Ooni Halo Pro Spiral Stand Mixer Review

Ooni is a stalwart of backyard pizza ovens. But its latest offering leaves the outdoors and enters the kitchen: Meet the Ooni Halo Pro Spiral Stand Mixer. It’s advertised as a powerful machine that’ll aid your quest to make the best Neapolitan pizza dough—stretchy, airy, and not prone to dreaded rips. It differs from other stand mixers in that it has a rotating bowl rather than spinning attachments, and it sports a digital interface and dial control. Could simplicity and a sleek form factor make it a winner? I tested the Ooni stand mixer for weeks to find out, using it to make pizza dough, rolls, whipped cream, and cookies. 

The Tests

• Dinner Rolls Test: I made dinner rolls using the dough hook attachment. This test examined how well the Ooni stand mixer could mix and knead a sticky, soft, buttery dough. 
• Pizza Dough Test: Ooni is known for its pizza ovens, so of course, I had to make Neapolitan pizza dough. I used the breaker bar, which attaches to the center of the mixer, and the dough hook to knead it. 
• Sugar Cookie Test: The Ooni stand mixer comes with a paddle attachment, which I used to cream butter and sugar for sugar cookies. 
• Whipped Cream Test: The Ooni also comes with a whisk attachment. I tested it by beating one cup of heavy whipping cream and timing how long it took to form stiff peaks. 

What We Learned

Ooni vs. KitchenAid Stand Mixers: What’s the Difference?

For starters, the Ooni is a spiral mixer, meaning it has a bowl that rotates, like the Ankarsrum stand mixer. KitchenAid stand mixers are planetary mixers, meaning they employ an arm that spins the attachments. A spiral mixer’s spinning bowl can attain faster speeds and thus better kneading and gluten formation in dough. It also makes it easier to reach in with a spatula and scrape the sides without hitting the attachment. 

Another difference between the two is the shape of their bowls: The Ooni’s large, seven-quart bowl has a flat bottom, which helps prevent dry pockets of ingredients when kneading dough. This is a common problem with the more sloped KitchenAid bowl, where dry ingredients tend to sink to the center and remain unmixed. Finally, the Ooni uses a touchscreen display and dial for its controls, while KitchenAids have a lever for switching between speeds. 

The Ooni Stand Mixer Was Sturdy, Powerful, and Easy to Use

The Ooni is super easy to set up: Press the hinges on both sides of the head to lift it, twist on the bowl and screw in the attachment, press the power button on the back, and the machine comes to life. I liked the digital touchscreen interface, which features a timer and speed settings, both connected to the single dial. To adjust the speed or set a timer, you only need to tap the digital display and turn the dial.

The Ooni is also incredibly sturdy: It weighs 33 pounds, making it one of the heaviest stand mixers I’ve tested. It has a powerful engine on it, too, at 650 watts, which is a whopping 150 watts more than our favorite KitchenAid stand mixer. 

It Excelled at Making Bread Dough 

When it came to kneading bread dough, it was the Ooni stand mixer’s time to shine. The rotating bowl ensured even ingredient integration and a proper knead, and the removable breaker bar, which slots in next to the hook, helped knead and stretch. The Neapolitan pizza dough I made emerged strong but supple, while dinner rolls baked up into buttery, tender buns. The timer function was super helpful, too, especially for longer kneading times. 

It Wasn’t so Great at Other Tasks

While the Ooni excelled at kneading, it struggled to cream butter and sugar and whip cream. It took nearly five minutes at its highest speed to whip one cup of heavy cream into stiff peaks. This is quite long considering the Ankarsrum, a similar style of mixer, took 35 seconds in our tests. The splatter guard was essential during this process, since the cream flung everywhere. However, it didn’t sit fully flush with the bowl, so some drops still escaped. 

It also struggled to cream butter and sugar for cookies. I used the paddle attachment and set the Ooni to 75% power, per the recipe’s instructions. However, the silicone-lined paddle just pushed the ingredients around. I had to bump up the speed and use a spatula to scrape the sides to help incorporate the ingredients. However, the cookies still baked up tender and well mixed, so there’s that. 

The Verdict

If your backyard looks like it was transplanted from a pizza restaurant or you nerd out about dough hydration, then the Ooni Halo Pro Spiral Mixer will likely make you happy. Its rotating bowl ensures total ingredient incorporation for bread dough (no pockets of flour in the center of the bowl), and the timer function comes in handy for long kneads. It made excellent bread dough, including a sticky, buttery dinner roll dough and a well-kneaded Neapolitan pizza dough. However, it did struggle at other tasks, like creaming butter and sugar for cookie dough and whipping heavy cream, making it less versatile than other stand mixers I’ve used. 

It was super easy to set up, though: To adjust the speed or change the timer, just turn the dial. Its hefty weight prevented it from wobbling on my countertop, which is always a good thing with a stand mixer. It’s not super tall either, and easily fits under my cabinets when the arm is down. 

The Pros

The Ooni stand mixer excels at making bread dough, which makes sense, considering the brand is known for its pizza ovens. The dough hook seamlessly incorporated butter into soft dinner roll dough, resulting in light and tender buns. When combined with the breaker bar, which slots in close to the dough hook, it also kneaded perfectly elastic Neapolitan pizza dough that baked up light and airy with the requisite chew the style’s known for. 

Beyond its performance, the Ooni stand mixer was also easy to use: Just pop the top of the mixer upward, add the attachment, secure the bowl, and toggle the power switch. The user interface is a simple single dial with a touchscreen for choosing between time and speed. It was easy to toggle between the two, and the timer function was helpful for long kneads. The bowl spun smoothly, and it was easy to reach in with a spatula to scrape the sides as it mixed, something you can’t do with a planetary stand mixer like a KitchenAid. 

The Cons

The silicone-lined paddle attachment was slow to cream butter and sugar, though the cookies baked up nicely. I would’ve preferred a non-silicone-lined paddle, which I think would have gripped and beaten the mixture better and faster. The machine was also downright sluggish whipping cream. 

The Ooni stand mixer is quite expensive, even more so than the Ankarsrum, one of its main competitors. It’s also heavier than most of our favorite stand mixers and takes more effort and strength to move. I would have liked if the bowl had a handle on it for easy dough transfer.

Key Specs

• Weight: 33 pounds
• Dimensions:10 x 13.5 x 17 inches 
• Stated bowl capacity: 7.3 quarts
• Wattage: 650 watts
• Cord length: 63 inches 
• Attachments: Whisk, dough hook, bar breaker, paddle, pouring shield
• Colors: Charcoal grey or polar white
• Care instructions: Bowl, lid, and attachments are dishwasher-safe. Wipe whisk gear box and base clean with damp cloth. Dry thoroughly.
• Materials: Die-cast aluminum, stainless steel

Why We’re the Experts 

• Grace Kelly is a senior editor at Serious Eats, where she’s been testing and reviewing kitchen gear for nearly three years. 
• To test the Ooni Halo Pro Spiral Stand Mixer, Grace used it to make dinner rolls, Neapolitan pizza dough, whipped cream, and sugar cookies.