FINALLY AN ALL-AROUND HANDMILL THAT “WON’T BANKRUPT YOUR WALLET”
In our part of the country (Jackson Hole Wyoming, Teton Valley) you’re never sure about some things, especially the power supply. When the power is out meals must still be prepared. Coffee, flour, fresh peanut butter, and herbs and spices must still be ground. I have always kept a handmill in our kitchen for just those occasions. When I was asked to review the Wonder Junior Handmill I surely wasn’t expecting what I discovered -Amazing Versatility and High Quality At An Affordable Price.

For years handmills have been either one extreme or another. First, there is the cheap, basic mills that people keep with their food storage. These mills don’t produce good flour but soothe the need to feel “prepared”. Second, there is the other extreme of high quality, great producing handmills that cost $400-$500 or more. For a long time there has been a need for a good quality, moderately priced handmill. And now the Wondermill Company has met that need.

I have been using the Electric Wondermill for years to prepare the fresh-tasting breads and flour used at Fin Springs’ kitchen. We couldn’t survive without it. When I received the Wonder Junior Handmill I had two main concerns. I was concerned about the quality of the flour it would grind and how quickly or slowly it would produce flour. After removing the Wonder Junior from the box I was immediately impressed with the quality and beauty of the powder-coated surface. It almost felt wrong to actually use it for work! But I did.

Over the years I have used many kitchen tools that clamp to the counter, such as meat grinders, food shredders, sauce makers and more. I have never found one such appliance that didn’t start to loosen and start moving after being used just a few minutes, requiring retightening the clamp.

The first great feature of the Wonder Junior I noticed is the large heavy-duty “double clamp.” Because of its wide base and double posts, with easy-grip handles, you can clamp it to any table up to two inches thick and it never moves. Wow, why didn’t someone think of that years ago! Next, I noticed the extra-thick, heavy-duty base post, twice as wide as most of its competitors (guaranteed not to break for as long as you own it!!) Another impressive feature is the thickness of the precision stones. They not only produce a fine delicate flour for pie crusts and pastries, but they also easily crack grains for cereals and breads. Adjusting from super-fine flour to cracked cereal grain is super easy. Simply loosen or tighten the easy-adjust knob on the front of the mill until you get the desired texture.

The long ten inch arm and large handle-grip makes the milling arm easy to turn. I found that under normal paced turning I could grind about 3 cups of bread flour in just over five minutes (very impressive!!) One of my pet peeves with most handmills is the small and narrow hopper. They are either so small that you constantly have to refill them or they are so narrow that you spill grain every time you fill them! Then there are the hoppers that are funnel shaped. With these hoppers, just after you fill them with grain, someone inevitably bumps the hopper,it falls off the mill, and grain goes everywhere. When I looked at the Wonder Junior Handmill and saw the large and wide, one-quart, octagon-shaped hopper that will never separate from the mill body I fell instantly in love. At last, here is an easy-fill, no-spill hopper with large capacity.

As I said, I found that the Wonder Junior produces great flour and cereals. But what about other things such as nuts, herbs, or fresh-ground coffee? Most handmills do one thing good - grind wheat flour. Many will produce good flour but will clog up or cause the stones to glaze over if you grind oily or wet grains. Well, the Wonder Junior Handmill answers this problem by having a set of super high quality stainless steel burr heads. By simply removing the adjusting knob and swapping the stones with the stainless steel burr heads you convert the Wonder Junior into one of the most efficient Burr Mills on the market. In my Kitchen we use lots of flax and nut butters and we make the best coffee in The West. That is why our customers keep coming back.

After attaching the stainless steel burr heads to the Wonder Junior I decided to try some of my favorite simple foods. I first purchased several pounds of fresh peanuts to make peanut butter. I was pleased with how quickly I was able to grind up four cups of fresh and smooth peanut butter. Many of the handmills I have used before struggled with keeping the nuts moving into the burr heads. But the Wonder Junior Handmill uses a double auger system. A large pre-auger spring feeds the nuts into a wide spiral auger which forces the nuts into the burrs. This keeps the peanut butter flowing smoothly from the mill. If you have ever made homemade peanut butter or other nut butters you know that the clean-up can be a pain. Many handmills have pockets or areas that get peanut butter in them making them hard to clean. I was dreading the clean-up. But I quickly found that the Wonder Junior easily disassembles. After this easy step all the parts were exposed so that it could be quickly and easily cleaned in warm, soapy water. The beautiful powder-coated finish is safe to wash and cleans up in minutes. Flax also mills beautifully and the coffee grinds to perfection. Both of these were also easy to clean up.

Durability:
The Wonder Junior Handmill uses extremely large, lifetime lubricated bearings. And all of the parts are extra thick and strong. Because of its heavy-duty construction the Wonder Junior comes with a lifetime warranty on everything except the stones and the handle (they have a one-year warranty). Many of the most expensive handmills on the market have a warranty of only five years or less and but still cost two to three times more than the Wonder Junior Handmill.

Highly Recommended:
After putting the Wonder Junior through the above tests, I highly recommend this handmill. I feel that, for the money, it is without doubt the highest-quality and most- versatile handmill I have ever seen or even read about. If you are looking for a handmill that can hold up to everyday use…. Or if you just want the confidence of knowing that in an emergency you will have a handmill that really works and will perform the tasks needed…. You should purchase a Wonder Junior Handmill. I believe that you won’t regret it. As for my kitchen…. it will have a Wonder Junior Handmill in use from now on!

Chef Aaron - Fin Springs Ranch

Purchase: You can purchase a Wonder Junior from Kodiak Health Products

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