
Ingredients
- 1 apple peeled, cored and thinly sliced
- 2 tbsp dark brown sugar
- 2 tbsp butter
- ½ tsp cinnamon
- 2 eggs
- ½ cup milk
- ½ cup all-purpose flour
Instructions
Heat oven to 400°F.
Melt butter in pie plate in oven. Sprinkle brown sugar evenly over bottom of a 9-inch pie plate. Sprinkle cinnamon evenly over brown sugar.
Place apple slices in concentric circle covering bottom of plate.
Put eggs and milk in Tall cup of Magic Bullet and pulse until mixed well. Add flour to Magic Bullet and pulse until thoroughly blended.
Pour over apples in pie plate and bake for 30 minutes.
Cleaning and Safety
Clean up is easy with the Magic Bullet because the cups twist off at the bottom. This provides easy access to the blades, unlike traditional blender-like machines, where food can get stuck under the blades and be difficult to clean. And the top part is as easy to clean as washing a large cup. As with all kitchen gadgets that chop, dice, grind, or slice, I always rinse the parts right away after using so that nothing gets dried on under the blades. Dried-on food can be difficult to remove completely.
As with any new appliance, it’s important to read the manual. The Magic Bullet manual starts off with three pages of Safety Information, including precautions for Heat and Pressure Safety. The most concern seems to be because its contents can become pressurized and that it has sharp blades, so I take a little extra caution with it. Once I familiarized myself with these and the other warnings and precautions listed in the manual, I felt confident using the Magic Bullet.
Some Precautions from the Magic Bullet User Guide
- Not to blend hot ingredients or liquids;
- Never allow the Magic Bullet to run for more than one minute at a time as the heat can cause pressure to build up and cause the cup to burst
- Never blend carbonated liquids or effervescing (baking soda, baking powder, yeast, cake batter, etc.) as pressure can build up in the blender and cause it to burst
- Do not allow blended mixtures to remain in the Cup for any length of time, as fruits and vegetables can ferment, build up pressure, and cause the Cup to burst
- Do not overfill the Cup, as doing so can cause leakage and pressurization that could cause the Cup to burst
The manual also warns about the sharpness of the blades, what to do if the Magic Bullet overheats, and a warning to not crush ice with it. The ice warning surprised me, because I thought I remembered the commercial stating that it could crush ice. But the last “bullet” point in the Magic Bullet User Guide reads:
“Your Magic Bullet is not intended to be an ice crusher and attempting to crush ice may result in permanent damage to the Cross Blades and may cause the unit to malfunction and cause personal injury or property damage.”
And Some of the Warnings About the Magic Bullet
There are also warnings about using it in the microwave, the different seeds and pits that should not be blended because of medical issues, special instructions for the blades, and so on. Another caveat is not to fill the cups past the MAX line. Filling too full could also result in pressure building.
According to the manual the blending cups (cups, lids, and lip rings) are top rack dishwasher safe, but I always hand wash these parts along with the blades. The manual also says to not remove the gaskets as this can cause permanent damage and leakage, and not to use the Magic Bullet if the gaskets are lifted up or damaged in any way. The manual also recommends replacing the blades every six months for optimal performance.
Also offered are tips and techniques for using the Magic Bullet, along with lots of recipes to get started.
Conclusion: A Lightweight, Useful Kitchen Gadget
As I mentioned I don’t use the Magic Bullet as a workhorse like I do with my Vitamix. But the Magic Bullet is small enough to leave on the counter for quick access and is easy enough to clean, so it’s my go-to gadget for light duty meal prep. Just be sure to fully read the precautions and rest of the manual before using for the best experience.
What are your favorite uses for the Magic Bullet?