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Tip: Blender and Mason Jar
Posted by Elise on
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Did you know that many, if not most, blenders can be used with a standard mason jar, or wide-mouthed mason jar? This is a trick my mother taught me. Apparently 40 years ago or so, about the time this blender pictured was bought, manufacturers used to include a mason jar in the box with the blender. Mom recalls even a booklet that listed the many things one could make with the mason jar blender, including ground spices, whipped cream, and peanut butter. We use this trick most often to make whipped cream. The blender whips it right in the jar, so if we have extra, it’s already in a jar for storage. And it is easier when it comes to making small quantities.
I was complaining the other day that I needed a spice grinder. My mother reminded me of the mason jar trick and it worked perfectly. Here’s how to do it. I’m using walnuts to demonstrate, but you could use this trick with just about anything you want to blend, chop, or grind.
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Tip: Blender and Mason Jar Recipe
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Ingredients
Method
Step 1: Remove the base from the regular blender container.
Step 2: Screw on the base to the mason jar. Make sure it is nice and tight.
Step 3: Invert the jar and place on the blender.
Step 4: Use as you would a food processor. Pulse or blend to desired degree.
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87 Comments
That is A W E S O M E! I can’t wait to give it a try!
Love your blog!
wow – way cool. aside from the obvious capacity issues, is there anything that would work in a blender that *wouldn’t* work in a mason jar?
What a great tip! I wonder if this works with Ball. I’ll have to get my blender back up from the basement, I guess.
My two year old blender (Oster Osterizer) CAME with a mini mason jar. Great for spices.
My son broke the mini-chopper and I have been suffering ever since. But no more. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you.
Ooooohhhhhh. Now THIS is a great thing. And something my brain just could not have thought of…thanks so much, Elise!
Hi Kathryn, thanks for your kind words! (We like lots of love here.)
Hi Jen – Hmmm. Don’t know what wouldn’t work in a mason jar. The regular blender jar is more convenient for measuring and for adding ingredients from the top.
Hi Grommie – don’t all canning jars come in standard sizes?
Hi Chrzpiz – good to know that the Osterizer company is still keeping up this useful practice.
Hi Matt and Jennifer – you are very welcome!
Excellent, thanks!
Cool Tip – I’ve never heard of that!
Hi Easy – Caught! Yep, that would be me. LMT started because I needed to have a place to keep notes of how I did things on the recipe site in Movable Type, starting with the three-column layout. Glad you found it useful, if only for a while.
Be very careful when doing this. Liquids (esp hot soups, etc.) can cause strange pressure changes in a blender and would, at best, make a mess if you used a glass jar.
Common sense and all that ;)
I suspect that it could get very interesting using the closed Mason jar with hot liquids. Might be like the rocket toy we had as kids that you put water in and then pumped air into it.
Wow! This is great! It seems to work much better than the regular blender for grinding dry things. I ground up some oats into powder, and it was much easier than in the regular blender jar. I didn’t have to keep shaking it to dislodge unground bits from the sides.
Although, I have discovered that apparently there ARE non-standard size Mason Jars, and most of mine are these. I found one that actually said “Mason” and it fit just fine on my Cuisinart blender.
Very cool. I will check to see if the cuttin attachment will fit smallest size of jars, which would be excellent for grinding spices. As far as fit goes, be mindful that there are two sizes of Mason jars–normal and wide, and from the fotos, it looks like the normal size. -JBF
Hi JBF – yes, which sized mason jar you use depends on your blender. My osterizer uses a normal size mason jar. My friend’s Kitchenaid blender fits a wide-mouthed mason jar.
Apparently you can use a mayonnaise jar too, in place of a normal sized mason jar.
How ingenious!!! Can’t wait to give it a try. Thanks for sharing. I’m glad I found a new place to visit often.
What a great idea!
My problem is that the base is stuck to the
blender and I can’t get it off.
Any tips on how to separate the units?
Hi Sue – put it in the freezer for a few hours and then try unscrewing it again.
Awesome idea! I hate always having to stop and wash the blender when i have to make alot of different stuff. Problem solved! And if you have a blender that uses the regular mouth, you can get “mason mugs” from ball (mason jar with a mug style handle) for frozen drinks right in the mug. Saves dishes…
What a great tip! Combine this with a Foodsaver and you can have ground spices that last forever. I was also thinking of the mason mugs too, but someone beat me to it. Thanks!
I have been doing this for years. May I add two more hints, in addition to the caution about avoiding too-hot liquids:
Sometimes a round jar is not quite as efficient as one with a square shape (rounded square, that is).
Check the jar for cracks and flaws before using it. I used to use a Mason jar for grinding coffee, until the day it broke during the grind and scattered coffee grounds and bits of glass all over the kitchen.
I have a separate coffee grinder set aside (no coffee has ever touched it) for spices. I quite buying ground spices years ago and now get all my spices whole at the Indian grocery store down the block.
This is a great tip! I hope it works on my blender. I had a blender that has a “mini-cup” for this purpose but I killed it making smoothies w/ too much ice. Careful when doing this since you can’t stir the ingredients you have to watch carefully for stuck blades and dry-running!
Oooh, Elise, if this tip gets out, you may put the Magic Bullet company out of business!
I just tried this, and the gasket does not get compressed because you can’t screw the base down far enough. If you try this trick, fill the jar with water first, it’s easier to clean up than peanut butter.
Was searching for Mason Jars to order and found this. Our preserving jars fit our Oster blender. Now we can get rid of our coffee grinder. This is just a great tip, and something we may never have thought of on our own.
Thanks a lot!
Great tip, thanks! I just tried a Mason jar on my Cuisinart blender for size and it fits perfectly. I use a coffee grinder to grind roasted sesame seeds, but it never cleans up enough to use for anything else. The sesame flavor would get into other spices because I can’t wash the grinder, only brush it. Also, I definitely plan to get some Mason ‘mugs’ for smoothies!