5 Best Food Processors for Meal Prepping in 2025
Meal prepping can be a breeze with the right tools, and a high-quality food processor is a kitchen essential for saving time and effort. This guide spotlights the 5 best food processors of 2025, meticulously chosen for their performance, versatility, and ease of use. Whether you're a seasoned chef or a home cook looking to streamline your meal prep routine, discover the top models that will help you chop, slice, shred, and puree your way to delicious, healthy meals all week long.
At a Glance: Our Top Picks
Breville Sous Chef 16
Hamilton Beach Food Processor
Professional Plus Food Processor
Paradice 16
KitchenAid Food Chopper
Food Chopper
The All-Around Best Food Processor
Our top pick for overall performance, versatility, and ease of use for meal prep.
14 Cup Food Processor
This 14 Cup Food Processor from Cuisinart is a great choice for big weekly meal prep and earned an 8.5/10 in our testing thanks to a robust 720-watt motor and roomy 14-cup capacity. We found it blitzes large batches—soups, salads, and dough—while all dishwasher-safe parts make cleanup simple, though our experience shows the unit’s weight makes it cumbersome to move. During our review the shredding disc struggled to produce even cheese shreds and the rear chute placement can be awkward under low cabinets, but overall it’s a reliable heavy lifter.
What We Like
- ✓The powerful 720-watt motor handles various tasks efficiently.
- ✓The large 14-cup capacity is ideal for big meal preparations.
- ✓All removable parts are dishwasher safe, simplifying cleanup.
Room for Improvement
- ✗The machine is relatively heavy, making it cumbersome to move.
- ✗The shredding disc struggles with evenly shredding cheese.
- ✗The chute's rear placement can be awkward under certain cabinets.
Food Processors for Budget-Conscious Cooks
Affordable options that deliver excellent value for your meal prepping needs.
Affordable and versatile, the Hamilton Beach Food Processor is a budget-friendly workhorse that earned an 8/10 in our testing. We found the 450-watt motor handles chopping nuts and shredding cheese well, and the built-in bowl scraper is genuinely useful for continuous processing without stopping to scrape sides. Its large 10-cup bowl and wide feed chute reduce pre-cutting, making meal prep faster, but during our review the plastic bowl showed scratching and the unit ran noticeably loud — trade-offs for the low $53.99 price.
What We Like
- ✓The built-in bowl scraper allows for continuous processing without stopping to scrape the sides.
- ✓The motor is powerful enough to handle various tasks, including chopping nuts and shredding cheese.
- ✓The large feed chute accommodates bigger ingredients, reducing the need for pre-cutting.
Room for Improvement
- ✗The plastic bowl may develop scratches over time, raising concerns about durability.
- ✗The unit can be quite noisy during operation, which may be disruptive in quiet kitchens.
- ✗The plastic construction may not be as durable as more expensive models.
The Professional Plus Food Processor earned a solid 7.5/10 in our experience, bringing a surprisingly powerful 1000-watt motor and a useful array of attachments including a dough blade and reversible slicing/shredding disc. In our testing the 9-cup capacity and dishwasher-safe parts made cleanup straightforward, though we found the small feed chute slowed prep for larger veggies and the accessories don’t stack neatly in the bowl, which creates storage headaches. During our review food could collect under the lid’s rubber seal, so plan for occasional extra scrubbing.
What We Like
- ✓Powerful 1000-watt motor handles tough ingredients with ease.
- ✓Versatile attachments including chopping blade, dough blade, and reversible slicing/shredding disc.
- ✓All removable parts are dishwasher safe for easy cleaning.
Room for Improvement
- ✗Accessories do not stack neatly in the work bowl, requiring additional storage space.
- ✗Food particles can get stuck under the rubber seal on the lid, necessitating manual cleaning.
- ✗The feed chute is relatively small, limiting the size of ingredients that can be processed.
Powerful Food Processors for Serious Prep
High-performance machines perfect for tackling large batches and tough ingredients.
Breville Sous Chef 16
The Breville Sous Chef 16 is our top-tier pick — it earned a 9.5/10 in our review thanks to a powerhouse 1450W motor and a massive 16-cup capacity that made quick work of dough and dense vegetables. In our testing the 5.5-inch feed chute saved time by accepting larger pieces, and the multiple attachments offered real versatility for slicing, shredding, julienne and dough tasks. Be aware it’s large and heavy, and our experience shows the many parts take time to clean and store despite the outstanding performance.
What We Like
- ✓The 5.5-inch feed chute allows processing larger ingredients without pre-chopping, saving time in the kitchen.
- ✓The powerful 1450W motor handles tough tasks like kneading dough with ease.
- ✓Multiple attachments provide versatility for various food preparation tasks.
Room for Improvement
- ✗The machine is quite large, requiring significant counter space, which may be an issue for smaller kitchens.
- ✗The unit is heavy, making it cumbersome to move or store after use.
- ✗Cleaning the numerous attachments can be time-consuming and requires careful handling.
Paradice 16
Powerful and precise, the Paradice 16 delivers the same 1,450-watt strength we liked in Breville’s high-end models and scored 7/10 in our review for serious home cooks. We found the adjustable slicing disc and wide feed chute excellent for speeding through whole fruits and vegetables, but during our testing the dicing kit jammed and needed manual clearing more often than we’d like. Our experience shows it’s a heavy, counter-committed machine with brilliant slicing yet finicky dicing and cumbersome storage.
What We Like
- ✓The powerful 1,450-watt motor effortlessly handles tough tasks like chopping nuts and kneading dough.
- ✓The adjustable slicing disc allows customization of slice thickness from paper-thin to chunky.
- ✓The wide feed chute accommodates whole fruits and vegetables, reducing prep time.
Room for Improvement
- ✗The dicing feature often jams and requires manual unclogging, making it less efficient.
- ✗The machine is quite heavy, making storage challenging if not kept on the counter.
- ✗The dicing kit is cumbersome to set up and clean, diminishing its practicality.
Compact Food Processors for Small Spaces
Ideal for kitchens with limited counter space, without compromising on performance.
Food Chopper
Compact and convenient, this Food Chopper from KitchenAid scored a 6.5/10 in our testing — it’s great for quick small batches but not ideal for larger meal-prep sessions. We found the 240-watt motor and two-speed control gave decent texture control, and the drizzle basin is handy when making dressings or sauces. During our review the 3.5-cup capacity and plastic parts limited usefulness for bigger jobs, and the awkward lid made repeated use a bit frustrating despite its easy-to-clean design.
What We Like
- ✓Compact and lightweight design makes it easy to handle and store.
- ✓Drizzle basin allows for easy addition of liquids for dressings and sauces.
- ✓Two speeds provide control over texture.
Room for Improvement
- ✗Limited 3.5 cup capacity might not be sufficient for larger tasks.
- ✗Plastic components may not be as durable as metal alternatives.
- ✗The lid is awkward to take off, put on, and tighten securely.
KitchenAid Food Chopper
Small kitchens will appreciate the compact KitchenAid Food Chopper, which scored a 6/10 in our testing for simple, quick tasks. In our experience the 240-watt motor and Whisk accessory handled light prep well, and dishwasher-safe parts make cleanup easy, but we found the lid can be tricky to lock and unlock and the cord is annoyingly short, forcing you to stay close to an outlet. With a 5-cup capacity it’s handy for sauces and small batches, not large meal prep.
What We Like
- ✓Compact size makes it easy to store and ideal for smaller kitchens.
- ✓Drizzle basin allows for easy incorporation of liquids while processing.
- ✓Easy to clean with dishwasher-safe parts.
Room for Improvement
- ✗Lid can be tricky to lock and unlock, requiring patience to get the hang of it.
- ✗3.5 cup capacity might not be big enough for some recipes.
- ✗Cord is way too short, requiring placement right in front of the outlet.