Went to a friend’s house and had the most delicious burger of your life? Concerned what you are eating in the name of preservative-filled market-packaged meat? Thinking of making raw food for your pet? Love spending the weekend hunting and cooking a meal on your own?
If the answer is yes, then all these questions have one common answer. A meat grinder.
Meat grinders have been popular in kitchens always. There was a downtime when no one actually quite uses those. But now again people are becoming conscious of what they eat and the grinders are picking up the pace once again.
When we talk about grinding meat, every other person has his/her specific requirement. Some people like to mix spices and marinate beforehand while some like to grind fresh. A meat grinder is multi-purpose. Use it whenever you want and grind whatever you want. It’s not that you have to grind meat only. You can also grind corn and other vegetables in it.
Grinders range from inexpensive manuals to expensive electric grinders. It’s up to you what you prefer. I will tell you about the best meat grinders in each category. Then you gauge according to your usage, your budget, and your necessity and then make a buying decision.
The meat grinders I am going to tell you about are:
1. Best Electric Meat Grinder – [easyazon_link identifier=”B0012KJBR0″ locale=”US” tag=”abitsavingoffer-20″]STX International STX-3000-TF Turboforce Electric Meat Grinder & Sausage Stuffer[/easyazon_link].
2. Best Commercial Meat Grinder – [easyazon_link identifier=”B077BS2SL3″ locale=”US” tag=”abitsavingoffer-20″]Kitchener Heavy Duty Commercial Grade Electric Stainless Steel High HP Meat Grinder[/easyazon_link].
3. Best Meat Grinder for Kitchen Aid – [easyazon_link identifier=”B00004SGFH” locale=”US” tag=”abitsavingoffer-20″]KitchenAid FGA Food Grinder Attachment[/easyazon_link].
4. Best Manual/Hand Meat Grinder – [easyazon_link identifier=”B002L84GJU” locale=”US” tag=”abitsavingoffer-20″]LEM Products #10 Stainless Steel Clamp-on Hand Grinder[/easyazon_link].
5. Best Rated Meat Grinder – [easyazon_link identifier=”B00BREL1OC” locale=”US” tag=”abitsavingoffer-20″]Weston Pro Series 22 Electric Meat Grinder[/easyazon_link]
1. Best Electric Meat Grinder – [easyazon_link identifier=”B0012KJBR0″ locale=”US” tag=”abitsavingoffer-20″]STX International STX-3000-TF Turboforce Electric Meat Grinder & Sausage Stuffer[/easyazon_link]
Makes short work of grinding meat!
If you like to grind all your meat in one sitting, this is the perfect grinder for you. The STX 3000 is made of a heavy-duty motor and durable aluminum parts which will go a long way with you. Whether you like hunting often or like to stock up your freezer, this 3000 Watt grinder is the best for you.
[easyazon_image align=”center” height=”500″ identifier=”B0012KJBR0″ locale=”US” src=”https://grillingsmoking.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/08/51r6Tyf1qaL.jpg” tag=”abitsavingoffer-20″ width=”440″]
Features
• The grinder has a powerful motor which delivers 800 Watts to 1200 Watts of grinding power.
• Most usual meat grinders have #5 or #8 grinding head. This grinder has a #12 head. Bigger head means more grinding.
• The grinder comes loaded with accessories like sausage tubes, adapter, rubbed maker and so on.
• There are 3-speed settings–a slow setting for sausage filling, high speed for meat grinding and a reverse mode. There is also a stop/reset button.
• The grinding head, meat pan as well as the auger are all made of polished cast aluminum.
• The auger is made of AVI (Advanced Variable Intake) technology and the hopper has an opening of 2 1/8 inch. This makes the grinder capable of grinding large portions.
• There are 3 types of grinding plates available – wagon wheel for coarse grinding, small plate for fine work and medium plate for medium grinds.
• The 3 cutting blades are made of #304 stainless steel.
• There are 3 sausage tubes of diameters 3/4 Inch, 5/8 Inch, and 1/2 Inch and an adapter for preparing sausages at home.
• The grinder also has a rubber/kibbe attachment with an adapter for making the popular traditional Middle Eastern dish.
• The sausage stuffing plate is made of tempered steel and has the durability of at least 10 years.
• The grinder weighs 12 pounds and is very easy to move.
• The company provides 3-year repair and replacement warranty while purchasing.
Working and Usage
The grinder works on electricity and has a circuit breaker that prevents the motor from overloading. But all that is for all kinds of meat only. It is not a commercial-grade grinder; it is only for home use. It can crush for a long number of hours and does an exceptional job. But put in meat only. Do not put in bones, animal feet or tendons. It is not made for crushing hard materials like bones and nuts.
IT WILL CHOKE!
Before using read the instruction manual carefully and grind only those things that are allowed. Do not try to put in stuff which has been marked as Don’t Do.
Maintenance
All the parts except the blades, that is, locking cap, grinding head, meat pan, and auger are all made of 100% polished cast aluminum. Therefore, they are not dishwasher safe. You can put them in a mixture of hot water and liquid dish soap, wash them and dry them immediately. Do not let them air dry or soak in soap. Any delay in cleaning and drying will result in discoloring of parts.
The grinding plates are made of tempered steel and have to be washed as mentioned above. After washing them, apply a thin layer of cooking oil on each of them and store them in different plastic bags. The cutting blades are made of stainless steel and can be put in the dishwasher.
But you know what?
After so much washing, I find it better to hand wash the blades too.
What I didn’t like
The first thing is that it is not dishwasher safe. It does good work no doubt, but cleaning is an extra task. It takes a lot of maintenance and it is still not that durable. The parts go bad really fast.
Secondly, it just does not crush any bones. Not even small chicken bones. So people with pets will be really disappointed because you cannot make raw pet food using this grinder.
Where to buy?Amazon, eBay, Walmart
- It is really lightweight and completely portable.
- It does not take up much space.
- Assembling the product is as easy as it is to disassemble and clean. And then assembling again is also equally easy
- The heavy-duty motor combined with a circuit breaker makes the grinder work for hours on end without heating up
- The blades are heavy and sharp
- It could not be put in a dishwasher.
- Does not grind bones.
2. Best Commercial Meat Grinder – [easyazon_link identifier=”B077BS2SL3″ locale=”US” tag=”abitsavingoffer-20″]Kitchener Heavy Duty Commercial Grade Electric Stainless Steel High HP Meat Grinder[/easyazon_link]
A commercial grade choice for home grinding.
The heavy-duty Kitchener grinder is perfect for bulk meat grinding. The grinder is large and all made of stainless steel making it easy to store and maintain. The powerful grinder is capable of grinding 240 lbs. of meat per hour. The device is completely safe for use and has immense strength and durability. Its large capacity is ideal for a small meat processing shop, making raw pet food or stocking up the freezer with sausages.
[easyazon_image align=”center” height=”500″ identifier=”B077BS2SL3″ locale=”US” src=”https://grillingsmoking.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/08/41jyU5EKfXL.jpg” tag=”abitsavingoffer-20″ width=”468″]
Features
• High powered 370 Watt air-cooled motor grinds 240 lbs. of meat per hour.
• The meat pan is larger than normal at 13″x9″x2-3/8″ measurements and the throat also has a bigger diameter. This helps in holding more meat.
• All the accessories including a cutting knife, auger, meat pan, stuffing plates, tubes, grinding blades, and stomper are made of stainless steel.
• The stainless steel metal used for the parts is rustproof, corrosion-resistant and meat safe.
• There are 4 types of stuffing tubes which measure 3/8″, 1/2″, 3/4″ and 1-1/8″ in diameter.
• There are 3-speed settings – slow sausage stuffing, fast high powered grinding and reverse.
• The patented design of a removable drawer helps in keeping everything organized.
Working and Usage
Because the grinder works on electricity, there is no manual stress of pushing pounds of meat through the throat. There is a water-proof switch which makes the grinder even safer. The stainless steel parts give the grinder immense strength and durability. It grinds bones very easily. When you want to make raw pet food, it will grind chicken bones easily without slowing down the machine at all.
It is very easy to assemble and use. The air-cooled motor is quiet; you will not even realize that the grinder is running at full speed. And one more advantage is that the air-cooling system does not let the motor heat up even after hours of running continuously. In fact, there is not even the smell of a heated motor.
Maintenance
Because it is made of stainless steel, it is very easy to clean and maintain. The metal is rustproof so you don’t have to worry about it being in soap or water for a long time. You can definitely put it in a dishwasher.
And that is what I love!
I am not one to hand wash too much stuff. Also, storing them is also no biggie. Just dry the parts and then put them nicely in an organized manner. It is not going to scratch or discolor for decades.
Guess what?
You can sharpen the blades and cutting knife by a professional sharpener. In fact, you should. It is not going to damage the thickness or shape of the blade or the knife.
What I didn’t like
This grinder is perfect in every way but that does not mean it does not have any downsides. One thing I don’t care for much is the guard in the tray. It actually slows down the process. Of course, it stops over-stuffing and choking the throat and it does not affect the grinding capacity also. But at the same time, it is difficult to feed in larger pieces of meat.
Another thing I found a little disappointing is its plastic body. If it had been stainless steel, it would have increased the durability even more.
Where to buy? It is a popular model. Available everywhere (Online and Offline)
- Best for houses where meat grinding is a frequent process.
- Dishwasher friendly stainless steel parts.
- The switch is water-proof for increased safety.
- The air-cooling system of the motor makes it possible to run for hours on end without heating.
- Gives you complete control over the quality of meat you and your pet eat.
- The body is made of plastic to blend in with other grinders.
- It is a little heavy at 60 lbs.
- The guard in the tray is not that necessary.
3. Best Meat Grinder for Kitchen Aid – [easyazon_link identifier=”B00004SGFH” locale=”US” tag=”abitsavingoffer-20″]KitchenAid FGA Food Grinder Attachment[/easyazon_link]
Who needs an entire grinder?
If you own a KitchenAid stand mixer, you made a very good decision. Now you don’t have to go through the expensive process of purchasing a meat grinder. You can just go for the attachment and get your purpose solved. Of course, the attachment is not an ideal one. It is for domestic purposes only and won’t be able to do any heavy-duty functions. But if it satisfies your needs, what is the issue?
[easyazon_image align=”center” height=”500″ identifier=”B00004SGFH” locale=”US” src=”https://grillingsmoking.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/08/41Tl4AM38L.jpg” tag=”abitsavingoffer-20″ width=”500″]
Features
• It is an external attachment to the KitchenAid stand mixer and uses the mixer as a powered hub.
• It is not just for meat. It has multiple uses like grinding ingredients for home-made salsa, bread crumbs, nuts, cheese and of course meat.
• The grinder attachment includes many parts like an auger, securing ring, knife, fine grinding plate, housing, the coarse grinding plate, and stomper/wrench.
• Apart from the grinding plates, cutting knife and stomper, all other parts can be put in the dishwasher.
• The attachment can also have a tray and sausage stuffer which can be purchased separately.
Working and usage
As I said before, the attachment can be fixed on the stand mixer, in the front part. It uses the stand mixer as a powered hub and works as a meat grinder. But it is a versatile attachment. You can grind dried fruits, vegetables and grate cheese using the coarse blade.
Cut the meat into 1”x1” measurement and put it in the tube. It will go down smoothly. Any bigger size than that, and it will be difficult for the attachment to grind in speed. Also, do not put in warm meat. It does not need to be frozen or extra chill. But yes, it has to be cold meat. As soon as it will warm up, it will clog.
The same thing goes for firm vegetables. Don’t put in big strips. Just dice them in 1-inch cubes and it will run smoothly.
Maintenance
The attachment has no complicated screwing up. You can disassemble it easily within seconds. When all the parts are separate, washing can begin. The knife, stomper and grinding plate cannot be put into the dishwasher and has to be washed in warm water and dried immediately. All other parts like grinder body, pusher, the ring can be put into the dishwasher.
What I didn’t like
Though a small portion, just 10%, customers found metal shavings in their meat after using this grinder attachment. It was assumed that it is a design fault.
Yeah, you read that right.
But you know, I do have a solution for that.
Yes, you read it right again!
Apparently, it is a design fault. Kind of. The metal shavings come from the cap screwed on too tightly. So just take care and don’t screw the cap very tightly. You won’t get any metal in your meat.
Also, the meat has to be cut in smaller pieces, especially the hard fat/gristle part or else it clogs. It also clogs because of the silver skin. But I guess it is manageable. It is a small attachment for light work after all.
Where to buy? Available with many online retailers but Amazon is cheapest.
- Very simple and easy to assemble
- Made of plastic but is still sturdy. The working parts are all metal
- Disassembling is easy and that makes cleaning a short process.
- Storing does not take much space because the plates can be stored inside the screw cap.
- Tightly screwed cap results into metal shavings inside the meat.
4. Best Manual/Hand Meat Grinder – [easyazon_link identifier=”B002L84GJU” locale=”US” tag=”abitsavingoffer-20″]LEM Products #10 Stainless Steel Clamp-on Hand Grinder[/easyazon_link]
Do it yourself.
If you want like completing your hunt by doing everything till the finished product yourself, by your own hand, then LEM #10 is one of the best meat grinders you can find. It does a good job of grinding the meat. The thickness remains in your control; though the process will be quite slow.
[easyazon_image align=”center” height=”500″ identifier=”B002L84GJU” locale=”US” src=”https://grillingsmoking.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/08/41nCQZip3sL.jpg” tag=”abitsavingoffer-20″ width=”369″]
Features
It is a compact design. Fits on the counter and does not take any space.
• Manually grounded meat tastes really fresh and juicy. Must be fruits of hard work.
• The entire construction is polished stainless steel, so it is easy to clean and at the same time very durable and strong.
• The highly polished steel is rustproof.
• The clamp has a wide opening and can be mounted on any tabletop or counter.
• It comes with 2 stainless steel plates – one for coarse grounding and one for fine.
• There are 3 stuffing tubes of diameters ½”, ¾” and 7/8”.
Working and Usage
Honest to god.
It is so easy to operate, but so strenuous. And slow. To start just push the ON switch, but before that make sure all parts are in place. For anything specific, read the instruction guide first. After everything is in place, just start turning the knob and putting the meat cubes in the tray. After seconds there will be crushed meat on the bowl you have kept below the plate. You have, right?
Maintenance
To keep the grinder working for a long time, you have to clean it after every use. And I wouldn’t recommend putting it in the dishwasher. You don’t have to give a thorough cleaning every time but you can’t leave it uncleaned too.
It can be cleaned with any ordinary dish-washing liquid and warm water. Immediately towel dry so that there is no greasy or oily residue. Such residues lead to bacteria build-up. Also, please do not use bleach while washing.
After all is cleaned and dried, spray the knife, plates, body, and auger with a food-grade silicone spray to prevent oxidation. If the blades wear out after regular usage, just sharpen them by rubbing on sandpaper and you are good to go.
What I didn’t like
The biggest problem of a manual grinder is that you have to exert a lot of energy to grind the meat. And after a hunting session, when that is a deer, it feels as if we all should go vegetarian. Though there is one upside to that too. It gives a free workout session.
Skipped your gym today?
Go grind some meat manually. Talk about the glass being half full.
The other problem is also related to a slow process. Because it takes time to grind, you need to keep the extra meat in the refrigerator. If you keep it out, the meat will start warming up and there is a possibility of bacteria build-up if the temperature goes into an unsafe zone.
But you can always put the extra meat in the fridge and take out small portions.
Where to buy?Everywhere. Of course, cheapest on Amazon
- It is manual, so is less expensive than the electric ones.
- It also saves power. Lessens your carbon footprint
- It is made of stainless steel and is rust proof. That makes it highly durable
- If you don’t need a large quantity and don’t eat meat frequently, this is the perfect option for you.
- Gives you the control of meat thickness according to your tastes.
- Weighs 8 pounds and does not take much space. Highly portable
- It is a slow process and needs a lot of manual labour.
5. Best Rated Meat Grinder – [easyazon_link identifier=”B00BREL1OC” locale=”US” tag=”abitsavingoffer-20″]Weston Pro Series 22 Electric Meat Grinder[/easyazon_link]
It really grinds everything.
As long as it fits into the tube, it will get grinded. If you want to make your own sausages, snack sticks, Italian dishes whatever, it will do the work quietly and speedily. It is 750-Watt 1 HP motor is not whisper-quiet but is not distractingly noisy too. And it makes grinding pounds of meat a work of minutes.
[easyazon_image align=”center” height=”500″ identifier=”B00BREL1OC” locale=”US” src=”https://grillingsmoking.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/08/51rwF7Yty3L.jpg” tag=”abitsavingoffer-20″ width=”500″]
Features
• The entire grinder is made of stainless steel which makes it durable and rustproof.
• The gears are made of metal and remain well-lubricated permanently which means the motor will never seize-up.
• It has rubber feet for stability and safety.
• The motor is air-cooled and has a circuit breaker to avoid choking and clogs.
• The grinder can grind 725 pounds of meat per hour. That is some serious grinding power.
• It can grind all bones – chicken, rabbit, turkey neck and even pork ribs. Pet food is not a hassle anymore.
• The device uses a size 22 grinder and the feeding tube is 3 inches wide. It can take in a lot of meat at a time.
• The commercial grinder comes with a safety guard to prevent unwanted accidents.
• The grinder has 1 cutting blade and 2 grinding plates – one for coarse grinding and one for fine.
• The stainless steel accessories are housing, meat tray, grinder head, auger, grinder plates and cutting knives.
• The stuffing tubes, auger, and flange are made of plastic while the snack stick tube is a combination of plastic and stainless steel.
• There are the On/Off switch and a reverse switch on the body.
Working and Usage
The grinder can take up a big amount of meat with bones in the tube. That’s why it has a wide mouth! Though the instruction manual does say that keep the meat size in 1” cube and do not grind hard materials like bones and nuts. But on usage, customers have found that larger portions of meat are ground very easily. And even bones and ribs go in without any choking.
You know what?
It does not even make any louder sound when bones go in. Your pet will be really happy if you buy this one.
Maintenance
It is very easy to disassemble the parts. It does not even take a minute. All the parts are either stainless steel or plastic. You can put them in the dishwasher. Because there has been no use of aluminum, you don’t need to hand wash any of them. They are all dishwasher safe. So it not only grinds faster, it will clean up faster too.
What I didn’t like
The horse grinder does not actually have any problems. All the customers who use this seem happy. In fact, they think they should have gotten it before they did. Though because it is all metal and commercial grade, it weighs 9-12 lbs. and is a little heavy for home use. Moving it is going to be tricky.
Where to buy?Amazon, eBay
- Made of 1 HP motor which runs at 750W. It is very powerful
- All metal interior and permanent lubrication make it the most durable grinder
- It is fast and can take in loads of meat
- The instruction manual is quite detailed
- It is heavy
Well, you can mince your meat like a Neanderthal with a knife or put it in a food processor and then almost die cleaning it. But I think in both scenarios, it would be better to get a grinder – manual or electric.
It all depends on your requirements. You need to answer these questions first –
• What is your budget?
• How much grinding do you need to do?
• What do you want to grind? The purpose.
• How heavy do you want it to be?
• What extra accessories are you looking for?
After all these questions are answered, you will know which kind of grinder you need. Do you need a commercial one or just an attachment is fine? I have listed the best meat grinders here on the basis of performance and popular choices. Hope you find yours in this!
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