Best Baby Food Steamers and Blenders in 2025: A Health Approach

Why homemade food?

Whether it’s your first baby or you had some before, you are busy parents. You may also be a new parent that have no idea where to start when it comes to feeding baby solids. Relax! We all went through that phase. And we all figured it out. May be your baby is getting interested in solid foods and you want to make your own baby food to save money, and avoid additives, and because it’s tastier! 

Whatever you make will be much better for your kid than anything store bought. If baby doesn’t want to eat it, you’ll figure out his or her tastebuds very quickly. Likely you will make much tastier foods than what is in store bought overpriced jars. Also you can make baby’s different foods, and figure out what she likes it and make larger batches, or twich it as you go and add different ingredients to expose your baby to different tastes and potential allergens.

Is homemade baby food healthier? 

Yes store-bought foods can be a solution – each his or her own lifestyle and time. However, saying it is “as good” would be a lie. Shelf-stable foods never will be as fresh as homemade foods, and there is no way there is no unnatural preservatives in shelf stable-foods. Instead of making parents feel good that buy ready-made foods, for once, I’d love to  affirm parents who make the effort. Putting energy into feeding your baby well is not a a judgment on parents that can’t. They have their own reasons. I am just here to help you make your own decision on baby food making. 

All websites will try to convince you that you need all the stuff and special machines. But with well chosen tools, only a few machines are truly going to be needed in your daily life to feed your baby now, and when he grows out of the baby stage. I have all sorts of stuff, many I got rid of or barely use any more! 

What are baby’s needs?

The Parents article on baby food makers involved a few health professionals in their assessment. One registered nurse claimed that “From a medical perspective, both homemade and store-bought baby foods can be healthy and nutritious options as long as they meet a baby’s dietary needs.” OK. Is that helpful to you? in my mind, that is a vague criteria if there is any.

What ARE baby’s needs?

baby needs depend on the stage of your baby’s life. not just age.

What baby needs at 6 months: His mom’s milk or a replacement that is as close as possible as mother’s milk. Solids at that stage are introductory, exploratory. If baby rejects foods, he won’t be too hungry because milk can satisfy all his needs. At later stage, your baby’s food likely will ressemble your family’s diet, and the more varied, the more nutritious. Whatever the stage you chose to start making baby’s meals, doing it yourself will always be an improvement.

Why look into a baby food steamer? Steaming is healthier for food density . It is famous for being the healthiest cooking method. For more on that topic, check my article explaining why steaming is the healthiest cooking method.

I want the best option to cook my Baby’s food: What criteria should I look at ?

Different best baby food maker ratings listed the following criteria

1° Parents listed compact design, intuitive use or at least ease of use, counter footprint . 2° What to Expect adds functionality, capacity, versatility, and cost.  3° New York Magazine is the only listing focused on the toxicity of the machine’s materials. 4° Babylist does not list any original criteria. Besides, Their top three food makers are over $150 a pop, i.e. the most expensive on the market. 5° Mother and Baby doesn’t spell out their criteria for choice, but asks YOU to consider your priority. number of functions, ease of clean,  how often will you use a baby food maker. Also important are bonuses included in the box (storage containers, reusable food pouches). 6° Honestly, Consumer Reports was my favorite rating. Instead of testing all-in-one baby food makers, they rate what powerful regular blenders make the finest puree, even with raw vegetables. 

Where do ratings fail at

Overall their criteria are not nutrition minded: it does not include nutrition density and most don’t even mention materials’ toxicity.

My Additional criteria

Question: Do you steam food for yourself? 

If you are breastfeeding, how healthy your nutrition is would translate into your milk. So If you are looking for a baby food steamer, you probably also steam foods for yourself too. Why double up machines and get a steamer for adult and one for baby? Combine the price and get one for everyone! 

What do you already own? 

If you already own a steamer, is it efficient enough to make baby food fast? To find this out, tell me how long you steam any bite of any green vegetable. If it’s longer than 10 minutes, it is too long, and you may need to find another steamer. Unless you cook vegetables until they are mushy and don’t require chewing. 

If you also own a blender, food processor of immersion blender, you may not need any specific equipment.

Now if you don’t own any of these tools, what criteria should you use to make a good choice?

Features to consider

All-In-One or Specialty Makers

Do you want a Baby Food Maker that also is Food Processor, and Blender? Does it have to have a food mill? 

If you own nothing, you may want an all-in-one machine. If you own an immersion blender, just a baby food cooker may be great ( immersion blenders are so easy to clean!). It all depends on the convenience of all-in-one machines. 

If  you like a machine for its recipe book, you’ll find much more interesting recipes online. Make a list of 10-20 ideas, print and test when baby comes of age. If you don’t buy a food maker that includes a blender, what is the best blender to own ? These answers are in my best-of ratings below.

Personally, I would look at a baby food steamer. However, I generally agree that baby food steamers are small and that their water reservoir is tiny. That may require adding more water and waiting for it to heat up to make a new batch of food. If they have a small footprint, they are less convenient to make bigger batches. Like Consumer Reports, I prefer buying equipment I will use in the long term. It may have a larger footprint, so usefulness is paramount.

Size or footprint

Are you looking for a small appliance that does not take a lot of counter space ? Or do you prefer something bigger you will make bigger batches with ?

Capacity

Will it make enough food for the week? A baby-minded multifunction robot with a compact size is great but may fail at capacity. If you want to do batch cooking, be aware that baby-food makers don’t make much food. You may want to consider a non-baby food maker:

Alternative: What about your daily food steamer and a high capacity blender? If you make food as you go, handheld stick blenders or immersion blenders may be easiest to take out of your cabinet and clean after cooking. And a powerful food processor may make finer puree faster than the best baby puree maker.

Special features

How big should the water tank be to make enough steam? 

How abundant the steam is affects the speed of cooking. with the steamer I have, hearing a vegetable takes 30 minutes to cook makes me cringe. I don’t steam many vegetables more than 5-7 minutes !

Can you control the temperature? 

Boiling (212F/100C) or cooking in pressure cookers (240°F (120C) ) destroys many nutrients including fibers you assumedly would like your baby to benefits from. Gentle steam cooking, especially at 202F/95C, preserves the most nutrients and cooks very efficiently.

Steam function

Some recommended food makers are only baby blenders. Blenders don’t have a steam function; but if you have a food steamer already, you don’t need a steam function, you just need to transfer your steamed foods into your blender or processor, and that does not cost a dime.

Bonuses: What does the box include or not include

Food storage

Does it include food pouches? You can buy reusable food pouches ( Wee Sprouts) . If you prefer non reusable, because everything gets lost at daycare, buy disposable food pouches for cheap. whatever the box includes is an introduction, it won’t be enough. Personally, I used pouches for one kid out of 5, and I still have them in my pantry… For my own reasons, I found food pouches counterproductive for kids nutrition. 

Also easy find, better quality, that fits your own needs or not. You may not want round frozen trays, because of how your organize your freezer or fridge! Details may matter after you make your purchase.

The make :

Is the food processor bowl plastic, or is your food in contact with or heating in plastic ? It’s not just about BPAs. Remember that plastic may degrade over time into your baby’s food. 

Easy to assemble. 

Some machines may seem fancy but are hard to assemble. Look them up on youtube to get an idea!

Easy cleaning ( dish washer safe) or self clean.

It may be important to you, however I discovered over the years: Any blender is self clean: A bit of detergent and hot water, close the lid and run it for 1 minute, it is usually pretty clean already! 

Food maker’s Recipes books are great. 

However, they don’t take into consideration the effect temperature and cooking times have on the finished product nutrient density. So although they are great for beginners and provide ideas, it’s easier to trust a food steamer you know: You know the time it takes to get usual foods to specific consistencies.

A food maker for Nutrition density

How do you know these steamers are cooking foods at the right temp, don’t cook them too long? If they cook until the foods are mushy, they have killed many nutrients. If you can check the foods yourself before blending, you may want to pay attention to a few criteria to make sure foods you will feed your baby are as nutrient dense as possible. 

Color flavor texture scent 

What does that mean? 

• The color and texture tells you the main thing: Vibrant color and a texture that holds up means your vitamins and fibers are still very much present. If the color of your foods has faded, many vitamins have been destroyed. The softer texture also means fibers have been broken. It may be easier to digest, but it also raises the food’s glycemic index, and is more likely to ferment in your baby’s gut and provoke bloating. With powerful regular blenders, you may blend your food fine enough not to need to cook it until it is mushy.

Second , don’t you have a blender already? Get an equivalent of Vitamix ( the one I own), you can find these used on Ebay, they last forever ! You can also find blenders that are easier to wash and dishwasher safe, like Cuisinart, or an immersion blender.

The best baby food makers: My review

First, The one you should be careful about. Why ? Because of assertions that you can steam foods in a microwave. Although I agree it may technically be possible, I believe toxicity of microwaving cancels the benefits of “steaming” in it.

Beware of Nuby: NOT the best ! 

PRO:

• All-In-One It’s good if you don’t have any other equipment.  
• Grinder/blender: I own a coffee and herbs grinder , I use it for herbs and seeds, one pots does grains and nuts really well. one does herbs. It’s stainless steel. Works for every thing 
• Features: Self clean, auto blend. 

CON:

• Nuby is made of plastic. Like other baby steamers, it’s all plastic except for the stainless steel blade, and that’s a major downside of baby food steamers in general. And studies pile up demonstrating concerns over the presence of plastics in foods and their links to various health issues.
• It includes a steaming basket to steam your food in the microwave. Attention microwaving is NOT steaming.

Microwaving and Steaming

I saw on internet several times microwaves being described as steam cooking tools. I am unsure of the scientific basis for that claim. My definition of steam cooking is that the water vapor itself cooks the food, gives it a steam bath ( sweat). The steam coming out of food that has been heated through micro waves is heat, not vapor! The medium for cooking is the micro wave, not the water. Needless to say, the concept of steam cooking outside-in seems fishy to me. Anything hot out any oven “steams” heat.

Besides, demonstration on Youtube of how to steam vegetables shows vegetables cooking partially in water, covered by plastic. Thanks for the micro plastics in my foods! And did you know microwaving and heating degrades plastic , which lands into our foods. Worse, long term exposure to microplastics can be a problem for our fertility among others.

My Best of list 

1. Nutribullet Baby Steam + Blend for the price.

• Type: all-in-one pot, steaming basket and blender.
• Pro: 
  • No noise, has a defrost setting but ratings say it is better use it with room temp foods. 
  • Customizable thickness for your food. Compact size

• Cons:
  • plastic blender bowl: your food will heat up in contact with plastic!
  • Inefficient; Carrots took 26 minutes to steam… longer for peas.  This is TOO LONG. Peas more chunky and may need more but not as much.
• Alternative:
  • Instead of overcooking, why not add a bit of water or healthy oil to make the consistency more creamy? If you prefer lower fats meals, know that if you cook your foods too long, you may not get fatty foods, but your foods may have lost all fibers and vitamins. I prefer making sure my kid is satisfied and doesn’t get a sugar crash. I don’t hesitate to add quality olive oil to their foods. Good fats are more satisfying (for more on fats and weight gains, see Hyman “eat fat get thin”)

2. Best baby blender: Nutribullet Baby Bullet blender: 

• Type: it is just a mini blender (30s)
• PROs: comes with a tray with portions. 
• CON: it’s only a very small capacity blender.
• Alternatives:
  • You can easily get mini mason jars for cheap ( 13 dollars for glass jars)
  • You can also prefer quality silicone trays great for freezing. For meals to go, I prefer stainless steel. But don’t reheat and serve in it: it could be very got, since stainless conducts the heat!
  • Mini jars: are they necessary? For freezing, yes. But if it is for the next few days, remember babies rarely eat a the portion – neither a full one or exactly what you plan. So I don’t really see the point of neat 2 oz portions… except on the go. Weesprout is a great brand for all safe baby stuff.
  • Baby bullet or Magic Bullet? The only difference is the look . Basically, you cook food in a food steamer and scoop your foods into the bullet, blend and it’s done. You can also blend your foods in a silicone or stainless steel measuring bowl with an immersion blender, for safer materials.
• Note: Beware of “Microwave safe” baby storage: plastic. Microwaving isn’t safe per se.
• Beeping system: Necessary? If you want to step away in a moment’s notice, an automatic stop button may be necessary. However beware: vapor does not building at once, so take your foods out of the cooker right away if you don’t want your food to overcook.

3. Quickest classiest all-in-one: Beaba Babycook Solo baby food maker

• PRO:
  • all-in-one steamer;
  • Makes food rapidly ( under 20Min) ;
  • Large capacity ( 4.5 cups), easy wash.
• CON:
  • plastic ( comparatively, the Beaba Neo is made of glass);
  • pricey ($160). If you had to buy a plastic all-in-one cooker, the Nutribullet Baby Bullet is a cheaper option.

4. Best features and versatility: EVLA baby food maker

• PRO:
  • The What to expect community singled out Evla. I would probably pick that one if I had to, because you can customize steaming time and temperature, so you don’t over cook or overheat your foods. Healthwise, that’ the best option.
  • Autoclean,
  • Beeps when food is done.
• CON: OnIy it is more expensive than others but it’s better than most. I just wish they made it in glass.

6. Best Material: Beaba Neo: 

• PRO:
  • All-in-one
  • Material: made of glass and stainless steel. 
  • Larger capacity (5 cups). 
  • Food has Good consistency and colors.
• CON: VERY PRICEY!
  • For that price, you have a potentially lifelong lasting – or at least two decades long lasting food steamer , the one I use to make my baby Foods.

7. A Better Choice:  The Best Regular Steamer Plus a Handheld Blender

Handheld Blender

Choose a handheld blender gives you the option of being an immersion blender and a chopper. If most handheld bowls are plastic, you can also chose to blend with the immersion blender in a stainless steel, pyrex or quality silicone bowl. This Hamilton Beach immersion and handheld blender looks like a great choice on the lower price tag. 

Best choice of regular family steamer

As for the steamer, the best choice probably consists in choosing the steamer you will use for your daily cooking needs. beyond the baby stage. It probably will do the same or a better job than any all-in-one baby food makers, except perhaps time everything for you. However the downside of having everything preset is that you can’t explore your baby’s tastes, or add different ingredients as you go, prefer to cook shorter times and use the blender power to make a food with the right consistency for your baby.

To learn more about the Best Performing Food Steamers, look at my article detailing my criteria and why I chose the one I recommend here.

The steamer I recommend here is the following: Vitaliseur the Marion, a French stainless steel food steamer.

PRO:

• Non electric: The problem with electric is that in my experience, they often are built to break after a few years. Non-electric appliances will less likely break!
• Long lasting: made of the strongest, safest stainless steel. I still own one of my mom’s oldest Vitaliseurs, which is 30 years old.
• Efficient: This steamer has a very large tank, large holes that allow for abundant steam circulation, a bell shaped that keeps condensation water from falling into your foods. It does not build pressure and keeps temperature constant at 202°F /95°C
• No plastic parts.
• Large capacity: Makes baby meals and meals for the whole family. I use it every day for a family of 7. Some people I know love it so much they buy two, so they can cook even faster after a long day. I own two, but rarely use both at once.
• Classy: This is a beautiful appliance, and can stay on the stove forever. Mine is on the stove 24/7, except when I wash it. No footprint really… it is part of my kitchen’s landscape.
• Dishwasher safe
• Works on any type of stove.
• Since I recommend that one – and the manufacturer does not have an affiliate program, so I do it freely – you get a 10% discount by using my website discount code “steamedcuisine”. Non europeans do not pay European Sales taxes but must pay for shipping.

CON:

• No power button,
• Does not automatically stop cooking. Only electric appliances do that. However, if you cook with vapor, know tha vapor does not turn off magically. If you want your food to stop cooking, you need to take it out of your cooker, whether it’s electric or not.

Conclusion: 

Dad and Mom, you are contemplating making a choice to make sure your daily baby cooking is efficient. This is an important decision that depends on your time, lifestyle, number of kids and the like. If, like me, you are health conscious with your baby’s food, keep in mind materials used to manufacture your cooker and wether your foods heats in contact with plastic. That may mean that the cooker you want to buy has a high price tag. But also, that may make you reconsider using a regular food steamer to make your baby’s food, that may be as pricey or less than the baby food maker you were considering.

I hope this articles helped you make the choice with all cards in your hands, or at least more cards than other listing do. If so, please share around you with other parents that may benefit from this information. You can also subscribe to learn more on steam cooking, get tips and recipes !