Best Baby Food Makers of 2021
When you’re creating your baby registry, thinking about starting your little one on solid food may sound like a long way off. But, as is the case with so many things when it comes to babies (except for those middle-of-the-night feeds, of course), time flies, and before you know it you’ll be thinking of what’s on the menu for baby’s first meal.
Baby food makers are a great solution for making the process of cooking homemade food for your little one fast, simple and even fun. Here’s what you’ll want to know when you’re considering which baby food maker is right for you. Let’s get cooking!
In this article:
Do You Need a Baby Food Maker?
Figuring out whether or not you need a baby food maker is going to depend on your lifestyle, culinary comfort level and what existing kitchen gadgets you already own.
Skipping the jars and pouches and making your own baby food will definitely save you money and reduce environmental waste. Your role as head chef puts you in charge of ingredients and quality, and gives you free rein to get creative and experiment with fun food combos as much as you’d like.
If you’re not super comfortable in the kitchen, don’t mind sacrificing some counter space and are looking for a foolproof way to dive into making your little one’s food, then a baby food maker is a wise purchase. No matter what type of gadget you go with, the process is pretty much the same: prep the ingredients, steam, puree or chop, and eat. (Your baby will add a few more messy steps in there…so be ready with the wipes). Check out our baby food-making how-to video for step-by-step instructions.
If you’d rather skip the baby food maker altogether, it’s definitely possible to take the DIY route, as long as you have a few key kitchen items on hand. Things like a large pot, a steam basket, some type of blender (a food processor, immersion blender or standard blender will all do the trick) and even your microwave are all key when it comes to making your own baby food.
Baby Food Storage Tips
Whether you’re using the kitchen gadgets you have on hand or letting your baby food maker do the work, you’ll need somewhere to store all of that delicious food so your efforts don’t go to waste. If you’re cooking up single foods (think carrots, sweet potatoes, etc.), we recommend making a few large batches in bulk and then freezing each food in trays like the ones below. After the food freezes, simply pop out the individual cubes and store them in large freezer bags so you can defrost—and mix and match—as needed.
- OXO Tot Baby Food Freezer Tray
- Mumu & Bubi Solids Starter Kit
- BabyBliss Eco Friendly Silicone Baby Food Freezer Storage Tray
For multi-ingredient, more complicated recipes, or for storing food on the go, these storage solutions get the job done:
How We Chose Our Best Baby Food Makers
We asked thousands of real Babylist families about the baby products they love the most, then took the top products they shared with us and added our own research and insight to tell you about the best baby food makers.
Top Chef
What Our Experts Say
The ninja of baby food makers, the Beaba is a 4-in-1 wonder that steams, blends, defrosts and reheats fruits, veggies, fish and meat in just 15 minutes. The one-handed operation means you can hold your baby, sing Itsy Bitsy Spider and make a homemade meal all at once. Its compact design won’t hog counter space and it’s truly easy to clean, even after stubborn foods like spinach or beets. We also love that the stainless steel water reservoir holds onto the condensed water, which you can pour in while pureeing to get important nutrients back into the food.
What’s Worth Considering
Looking for more? Beaba’s NEO model has a glass bowl instead of a plastic one and a larger bowl capacity (5.2 cups for the NEO versus 4.7 for the Solo) as well as a stainless-steel steam basket. For even more capacity, check out the Duo. It features two separate bowls for a total of a 9.4 cup capacity, making it a good choice for multiples or if you want to make food in larger batches.
What Babylist Parents Say
“It makes homemade baby food simple! I would probably buy store-bought if I didn’t have this. I love it even more than I thought I would.” -Anna
All the Accessories
What Our Experts Say
The NutriBullet is easy, convenient and comes with all awesome accessories to take your culinary game to the next level. There’s a small blender, portioned batch cups for grab-and-go convenience and storage options for the fridge and the freezer. Also included is a baby food recipe guide for some inspiration.
What’s Worth Considering
The NutriBullet is a blender only; there’s no steam, defrost or reheating options here. If you do want to steam, check out the brand’s Turbo Steamer sold separately.
What Babylist Parents Say
“It was nice to have. Especially with all the extras it comes with.” -Adela
Simple and Affordable
What Our Experts Say
Low-tech isn’t always a bad thing. If you’re simply looking to mash up soft foods for your baby—and you aren’t looking to spend a ton—this food masher from OXO Tot is a great option. Both the masher and the bowl have ridges to make the mashing easier, and there are even teeth on the masher that fit inside the teeth on the bowl so you can get to every last bit of food. Everything comes apart and fits inside the lidded bowl for storage and easy transport.
What’s Worth Considering
There’s nothing fancy going on here…but that’s sort of the point. And while you can just use your own small bowl and a fork for mashing, this gadget truly does make the process faster and easier. OXO also makes a baby food mill if you’re looking for another affordable tool for starting solids.
What Babylist Parents Say
“It’s a must have when introducing solids to your baby, especially when they can eat chunkier consistency! We use it every day and it can mush everything that is soft naturally (bananas, avocados, berries) or is cooked to be fairly soft.” -Angela
All-in-One Glass
What Our Experts Say
While many baby food makers use plastic bowls, this all-in-one steamer and blender uses sturdy glass. From fruit to veggies and meats to fish, this one-stop baby food maker makes four cups of baby food in about 10 minutes with the simple press of a button. You can also choose between steam, blend and steam or just blend, and the blade and bowl are both dishwasher safe.
What’s Worth Considering
If you don’t want to spend quite as much, Baby Brezza’s One Step Food Maker Deluxe will save you about sixty bucks and does pretty much the same thing. The prep bowl on this model is plastic, however.
What Babylist Parents Say
“This baby food maker is amazing! I can make my baby food in 15 min. I’m glad I bought it. The most important of this product it’s the glass, it’s better than plastic.” -Towatei
Affordable Two-in-One
What Our Experts Say
The Sage Baby Puree and Blend is an easy, affordable way to puree. This combo includes an immersion blender (consider it your baby food magic wand) and a food processor attachment. You can pair it with storage containers (the brand makes a host of different sets, sold separately) and you’re ready to go.
What’s Worth Considering
You’ll be surprised by how handy an immersion blender is for making grown-up foods like salsa, hummus, pesto and even soups. This is a great buy that’ll last well beyond the baby food phase.
What Babylist Parents Say
“1.) Immersion blender is sturdy 2.) Jars are glass and not plastic 3.) Has different size jars for different sizes of food storage. 4.) Customer service is great!” -Aurea
The Command Center
What Our Experts Say
One machine with LOTS of uses, the large-capacity Duo 5-in-1 cooks, blends, warms and defrosts food, and can also be used as a bottle warmer and a sterilizer. What really sets it apart, though, is the ability to steam two separate baskets of food for different cook times, which ensures all the flavors and nutrition are just right. The XL steaming bowl and blender cooks over six cups of fresh food (around 25 portions!) and warms up to three bottles at once, making it a great choice for families with multiples.
What’s Worth Considering
The Duo takes up more counter space than most other baby food makers, but still has a much smaller footprint than if you had a separate baby food maker, bottle warmer and sterilizer.
What Babylist Parents Say
“It’s everything in one. Easy to use, easy to clean, space-saving on countertop, no mess when making the food, versatile—you can use it for multiple things—and it’s something that will last well beyond the baby years. Love it!” -Claudia
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