Last Updated on 9 March 2026 by Dan Wilderness
Hello everyone! As regular readers will know I absolutely love a kitchen gadget! One I had my eye on for a long time was a food processor, and after making extensive use of mine, today I’m writing up my thoughts on what works well, what works badly and if I think they’re worth it or not!
It was something I was always intrigued by but quite cautious of – they are relatively expensive bits of kit and always the worry with gadgets is that you’ll use them, get very excited about it followed by rarely using it.
In practice, I’m happy to say I got a Magimix 5200XL food processor and it’s become a regular bit of kit in my kitchen prep – however I think it’s not necessarily the best choice for everyone and I’ll be covering specifically why in more detail below.
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Quick verdict – is a food processor worth it:
They are useful for bulk cooking but not an essential purchase. For everyday cooking, I often find the washing up and faff of getting the machine out exceeds the useful time saved, but there are some dishes and dips I find it really consistently useful for
I mainly use mine when doing large scale cooking at Christmas, and for this is really is a time saver, being able to make relatively complex dishes and more between them at speed.
If you’re a heavy cook it’s worth investing in a premium model, most cooks will be fine with a basic model.
Why a food processor?
Let’s be clear – a food processor doesn’t do anything other kitchen tools can’t (or that you can’t do manually).
However where a food processor comes into it’s own is the ability to switch between kitchen tasks very quickly, and prep things in bulk.
This means it’s really effective for bulk cooking (see also our thoughts on if batch cooking is worth it) or when doing relatively complex recipes involving multiple time consuming steps.
I used mine rapidly in short order whilst cooking up items for Christmas, and I can honestly say it saved me a lot of time. I think this offers quite a good demonstration of what a food processor can do, so I thought I’d write up what I made with it.
Examples of what I have made with a food processor
Here was everything I can think of making in my Christmas cookthon – I’ve listed the food item and then put in brackets what I specifically used the food processor for.
- Gingerbread Men (Mixed up a dough)
- Comte Cheese Bites (Making a roux)
- Sausage Rolls (Grinding sausages with other ingredients into Sausagemeat)
- Red Cabbage (Shredding and Mixing)
- Stuffing (Chopping Apple and Onion and Chestnuts and blending Sausagemeat).
- Slicing Carrots and Parsnips
- Potato Dauphinoise (Slicing Potatoes)
- Mushroom Duxelles for Beef Wellington (Blending Mushrooms and Chestnuts)
- Bearnaise Sauce
I’m now feeling slightly hungry looking back at this list! These were made over the course of 2 days so I think it really highlights the versatility of things you can do.
Do I want a food processor or a blender?
One of the most common errors people make with a food processor is thinking it’s just a more advanced blender.
But it’s an important question – you can easy end up overspending if you want your food processor to do things a blender could handle, and under-spending if you expect a blender to be able to handle harder food processor functions.
So let’s run through the difference:
- You want a blender if you want your end result to be liquid or a puree. It can handle soft fruits and very rough chopping to make smoothies, milkshakes and purees but trying to make something like cakes or bread will burn out the motor.
- You want a food processor if you want to also do things like make dough or cake mix, chop vegetables consistently or get a consistent blend for thicker dips like hummus.
Does a food processor just mean more washing up?
It can do and it’s one of the big disadvantages of a food processor, as it does create a mess.
We apply a simple 5-minute rule for usage here:
- If it takes less than 5 minutes to do the prep work – it is not worth using the food processor. You will spend more time fussing with washing up than you’ll save in preparation time. Don’t just chop a few vegetables and expect benefit.
- Otherwise, the food processor can we worth using, with the benefits being greater the more you’re doing. We use an example of slicing large amounts of potatoes for Dauphinoise as a good example here, as that’s quite time consuming with a mandolin.
What can a food processor do?
Whilst the specifics of what a food processor can do will depend on the specific model, but you’d expect most to be able to a range of core functions.
How these work is that the food processors come with a variety of attachments and bowls depending on what you’re doing. These are designed to be easily removable and interchangeable to order to move between processes quickly.
Some of the bigger ones also come with multiple bowls of different sizes which is really helpful for swapping over very quickly.
For instance, my Magimix has three bowls of different sizes – so I can quickly slice and onion in one of the smaller ones then add it to a bigger mixture.
Blending and Shredding
The core origin process of the food processor, all with come with a really sharp blade in order to shred and blend ingredients.
A good example of where you might use is for making a bolognese, where you can get your onions, garlic roughly chopped and get them straight into your meat and spices to cook up.
Normally the food processor will have a couple of settings – for something like the above you’d use want to pulse (blend for a short controlled period) to leave them in chunks.
However you can also run the blending on a more continuous basis to make up a sauce. I really like a Bearnaise with a steak but if you want to really take your kitchen basics to the next level you can make your own staples like ketchup and mayo!
Slicing
A number of processors now will come with slicing attachments which work on the basis of having a suspended disk.
Feeding in an item like a carrot, this will instantly slice it into small pieces. If you’re making a dish with a lots of vegetables such as prepping a stew, this is incredibly helpful.
It’s also a useful approach for items requiring slicing provision – I mentioned above I made Potato Dauphinoise, and for this you really want your potatoes to be very even which is hard to do manually without a mandolin – but the food processor had me covered.
Food processors will vary, but my Magimix comes with a couple of different slicing disks that allow me to slice to different thicknesses depending on preference which is also useful
Grating
One of my hated kitchen tasks is grating – even with an Aquaplane grater I find it fiddly and annoying, particularly for recipes that require larger amounts of cheese.
I confess whilst not very money saving I sometimes bought pre-grated cheese from the supermarket for this reason, which is handy but not particularly economical.
However, helpfully the food processor also solves this one – the grater function works in a similar way to the slicer attachment above, where a high-speed spinning disc grates quickly.
Making or Kneading Dough
You can also use a food processor for baking as well as cooking, and something it does very well is making dough.
It’s incredibly easy – you quite literally just through this ingredients in and you’ll have a dough ball ready in order to roll out into bread, rolls or pizza etc. as you fancy.
I tend to use the food processor for making up smaller baked items like cookies or biscuits, but still use my bread making for making loaves (the quality is as good, but I like that I can leave the bread maker to also bake it). See our review regarding if a bread maker is worth it for more on that.
Whisking
This is one which isn’t consistent to all food processors, but mine has a whisking attachment as well.
Usually I would just use a hand blender to whisk, but where this is handy to have is where making a baking recipe that involves whisking some eggs or milk at an early stage, such as making up a chocolate mousse – you can move into the rest of the recipe easily.
I’d say this feature is a nice to have, rather than essential.
Pureeing
Again one which is particularly common to food processors as it’s already largely already covered by the blending piece above, but mine comes with an additional disk for pureeing items.
This is purely to ensure a smoother consistency where really needed. It’s a nice little extra but I wouldn’t say this is a particularly necessary attachment!
Bonus Attachments
If you’re after other particular processes it is possible with most brands to buy additional attachments to do extra bits – examples included spiralisers, cubers, mashers and juicers.
These vary in price depending on the brand, but I’ve found the add-ons do tend towards the expensive, and are only likely to be worth it if you really see yourself using one of these missing processes consistently and often. I haven’t been able to justify it to myself for anything.
What should I look for when buying a food processor?
Attachments
When you’re looking at a food processor I recommend starting backward – having a think about what you really plan to use it for and then start working backwards to make sure you’re getting one with the attachments you need.
Cheaper models will sometimes come with just a blender blade – that can be a false economy, as you end up buying attachments for the stuff you actually want.
At the other end, paying for lots of stuff you don’t need doesn’t make sense either.
Here’s a picture of the rather neat attachment selection for my Magimix:
Volume
If you’re cooking for large numbers and have the space, it does make sense to go bigger if possible. My food processor is the biggest size in the Magimix range and so I can do prep for 6-8 person dishes quite comfortably.
With a smaller size I’ve have to re-do in batches, which whilst not the end of the world, would be slightly annoying. If you’re not cooking for so many people you may want to go smaller.
Personally, I prefer to have the flexibility to go bigger if I need to. The bigger processors also tend to come with more accessories by default.
Storage Size
However, storage size is the flipside of this equation – make no mistake about it, food processors are relatively big beasts.
You’ll want to make sure you’ve got somewhere to store it away or else get comfortable with something bulky sitting on your countertop.
Whilst for the bowls they are generally sensibly designed in a way they can stack inside the machine, any accessories will also take up extra space as well. Mine comes with an accessory holders which stores them rather neatly and I’d recommend this (however, it is ultimately more space).
Power
Particularly if you’re looking to chop or blend relatively solid things, it’s worth making sure your model has plenty of power – unlikely to be a problem will well known brands, but some cheaper models can be ineffective here and just become like a bad blender.
Continuous or Pulse
Now this one I really do suggest looking out for – it’s pretty rare but you get the odd cheap food processor option that only allows the machine to operate on a continuous basis.
This means items you’ve thrown in there (unless very carefully managed at the plug) can end up in a watery puree rather than a nice consistent salsa.
What you want is a pulse button you can quickly push on and off to get to your perfect consistency.
Noise
I personally don’t worry about this one too much (because I rarely have it running for extended periods and cooking is in itself quite inherently noisy), but if it’s something you’re particularly concerned about this may be worth considering before purchasing.
What are the disadvantages of a food processor?
Washing up
Once you’ve used your food processor there is quite a bit of mess to wash up, and this is one of the key reasons I wouldn’t particularly recommend a food processor to those cooking in small volume, simply because the time you save in cooking gets offset by the cleaning.
You’ll need to clean the bowls and any accessories used. Personally I nearly always do this in the sink, but most food processors do allow you to also clean these in the dishwasher (I just don’t tend to because that is space taken up in the dishwasher).
Storage Space
I’ve already covered this point above when talking about things to look for when buying a food processor, but they are bulky items.
Part of my reason for not buying one previously was that I was in a small London flat until moving – and didn’t really have sufficient storage space for it.
Still requires some Prep
It’s important to note that whilst a food processor does speed some processes you’ll often need to start off with some manual preparation. For instance you’ll still need to peel and top and tail and onion before getting it chopped.
Again, this reinforces the argument it works best in bulk – if you’re just doing a single onion, you may as well just keep going and dice it on the chopping board.
What are the best food processors available?
Below we’ve summarised a few food processors that consistently get good reviews and feedback for your consideration.
Best All Round Food Processors
Magimix 3200/4200/5200XL range
I’ve been very pleased with my Magimix, and these represent the three different sizes available in the range with price points accordingly (I have the 5200XL, but all receive good reviews).
Magimix recommends the 3200 for 4 people, the 4200 for 6 people and the 5200 for 8 people. From usage, I’d say that does feel about right.
The contents in each remain similar – there is a premium edition of the 5200 XL with additional disks and a juicer, but I really struggle to see how they’re useful vs. the cost – so I suggest just sticking with the standard version.
They are expensive, but good bits of kit.
- Magimix 3200XL at Amazon or Magimix
- Magimix 4200XL at Amazon or Magimix
- Magimix 5200XL at Amazon or Magimix
A picture of my one below:
Best Value Food Processors
Ninja 3 in 1 Food Processor and Blender
Ninja (who are a sister brand of vacuum cleaner maker Shark) have started to produce some really fantastic items in the kitchen space, especially in the space of their well regarded airfryers.
We also think their food processor is well worth a look – it’s smaller than the Magimix ones above but has a really powerful motor to deliver on it’s tasks effective.
Available from Amazon or direct from Ninja.
Kenwood MultiPro OneTouch
Some of Kenwood’s kitchen tools are really excellent value.
We think the OneTouch model, which is really nicely designed with simple touch controls for the price is a fantastic cheaper option well worth looking at.
Available from Amazon or Kenwood.
Best Compact Food Processor
Kenwood MultiPro Compact
Continuing the Kenwood theme, whilst it’s small and you won’t be cooking too many dinner parties with this, the MultiPro Compact is an excellent option if you’re looking for something for personal cookery whilst also not taking up significant counter space.
Available from Amazon or Kenwood.
Luxury vs. Budget Food Processors?
As mentioned I use the Magimix mentioned above which is at the premium end. I expect that to be a buy it for life machine that can take heavy use.
If you’re on a budget or just starting out, a cheaper food processor can deliver 80% of the benefit for a fraction of the price.
Overall verdict: Is a food processor worth it?
A food processor is not an essential or necessary bit of kit, but it is undeniably helpful for cooking and I have had no regrets investing in mine given I tend to cook in large amounts.
I think it does offer particular benefit to those who are doing lots of bulk cooking, those who entertain frequently or those with a larger family where meals are being prepped constantly where you are constantly undertaking multiple processes.
I think there’s a much more limited argument for a food processor for those cooking small amounts for themselves or a couple – the time saved is likely to be much more limited versus the annoyance of extra washing.
The biggest question really is what you want to use your food processor for. If you have a specific task in mind such as chopping vegetables, making bread or making smoothies, you are likely to be better off getting a specific mini-chopper, bread maker or blender respectively.
However if your answer is that you want to do all of the above, a food processor is likely to be a better option than multiple gadgets – and save you space despite being quite bulky itself.
Food Processor FAQ’s
Is a food processor the same as a blender?
No, a good food processor will do far more than a blender, such as cutting and grating food.
Blending is a food processors most basic function however, and you may get some models that only do this. In those cases the only real difference between a blender and food process may be the size of the containers and the blades being particularly designed for foods.
Can food processor bowls go in the dishwasher?
You should check your specific model, but it’s become very common that this is the case no as manufacturers know this is a selling point.
Is a food processor safe?
Reputable brands will be safe to use – many feature additional safety components worth looking out for such as only engaging when the lid is on and locking mechanisms if this is a particular concern.
The blades on accessories are very sharp and do require care when handling – you need to stay away and especially when transporting it around the kitchen treat them like you would a sharp kitchen knife.
Can I put hot items into a food processor?
Again check your specific model, but I’ve found mine has been absolutely fine with hot foods such as onion I have caramelised in the pan, although putting anything piping hot or boiling in a food processor wouldn’t be advisable – excess heat can have an effect on the blades and expand out when you put the lid off.
We’d also suggest not blending something with large amounts of liquid that’s scalding hot in case of leaks.
Is a food processor noisy?
Even on quieter models there’s a fair amount of noise as they’re chopping, however they work quickly and are on for short periods of time.
If noise particularly a concern you may want to look for a quieter model, but I’d suggest just accepting it as a short term part of the process.
Can I put frozen fruit and veg into a food processor?
Yes, but you’ll want a model which has a good amount of power behind it and good strong blades able to handle this without getting damaged.
Should I buy a food processor or a stand mixer?
They can largely do the same things, but excel in different areas. A stand mixer isn’t really designed for chopping and slicing in the way that a food processor is, but the stand mixer is likely to handle dough better for baking.
We’ve reiterated in this article a few times that we think starting with what you’ll use it for and working backwards is the best way to consider this – if you’re mainly a chef, a food processor is likely to be a better option. If you’ve got plans for lots of baking, the stand mixer may be the way to go.
Any questions?
If you have any questions about using a food processor or want to share your own experiences we’d love to hear from you! Just leave us a note in the comments below.
And that’s it!
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