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The best of the best, the Breville Sous Chef 16 Pro earned the top score and blew away the rest of the competition with unparalleled performance. This food processor took home the top score in the majority of our metrics and is the perfect choice for those who want the top-performing model. However, you'll have to pay for it; this kitchen gadget has a significantly higher retail price than many of its competitors.
New Version Available
Breville replaced this model in its lineup with the Sous Chef 16 (minus the Pro). Details below.
Chops up the competition in every metric, but at a high price
Provided you're prepared to pay its steep price, it efficiently handles anything you can throw at it while being a formidable and adaptable contender
A well-rounded food processor for those who already own a Vitamix motor
It won't slice down the competition but will chop up its price tag
Delivering excellent performances in the majority of our tests, we think this is a great kitchen appliance for anyone shopping for quality on a limited budget
Rating Categories
Breville Sous Chef 1...
Magimix 4200XL
Vitamix 12-Cup Attac...
Hamilton Beach 10-Cup
Ninja Professional
Chopping(20%)
9.0
6.0
6.0
7.0
6.0
Mixing(20%)
9.0
9.0
6.0
5.0
6.0
Pureeing(20%)
8.0
10.0
8.0
9.0
7.0
Shredding(15%)
8.0
8.0
6.0
6.0
7.0
Slicing(15%)
7.0
8.0
8.0
5.0
7.0
Cleaning(10%)
8.0
8.0
7.0
5.0
5.0
Specifications
Breville Sous Chef 1...
Magimix 4200XL
Vitamix 12-Cup Attac...
Hamilton Beach 10-Cup
Ninja Professional
Largest Bowl Size
16 cup
12.5 cup
12 cup
10 cup
9 cup
Time to Make Nut Butter
10 min
3 min
6 min
10 min
7 min
Motor
1200 Watt
950 Watt
N/A
450 Watt
850 Watt
Decibels at 3 ft
67.5 dB
62.5 dB
80.5 dB
96 dB
80 dB
Accessory Storage Case
Yes
Yes
Yes
No
No
Measured Weight of Base
15.5 lb
14.6 lb
8.8 lb
3.1 lb
4.5 lb
Dimensions
18" L x 8" W x 11" D
9.5" L x 8" W x 17" D
11.8"L x 8.5" W x 12.8" D (no base) or 19.6" D (on tested base)
8.5" L x 10.5" W x 15.5" D
7.3" L x 9.9" W x 15.6" D
Speed Control
On/Off/Pulse
Stop/Auto/Pulse
Pulse/(On/Off), varies, tested with Vitamix A2300 blender base
High/Low/Pulse/Off
Chop/Puree/Dough/Disc/Low/High/Pulse
BPA Free
Yes
Yes
Yes
Yes
Yes
Mini Bowl Blade
Yes
Yes
N/A
N/A
N/A
Feet
Smooth Rubber (Non-Skid)
Textured Rubber
Varies, tested with Vitamix A2300 blender base
Suction Cups
Suction Cups
Cord Storage
Internal
None
Underside cord wrap; varies, tested with Vitamix A2300 blender base
Internal
External Cord Wrap
Slicing Disc
Adjustable to 8mm
2mm and 4mm discs
2 discs large and small; Non adjustable
Non adjustable
Non adjustable
Shredding Disc
Fine and Medium
2mm and 4mm discs
2 discs large and small; Non adjustable
Medium
Non adjustable
Dough Blade
Yes
Yes
No
No
Yes
Whipping Attatchment
Yes
Yes
No
No
No
Citrus Juicer
No
Yes
No
No
No
Dicing Kit
No
No
No
No
No
Built-in Bowl Scraper
No
No
No
Yes
No
French Fry Disc
Yes
No
No
No
No
Julienne Disc
Yes
Yes
No
No
No
Model #
BFP800CBXL
4200XL
VM0215
70730
BN600/BN601
Our Analysis and Test Results
The Breville Sous Chef 16 Pro we tested for this review (left), next to the updated Sous Chef 16 (right).
Updated Sous Chef
Breville now offers the Sous Chef 16 as a replacement for the Sous Chef 16 Pro we tested in this review. The updated version has a 1450W motor in place of the old 1200W motor. The bowl has been updated to a BPA-free version that is designed to withstand falls and being banged around in the kitchen. It has a new button interface, and it's also $50 more expensive than the previous version. Our affiliate links point to this updated machine, but our review is still in reference to the previous version we tested, the Sous Chef 16 Pro.
The Breville, a high scorer in our fleet. Credit: Jenna Ammerman
Chopping
One of the most essential tasks for a food processor is effectively chopping food — creating small, uniform pieces that are distinct, not a mush. The Breville excelled in this category, earning a top score.
The Breville produced onions that were as close to perfect as we could hope for, with essentially all the chopped onions being of uniform size. There were no other models that chopped onions with the same level of consistency. It only took five pulses to produce a nice even chop.
The perfectly chopped onions produced by the Breville. Credit: Jenna Ammerman
The trend continued with the Breville tying for the top score in our almond test. It quickly reduced the almonds to a uniform chop without pulverizing them into dust, and there were only a few whole almonds remaining after six pulses. This model doesn't have a perfect amount of control with the “Pulse” button, as it spins for a brief moment after releasing the button.
Mixing
The Breville led the pack in our mixing metric. This model made pizza dough, pie crust dough, and mayonnaise from scratch without any struggle or incident.
It made very consistent pizza dough, tying for the best of the group. The Breville's blade is on the smaller side, so it took a little longer for the dough to start balling up, but everything was fine once it got there. This model's motor didn't sound upset, and the machine didn't shake or vibrate while mixing the dough.
It did a similar job with pie crust dough, taking five pulses to achieve the perfect consistency. We found no flaws in the dough when it was rolled out, and it made one of the best pie crusts. This model also mixed mayonnaise easily, producing a high-quality finished product.
The plastic mixing blade installed on the Breville. Credit: Jenna Ammerman
Pureeing
The Breville made very good hummus. It also made exceptional almond butter after 10 minutes of grinding and required no intervention on our behalf. It produced one of the best nut butters in the group.
It performed slightly above average at making applesauce, requiring about 10 seconds longer to achieve the desired consistency, and produced a finished product that was a little chunky. It was a similar scenario with tomato sauce, where it created a finished product that was great but wasn't as smooth as some other models.
The Breville passed the leak test with flying colors, largely due to the lid's rubber gasket. It took about five and a quarter cups of water to fill the bowl to the marked maximum fill line, and no water escaped.
The seal was sufficient to keep all of the water inside the bowl. Credit: Jenna Ammerman
Shredding
The Breville earned a high score for its outstanding shredding performance. Even though the Breville faltered slightly at shredding cheese, it did a good enough job at shredding carrots and potatoes and had an adjustable shredding disc to net the top spot.
It has a fine and medium setting on its shredding disc. It's very efficient at shredding cheese, leaving almost none stuck between the lid and the shredding disc. However, only about 50% of the cheese was shredded; the rest was more crumbled. A two-pound block of cheese did fit in the feeding tube without trimming.
The results of our potato and carrot shredding tests.
It also did a great job shredding potatoes, only leaving behind two small un-shredded slices, and creating nice consistent shreds. The carrots shredded by this machine were even, crisp, and didn't clump together. Only a small slice of carrot didn't make it through the shredding disc.
The Sous Chef's shredding blade and slicing blade.
Slicing
The blade was easily adjustable, with each number representing the slice thickness in millimeters. The tube on the Breville easily fit even our largest tomatoes, and the slices were of very high quality, tying for the best of the group with a handful of other models.
The Breville also produced very good sliced potatoes, though not the best, as there was a small amount of taper present on the slices, but the cuts were smooth. The zucchini slices were about average, with the same taper present on all of them.
The Breville's sliced tomatoes were on par with the top scorer, but the quality dropped when it came to slicing potatoes and zucchini. Credit: Jenna Ammerman
Cleaning
The Breville was the easiest to clean out of the group. The blades and discs are both dishwasher-safe, as well as the bowl and lid, but it's not recommended regularly. However, the large food pusher is not dishwasher safe, so something to watch for when it comes time for cleanup.
The blade is long and one of the easiest to clean of the group and has a large opening, making it easy to clean the inside where it attaches. The bowl was smooth on the inside with no little details to trap food. The lid was equally easy to clean, with no small places to entrap food scraps.
The components of the Breville drying after our cleaning test. Credit: Jenna Ammerman
Should You Buy the Breville Sous Chef 16 Pro?
The Breville is the best food processor in our test. It performs phenomenally at chopping, mixing, and shredding while still doing great at pureeing and slicing. There weren't any areas where this machine noticeably fell flat. If it's within your budget, we think you can't go wrong with the Sous Chef 16 Pro.
All of the included accessories with the Breville. Credit: Jenna Ammerman
What Other Food Processors Should You Consider?
The Sous Chef 16 Pro is the cream of the crop and our favorite food processor, but there are other models from our group worth considering. If you already own a Vitamix blender, that brand's 12-Cup Attachment utilizes the same motor, effectively cutting down on kitchen clutter and freeing up storage space. If you can't quite stomach the Breville's price tag, the Hamilton Beach 10-Cup or Ninja Professional may be more in line with your budget. Both were affordable and high-performing models in our testing.
