If you’re not confident in your chopping skills, both manual and electric choppers are easy ways to avoid spending too much time with your knife. The blades are formed in a wave pattern and rotate for even chopping, while the nonskid base keeps the chopper from wandering around the counter when it’s being used. We tested it with a variety of vegetables, including onions, tomatoes, mushrooms, and carrots, and it did a good job with them. Like many choppers, it did less well with green peppers, but they were still acceptable for our recipe.
A food chopper can run you anywhere from $10 to $50, so understanding what you want out of this appliance is crucial to making the right decision when shopping. Generally speaking, a manual food chopper will cost less than an electric version, so if you’re wanting something that’s more budget-friendly, go for the former. If you plan to use it a lot, you may want to spend a few extra dollars for an electric version. Not only can it process more food at once, it’s also as easy to use as the push of a button, so there’s no need to crank or press down on anything to chop the food. The ease of use of a food chopper essentially boils down to whether it is manual or electric. While both models are fine for cooks of all levels, an electric food chopper definitely takes some of the labor out of the process.
Versatile and durable, this kitchen essential provides the high performance today’s home chefs demand. Equipped with a 300-watt DC motor that delivers maximum power with minimum noise, the Smart Stick® Variable Speed Hand Blender switches from low to high speed at the turn of a dial. The long stainless steel shaft reaches deep to blend in bowls, pots and pitchers, while the mixing/measuring cup, chopper/grinder and chef’s whisk make short work of a wide variety of food prep tasks. From puréeing soup to emulsifying mayonnaise to whipping meringues, this hand blender consistently delivers chef-caliber results. Some full-size models come with an extra, smaller bowl that essentially acts as a mini food processor, but in most cases, we found that a dedicated mini processor did a better job.
These choppers are usually operated by a cutting grid, and the food is chopped into a plastic lid or container. They are ideal for cutting vegetables like onions, peppers, carrots, celery, and mushrooms. If the food item is on the bigger side, it will need to be cut down enough to fit in the chopper before it can be chopped. cuisinart air fryer oven These selected food choppers were tested for hours by our product tester for the most authentic results. We rated these choppers based on design, ease of use, size, ease of cleaning, convenience, overall effectiveness, and overall value. Testing was conducted with nuts and garlic, as well as with a variety of veggies.
We took note of any special features on the various mini food processors we tested, but overall they had to prove more than just a kitchen one-trick pony. By chopping and puréeing, we witnessed the full range of each model’s capabilities and could determine which would make the best addition to a home cook’s equipment arsenal. If you’re a cook who needs to get dinner on the table quickly, a food processor can feel like an additional pair of hands in the kitchen. It will allow you to prep a range of food—whether you’re grating cheese, chopping nuts, slicing vegetables, or kneading dough—at lightning speed. We’ve been testing food processors since 2013, and we remain convinced that the simple, sturdy, and powerful Cuisinart Custom 14-Cup Food Processor is the best choice for most home cooks. In the case of manual food choppers, you will need to cut down food so that it is small enough to fit in the chopper.
Our testers also preferred the Cuisinart Custom 14’s 14-cup capacity over the Elite’s 12-cup capacity. We also like that you can remove the work bowl with the lid attached. TheCuisinart FP-12DCN Elite Collection Food Processor also has this handy feature, but most models require that you loosen the lid before removing the bowl. The only task the Cuisinart Custom 14 didn’t excel at was chopping nuts. Most were evenly chopped, but there were a handful of nuts that remained in large pieces.
Here are the picks to make it happen, from big-ticket items like espresso machines to upgraded essentials like oven mitts. Some feed tubes were too wide, such as that on the Magimix by Robot-Coupe 14-Cup Food Processor , which caused carrots to fall sideways and cut unevenly. The narrow feed tube insert on the Cuisinart Custom 14 kept carrots upright while shredding.
The tool should be simple to pull out, plug in, operate, clean, and put away. We tracked how intuitive each model was to assemble and use right out of the box and to disassemble and clean. Like the Cuisinart Mini-Prep Plus , this model runs only while you hold the “on” button down. To operate it, you squeeze a tab on the top of the handle, which we found more comfortable to do than holding down buttons on the base of the Cuisinart Mini-Prep Plus.
They’re easier to use than manual choppers, since you just press a button to pulse or puree. With all choppers, the results are best if larger foods, like onions, are first cut into pieces. This model is a scaled-down version of our winning full-size Cuisinart food processor, both in appearance and in power. It features a locking-in lid and mechanized base just like the larger version and a four-cup cuisinart choppers capacity that feels roomy enough for most prep tasks. The Chop and Grind buttons spin the stainless-steel blades either clockwise or counterclockwise to provide a blunt or sharp edge, and all detachable pieces are dishwasher-safe for very easy cleanup. This little chopper has a 3.5-cup bowl that is big enough for serious food prep when a full-sized food processor is too big for the job.