Are you planning to buy a new mixer grinder or a wet grinder? Are you confused about which one to go for? Don’t worry! We’ll guide you about the difference between wet grinder and mixer grinder and make your shopping a lot easier.
What Is Wet Grinder?
A wet grinder is actually an appliance that is traditionally being used in Indian kitchens to grind soaked rice, and lentils, knead flour, and even make chutneys. However, these are mostly used for making idli, vada, and dosa batter.
It is an efficient way of grinding food items that require processing at a slow speed to retain the authentic taste and nutrition.
And it does this without much effort or noise!
The modern wet grinders are sleek, and compact and are also available as tabletop models that are easy to use and maintain.
These machines are similar to the mixer grinder but they have a stone grinder instead of a blade.
Let’s compare the wet grinder to a mixer grinder.
Read on!
What Is A Mixer Grinder?
A mixer grinder is a kitchen appliance that you can use for grinding and mixing food items.
It is one of the most basic and common cooking appliances in Indian kitchens, and it comes in many shapes and sizes.
You can use the mixer grinders for grinding spices, nuts, grains, lentils, and other ingredients for making curries, chutneys, and other Indian dishes at home.
Moreover, you can also use it to make batters and purees.
Mixer grinders can also be used to blend fruits like bananas into smoothies or milkshakes.
Some of them even have a juicer attachment that allows you to make fresh juice at home in just minutes!
What Is Table Top Wet Grinder?
A tabletop wet grinder is a compact appliance, identical to a mixer grinder, which you can use for grinding wet ingredients by conveniently placing it on your kitchen shelf.
It’s easy to use, clean, and store.
It comes with a drum that is rotated by an electric motor. The food items are crushed by the stone roller inside the drum giving you an efficient grinding experience.
Moreover, these machines usually come with a transparent lid so that you can see what is going on inside them while grinding the ingredients into the batter or pureeing.
Table top wet grinder comes with non-slip feet which help in keeping it stable while in operation and thus resulting in a better grinding experience.
How Does A Wet Grinder Work?
A wet grinder is an electric appliance used for grinding food material such as grains, and lentils into the smooth batter – liquid or semi-liquid form.
The wet grinder has a drum and stone rollers.
The motor rotates the drum gently and the stone rollers inside the drum crush the food material.
The stone is made of hard rock – quartz or granite which makes it very durable and long-lasting in nature.
Advantages Of A Wet Grinder
Wet grinders have a few advantages over the mixer grinders.
- The stone grinder generates less heat than a mixer grinder; thereby retaining the authentic taste and flavor of the food.
- Less heat encourages good bacteria to thrive in the batter; this makes your idlis more nutritious.
- The batter prepared in a wet grinder is fluffier and ferments better.
- A wet grinder gives you the batter that is long-lasting; it can stay fresh for up to 5 days.
- The stones remain sharp for a greater time than the metal blades.
With a small-sized wet grinder at home, you’ll find it convenient to prepare batter for dosas, idlis, or grinding masala/chutney without any hassles.
Difference Between Wet Grinder And Mixer Grinder – At A Glance
| Difference Between Wet Grinder And Mixer Grinder | Wet Grinder | Mixer Grinder |
|---|---|---|
| Use | Wet grinding of soaked food grains into batter | Mixing & Grinding dry as well as wet food items |
| Grinding Component | Stone Roller | Metal Blades |
| Grinding Material | Granite stone | Stainless steel blades |
| Grinding Methodology | Food grains get crushed between the stone and drum | Grinding is done by the action of the moving blades |
| Functionality | Wet Grinder is used for grinding food items by adding water to prepare batter or paste, knead dough (atta) or scrape coconut | Mixer Grinder is used to mix, grind, chop the food items and even extract juices |
| Suitability | Perfect to make batter for crispy dosas, soft idlis or fluffy vadas and knead dough (atta) or scrape coconut | Can be used for grinding both wet and dry ingredients, blending and juicing |
| Quality | The quality of batter is superior because the stone grinder generates less heat than a mixer, thus retaining the authentic flavor of the food | The quality of the batter may not be as good as the wet grinder as it operates on high speed. |
| Auto cut-off | May or may not come with the auto cut-off feature | Usually comes with the auto cut-off feature |
| Prevalence | Usually used to prepare batter for South Indian delicacies like dosa, vada, utthapam etc. | Used to prepare ingredients for all sorts of dishes |
| Ease of Maintenance | Easy to maintain | Usually require more care |
| Versatility | Can be used for wet grinding, atta kneading and scraping coconut | Can be used to process a wide variety of ingredients |
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Difference Between Wet Grinder And Mixer Grinder – Detailed
The major differences between mixer grinder and wet grinder are:
Use
You can use a wet grinder specifically for wet grinding; for example, to grind soaked food grains like rice, urad dal, etc. into the batter. It can also make masala pastes.
Using a mixer grinder you can perform a wide variety of functions, including mixing and grinding dry as well as wet foodstuff.
Grinding Component
The wet grinder comes with a stone roller. (more details later)
The mixer grinder comes with one or more types of metal blades.
Material
The wet grinder consists of granite stones that rotate inside a metal drum with the help of an electric motor.
The mixer grinder consists of various types of blades that rotate inside the jars and are also driven by an electric motor.
Grinding Methodology
In a wet grinder, the food grains get crushed between the stone and drum.
The grinding of the foodstuff in a mixer grinder is done as a result of the moving blades.
Functionality
You can usually use a wet grinder, as the name suggests, for grinding food items by adding water to prepare batter or paste.
On the other hand, using a mixer grinder you can mix the foodstuff, grind ingredients (both dry and wet), chop, and even extract fresh juices.
The functionality, of course, will depend on the number and type of jars as well as the attachments it comes with.
Suitability
Wet grinders are perfect to make batter for crispy dosas, soft idlis or fluffy vadas, and more such stuff which requires slow grinding speed.
The moderate grinding with stone rollers leads to low batter temperature.
Mixer grinders are ideal for mixing; dry grinding of spices like turmeric, coriander seeds, cumin seeds, cloves, nuts, and beans; grinding all types of wet foodstuff like batters, preparations for tadkas using onion, tomatoes, and chilies; making chutneys; blending smoothies; extracting juices and so on.
Quality
The quality of grinding the foodstuff into semi-liquid or liquid form in a wet grinder is superior because the stone grinder generates less heat than a mixer, thus retaining the authentic flavor of the food.
The overall quality of the foodstuff processed in a mixer grinder is excellent. But the mixer grinder usually works at a high speed for wet grinding.
As such the quality of the batter may not be as good as compared to the wet grinder.
Auto cut-off
Not all wet grinders come with an auto-cut-off feature. If it doesn’t, the motor does not stop automatically when overloaded.
You’ll find almost all good mixer grinders with an auto-cut-off feature. With this feature, the motor is prevented from running when the jars are overloaded.
Prevalence
Wet grinders are mostly used in the southern part of India as these are perfect for the preparation of ingredients used in South Indian delicacies like idli, dosa, vada, uttapam, chutneys, and more.
You’ll find mixer grinders in almost every region – they are very commonly used.
Ease of Maintenance
Unlike mixies, you need not clean the wet grinders immediately after use, so you can immerse them in water and start grinding later (with no damage to the appliance).
The jars and blades of mixies normally require prompt cleaning after usage to enhance their durability.
Versatility
In addition to wet grinding, the newer models of wet grinders also feature a Coconut Scraper Attachment and an Atta Kneader Attachment.
A mixer grinder, on the other hand, is a versatile appliance that you can use to process dry as well as wet food items.
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Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
Mixer Grinders are multifunctional kitchen appliances that you can use in many ways like mixing, grinding (both dry and wet), chopping, and juicing; depending on the number and type of jars as well as the attachments it comes with.
On the other hand, a wet grinder is specifically used for wet grinding; for example, to grind soaked food grains like rice, urad dal, etc. into the batter.
Wet grinders are perfect to make batter for crispy dosas, soft idlis or fluffy vadas, and more such stuff which requires slow grinding speed. Moderate grinding with stone rollers leads to low batter temperature.
But if you want a versatile appliance, the mixer grinder (or a food processor) is better. 
2. What is wet grinder used for?
A wet grinder is specifically used for wet grinding; for example, to grind soaked food grains like rice, urad dal, etc. into the batter. It can also make masala pastes.
3. Is it worth buying wet grinder?
If you make South Indian dishes like idli, dosa, vada, etc. often, the wet grinder is worth buying. This is because the batter prepared in a wet grinder is fluffier and ferments better.
Moreover, the stone grinder generates less heat than a mixer; thereby retaining the authentic taste and flavor of the food.
Additionally, less heat encourages good bacteria to thrive in the batter; this makes your idlis more nutritious.
4. Can we make chutney in wet grinder?
Yes, we can make flavorful chutneys in a wet grinder.
5. What is the difference between wet grinder and dry grinder?
A wet grinder is specifically used for wet grinding; for example, to grind soaked food grains like rice, urad dal, etc. into the batter.
On the other hand, you can use a dry grinder for dry grinding of spices like turmeric, coriander seeds, cumin seeds, cloves, nuts, and beans.
6. What is the difference between wet grinder and mixer?
A wet grinder is specifically used for wet grinding; for example, to grind soaked food grains like rice, urad dal, etc. into the batter.
On the other hand, you can use a mixer to mix various foodstuffs together. 
7. Which grinder is best for dosa batter?
A wet grinder is better for making dosa batter. This is because the batter prepared in a wet grinder is fluffier and ferments better.
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