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KitchenAid 13-Cup Food Processor with ExactSlice™ System

 
Disclosure: For the purposes of this review, KitchenAid Canada provided me with this food processor at no cost to myself. The company is also providing a second food processor as a giveaway to one of my Canadian readers this month. Opinions are my own.
 
I think it's fair to start out this review by being completely open about my experience with food processors: it's limited. I'm a knife and cutting board cook in the kitchen most of the time. I'm quick and comfortable with knives and it gets the job done. However, there are days when I'm working with large amounts of produce and find myself wishing I could speed up my prep time. There are also times when I wish I could get more consistent results, getting exact thicknesses for even cooking. Also, there are times when I'd like to mix something just shy of a puree such as a pesto, salsa verde, gremolata or chimichurri, and my blender would simply overdo the job. So when KitchenAid Canada offered to send me one of their brand new 13-Cup Food Processors with ExactSlice System for review, I jumped at the chance to try it out and add it to my kitchen toolbox.
 
My first thought when taking the food processor out of the packaging was what a beast it is. The solid, sturdy parts are the kind of quality manufacturing I've come to expect from KitchenAid. Like my stand mixer and immersion blender, both KitchenAid products, I immediately got the sense that this is no wimpy machine that will break or burn out in a year or two. And now that I've gotten a feel for it, I fully expect to be using this for years to come.
 
Assembling the bowls - there is a 13-cup work bowl as well as a 4-cup mini-bowl for small jobs - with the blades and slicing or shredding discs was pretty straightforward using the instructions provided. Everything that should have clicked in place, did. Everything that should have whirred and sliced and shredded did so with incredible efficiency. It's almost shocking how quickly you can push food though the feed tube! The results are impressive, getting exactly uniform slices and shreds. And with the ExactSlice System on this new model, there's no need to take the lid off to make thickness adjustments. You can simply slide the lever left or right on the outside of the processor to make slices anywhere from 1 mm to 6 mm thick. I also like the 3-in-1 feed tube for foods of different sizes and shapes to be processed at different angles. 
 
I tried out the food processor's multipurpose blade in the large bowl in making one of the recipes for my upcoming canning book. The consistency of the mixture turned out perfectly. To test out the performance of the slicing and shredding discs, I grabbed a big bag of carrots and got to work. The results were precise and effortless.
 
Slicing and shredding discs offer various thicknesses. The new ExactSlice System is externally adjusted, so thickness can be changed without opening the food processor.
Safety is important in any kitchen and this food processor hits the mark for me. If you forget to put the feed tube in place or the lid isn't clicked in place, the processor won't work. We all make mistakes or act without thinking at times, and with those safeguards in place a moment's mistake doesn't do any harm.
 
I don't have the largest kitchen, which means storage is a constant challenge for me. While this processor is quite big, it does come with an attachments case to neatly store all the pieces. I love that. Obviously KitchenAid wasn't just thinking about how home cooks will use the machine, but also how they will store it.


As with any kitchen appliance, how it looks is also important to me. It's about feeling good when I'm doing the work that feeds my family. This food processor is curvy with clean lines, which also makes it very easy to wipe down with a damp cloth. The parts are dishwasher safe, which I love, but so far I've opted for giving them a quick wash in warm soapy water. I love walking into the kitchen in the morning and seeing the parts all dry and ready for a new processing adventure.

I can't wait to show you the delicious recipe I'm writing using the KitchenAid 13-Cup Food Processor. I'll share it with you next week and give all my Canadian readers a chance to win their very own food processor! It comes in white, black and silver, by the way, so you might want to start thinking about which colour you'll choose if you win.

What would you like to make with a KitchenAid 13-Cup Food Processor? Leave a comment and check back soon for the giveaway!