Cuisinart FP-8SV Elemental 8-Cup Food Processor, Silver Review
The Cuisinart FP-8SV elemental is an 8-cup food processor. It measures 7.6 x 9.6 x 15.2 inches and weighs 6 pounds. It is designed to handle jobs both big and small. This mid-priced machine is full of convenient features. Cuisinart makes a ton of different food processor models.
Have you ever used one of those old-world, hand-crank food processors? They suck! Electric food processors are an essential kitchen tool. They are versatile and easy-to-use and clean. They make your chopping, slicing and cutting jobs a lot faster.
Below, you will discover what I did when I examined the Cuisinart FP-8SV elemental 8-cup food processor. Read on to determine if this is the right food processor for you.
8-Cup Food Processing Work Horse
Performance
The Cuisinart FP-8SV has a 350-watt (about ½ horsepower) motor. But, just how powerful is 350-watts? I took a look around to determine what the competition had to offer. The more powerful (and expensive) Cuisinart FP-14DCN has a 1300-watt motor; that’s almost 4 times as much power but it cost a lot more. Conversely, the Black & Decker FP1600B is an economically priced food processor and it has a 450 watt motor.
How does this power translate to performance? That’s what’s really important. When I think about a food processor, there’s a few jobs that it must be able to perform without fail; cutting, chopping, and slicing vegetables are just the beginning. A good food processor will help you with a number of jobs in your kitchen to include grinding meat, pureeing, and mixing dough, etc.
Based on customer feedback, this food processor is good at making dough as long as you stick to the 2.5 cup maximum per batch. In fact, that is exactly what some customers bought their food processor for. There are reports of people using this processor to make chicken salad, grate cheese, and make hummus, salsa, nut butters and even hot soup.
The Cuisinart FP-8SV is not air tight however, so be sure to use a towel or other clothe to cover the chute when you make certain dishes, like soup.
Work bowl. Blades. Feed tube.
Bowls with chopped raw tomatoes and onions
The 8-cup work bowl is BPA-free and has the measurement markings on the sides. Most people seem to be satisfied with this size. Be careful not to overload this machine as it will have a few hiccups. If you stuff too many vegetables in at once, you will find that some of them don’t get cut.
It comes with reversible shredding and slicing disc that can create medium and fine cuts. You also get a chopping, mixing, and dough blade. The feed tube is a bit narrow, so you may have to cut produce a little smaller than you are used to.
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Grind or process meat…?
So, you will have a hard time using this food processor to slice steak or chicken. It just isn’t designed to do so. It won’t grind meat as in the way you might want it to grind it for sausage, but it can rough chop it like Sarah and I do with our taco meat. If you want to use it to make liver pate, then you have the right machine.
Controls…
There are 4 rubberized buttons for simple operation: high, low, pulse and off. You won’t need an advanced degree to operate this machine.
Cleaning…
Most appliances are advertised as being perfectly easy-to-clean, but then the first hand experiences tell a different story. The Cuisinart FP-8SV appears to actually be pretty easy to clean. The work bowl is dishwasher safe. The center post is not removable, so you will have to clean that by hand. Be sure to clean it right after use to avoid dried on food stuff.
Size. Looks.
The brushed chrome looking exterior, while attractive, isn’t metal; it’s a hard durable plastic. It looks good to me, but some customers have claimed that it looked “cheap”. For many customers, the Cuisinart FP-8SV seems to be the “Goldilocks” of food processors, at least in size. It’s not too big, and not too small. So, if you want to make a small portion of salsa for you and your family you can, but it’s large enough to make chicken salad for an entire party. It is good looking, small, and important enough to have a starting position on your countertop. But, it can also store easily underneath your cabinet.
Features/Specs.
- Measures 7.6 x 9.6 x 15.2 inches and weighs 6 pounds
- 350-watt motor
- 8-cup work bowl
- Dishwasher safe removable parts
- Cleanup is simple
- Attractive design
- 2-year limited warranty
What Do Customers Think About the Cuisinart FP-8SV?
Reading through the customer reviews for this product reinforced my opinion that this is a high quality machine. It is very powerful, a fact that is backed up by customers. Even though this is a high quality product made by one of the most trusted brands in small kitchen appliances.
There were some customers that had poor experiences, however. Some unlucky customers received units that were D.O.A. (dead on arrival). That doesn’t alarm me at all. Look, it is very frustration to deal with an appliance that doesn’t work right after purchasing. But that is not an indication of a poor quality product. It happens. About two years ago, Sarah and I purchased an air purifier for our basement. We brought it home, it didn’t work, took it back, got a new one and it’s been running nonstop ever since.
Summary
After researching the Cuisinart FP-8SV I think that it is a quality product that is going to be around for a while yet. The 350-watt motor might not seem very powerful compared to the 1300 watt monsters out there, but customers report different experiences. This machine is capable of handling many kitchen jobs.
This machine is a work horse. It will slice and dice up vegetables like nobody’s business. It is easy-to-use, easy-to-clean, and will satisfy your performance expectations at this price level. As Cuisinart has been making these kinds of machines for ages, I feel confident that this is one that will last a long time.
Mine was DOA
- February 21, 2017Tom, I am sorry to here that. I hope that you returned it quickly!
- February 23, 2017