The 8 best food processors and choppers: Consumer Reports

Food processors and choppers break down vegetables, nuts and dough in seconds, work that takes real time by hand. That speed comes in two forms, since choppers handle small jobs for about $20 while full-size processors hold up to 16 cups and cost upward of $500.

Consumer Reports tested models in both categories on slicing, grating, puréeing and noise, and the eight below came out on top, so start there before shopping.

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The Breville The Paradice 9 costs $399.95 and pairs a 625-watt motor with a seven-cup bowl. Consumer Reports rated its slicing highly and found shredding, puréeing and chopping nearly as capable. Grating cheese and whipping cream drew weaker results in CR's testing, while cake batter, pancake batter and mayonnaise turned out smooth. Three blades for shredding, slicing and dough are included, adding range for cooks who want one machine for prep and baking.

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At $247.69, the Cuisinart Core Custom FP-130 runs at three speeds and suits cooks who want one machine for most prep work. CR's testers saw strong results from slicing, kneading bread dough and mixing cake batter. Whipping cream and emulsifying mayonnaise ingredients also went smoothly in those tests. Cuisinart backs the machine with a three-year warranty that outlasts the one-year terms on some other models here.

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The $89.99 KitchenAid KFP0718ER holds a claimed seven cups, which suits cooks working in modest batches. Cake batter, pancake batter, mayonnaise and bread dough all came out well in CR's lab testing. Egg whites, onions and hazelnuts fared less well in the same tests. A reversible shredding and slicing blade is included, which widens the prep range beyond mixing and kneading.

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A 500-watt motor powers the KitchenAid KFP1318BM, which holds a claimed 13 cups and costs $179.99. CR rated it highly for slicing and found its shredding, puréeing and grating strong as well. At eight pounds, the processor stays light enough to pull from a cabinet and set back without strain. Its warranty covers parts and the motor for just one year, so buyers who plan to keep a machine for years should weigh that limit.

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The Magimix 5200XL holds 16 cups and runs on an 1,100-watt motor, so it suits cooks who prep in bulk. CR found that it sliced and puréed easily and whipped egg whites and pancake batter without strain. Shredding results impressed CR's testers, though grating cheese proved unremarkable by comparison. Buyers paying $549 also receive separate slicing and dough blades, a tool for whipping and a compact bowl insert for lighter loads.

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All attachments on the $50.99 Braun Easy Prep CH3012BK, including the separate slicing blade, are dishwasher-safe. CR rated its cheese grating and baby food purées highly and found its chopping of hazelnuts, herbs and onions strong. Noise proved the weaker point in that testing. Its two-cup bowl and two-speed push-down controls suit cooks prepping small batches instead of full meals.

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Paddle controls set the $58.44 Cuisinart Core Custom MCH-4 apart from push-down choppers, and they may take less hand strength to work. Cleaning, handling and storage all proved straightforward for CR's testers. Puréeing and grating earned strong marks in those tests, with chopping close behind. It also ran quieter than many other choppers CR evaluated.