In the market for a grinder. Kitchen Aid attachment or stand alone?

I have both, and the KA grinder attachment works pretty well for grinding small batches. 5-10 lbs is certainly doable, without too much trouble. However, it is not even close to as good as a good grinder. It absolutely sucks!!!! for stuffing.

The older KA (ones made by Hobart) are actually better than the new ones(made by Whirlpool). So I wouldn't be concerned about the mixer. Since you are looking at doing small batches, I would recommend buying the KA attachment, and a dedicated stuffer. Then when you can buy a good grinder.

Definitely a dedicated stuffer. I have the mixer attachment for our Electrolux, and it does the grinding just - I'd expect the same from the KA. But for stuffing, standalone is the way to go.

I've ground 100's of lbs of meat with this. They sell stainless ones now, but I don't think I would put one, on an old mixer. This will save you some $$, to put toward a stuffer.
https://www.amazon.com/KitchenAid-F...39994&sr=1-4&keywords=kitchenaid+meat+grinder

I finally gave up on the KitchenAid attachment and bought an LEM dedicated grinder. The KitchenAid worked OK with little batches, but the tray is small, and unlike metal you can't refrigerate it beforehand to keep cold. I would get fat smear pretty easily with the KitchenAid as it heated up in larger batches.

Found a LEM #12 grinder on clearance and I can chew through twenty pounds of meat in minutes. Also bought the foot switch which is great for keeping your hands free.

I bought the kitchen aid one thinking "how bad could it be?" I had some butts in the freezer that needed to be used, so I thought I'd give a go at some sausage. At grinding it's barely acceptable. At stuffing its fu**ing horrible. It took me 4 hours to make like 20 sausages and I maybe ate 5 of them and the others sat in the freezer for months before I threw them out.

My brother has a Cabelas grinder (I want to say it's the Deluxe Model) and has done whole deer with it easily and without issue. I'll be getting one of those at some point because I really want to try my hand at sausage making again.

One thing to consider is how often you grind. If it's just a couple times per year, any frustration with an attachment might be acceptable. If you are frequently grinding 15lbs, then you'll probably want a dedicated grinder.

BTW, for somewhat small batches like 15 lbs, you can get a grinder that will work fine at Bass Pro or Cabelas for about $80 right now. I wouldn't want to try to push 100lbs through one, but 15-20lbs wouldn't be a problem.

Our Kitchen Aid mixer is 15 or 20 years old so it's not as powerful as the current models. I would agree with everyone that the grinder attachment (which was only $40 when I bought mine) is fine, but the stuffer attachment is horrible.

I prep my meat into cubes or 3/4" square strips and chill them down on aluminum trays in the freezer until icy.... then grind. I only use the larger plate and only do a single grind except on my hot dogs which are a double grind. Here is some pork, single grind through the large plate to give you an idea.


This is a double grind on my hot dogs


With chilled meat and a speed setting of 4 on my mixer I can grind 1 pound per minute and after 10 or 12 minutes I give it a break, which works good because I have to rotate my ground meat to the spare fridge and get out the prepped meat from the freezer and break it apart. My normal amount is 20 or 25 pounds as I make two or three different flavors of sausage. I have ground as much as 60 pounds at once and with breaks this takes 1.5 hours or so. Clean-up is really easy. And the box that the grinder fits in is pretty small. I have access to a friends LEM grinder but have only used it a few times when we made group sausage in the 100 pound range.

You will need a dedicated stuffer, and mine has a 5# barrel which is good if you make more than one flavor at a time.


So, if nothing has changed with the KA grinder (again, mine is 15 or 20 years old) and if you are not doing huge batches of meat, they get my recommendation. You could always play it safe and buy through Amazon because they have a solid return policy.

Get a dedicated grinder. Once you do, you will probably end up doing larger batches anyway because it's sooo much easier. Even if you only use it once a year, it's better than struggling with an attachment.

Cheers!

Demosthenes9 said:

BTW, for somewhat small batches like 15 lbs, you can get a grinder that will work fine at Bass Pro or Cabelas for about $80 right now. I wouldn't want to try to push 100lbs through one, but 15-20lbs wouldn't be a problem.

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Very much agree here. The sales happening this time of year are great and those less expensive ones are how I started (borrowing a buddies) and it worked great for those 15/lb batches.

I've since upgraded to a steal I got on a #32 and it is just insane, but I love it. I also have a 15lb stuffer that does batches both large and small quite well. I didn't want to have to reload when doing a batch larger than 10lbs.

Get a dedicated grinder, stuffer...
I went the cheapie route buying a cheap grinder (recently gave it away) after buying a number 22 I now grind meats in record time, I also bought the meat tenderizer attachment for the grinder to tenderize chicken & beef quickly and efficiently. The right tools make a world of difference in the processing. Now I need bigger cold storage as the current deep freeze and side by side fridge are not large enough. So if its not one thing its something else....

For those recommending dedicated meat grinders, could you tell us what grinders you do recommend? I'm also looking at grinders, but reviews seem to be all over the place unless I'm willing to pay over $250 for one, and I can't afford that for a grinder. My budget would be $100, maximum.

I recently got a Cabela deluxe grinder (considered a kitchen aid attachment) and it worked great for me. I did about 18-19lbs at one time and it didn’t take long at all. Think I got it on sale for $130?


Memphis Elite





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Can some of the oldest Kitchenaids still use attachments?

I have an old hand crank. We were making some brats with goose and wild hog and I got tired of cranking. Pulled the handle off and put my old electric wall powered Black & Decker drill on the end of the shaft...it worked fine that way, but man, never realized how much torque the handle gives until you try to hang on to the drill. You have to recognize when the drill starts smelling funny to pause and let it cool. It’s at least another option for ya.

BuffettFan said:

Wow, Thanks for all of the great info!
Jason, do you have tiny hands or is that a really big grinder?? :biggrin1:
I am a bit surprised that the KA attachment option has as much support as it does, I honestly thought nobody would have any good words for them.
I am very surprised that pretty much 100% say to buy the dedicated stuffer. I've never used one, so I don't know how much difference it makes, but you can't argue with the replies!
So, now I have to choose a stuffer and a grinder. As much as my wife likes the fresh ground burger and I enjoy making sausage, I see the need for a decent sized grinder.
So, is the LEM stuff as good as any or should I look at another brand?

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As for the dedicated stuffer........I made a bunch of batches and stuffed them with the grinder I borrowed from a friend. I didn't know any better so figured it was fine.......then I bought a stuffer and realized how much of an idiot I was, more than normal :becky:.

I'd rather have a smaller grinder and still a dedicated stuffer to help case everything.

I like having the KA attachment, even with having other options. It is nice for small amounts of meat. LEM makes some good stuff, but it depends on your budget. You can find cheaper stuffers on Amazon, but I don't know anything about them, other than they look similar to all other stuffers. I would get one with the screw drive, and not the plunger type. Here is a 5 lb Weston for $100.
https://www.amazon.com/Weston-73-05...=8-2-spons&keywords=sausage+stuffer+lem&psc=1

Joshw said:

I've ground 100's of lbs of meat with this. They sell stainless ones now, but I don't think I would put one, on an old mixer. This will save you some $$, to put toward a stuffer.
https://www.amazon.com/KitchenAid-F...39994&sr=1-4&keywords=kitchenaid+meat+grinder

Click to expand...

Same here, I usually grind 15-25 lbs at a time, works pretty good, I have the Pro 600 model however I have never made or stuffed sausage so no help there. I would still say get a dedicated grinder, should be better overall for sure.
My brother in law who Does grind and stuff sausage a lot, big hunter he is akls uses this one.
"My brother has a Cabelas grinder (I want to say it's the Deluxe Model) and has done whole deer with it easily and without issue.

I'll be getting one of those at some point because I really want to try my hand at sausage making again"

Me too^^^, next year.