KitchenAid Food Chopper KFC0516 review

One-minute review

Bringing us premium kitchen appliances since 1919, KitchenAid is a beloved brand that spans generations and has a prized spot in many kitchens. It offers some of the best blenders and stand mixers, but its wide range of appliances has included food processors since 1993. The food choppers are the smallest of the current range. Here we review the 1.19-litre / five cup chopper, but there’s also a smaller 0.83-litre / three cup version available.

The KitchenAid Food Chopper KFC0516 is a very neat and compact appliance with a small footprint, so it’ll fit into even the smallest of kitchens. 

It comes with a main chopping blade that can be used to chop fruit and vegetables, nuts, and even grind meat. Additionally, it’ll come in handy for sauces, salad dressings, and dips, provided you don’t want to make very large portions. The whisking accessory is great for whisking small amounts of egg and cream. All the accessories can be stored inside the bowl, so it takes up the minimum possible space.

It’s an easy-to-use appliance that surprised us with how quickly and efficiently it chopped foods. And despite its size, it didn’t struggle with even the toughest of tasks such as grinding beef. However, the small capacity means it’s best suited to one or two person households or for daily use when you don’t want the hassle of getting a bigger food processor out of the cupboard.

KitchenAid Food Chopper KFC0516 price and availability

•  List price: $64.99 / £99/ AU$199 

Available directly through KitchenAid as well as Amazon, the KitchenAid Food Chopper KFC0516 is the larger of two food choppers available from KitchenAid and will set you back $64.99 / £99/ AU$199. The smaller 0.83-litre / three cup version is priced at $54.99 / £69/ AU$169 but it doesn’t come with a whisk attachment.

It’s also worth noting that for just a small amount extra you can get the KitchenAid 1.7-litre / seven cup food processor that also comes with a shredding and slicing disc. This costs $99.99 / £119/ AU$299.

Don't forget to see what KitchenAid promo codes are available too so you can save more.

Design

• Compact size
• Two speeds
• Drizzle basin in lid

The KitchenAid food chopper has a streamlined design that won’t look out of place in most kitchens. As is standard for KitchenAid appliances, it comes in a variety of colors. The main options are red, silver, black and white. In the UK and Australia, there’s a cream color but no white, and the silver color isn’t available in the UK either.

We’ve already mentioned its compact size several times, but in case you’re wondering, it measures just 25.4 x 17.8 x 16cm / 10 x 7 x 6.3 inches  (h x w x d).  The 1.19-litre / five cup bowl has a pouring spout as well as a handle and locks firmly onto the base. The lid features a drizzle basin, which is a small indent with a hole at the bottom, this makes it easy to pour liquids and oils in without removing the lid  - something making mayonnaise and other emulsified sauces requires.

The chopper won’t start until the lid is locked in place which is a useful safety feature. Once it’s assembled, it can be switched on or pulsed by holding the button at the top of the handle, and as soon as the button is released, it stops chopping. There’s also a toggle switch on the front of the base to switch between the two power levels.

It’s a simple appliance that’s very intuitive to use and for added ease, the bowl, lid and all accessories can be washed in the dishwasher. 

Performance

• Easy to use
• Even chopping
• Speedy results

The KitchenAid food chopper impressed us with its performance across a range of foods. Because the on switch has to be held down to operate the chopper, it can also be used as a pulse button. And just a few quick pulses was all that we needed to mill whole hazelnuts. There was a little powder, but overall the texture was fine and even.

Next, we put four slices of bread cut into quarters into the chopper. Despite the fact it only just fit, we had fine and even breadcrumbs after only 30 seconds on the higher speed. It was similarly effective at chopping onion, however the instruction manual advises that the raw fruit and vegetables should be cut into 2.5cm / 1 inch pieces before being placed in the chopper. This does mean a bit of additional work, but even in a bigger food processor you’d have to cut the onion into quarters, so it’s not much extra chopping. And it produced even finely chopped onions in just a few short seconds on the higher speed, a great result.

Given the compact size and smaller blade we were skeptical about how well this KitchenAid food chopper could grind beef, but once again it didn’t let us down. It can only grind 217g / 0.5 lb at a time, but the meat was thoroughly and evenly ground in around 20 seconds, so even if you had to do a few batches to grind the amount you require, it’d still be worth it.

Lastly, we used the whisk attachment to thicken cream. Again, the size means it’s limited to just 240ml / 1 cup at a time or 420ml / 1.5 cups egg white. But just like our chopping tests, it was fast and effective.  

It can be quite loud in use, maxing out at 88dB when milling hazelnuts, which is the same noise level experienced when using a lawnmower, however, we think that’s acceptable as it's only for a short duration. 

Should I buy the KitchenAid Food Chopper KFC0516?

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First reviewed: January 2022

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