KitchenAid KFC3516ER vs Hamilton Beach 70730: Chop or Slice?

A bowl of salsa and a pile of sliced cucumbers ask different things of a food processor. Both the KitchenAid KFC3516ER and Hamilton Beach 70730 can chop ingredients and make purées. Only the 70730 includes a disc for slicing and shredding. Before choosing by bowl size, decide which of those cuts you actually want the appliance to make.

This comparison covers the corded, Empire Red 3.5-cup KFC3516ER and the black-and-stainless 10-cup 70730. Their shared chopping job makes them alternatives; the larger machine's extra disc is a reason to choose it only if slicing or shredding belongs in your routine.[1][2]

Start with the shape of the finished food

A rotating chopping blade breaks ingredients into smaller pieces. It does not give you the same result as feeding food past a slicing edge. The KitchenAid comes with a multipurpose blade, a handled bowl and a lid with a drizzle basin. There is no slicing or shredding disc in that included set.[1] Choose it for chopped aromatics, dips and sauces, while keeping a knife or another suitable tool for slices.

The Hamilton Beach includes both an S-blade and a reversible disc. One disc face slices; the other shreds.[2] That gives it a concrete advantage when a recipe needs sliced vegetables or shredded ingredients as well as a chopped mixture. You switch attachments for the job, rather than asking the chopping blade to produce a different kind of cut. Use the supplied food pusher for disc feeding, and switch off and unplug before changing attachments.[4]

Buying the larger processor solely because it does more can still leave an unused disc in the cupboard. Look at a few meals you regularly prepare. If the appliance's entire job would be chopping ingredients for a small sauce, the additional cutting system may not solve a problem you have.

Read the food limit, not just the bowl number

The 3.5-cup and 10-cup labels describe bowl capacity. They are not promises that every ingredient can be processed in those amounts. KitchenAid's guide lists up to three cups of prepared raw fruit or vegetables and up to 1.5 cups of liquids or emulsions. Hamilton Beach's chopping chart recommends two to three cups of fruit and vegetables cut into one-inch pieces; disc processing has its own MAX LEVEL boundary.[3][4]

That changes the comparison for someone buying mainly to chop vegetables. A 10-cup label alone does not establish a much larger recommended chopping batch. Check the specific food and attachment, leaving the space required for ingredients to move. Neither bowl should be filled to its nominal capacity simply because the recipe contains that much food.

Both offer two speeds and pulse control.[1][2] Short bursts let you stop and inspect a chopped mixture instead of committing to continuous processing. They do not guarantee identical results, and bowl capacity or motor ratings alone cannot establish which machine makes a better purée.

A drizzle basin and a scraper solve different interruptions

KitchenAid's lid accepts added liquid through its drizzle basin. That is useful when gradually incorporating oil into a dressing without removing the lid each time. Its handle, pour spout and locking blade then support serving from the same bowl.[1] The benefit continues beyond processing: a dressing can be mixed and then poured from the handled bowl.

Hamilton Beach tackles food left on the bowl wall. Its scraper is moved manually using the handle above the lid; it can be used while the chopping blade runs or with the processor switched off. The manual explicitly excludes using that scraper with the slicing/shredding disc.[4] It is a reason to choose the 70730 for mixtures that need repeated scraping, not a feature that accompanies every cutting mode.

Decide which interruption you actually notice. For a small dressing, controlled liquid addition and pouring may matter most. For a mixture repeatedly pushed against the bowl wall, the scraper offers a different convenience. Neither feature establishes a taste or speed winner.

Leave room for the appliance and its cleanup

The 70730 is listed at 15.47 inches high, 10.25 inches wide and 8.43 inches deep.[2] Check the place you will use and store it. The KitchenAid instead emphasizes a compact body and cord wrap.[1] Its smaller format is useful when the chopper needs to come out for modest prep jobs and then go away again.

Both manuals permit top-rack dishwashing of their removable processing parts and require separate wiping of the powered base.[3][4] Hamilton Beach also excludes the dishwasher's SANI setting because its high temperature can damage the parts.[4] More capability still means keeping track of the relevant attachments. Choose the KFC3516ER for small chopping and sauce-making jobs with convenient liquid addition and pouring. Choose the 70730 when its disc or manually operated scraper has a regular job to do. If neither replaces work you actually dislike, keeping your current prep tools is a reasonable decision.