The 7 Best Meat Mixers
Special Honors
Weston 36-2001-W Weston makes a long line of helpful cooking implements, and their selection of butcher tools, in particular, represents a great value on many highly effective products. Specifically, their 44-pound 36-2001-W meat mixer has not only an impressive capacity for its price point, but even a mechanical gearbox to take some of the strain off your arms. westonbrands.com
Hobart Mixer-Grinders There are a few of these with varying capacities and few different features, but they all have one thing in common, and that is that they're large, powerful, and reliable enough for full-time use in commercial environments. As such, you'll probably not have room for any of them in your house, but if you're outfitting a large school or corporate catering kitchen, there are few more resilient and dependable options out there. hobartcorp.com
Editor's Notes
February 24, 2021:
Many of our previous selections have been discontinued, but there are plenty of worthwhile options left. Two important candidates are the LEM 654 and larger LEM Big Bite, not because they're the most convenient - as neither one can tilt for emptying - but because they're especially well built, and also compatible with the company's similarly high-performing electric meat grinders. In fact, with the right grinder and motor, one of the LEM models could reasonably last for many years without issue.
Our top choice, the Guide Gear MM270, however, brings together a number of excellent features that just about no other model can manage all at once. Its rounded bottom makes for easy cleaning, the welds, walls, and frame all exude strength and quality, and the internal gearbox means you won't hurt yourself trying to use the thing.
We also included a couple stand mixers. The Klarstein Lucia Rossa is the perfect all-in-one choice for small households, and compares surprisingly well to much more expensive name brands. The Cooklee SM-1507BM performs every bit as well, but is larger and more expensive. One feature that we like on both of them is the attached mini blender that makes multitasking a breeze. Neither of these will be of any use if you're preparing a huge batch of sausage, but they will greatly simplify a few fresh links or burgers for the family.
December 28, 2018:
Since we know both heads of restaurants and heads of families might wind up on this list trying to find the best meat mixer, we included both behemoth commercial models like the Hakka Electric, and quainter options such as the Cheftronic 4 In 1. We made sure each selection produces consistent results each time, and works well on any type of meat you add to it.