Vitamix Explorian E310 Review

The Explorian E310 is a long-standing favorite in Vitamix's line of premium blenders. Although it is designed for household use only, the base is a powerful, 2-horsepower motor that is more than capable of professional-grade tasks. This base model doesn't include presets but instead features 10 variable speed settings and a pulse feature. The Explorian includes a single 48-ounce container, a mini tamper — which is useful because this smaller blender requires some stirring and a more hands-on approach — and a cookbook for commonly blended recipes.

Smoothies

Even though it doesn't feature any Smoothie presets, like more premium Vitamix blenders, the Explorian consistently turns out high-quality smoothies. It blends frozen fruit easily, and although there are a few seconds of struggle initially, it has no issue blending thicker green shakes and fruit, nut, and oat smoothies.

To mimic other blender Smoothie presets, we varied power levels between five and nine during blending. Although this requires a more hands-on approach, the green shake, berry blend and Oreo milkshake that the Explorian produced were evenly blended with a delightfully “fluffy texture,” as one tester put it. We had to fluctuate speeds between eight and nine for the thicker fruit, nut, and oat smoothie, but with some assistance from the tamper, this blender still turned out a well-blended breakfast smoothie in only one minute.

Convenience

Admittedly, the Explorian is much less convenient than other Vitamix blenders we tested. It lacks the digital timers, buttons, and presets to offer a 'hands-off' blending experience. But with a variable 10-speed dial and pulse switch, you have complete control over the blending process. It is also worth noting that this blender gets substantially louder at higher speeds, and the sound can be a bit overbearing if you're operating at the highest speeds.

Even though it doesn't have a preset cleaning function, Vitamix recommends adding a bit of soap and warm water to the blender and running it a a low-to-medium setting. Considering that the blades are not removable, this method makes cleaning the Explorian a breeze. Drying doesn't take up much counter space, as you can place the jug over the base at an angle to ensure proper airflow.

Ice

The Explorian absolutely crushed our ice tests. Instead of leaning on a preset, you have to hold the Pulse switch, but the yield is perfect. We blended margarita ingredients on speed eight for about seven seconds, followed by about five seconds on speed six — the result was a creamy, perfectly blended marg, in less than 15 seconds. With a performance like that, we would put the Explorian up against any of the other premium blenders we tested.

Pureeing

Vitamix blenders are beloved for their ability to puree — a task normally reserved for food processors. Although it gets the job done, it wasn't as easy for the Explorian as other Vitamix models we tested. Blending nut butter required a lot of tamping, stirring, and additional oil to keep things moving. That said, the result is super smooth, creamy, and evenly textured. Without a Soup preset, we ramped up speed according to how well our homemade tomato soup was mixing. Although the soup we made only reached 112 °F, we undoubtedly could have warmed it more if we had kept it at speed 10 for longer. But the hard-working motor started emitting a strange electrical smell, which was worrisome. We had the same unfortunate experience with two different blenders, so it's certainly something to be mindful of.

Grinding

While we were put off a bit by the puree experience of the Explorian, this blender's grinding abilities are well above average. But again, without presets, this blender requires you to fully engage in the process. At speeds of eight or nine, we ground regular crystal sugar into light, fluffy powdered sugar in 30 seconds. By fluctuating from speed one to 10 and then back down, we successfully milled high-quality corn flour with only a few coarse grains that did not pass through the sieve. The Explorian also does a great job griding hard cheeses, like parmesan, into a very fine, almost powdery consistency, although it did require some help from the tamper to knock the blocks of cheese back down into the blades. Again, the Explorian does a great job at these extraneous tasks; it just takes a bit more work on your part.

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Should You Buy the Vitamix Explorian E310?

The Explorian is a great blender as long as you don't mind tamping, stirring, and manually adjusting your blender speeds — this is certainly not the same 'hands-off' experience as other premium models we tested. However, it produces pleasantly airy smoothies, creamy blended margaritas, and delicious nut butter, and it is versatile enough for grinding and milling. As long as you can be more engaged with your blending, the Explorian presents an opportunity for some significant savings over more expensive Vitamix models.

What Other Blenders Should You Consider?