nutribullet Chill
nutribullet's frozen-block machine: 500 watts, five programmes and two 470-millilitre tubs. You freeze the base for 24 hours and the machine breaks it up and churns it in three or four minutes.
The alternative to the Ninja, with two tubs and fewer programmes
It works like a CREAMi: the base is frozen for 24 hours in the tub and the blade shaves it from above until it turns creamy. Five programmes instead of seven, and a blade nutribullet calls 360DoubleCream because it attacks from several angles.
Our score, after reading the reviews one by one.
Creamy from the first pass. As with any block machine, it is the formula that rules: if the base is short on sugar, it comes out floury.
Five buttons and little else. Freeze it, slot the tub in and press.
470 ml per tub: one generous serving or two normal ones. Two are included.
The 24 hours of freezing are not negotiable: it is the system, not a flaw.
Four things you notice
in use, not on the box
How the ice cream comes out
Creamy and with body. The blade shaves the block in successive passes and leaves it fine, with no large crystals.
How long it really takes
The churning takes between 3 and 4 and a half minutes depending on the programme. What really takes time is the 24 hours of freezing beforehand.
Day to day
Everything that touches the ice cream is dishwasher-safe except the base. No PTFE or PFOA.
Footprint
43.1 × 19.6 × 20.5 cm and 5.27 kilos: narrow and light, it stores in a cupboard with no fuss.
Congelar primero y romper después
Here there is no compressor and no bowl to chill: the base is frozen whole and the machine breaks it down. That changes how you formulate, because the ice cream is not aerated while it chills, but afterwards.
Para romper el bloque
Por tarrina, y vienen dos
Lo que dura el batido
De congelación previa
What it wins and what you have to accept
- The cheapest in the range
- Seven programmes, enough for ice cream, gelato and sorbet
- Allows protein and sugar-free ice cream with real ice cream texture
- Parts are dishwasher-safe and spares are on Ninja's website
- A cycle of a few minutes
- It does not cool: the base goes into the freezer for 24 hours
- Small tubs: anyone who uses it ends up buying more
- No two flavours in one tub: that is the Deluxe's trick
- Without a balanced formula you get crystals
- It scores the lowest of the three Ninjas
nutribullet Chill specifications
The nutribullet Chill against its rivals
These three compete in its bracket. The CREAMi costs today —: these reviews tell you what you gain and what you lose with each one.
Ninja CREAMi
Two more programmes and the most well-worn recipe book of them all.
Ninja CREAMi Deluxe
710 ml tub and two flavours at once.
Taurus Gelato Flow
Three tubs and nine programmes for less money.
Moulinex Dolci
Tres tarrinas y más capacidad total.
Would we buy it? Yes, if you do not mind losing two programmes
It does the same as a CREAMi with two fewer programmes and a slightly smaller tub. If what you want is the frozen-block system and not the brand, it does the job. If you are going to make two flavours at once or big tubs, the Deluxe is the one.
Frequently asked questions
¿Hay que congelar la base antes?
Yes, 24 hours. That is the whole system: the machine does not chill, it breaks up a block that is already frozen.
¿En qué se diferencia de una CREAMi?
In two fewer programmes, in tubs of 470 ml instead of 473 and in the price. The principle is the same.
¿Cuánto tarda el batido?
From 3 to 4 and a half minutes, depending on the programme you pick.
¿Sirve cualquier receta?
No. Frozen-block formulas call for more solids and a well-set antifreeze, or it comes out floury. In the calculator you have the version of every recipe for this system.
¿Va al lavavajillas?
Everything except the base with the motor. And it contains neither PTFE nor PFOA.
Which would we buy instead?
The Ninja CREAMi if you want the most well-worn recipe book, or the Taurus Gelato Flow if you are after three tubs for less.
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