Why tinker with a classic design? This KitchenAid’s appearance is definitely old school and it’s available in black, silver or cherry red. Even though it looks a little like something you’d find in a thrift store, it’s actually just as capable as the Breville BFP800XL.
The KitchenAid also comes with a smaller work bowl for sauces, herbs and garlic, which fits inside the larger jar.
The slicing disc’s thickness is adjustable too, but in this case from outside the machine. This requires you only to move the lever in the front just above the oh-so-simple pushbutton controls.
Since we try to be fair in these food processor reviews, we should mention that these are unfortunately a little difficult to operate with dirty, slippery hands, unlike the wide toggles on Hamilton Beach products. A second lid, lacking a feed chute, is also included for easier storage.
Superior Quality
Somewhat unusually, this appliance’s body is made of polycarbonate, which is as strong as steel for all intents and purposes, but much lighter. The base by itself weighs only 8 pounds and the machine as a whole carries a 1-year replacement warranty. It is made in Canada, unlike the majority of food processors hailing from China (with the notable exception of the Braun FP3020, which is engineered in Germany and produced in Hungary).
The bowl’s lid seals tightly, so as long as you don’t overload it (which the clear volume markings on the side of the bowl makes easy), you shouldn’t have to deal with any spills. All accessories are easy enough to mount in place, but like with all food processors (with the possible exception of the Hamilton Beach 70820), this is not something you can do with your eyes closed.
A Versatile Kitchen Tool
When you open the box, you’ll find a reversible shredding disc, dough kneader, an S-blade each for both the large and small bowl, the dicing kit (which we’ll get to in a moment) and the aforementioned adjustable slicing disc. Some other attachments, like a julienne disc and even a french fry cutter, can be ordered separately from the manufacturer.
In addition, you’ll get a storage case for all these attachments as well as an insert to make the feed chute narrower. With this removed, the tube is fairly wide, but you will generally have to slice large vegetables in half before processing.
Let’s talk for a moment about one feature that truly sets this food processor apart from the competition: the dicing kit which produces ½-inch cubes instead of irregularly shaped chopped vegetables. This is remarkably simple to use and works well with anything from (reasonably firm) tomatoes to potatoes. With softer vegetables, you may as well use the ordinary chopping blade. This capability is really pretty great, as you can process a whole sack of vegetables in minutes with every single piece looking uniform.
A Cut Above the Rest
How food is cut affects how it will cook as well as its appearance. If texture is important to you, you’ll certainly enjoy using the “ExactSlice” system that’s easy to adjust from producing slices of about 1/4″ thick to too thin to reasonably measure. This capability can easily add a nice exotic touch to soups and salads.
Different sources give different figures for the wattage, but most people will agree that it doesn’t get stuck or slow down easily. In actual use, its motor is comparable to those with a known wattage of about 500 W.
Apart from its relatively high price, in fact, the major drawback of the KitchenAid KFP1466ER is really that it requires a lot of storage space. If the 1950’s styling doesn’t put you off and you’re looking for a food processor you won’t need to replace soon, you can’t go far wrong with this option.
- Dicing kit is a huge bonus
- Tough yet lightweight
- Additional accessories available
- On the higher end of the price range
- Styling will not appeal to everyone
- Not feeble, but not as powerful as some
