KitchenAid 2.1L Food Processor review

If room is scarce on your kitchen work surfaces or inside your cupboards, the KitchenAid 2.1L Food Processor might be the answer. Not only does it take up minimal room on a worktop, but also the tools can all be stored inside, so there’s no need to find other places to stash them. The design of this piece of kitchen kit also does away with other food processor bugbears: there’s no need to twist the bowl into place, and it even has the option of a hinged lid, meaning you won’t need to find somewhere to put it down every time you remove the contents from the bowl. Additionally, there’s no real compromise on processing power, tool options or a stylish exterior. From the overview alone, you can assume it’s easily one of the best food processors available for those with a compact kitchen. 

As it’s not a huge machine, and because the range of accessories is more everyday than everything, the price for the 2.1L Food Processor is just £179 when bought directly from KitchenAid. You can at times find it for less at other retailers, such as Amazon, Harts of Stur and AO.com. 

Design details of the KitchenAid 2.1L Food Processor 

The design of the KitchenAid 2.1L Food Processor really stood out from the rest of the food processors that we trialled. One feature we really liked was the fact that no twisting was required to assemble or attach the lid or the bowl to the main body of the machine – making it a great option for those with wrist issues. The lid simply clicks into the handle, meaning it’s hinged while in use, and then locks into place with a chunky chrome buckle on the other side. When it’s time to clean your machine, the lid simply detaches again for easy washing. 

Another smart design feature is the way everything is stored. The power cable wraps away neatly underneath the body of the machine, while all the tools stack inside the bowl for seamless storage. (The discs can be positioned on the spindle differently when they’re in a working mode, so they’ll still sit correctly at the top of the bowl). This can be a bit confusing at first so it’s wise to keep the instructions to hand while you get used to this food processor. 

Functional features of the KitchenAid 2.1L Food Processor

A trio of paddle controls – two speeds plus a pulse – make the KitchenAid 2.1L Food Processor easy to use. The various blades and tools are equally straightforward; three discs – reversible fine and medium slicing/ shredding discs and one for thick slicing only – are joined by a dough blade and a multipurpose blade. It’s a good range that’ll cover most of your everyday tasks, plus a few more besides. All of this is powered by a 250W motor, which offers enough force to slice, grate, mix and knead with ease. The instructions offer a lot of advice about which speed to use for processing different foods, which is helpful. 

Performance of the KitchenAid 2.1L Food Processor

One issue we found during testing is that the feet of the KitchenAid 2.1L Food Processor don't adhere to a worktop, which is a problem as it's quite a powerful machine. For example, when we chopped cooked chicken using the pulse, we had to keep hold of the handle as the motion created by the motor moved the attachments around. The same issue occurred with slicing carrots, although the two-part feed tube came in handy for keeping the vegetables upright. Despite this, our slices weren’t that even, and there were still some lumps left behind. However, everything we processed went through smoothly and easily. 

The size of the bowl was a little limiting when we came to make a loaf of bread. While the dough combined easily, once it was being kneaded, it tended to wrap around the spindle and stick to the side, which meant it also required some hand kneading. However, the loaf rose and baked well.

Weighing up the KitchenAid 2.1L Food Processor

While the KitchenAid 2.1L Food Processor is compact, it’s still almost 3kg with all the accessories inside. Most of that is concentrated in the base though, so the bowl is light enough to easily lift and tip when you’re scraping out ingredients. 

KitchenAid 2.1L Food Processor cleaning

We found this one of the easiest food processors to keep spotless. All the parts are dishwasher safe and there’s nowhere for debris to gather in the lid or the sealed bowl – useful for when you’re cleaning by hand in-between tasks.

KitchenAid 2.1L Food Processor warranty

A two-year guarantee on the KitchenAid 2.1L Food Processor is better than the standard one-year warranty that some other models have. We felt that its solid build quality should see it lasting far longer than that time though.

Summing up...the KitchenAid 2.1L Food Processor

The KitchenAid 2.1L Food Processor is a great example of a full-sized machine that fits in a small kitchen without compromising too much on functionality. Once you try the click-in bowl and flip-up lid, you’ll wonder why all food processors don’t work this way. Ideally, the feet could have a better grip on the worktop to keep the machine in place when it’s being operated. That minor niggle aside, this is a hard-working, reasonably priced food processor with good looks and a choice of colours to boot.