Using a food processor is like having your own personal sous chef — it will save you much of the tedious and tiring prep work. A great food processor can dice, mince, grind, knead, puree, slice, and shred. In this post, we inroduce you to our 7 best food processors that are best rated by our team.
Whether you want to knead pizza dough, grate potatoes and sliced onions, or puree a pesto, a trusty food processor will make the task faster. Here are the 7 best food processors on the market today.
There are even blenders with food processor attachments or food processor–blender combos, which will help accomplish more in the kitchen with less equipment or without having to decide whether to purchase a blender or food processor.
How We Pick Food Processors
Best Products Center examines food processors for how evenly they dice onions, slice tomatoes, mince parsley, grind parmesan cheese, shredded carrots, and knead the dough.
We also record how quickly each model performs and how much food was left unprocessed.
Then, we score models based on ease of use, how helpful the owner’s manual is, and how easy it is to assemble the blades, chute, and lid.
We also examine how intuitive are the controls, the number of different settings, and the model reliability. We also look at how easy it is to clean.
After examining tens of food processors, our top pick this year is the Breville Sous Chef.
The Breville Sous Chef is a top performer, featuring a super powerful motor, a micro-serrated S-blade, an adjustable slicer with 24 settings (ranging from paper-thin to thick-cut), and a reversible shredder, a dough blade, and more.
It aced every test, dicing onions, mincing parsley, and uniformly slicing tomatoes in seconds.
The 7 Best Food Processors Are:
- Best Overall Food Processor: Breville Sous Chef 12-Cup Food Processor
- Best Value Food Processor: Oster 2-Speed 10-Cup Food Processor
- Best for Food Processor for Pastry Chefs: Cuisinart 14-Cup Food Processor
- Most Versatile Food Processor: Cuisinart Elemental 13-Cup Food Processor
- Best Food Processor Blender Attachment: Vitamix 12-Cup Food Processor Attachment with Sef-Detect
- Best Mini Food Processor: Cuisinart Mini Prep Plus Food Processor
- Best Food Processor Blender Combo: Ninja Professional Plus Kitchen System with Auto-IQ
A Detailed Analysis of Our 7 Best Food Processors
1. Best Overall Food Processor: Breville Sous Chef 12-Cup Food Processor
Breville BFP660SIL Sous Chef 12 Cup Food Processor, Silver
Features
| Part Number | BFP660SIL |
| Model | BFP660SILUSC |
| Warranty | 1 year limited product warranty; 10 motor warranty |
| Color | Silver |
| Size | 12 Cup |
| Language | English |
Thanks to a super powerful motor, Breville’s Sous Chef is the best overall food processor for performance.
It has the ultimate versatility, including a micro-serrated S-blade and an adjustable slicer with 24 settings ranging from thick to paper-thin cuts.
It also has a reversible shredder, a dough blade, and more.
This model is perfect in nearly all of our analyses. It evenly diced onions, minced parsley, perfectly ground Parmesan, and uniformly sliced tomatoes in seconds.
The sleek Sous Chef has multiple feeding tubes, one of which is large enough to hold a one-pound block of mozzarella or an entire tomato.
2. Best Value Food Processor: Oster 2-Speed 10-Cup Food Processor
Of the food processors we evaluated, the Oster Total Prep was one of the easiest to use.
This no-frills black model comes with an S-shaped blade for chopping, a dough blade, and reversible shredding and slicing disc.
The lid and feed tube are super simple to assemble. And for quick cleanup, all parts and accessories are dishwasher-safe.
In our tests, it evenly processed diced onions and shredded carrots — though it did leave parsley slightly bruised when mincing, this shortcoming is offset by the great price.
Pro
- Easy to use
- Foolproof assembly
- Dishwasher-safe parts
Con
- May bruise herbs
3. Best Food Processor for Pastry: Cuisinart 14-Cup Food Processor
This food processor has a solid base, so it didn’t move around when kneading dough.
The bowl’s straight edges made it easy to scrape and clean in no time. It has a simple design and performs well.
The Cuisinart 14-Cup food processor excelled at chopping onions, mincing parsley, and grinding Parmesan cheese.
It was great for slicing pepperoni and tomatoes. We particularly liked the paddle design of the buttons because they’re wide and operate by pushing down — no fussing with a touchpad.
The lid has a large feed tube, which is great for foods like potatoes and cheese. Also, it has a smaller feed tube for skinny items like carrots and celery.
Furthermore, the accessories are top-rack dishwasher safe.
Pro
- Simple design
Con
- Tricky to assemble discs
4. Most Versatile Food Processor: Cuisinart Elemental 13-Cup Food Processor
Cuisinart FP-13DGM Elemental 13 Cup Food Processor and Dicing Kit, Gunmetal
Features
| Part Number | FP-13DGM |
| Model | FP-13DGM |
| Color | Gunmetal |
| Size | 13 Cup |
This Cuisinart food processor includes interchangeable 13-cup and 4.5-cup work bowls — so you can use it to prep salsa or coleslaw for a large party or just for two.
It comes with an adjustable slicing disc, a reversible shredding disc (for medium or fine consistency), a dough blade, a dicing disc, a versatile chopping blade, a cleaning tool, and a storage case to hold your accessories.
This machine earned high praise for nearly every task, including kneading bread dough and shredding mozzarella cheese.
Pro
- Comes with five blades, two work bowls, and more
- Earned perfect ease-of-use scores
Con
- Mediocre at shredding hard foods like carrots
5. Best Food Processor Attachment: Vitamix 12-Cup Food Processor Attachment with Self-Detect
Already own a Vitamix blender and don’t want to purchase another piece of kitchen equipment?
The Vitamix 12-Cup Food Processor Attachment is a great solution.
This attachment comes with a base that lets the blender know you’re using the food processor attachment, a 12-cup work bowl with a lid, two food pushers (one large, one small), one S-shaped multi-purpose blade, two reversible slicing/shredding discs, and a slim disc storage case.
It made smooth hummus and chopped parsley well in our tests. Even more, attachments can be purchased for it, including a julienne disc and reversible fine shred and slice disc.
Pro
- Adapts Vitamix into a food processor
- Easy assembly and disassembly
Con
- Only compatible with Vitamix Ascent and Venturist motor bases
6. Best Mini Food Processor: Cuisinart Mini Prep Plus Food Processor
Cuisinart DLC-2APK Mini-Prep Plus Food Processor, 24 Ounce, Pink
Features
| Part Number | DLC-2APK |
| Model | DLC-2APK |
| Warranty | Limited 2-year warranty |
| Color | Pink |
| Is Adult Product | |
| Release Date | 2007-08-01T00:00:01Z |
| Size | 3 Cup |
Are you in the market for a food processor but don’t have the storage space for a full-sized model? This compact option is a smart pick for little kitchens, dorm rooms, or if you make small portions.
This 3-cup Cuisinart is a great do-it-all size: The chop and grind functions provide versatility to mince ingredients like herbs, onions, and meat or grind spices or beans with the blunt side of the blades.
Pro
- Small but mighty; 3-cup bowl
- Reversible action for use of sharp and dull blades
- Dishwasher safe
Con
- Must hold button continuously for operation
7. Best Food Processor Blender Combo: Ninja Professional Plus Kitchen System with Auto-IQ
Ninja BN801 Professional Plus Kitchen System, 1400 WP, 5 Functions for Smoothies, Chopping, Dough & More with Auto IQ, 72-oz.* Blender Pitcher, 64-oz....
Features
| Part Number | BN801 |
| Model | BN801 |
| Warranty | 1 Year Limited Warranty |
| Color | Grey |
| Release Date | 2020-04-27T00:00:01Z |
| Size | 64 oz. max liquid capacity Total Crushing Pitcher |
The Ninja Professional Plus Kitchen System with Auto-IQ is a great option when looking for a food processor–blender combination. You can switch from blending a frozen margarita to chopping salsa just by switching the bowl.
This food processor and blender combo comes with a pitcher, two single-serve cups with spout lids, pro extractor blades, a 64-oz processor bowl, a chopping blade, and a dough blade. One thing that we were missing from a traditional food processor was a shredding/grating disc.
Reviewers love the suction cups on the bottom of the base for steady blending and that this machine can replace at least 3 pieces of kitchen equipment: a full-sized blender, personal blender, and food processor.
Pro
- Blender and food processor in one
- Dishwasher-safe bowl, blades, and accessories
Con
- No shredding/grating attachment included
What Makes an Excellent Food Processor?
Versatility:
A top-performing food processor should be able to blitz whole or large pieces of fresh produce — like onions, carrots, herbs, or potatoes — into uniform dice or minces in very little time.
It should be able to take on tasks like grinding hard cheeses, pureeing soups or sauces, making emulsions like mayo, and even kneading dough for bread. When shopping, look for a model that can slice and/or shred foods like tomatoes and cheese.
Accessories:
All food processors come with a work bowl for chopping and pureeing — the best ones will also include slicing and shredding discs.
Other accessories to look for are a smaller work bowl and blade for finer tasks, a dough blade, a dicing accessory, and even a blender attachment for smoothies. Most are top-rack dishwasher safe.
Settings and speeds:
Many food processors have just one speed, but some can have high, medium, and low speeds.
One must-have: A pulse setting. Pulsing lets you incrementally chop food and control the blade to limit your risk of overprocessing.
It’s also great for getting an even chop: The stop-and-go motion allows unprocessed items from the top to fall onto the blade to be processed.
Otherwise, items close to the blade just continue to be processed, making the bottom finer than the top.
Weight:
A heavier base helps in terms of performance, but heft doesn’t necessarily relate to more power.
Lighter materials make food processors more affordable and easier to move around and store.
Details like suction cups may seem cheap, but they help keep the base from moving around on the countertop.
Warranty:
Food processors are known as investment pieces, but some people boast that they have had theirs for over 30 years.
Before you splurge, take a look at the brand’s warranty: The length often varies for motor and accessories.
What is the Best Size Food Processor?
To find the best food processor from the 7 above, just consider the tasks for your food processor and choose your from there:
- 2- or 4-cup models are for very basic small tasks like chopping herbs, making hummus, pureeing baby food, and whipping up dressing or mayo.
- 8-cup models are best for beginners: They’re not too big and not too small. Keep in mind that while they can be used for pastry dough, making bread in this size would be tough.
- 12- or 14-cup models are our recommendation for most households. They’re versatile and large enough to handle bread dough, and they often come with a second small work bowl for smaller tasks and an assortment of accessories too.
Final Take on Our 7 Best Food Processors Picks
Food processors can be a large investment if you pick one of the all-encompassing food processors.
We offered you our picks of the 7 best food processors on the market today. Hope you find this analysis helpful in your endeavor. Enjoy!
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