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Which Ice Cream Maker is the Best?

October 30, 2015 by Melissa Howell 8 Comments

Only one of these ice cream makers is not a complete waste of your money! Find out which one it is and how you can get one!As an ice cream creator, I have made a lot of ice cream. I started making my healthier, home-made ice cream after buying a Cuisinart ice cream maker. At the time, Cuisinart was really the only company making consumer-grade ice cream makers. But in the last year or so, Hamilton Beach and Oster have both come out with ice cream makers.

I purchased ice cream makers from these two companies in order to compare them to my Cuisinart. I was very interested in their performance, because both were half the cost of the Cuisinart.

First, let’s compare the physical aspects of the ice cream makers. Each ice cream maker has a 1.5 quart capacity bowl, but they are all different sizes (and therefore not interchangeable between ice cream makers of different brands).

Only one of these ice cream makers is not a complete waste of your money! Find out which one it is and how you can get one!

Here is a picture of the lids. The Cuisinart and Hamilton Beach have similar lids, but the Oster’s lid is quite different. This is because the motor is in the lid rather than the base of the ice cream maker.

Only one of these ice cream makers is not a complete waste of your money! Find out which one it is and how you can get one!

One important part of an ice cream maker is called the “dasher” or “paddle.” This fits inside the bowl and is what causes air to be introduced into the ice cream. For the Cuisinart and Hamilton Beach models, the dasher sits inside the bowl and is held in place by a rim in the lid. The dasher is stationary while the bowl turns. The dasher for the Oster hooks into the lid itself and spins around while the bowl stays stationary. (I had to set the Oster paddle in part of the lid so it would stand up and you could see it).

Only one of these ice cream makers is not a complete waste of your money! Find out which one it is and how you can get one!

To test which ice cream maker was best, I made my Classic Vanilla Ice Cream three times and used each model to churn it. Here is what I noticed for each ice cream maker:

Oster

  • All three of the ice cream makers were loud, but this one was the softest.
  • The dasher seemed a bit flimsy and hooked into the lid with just a small portion of plastic. I do not feel that this would hold up well with thicker ice creams.
  • It was difficult to get the lid on and off. It was very heavy and unwieldy and I had trouble getting it to click in place.
  • It only comes in unattractive colors.
  • After 30 minutes of churning, it shut itself off. The ice cream was soupy and nowhere near done. I thought this may have been a fluke since my daughter used the microwave just before it turned off (and maybe too much power got drawn from the same circuit–not that I know anything about electricity). So a few days later, I made another batch of ice cream and tried it again (with no children around). The same thing happened.

Cuisinart

  • Though not as loud as the Hamilton Beach, it still put out quite a few decibels.
  • The dasher is firm and solid.
  • The lid is lightweight and easily snaps into place.
  • It comes in attractive colors.
  • After 37 minutes, the ice cream was a perfect soft-serve consistency. The ice cream was so thick that it stopped moving around in the bowl and was all stuck to the dasher.

Hamilton Beach

  • Probably the noisiest of the three makers.
  • Dasher seems sturdy enough.
  • Lid easily snapped on.
  • The bowl wobbled as it spinned.
  • After 45 minutes of churning, the ice cream began to overflow. It was the consistency of melted soft-serve.

As you can see, the clear winner here is the Cuisinart. Quite frankly, I was surprised at the total ineffectiveness of the other two ice cream makers. All the bowls had spent the exact same amount of time in the freezer prior to the experiment, and each ice cream mixture (the Classic Vanilla) was exactly the same. However, the Oster and Hamilton Beach both failed miserably at creating ice cream. Both of these ice cream makers were brand new, while my Cuisinart is over two years old. However, it performed perfectly.

My advice: Don’t even think about getting a Hamilton Beach or Oster ice cream maker. Yes, they only run about $30 whereas the Cuisinart runs about $60. But do you want to be out $30 and have a piece of useless junk and no ice cream? Or would you rather pay $60 and get an appliance that will perform well, time after time, and make perfect ice cream?

Note: (My Cuisinart is an old model. The newer models have lids without the wavy part at the bottom. This is just cosmetic, so there is nothing to worry about in terms of functionality).

So order a Cuisinart Frozen Yogurt, Ice Cream and Sorbet Maker today!  This is a perfect gift for yourself or anyone you love. (I’ve given it as a wedding gift). Summer is just around the corner, and you will get tons of use out of it. (Plus, you will be the most popular person on your block!)

When you get your new Cuisinart, be sure to try out many of the fantastic ice cream recipes on my blog! Visit Ice Cream Central for fun, delicious flavors to get you started!

Note: I have not been compensated by Cuisinart in any way for this review. Cuisinart has no idea who I am. My review is completely unbiased and based on my personal research.

Has anybody had a different experience with any of these ice cream makers? Leave your thoughts in the comments.

 

 

Only one of these ice cream makers is not a complete waste of your money! Find out which one it is and how you can get one!

 

 

Filed Under: Cool Ice Cream Info, Miscellaneous Tagged With: ice cream makers

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Comments

  1. Kim says

    January 20, 2016 at 2:17 pm

    I am a baker and have a kitchen aid stand mixer. Have you ever tried the ice cream make attachment for this.

    Reply
    • Melissa Howell says

      January 20, 2016 at 2:29 pm

      Kim, I have not tried the ice cream bowl for the Kitchen Aid. I would like to, though! If you try it, please let me know how it turns out!

      Reply
  2. Kristie says

    March 4, 2016 at 4:27 pm

    Thanks for your honest feed back. I have been thinking about the kitchen aid ice cream attachment too. I really enjoyed reading your expert opinion. I scored an used ice cream maker at a thrift score that was been lovely, but lately it’s not working . 🙁

    Thanks for the great post!!!

    Reply
    • Melissa Howell says

      March 4, 2016 at 6:23 pm

      Hi Kristie! I’m so glad you found this article. I was totally shocked at how poorly-made most consumer-grade ice cream makers are! If you get the Cuisinart, I would love to hear what you make with it!

      Reply
  3. Jan Wheeler says

    June 17, 2021 at 11:09 pm

    Boy am I glad I bought the Cuisinart Ice Cream Maker after reading this! I just got it via Amazon today and anxious to use it. Just put it in my freezer to make ice cream tomorrow! Thanks

    Reply
    • Melissa Howell says

      June 24, 2021 at 9:48 am

      You’re going to love it!

      Reply
  4. Katherine Orloff says

    January 20, 2022 at 3:31 pm

    I just bought a Ninja Creami and so far am loving it. The other ice cream makes make too much and my freezer has limited space.

    Reply
    • Melissa Howell says

      January 24, 2022 at 3:28 pm

      I think that came to market after I did my reviews! I definitely need to check it out!

      Reply

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Hi, Im Melissa!

I help women like you create a beautiful life and home through the magic of cooking, the thrill of home organization, and the joy of discovering your personal style. Read More

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