Description
The Braun MQ505 is an immersion blender, which means it goes into the pot rather than the pot going into it. That makes it the right tool for soups and sauces, because hot liquid never has to be poured into a jug. Braun lists a 350 watt German engineered motor, two speeds including Turbo Boost, the patented PowerBell system, SplashControl technology, a soft grip ergonomic handle, the EasyClick accessory system, a 20 ounce beaker and a whisk attachment. The unit weighs 2.5 pounds, stands 15 inches long and runs on 120 volts.
Braun cites independent research institute data covering 2006 to 2016 to support its position in hand blender sales, and notes that America’s Test Kitchen selected the MultiQuick 5 as its top pick in the immersion blender category. Both are third party references rather than Braun’s own testing, and both are reported here as the attributions Braun makes.
The PowerBell System
This is the engineering that distinguishes a good immersion blender from a frustrating one. A conventional immersion blender with a flat guard creates suction against the bottom of a pot: the blender grips the pan, the blend stalls, and then it releases suddenly and throws hot soup up the sides.
Braun’s PowerBell uses a bell shaped blending shaft with the blades positioned inside the bell. The shape prevents a flat seal forming against the pot bottom and draws food inward toward the blades rather than pushing it away. Braun describes the result as finer, smoother blending with reduced suction.
SplashControl is the companion feature and it works on the same geometry. Braun describes the bell shape and the blade position inside it as virtually eliminating splashing. In practice, an immersion blender lifted out of a pot while running is what causes most splatter, and no design fixes operator error, but a shape that keeps the flow inside the bell rather than deflecting it upward genuinely reduces mess.
The Breville BSB510XL reaches the same conclusion with a bell shaped base and internal ribbing, so this is a solved problem approached two ways rather than a Braun exclusive.
Power, Speeds and Handling
At 350 watts this is a modest motor by immersion blender standards, and Braun publishes it plainly where several competitors publish nothing at all. Two speeds is a short list, with the second being Turbo Boost for tougher work.
What Braun emphasizes instead of raw power is motor balance: a high precision German engineered motor evenly balanced for power and durability, which Braun says keeps operation smooth and comfortable. Balance matters on a handheld appliance in a way it does not on a countertop one, because vibration transmits directly into the hand and wrist over a long blend.
The soft grip, slip proof ergonomic handle addresses the same point. An immersion blender is held for the duration of the blend, sometimes over a large pot of soup, and comfort is a functional specification rather than a luxury on this format.
Attachments and the EasyClick System
The EasyClick system allows attachments to be swapped quickly. The MQ505 ships with the PowerBell blending wand, a 20 ounce beaker and a whisk for beating eggs or emulsifying sauces. Braun lists the wider system as covering blending, chopping, whisking, mashing, crushing and pureeing, which implies additional attachments are available separately.
The beaker is worth a note. Twenty ounces is small, suitable for a single portion of soup, a dressing or a small batch of mayonnaise. It is not a vessel for a family batch, but the point of an immersion blender is that the cooking pot is the vessel and the beaker is for small jobs.
Highlights
- 350 watt German engineered motor, evenly balanced.
- Two speeds including a Turbo Boost setting.
- Patented PowerBell system with a bell shaped shaft and internal blades.
- SplashControl technology to reduce splashing.
- Soft grip, slip proof ergonomic handle.
- EasyClick accessory system for fast attachment changes.
- 20 ounce beaker and whisk attachment included.
- Ultra hard stainless steel blades, BPA free.
- 15 inches long, 2.5 pounds, 120 volts.
- Average rating of 4.6 out of 5 from more than 5,600 ratings.
Things To Consider
At 350 watts this is meaningfully less powerful than Braun’s own step up model, the MQ7035 at 500 watts, and less powerful than most countertop machines by a wide margin. For soup, sauces, baby food and smoothies it is adequate. For thick purées, dense hummus or anything approaching a nut butter it will work harder than a stronger motor would.
Two speeds is limited. Braun’s higher models offer continuously variable speed controlled by how hard the trigger is squeezed, which is a genuinely better arrangement for starting a blend gently.
No immersion depth figure is published, unlike the Breville which states 8 inches. That is the specification that determines whether the shaft reaches the bottom of a tall stockpot, and its absence is a real gap.
The listing does not state a warranty term at all, and the “Color” field reads “Hummus,Egg Beater,Smoothies”, which are use cases rather than a color. Those are listing data errors rather than product faults.
An immersion blender is not a substitute for a countertop machine. It will not crush ice properly, it will not match a high powered jug blender on fibrous ingredients, and it cannot be left running unattended. Households wanting both should keep a machine from the countertop blender range alongside it.
Who It Suits and Who Should Look Elsewhere
This is a sensible everyday immersion blender for a household that makes soup, sauces, baby food and dressings, and wants a well engineered tool without paying for variable speed and a full attachment set. The PowerBell geometry addresses the specific annoyance of immersion blending, the handle is designed for long use, and more than 5,600 ratings at 4.6 out of 5 is a substantial evidence base.
It is the wrong tool for thick, heavy work where 350 watts will struggle, and for anyone who wants a chopper bowl included rather than bought separately, where the Breville BSB510XL ships with one. The rest of the range sits in the hand blender category.
