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While babies don’t move beyond formula or breastmilk for some time, introducing foods during the weaning process can be a decision-heavy experience. You’ll need plenty of bibs as well as cups, utensils, and plates made for littles – but what will you need beyond that? Will you buy purees or make food yourself? Will you even use purees and pouches or will you stick to small bites of soft, mushed foods instead?
Though it might feel intimidating to even consider making your own baby food, the best baby food makers on the market make it a snap, as they allow you to cook and prep your baby’s food quickly and easily (sometimes all in one machine!). Here, we’ve rounded up some of the best out there.
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Why buy a baby food maker?
There are a number of reasons that parents may choose to make their own baby food (saving money, knowing exactly what your little is eating, to name a couple.). And while you can certainly do that without buying any sort of fancy equipment, some machines will make your life so much easier – and who’s opposed to that?
The best baby food makers are smaller and more compact than regular blenders and food processors, making them easier to store, as well as to control how much food you’re making at any given time. Since babies don’t go through huge quantities of food, a machine that keeps portion sizes in check can be really helpful (particularly if you’re a baby food making newbie). Plus, the machines and equipment designed with baby food making in mind often have specialty features that make the process even easier, like steaming and blending capabilities all in one, or the ability to do things one-handed.
Things to consider when shopping for a baby food blender
Investing in any sort of appliance or specialty gadget is a big decision. From price to functions to size and beyond, here are a few of the key factors to consider when shopping for a baby food processor—or any other baby food making tools.
Price
Some of the more affordable tools out there do just one thing (like blend up baby purees), while other machines that do more (steam, defrost, reheat) are generally a bit pricier. Because there’s such a range, both in terms of function and price, knowing what you want going in can really help you cut through all of the options and narrow things to the ones in which you may actually be interested.
In general, you can expect to pay between $50-$250ish on a baby food maker. Keep reading because we’ve found tons of great options at all price points (some as low as $14!) below.
Functions
While they generally all at least blend up the food you add to them, some baby food makers will also steam fruits and veggies, defrost frozen food, reheat food, and more. If you’re hoping to buy a small baby food blender for on-the-go use, for instance, what you’ll be looking for (and ultimately what you’re likely to spend) will probably be different than someone looking for a full baby food making setup.
Plus, if you buy one with limited features or functioning, you may find that you have to buy additional tools, which can really add up over time if you’re not careful. Determining the kinds of features are most important to you will help you prioritize the machines you might be interested in buying.
Size
Even if you have a pretty large kitchen, there just never seems to be enough space, especially for equipment that’ll only be used temporarily. Taking your storage availability into consideration can help you figure out if the machine you’re looking at makes sense for you or not.
You may also want to consider if you plan on taking your machine on the go (for vacation, holidays, etc). If the machine you want is too big and you have the budget, you may want to consider buying two different sizes. Otherwise, you’ll probably want to weigh the size more heavily and compromise on some of the other factors so you know you’ll be able to take it on the road.
Capacity
Beyond the size of the machine, the amount of food the machine makes is also an important consideration. Are you only making food for one baby or are you making food for a few little ones? If you’re only cooking for one, you can likely get away with a smaller capacity baby food maker, but if you’re hoping to use your machine for more kids at once, you’ll likely save yourself quite a bit of time if you buy a baby food maker with larger capacity so you don’t have to do things in batches.
The Best Baby Food Makers
When it comes to the best baby food makers on the market, the options are seemingly endless – and that’s where we come in. Here, our roundup of some of the very best baby food makers in each category, from premium to portability and beyond.
Best Premium Baby Food Maker
Béaba’s premium machines are some of the best baby food makers on the market. The Béaba Babycook Neo features a glass bowl and stainless steel steaming insert. It does it all: steaming, mixing, defrosting, and reheating, and looks chic on your counter too. Bonus: the machine allows you to specify the texture of foods, so you can puree it all up or chop things into chunkier pieces. Plus, it uses less water and energy than Béaba’s earlier model, the Babycook Solo.
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Best Affordable Baby Food Maker
Nûby’s Mighty Blender is a full 22-piece baby food making system for under $60. Chop and puree food quickly and easily and get food on the table for your little one faster. The only con here? You’ll need to cook the food separately if it needs to be cooked before mixing.
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Best Multi-Tasking Baby Food Maker
This baby steamer and blender from BabyMoov allows you to save time by steaming and blending the baby food mixture at the same time. It’s a large capacity machine, making it easy for you to feed your whole crowd of babies and toddlers and is easy to break down and clean—all of the parts are dishwasher safe.
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Best for quick mashing
This baby puree maker from popular kitchen brand OXO might not look like much, but it’s the best tool for quick mashing whether you’re at home or on the go. Mash up food at restaurants or family or friends’ houses or give your own veggies a quick mash for feeding to the baby in a pinch. It’ll let you make fresh, mashed baby food in no time at all.
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Best for portability
This portable baby food maker from M’lis won’t cook the food for you, but if you just need to prep the food for your baby, this is super simple to take on the go. The mini baby food processor allows you to add food and liquid so that you have control over the consistency of the puree, plus the machine simply rinses clean.
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Best for small kitchens
Baby Brezza’s One-Step Homemade Baby Food Maker Deluxe is an ideal choice for small kitchens with limited storage space. The machine steams and then quickly blends the baby food without having to transfer the food to another chamber (or another machine!). The parts of the machine are easy to clean and the bowl and blade are dishwasher safe. Not only that, but you can use the machine for non-baby foods as well—small batches of soup, hard boiling eggs, and more.
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Best for memory function
One of the features of the best baby food makers you may not have considered is a memory function. Tommee Tippee’s Quick Cook Baby Food Maker has a built-in memory feature that will allow the machine to remember the settings that you used last time, making your next batch that much easier to whip up in no time flat.
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Best hand blender
Braun’s MultiQuick 5 Baby Food Maker & Hand Blender packs Braun’s power into a quick and easy baby food blending solution. The addition of an extra blade makes pureeing food quick and easy. Plus, extra attachments make it easy for you to switch up the textures of foods as your baby grows.
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Easiest to use
It doesn’t get much easier than a nutribullet. The nutribullet Baby Bullet Blender works a lot like a regular nutribullet, but this baby food processor is shaped differently to make the batch easier to make. Not only that, but it also comes with six storage cups with a tray so that it’s easy to portion out the food you’ve made and pop it into the freezer for later use if needed.
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Easiest to clean
Sage Spoonfuls’ 10-Piece Baby Food Maker Set with Glass Baby Food Containers couldn’t be easier to clean. All of the attachments, the stainless steamer basket, and the baby food containers are dishwasher safe on the top rack, while the stick blender just simply wipes clean. No tricky scrubbing, soaking, or troubleshooting required.
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Easiest to store
Ventray’s BabyGrow Plus is chic enough to store on your counter, while small enough to be easily stored away in a cabinet. It steams, blends, and defrosts, making it a real workhouse despite its size. Plus, the built-in timer ensures you’ll never lose track of time while cooking.
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There are tons of great baby food makers on the market, each with slightly different specs, features, capacity, and price point. If you still aren’t sold on making your baby’s food from scratch, take a quick look at our baby food brand comparison or take a deep dive with our reviews on Cerebelly and Yumi to find out which we recommend—and why.
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