Cuisinart Mixer
As Cusinart’s chief rival, KitchenAid has held market share in this appliance category for decades, and Cuisinart is a relative newcomer to producing these devices. If you are attempting to access this site using an anonymous Private/Proxy network, please disable that and try accessing site again. Chef Austin Merath is Everything Kitchen’s Culinary Wizard, Kitchen-Gadget Reviewer, and New-Product Tester.
The SM-55/SM-55BC/SM-55BK models also have several low speed functions not found on other mixers in this price range. The fold mode enables you to operate the machine in two different ways, handling your dough delicately and assisting you in managing the gluten formation in your baked goods. The Cuisinart also features a slow start operation that allows the mixer to slowly spin up when you’ve selected a higher speed, keeping the ingredients in the bowl. This machine also has more slow speed options than any other approaching this price range.
However, you can also purchase additional attachments, like a meat grinder or an ice cream paddle. It has 12 speed options, allowing you to customize and perfect your mixing performance depending on what you’re making. This stand mixer also has a tilt-back head that gives you easy access to its large, stainless steel bowl without making a mess. Let’s first discuss the performance of the mixer.
These include a citrus juicer, pasta maker, blender, food processor, and meat grinder. While the number of attachments are not as numerous as those available from KitchenAid, we find them all to be of very high quality. Cuisinart does cover the basics, and provides all you need for standard cooking tasks. We also like the fact this is a tilt-head model that allows easy access to the bowl and easy removal of the supplied whisk, dough hook, beater, and other attachments.
Yet another feature of this stand mixer that adds precision to the mixing activity is the 15-minute countdown timer. Basically, you can leave the mixer to do its work for a while without worrying that the ingredients will be over-mixed. We find that the three attachments work best with large batches but when double recipes are used, the Cuisinart stand mixer works just a bit harder although it still gets the job done. Like the KitchenAid, the SM-55 provides several different ports that these attachments can hook into. The power outlets on the top and rear of the machine operate the food processor and blender, while the front port on the top operates the citrus juicer.
The style of the Cuisinart is much more modern and streamlined than the KitchenAid. While style may not be the primary shopping consideration, one brand or the other may match your kitchen best. During testing we also noticed the mixing paddle was not mixing evenly – it was leaving cuisinart griddler elite behind streaks of un-mixed ingredients on the sides of the bowl. The bowl design was very tall and made it hard to add ingredients without using the less than user-friendly pour shield. place the shield part to the mixing bowl, then attach the pour spout to the shield.
When you’re comparing KitchenAid and Cuisinart mixers, first look at the overall mixer capacity. This is determined by both the size of the motor and the size of the bowl on the mixer. The bowl on the Cuisinart 5.5 quart stand mixer holds up to 12 cups of flour, while the 5-quart bowl on the Kitchenaid Artisan series accommodates around 9 cups of flour.
To keep all of your ingredients in the bowl, a one-piece splash guard is also included. The fact that this appliance is lighter in weight than its peers makes it easy to move around, and its smaller dimensions allow it to fit much more earily under cabinets. It can even tilt under many of them – the mixer is 12 ½ inches tall, whereas standard cabinet height about the counters is 18 inches. The dough hook works fairly well, and although there is some climbing of the hook by the dough, it’s less than that found on some comparable models due to the slimmer and deeper bowl.
Value – Our value rating is a based on looking holistically at all the above criteria and comparing it to the cost of this machine. This also means the mixer easily fits inside of the cabinets, should you choose to store it. We liked that this model shipped with a whisk as well as a paddle and hook. On SM-55, simply tilt the head back and twist the bowl to lock or unlock. Moreover, the planetary action works well with this device, and the ingredients are mixed very thoroughly with no bowl scraping required.
He studied under chefs in College of the Ozarks’ Culinary Program. It’s his job to make sure you choose the kitchen tools that are right for you by testing the best we have to offer. When not cooking, Austin is tinkering with computers or exploring the Ozarks with his wife Amy.