If you dread peeling, cutting, and chopping ingredients for your meal prep every day, this Hamilton Beach food processor review will change your life.
This post will show you why a food processor should definitely be a part of your day-to-day kitchen duties, and reasons why the 14-cup Stack & Snap Hamilton Beach food processor is THE ONE worthy of your hard-earned money. Also, it's worth checking out on its smaller sibling in our Hamilton Beach 70725a review.
Hamilton Beach Food Processor Review
The company has several food processor models, including the PrepStar™, ChefPrep™, and Big Mouth® Duo Plus food processors offering different functions and varying price ranges. But for this review, we'll be focusing on the space-saving, multifunction 14-cup Stack & Snap Food Processor.
14-Cup Stack & Snap™ Food Processor Highlights
- User-friendly stack & snap assembly
- Big Mouth feed tube with 14-cup capacity
- Comes with chopping S-blade and reversible slicing and shredding disc
- Stainless steel blades
- Powerful 600-watt motor
- 14 Slicing Thickness Settings
- BPA-free
14-cup Stack & Snap™ Design
This 14-cup Stack & Snap™ is VERY well-designed. It is space-saving in all the right parts - from the vertical construction to the compact bowl that stacks directly on the base.
You can end your search if you're looking for a unit with a bigger mouth. Because the brand didn't skimp on space when it came to important parts, such as the massive, 3-in-1 "Big Mouth" feed chute. It has three parts: the large chute for bigger chunks of food, the medium chute for dicing ingredients (look here for the best food processors for dicing), and the small chute that ensures food remains upright when slicing.
Aside from the massive capacity, this 14-cup unit also has other impressive functions, such as:
- Stack and Snap Assembly - It is named as such because the assembly truly is a STEP UP from old processors. If you've ever owned a food processor with the standard twist-lock assembly, you know why this is such a big deal. The ease of use you'll experience just from setting up and cleaning this thing is already worth your money.
- Separate Case for Your Blade and Disc Attachments - We adore the separate "house" for all your attachments. This has always been a much-needed addition to any food processor since storing those sharp blades can be problematic especially for those with small kitchens. This feature is definitely a game-changer.
- Quick-Access Touchpad Control: The Electronic Touchpad features two speeds and pulse, as well as easy-to-read and access icons so you could easily STOP, (slice, shred, dice, knead bunched in one button), (chop, mix, puree in another button), and then pulse.
Perhaps the only thing I found missing with this model is the bowl scraper. Having an optional bowl scraper attachment can really help, especially when you're chopping big chunks of food, or kneading heavy dough.
Pros and Cons of Stack & Snap™ Food Processor
If you're currently in search of a food processor model, the pros and cons of Hamilton Beach's 14-cup Stack & Snap unit should be helpful to your search.
Pros
Cons
Our Rating: 5 Stars
If we had to give Hamilton Beach's 14-cup Stack & Snap food processor a star rating, it easily gets a perfect rating. We recommend this if you're in search of a unit that can let you:
- Grind meat like a pro - Make your own burgers, sausages, and other recipes that use ground meat. You'll be blown away by the performance of this Hamilton Beach model, whether you're shredding fine bits of cabbage (see the best food processors for shredding cabbage), to mixing your homemade mayonnaise to perfection.
- Have a worry-free prep - From slicing and dicing to chopping and shredding vegetables, fruits, and everything in between, this food processor can help you cook almost anything you have in mind.
- Make desserts effortlessly - You can make ice cream, shakes, yogurt, and other similar desserts like an old-school blender. (In fact, in almost all the features of a blender, this food processor can do A LOT better. It can even serve as an awesome almonds chopper.).
- Prepare all the baby food, purees, and sauces galore - Whether you're making purees for your baby or trying a recipe for salsas, hummus, pesto, or soups, this food processor can definitely make your life easier.
If only this unit had built-in cord storage and its own bowl scraper included in the package, this would have been the best food processor we've reviewed.
Food Processor FAQs
Here are some of the frequently asked questions about the handy kitchen processors:
How Does a Food Processor Work?
Food processors are countertop appliances that use spinning blades or discs to cut food ingredients, which you add to the machine through a chute.
Food processors are designed with multiple kitchen functions. They come with different blades and discs that enable you to grind meat, shred cabbage, mince garlic, and so on.
Functions and performance vary between models.
Where are Hamilton Beach Food Processors Made?
The company's headquarters is located in Glen Allen, Virginia, United States, where the company's main marketing, customer services, and business operations are.
However, since the 2000s, all of Hamilton Beach's appliances have been manufactured by subcontractors in China.
Can You Use a Food Processor to Grind Hard Food?
Most food processors from Hamilton Beach are capable of grinding meat, but harder foods would vary between models. To make sure that the motor or blade attachment is powerful enough to ground hard foods, it is best to check specifications first before use.
Overwhelming a machine that isn't built to grind down huge chunks of bone, for example, may cause the machine to overheat, or worse, stop working altogether.
Can a Food Processor Work as a Juicer?
If you're into juicing, some food processors are designed to turn vegetables and fruits into juices as well. Check specifications before buying.
Is a Food Processor Supposed To Be Noisy?
Almost all food processors have a distinct noise that comes from their motors, but some newer technologies make it possible to process food at a much quieter rate.
What Is The Best Size For a Food Processor?
The 2- or 4-cup models are ideal for very basic small tasks such as chopping herbs, pureeing hummus, and whipping up dressing or mayonnaise.
The 7-cup models - see Cuisinart's offer here - are the most suitable for beginners : Not excessively large, not excessively small. We recommend a 10 cup, 12 cup food processor or 14-cup models for the majority of households.
What Difference Can You See From the Hamilton Beach 10 Cup Stack & Snap™ to the 14-cup?
If you feel that the 14-cup capacity is overkill and you're only planning to feed your immediate family, the Hamilton Beach 10 cup food processor may seem more tempting. Compare the differences between these models before purchase:
- Price-wise, the Stack & Snap™ Hamilton Beach 10 cup food processor is in the $50 to $75 range, while it's bigger 14-cup brother is priced two times higher.
- Both Stack & Snap™ Hamilton Beach 10 cup food processor and 14-cup are designed with a big-mouth chute, but the 10 cup food processor doesn't have the 3 chute options for varying sizes of food.
- The bowl of Hamilton Beach 10 cup and 14 cup models are both stuck to the base, but both have no bowl scraper.
- The Hamilton Beach 10 cup food processor has a 450-watt motor, while its 14-cup Stack & Snap™ variation works with a 600-watt motor.
- Storing the slice, grating ( for more best food processors for grating cheese follow this link), fine shred disc is easier with the 14-cup since it is equipped with its own separate case. The Hamilton Beach 10 cup food processor has no case included.
5 Reasons to Choose the 14-Cup Stack & Snap™ Food Processor
The company has been producing affordable, but solidly-built electronic appliances for decades. You can trust that the brand delivers kitchen appliances that work well.
But because our kitchen needs vary, shopping for a food processor can be absolutely overwhelming (especially with the numerous options available in the market). But here are 5 reasons why the 14-cup Hamilton Beach is a win-win for most people:
1. Size.
If you're always cooking for a big group or an entire clan, this Hamilton Beach 14-cup food processor has the capacity to accommodate your needs. (If you only cook for you and your partner, the Hamilton Beach 10 cup Stack & Snap™ Food Processor would be a better choice.)
2. All the Blades Necessary for Complete Food Prep.
This Hamilton Beach food processor comes with FIVE attachments: shredding discs, slicing discs, kneading discs, chopping discs, mixing discs, and pureeing discs. What's great is that it also comes with a storage case for easy storage.
3. Cooking task and functions:
What do you require your machine to do? Some are fantastic at slicing and chopping, but not so much with pureeing. These functionalities vary between models, so it is important you check out features first.
4. Sleek design:
The space-saving compact design is always a PLUS in anyone's kitchen. Add the classic stainless steel with the fancy touchpad control, and you'll know the Hamilton Beach 14-Cup Stack & Snap™ Food Processor was built with the users in mind.
5. Affordable Price:
This $100+ unit may not be the most affordable food processor in the Hamilton Beach line, but it offers value-for-money. It definitely feels quality made with solid performance.
This model is perfect for users new to food processing. It has a simple function guide to show which blade you'll use for mixing, pureeing, grating, and so on.
Take your food prep to the next level with this big-capacity Stack & Snap™ Food Processor. Everything you're expecting a quality food processor to perform, this Hamilton Beach model delivers.