Cuisinart Easy Prep Pro food processor review: I tested the kitchen gadget for chopping and dicing
THE CUISINART brand was founded on food processors in 1971, so after a long 50 years, I expect they're pretty experienced in making machines that make food prep a breeze.
I tested the Easy Prep Pro in my kitchen at home to truly see how efficient it is.
Cuisinart 1.9L Easy Prep Pro, £100.95
Pros:
- Two bowls for different tasks
- Very sharp blades
- Super powerful motor
Cons:
- No neat storage for attachments
- Can be fiddly to assemble
Cuisinart Easy Prep Pro review: first impressions
Cuisinart’s food processors come in two different sizes.
The Easy Prep Pro is the smaller one with a 1.9l capacity; you can also get the larger , which has a 3.3l capacity and a few more accessories.
I found that size-wise, Easy Prep Pro has more than enough capacity for a couple or small family.
The machine's body is fairly compact, so it won’t take up too much space on your countertop. The two-bowl feature makes it great for switching between different tasks—more on that later.
It even comes with a small recipe booklet that outlines the various uses of the machine.
READ MORE:
- Smeg stand mixer review
- Bosch Multi-talent 8 food processor review
- Cuisinart Precision stand mixer review
- Best air fryers
- Best soup makers
What accessories does it come with?
- small 0.7l bowl
- large 1.9l bowl
- small chopping/mixing blade
- large chopping/mixing blade
- fine grating/slicing disc
- medium grating/slicing disc
- recipe booklet
Cuisinart 1.9L Easy Prep Pro, £100.95
Cuisinart Easy Prep Pro review: how easy is it to use?
I found the Easy Prep Pro fairly easy to assemble and use.
The machine itself has clear instructions printed on it, so you don’t need to refer to the manual every time—but they are helpful if you want to look up the right settings for the task at hand.
Our only gripe is that it can sometimes be fiddly to get all the bits to line up right to lock the bowl or the lid into place.
The feature I really loved was the two bowls.
The main bowl is 1.9l and necessary for every function. It has a large blade for chopping and mixing and disks for slicing and grating.
The smaller 0.7l bowl, with its own mixing blade, is like an extra attachment that sits inside the main bowl. It can be used for smaller quantities of food.
It forms a tight seal with the lid, so food doesn’t drop into the bigger bowl, meaning less washing up.
You can’t use the two bowls simultaneously, unfortunately, but it does make switching between tasks much quicker.
Cuisinart Easy Prep Pro review: is it good for chopping?
The Easy Prep Pro is excellent at chopping.
I was able to whip up a batch of red pesto in just seconds in the small bowl before switching to the larger bowl to make bread crumbs. It was just as quick, and the results were even.
This is in part thanks to the incredibly sharp blades - be warned, take extra care if you’re washing up by hand (I speak from experience).
The machine also has a 350W motor, which actually turned out to be extremely powerful and made easy work of harder ingredients, including chorizo.
The silicone feet did a great job of keeping the machine in place as well.
You can also use the chopping blades to mix pastry or bread dough, although I recommend adding a portion of your liquid to the bowl before you start the engine, as otherwise, the flour will escape from the chute. You’d still need to knead it by hand, though.
Cuisinart 1.9L Easy Prep Pro, £100.95
Cuisinart 1.9l Easy Prep Pro: is it good for slicing and grating?
The Easy Prep Pro comes with two reversible disks for slicing and grating. You install them face up for slicing and face down for grating.
The 2mm slicing disk can also be used for fine grating, while the 4mm slicing disk is for medium grating.
Again, the powerful motors of the machine came in handy, and the grating was done in seconds.
The slicing needed a bit more practice to get the best results.
Because the motor is so powerful and the disk is spinning very fast, if you apply different pressure when pushing your vegetables down the chute, you can end up with slices of different thicknesses. So when using the slicing function, you have to remember to apply steady pressure.
Cuisinart 1.9l Easy Prep Pro review: final verdict
I was surprised by how easy to use and efficient the Easy Prep Pro was. In fact, sometimes, it took us longer to set the machine up than to do the actual chopping or mixing.
The attachments are all dishwasher safe, which makes cleaning up incredibly easy.
I feel it’s not really designed for dough - the Expert Prep Pro comes with a dough blade, for example - but it is workable.
But if you mainly want to use the machine for chopping, slicing or grating, this is a great, affordable model to buy.
Looking for more kitchen gadgets? Check out our Ninja Foodi Mini 6-in-1 Multi-Cooker review.
We also rounded up some of the best air fryers.
Where can I buy the Cuisinart 1.9L Easy Prep Pro?
If my review has piqued your interest in the Cuisinart, although it is a somewhat specific kitchen item, it's quite widely available, so it doesn't take too much searching if you're going to do your own digging to find the best deals available.
A fair few high-street retailers are bound to stock the product, especially if they sell a variety of other cooking electronic devices.
However, if you don't feel like leaving the comfort of your home, here's a short list of places you can currently find it.
Is there an alternative to the Cuisinart 1.9L Easy Prep Pro?
If you like the idea of a food processor but aren't sold on the Cuisinart version, there are many alternatives out there.
However, specific models will vary depending on your budget, needs and possibly where you are.
Large-name brands like Ninja, Kitchen Aid, and Hamilton create their own versions, but it would be wise to conduct a little more personal research before making a final purchase.
Before you purchase an alternative, you may want to consider factors like power, capacity, use, and price to ensure it will perform the tasks you need; reading reviews is always a great place to start.
Some alternatives you can find are:
- Cuisinart 1.9L Easy Prep Pro, £100.95 -