And Cuisinart’s food processors have a solid reputation for overall durability—anecdotally, we know of some that have lasted for decades. Finally, the Cuisinart Custom 14’s work bowl was easier to clean than the bowls of most of the other models we tested. We cleaned each model eight times, so we were achingly familiar with the gunk that can get trapped in more-complicated lids. We also appreciate the Cuisinart’s hollow handle, which doesn’t trap food particles and moisture as much as the Breville Sous Chef’s enclosed handle. This unit holds about two cups, so it’s plenty for making a bowl of salsa or prepping onions for a recipe.
Perry is a main producer of Outside the Labs content at CR, where she evaluates products in her tiny Manhattan apartment. The Mini Prep Pro gives you all the performance of a serious food processor, but in a compact and user friendly size – perfect if your kitchen is small or is bursting at cuisinart toa60 the seams. Cuisinart has been creating inventive and accessible kitchen appliances, cookware and accessories for nearly 50 years. Since 1995, Epicurious has been the ultimate food resource for the home cook, with daily kitchen tips, fun cooking videos, and, oh yeah, over 33,000 recipes.
However, at just under 2 pounds, it has a slightly heavier base than other mini models, which helps keep it stable. And we didn’t notice any straining or stuttering of this model’s 240-watt motor, even when it was chopping a fibrous jumbo carrot. As long as you don’t try to use the Food Chopper for heavy tasks, such as making nut butter, we don’t think there’s much risk of burning out the motor. The Cuisinart’s three-year warranty on parts and five-year warranty on the motor aren’t the best among the models we tested, but they’re still pretty good.
Michael Sullivan has been a staff writer on the kitchen team at Wirecutter since 2016. Previously, he was an editor at the International Culinary Center in New York. He has worked in various facets of the food and restaurant industry for over a decade.
One task this processor doesn’t excel at is chopping whole almonds evenly, but that’s typical of most mini choppers. The Breville Sous Chef 16 Pro is more powerful than the Cuisinart Custom 14, so it’s the machine you’ll want when you’re cooking for large groups or if you process food several times a week. Its 1,200-watt motor and smart design save you time in use and cleaning. In fact, despite the 16-cup Sous Chef’s many accessories, it was one of the easiest models to clean. That said, if you only use a food processor occasionally, the Breville’s high cost probably outweighs its benefits.