Best Kitchenaid Attachments For Your Stand Mixer

What to Consider When Buying a KitchenAid Attachment 

Types of Attachments 

Pasta Rollers, Cutters, and Presses 

Pasta sheet roller: Unless you’ve had decades of practice learning from an experienced Italian nonna, rolling out perfectly thin and even pasta sheets will likely be difficult. This is precisely why the pasta sheet roller is one of the most popular mixer attachments among amateur and expert cooks. 

With eight thickness settings, the pasta sheet roller attachment can accommodate dough that has been roughly rolled and sheet it to the desired thickness. With a maximum width of 6 inches, the pasta sheets are ideal for lasagna sheets and ready to be sliced into noodles or ravioli. 

While some individuals are comfortable slicing their pasta dough by hand, KitchenAid offers pasta cutter attachments in four different widths that make pasta slicing consistent and efficient. Like the sheeter, the cutters’ function (and require pre-sheeted dough). The different widths are not sold individually but rather as part of other sets, which can be costly if you don’t have a plan for which pieces, you’d like to use. 

Includes a Lashanette cutter with a medium-to-large width and a capellini cutter with a very narrow width. 

Three-piece set containing a pasta sheet roller, a small spaghetti cutter, and a medium-width fettuccine cutter. 

This five-piece deluxe set is the pasta sheet roller and all four pasta cutters. 

The hand-cranked 1-inch ravioli maker plugs into the KitchenAid hub for stability but is a hand-cranked machine. Using pre-sheeted pasta dough, the ravioli maker attachment creates ravioli shapes by pressing and scoring the pasta dough around the filling pockets. Some reviews of the ravioli maker praise the convenience of the machine that fills the pasta. In contrast, others note that traditional ravioli presses are just as convenient for a fraction of the cost. 

Gourmet pasta press attachment: extruded pasta is a different ballgame. Instead of cutting sheet pasta into noodles, pasta dough is pressed through a patterned die to create noodle shapes (like spritz cookie presses). The gourmet pasta press attachment includes six discs for extruding pasta into round spaghetti, bucatini, rigatoni, fusilli, and large and small macaroni shapes. Pasta dough is pressed through the top feeder and cut with a wire cutter at the bottom when it reaches the desired length. If you have never made extruded pasta before, you will likely get the hang of feeding the dough and slicing it quickly. 

Grinder Attachments 

KitchenAid manufactures two grinder attachments: one heavy-duty all-metal set with extras and one light- to medium-duty home grinder made primarily of plastic. Those interested in making their sausages, chorizo, or even grinding hard cheeses, vegetables for salsa, and breadcrumbs can benefit significantly from using a grinder. 

This kit contains three sizes of grinding plates, a larger detachable food tray, a plunger, and two sizes of sausage stuffer attachments, as well as a cleaning brush. The metal grinder attachment should be refrigerated before and between meat-grinding projects for cleaner grinding. 

This plastic food grinder includes two grinding plates and is largely dishwasher safe. A sausage stuffer kit with an attachment and a more extensive food tray is sold separately. 

Fruit and vegetable strainer set with food grinder: The same plastic food grinder set with two grinding plates as listed above, with a fruit and vegetable strainer attached to the front to aid in preparing ingredients for soups sauces, chutneys, and jams. 

Juicers 

KitchenAid offers two types of citrus juicer attachments for varying juicing intensities and budgets. Compared to a hand juicer, juicing a quart of fresh orange juice for breakfast is a breeze when using a classic reamer-style citrus juicer attachment, which is relatively inexpensive. 

Masticating juicer and sauce attachment: The masticating juicer is a special KitchenAid attachment for those interested in its powerful juicing options but does not wish to purchase a separate juicer. Comparable to low-end standalone juicer models in terms of price but requires less storage space overall. Some reviewers note that the juice must be strained again to remove additional pulp. 

Food Processors 

Attachments for food processors: KitchenAid offers two food processor attachments for its stand mixers, but these are not your typical food processors with a single blade for chopping nuts. These are miniature versions of commercial food processors with disks for slicing, julienne cutting, and shredding. The enhanced version comes with a dicing kit and a carrying case for the discs. KitchenAid offers the dicing equipment and disc case separately if you start with the base model attachment and find that you need them to complete your collection. 

Although it is typically not as powerful as other standalone food processors on the market, most users adore it for its portability, versatility, and small footprint. 

Peelers and Spiralizer Attachments 

Vegetable sheet peeler: Imagine a pasta sheeter attachment for apples and vegetables. If you’re interested in veggie sheet lasagna, veggie wraps, or innovative pastry applications, the vegetable sheet peeler will produce sheets nearly impossible to create by hand. 

Like the pasta cutter attachments, the noodle blade accessory enables you to transform your beautifully sliced vegetables into noodle shapes. It must be utilized alongside the vegetable sheet peeler attachment. 

Five-blade and seven-blade spiralizers: These spiralizer attachments produce the long vegetable tendrils you love for veggie pasta and fresh salads. They include a peeler blade for quickly removing apple and potato skins that would otherwise slow down you’re cooking. For efficient food preparation, the peeler attachment can be used with the slicing blades. Two slicing blades, two spiralizing blades, and a peeling blade are included in the five-blade set. The seven-blade collection consists of a slicing and spiralizing edge that can be purchased separately if you opt for the five-blade model. 

Fresh preparation slicer and shredder: Carrots shredded for a carrot cake? Cheese for enough nachos for the Super Bowl? Or pounds of potatoes to serve the entire family latkes? Rest your arm, put away the box grater and mandolin, and let the slicer/shredder work. The large and small grating attachments and the slicer attachment perform identical tasks with minimal effort. 

Grain Mill Attachment 

This grain mill is for the bread bakers and pastry chefs with an adventurous spirit. The KitchenAid grain mill attachment is easier to use than a hand-cranked grain mill and significantly less expensive than other standalone grain mills that can easily cost twice as much as this attachment. KitchenAid asserts that the grain mill can process grains ranging from “cracked” to extra-fine, including wheat, oats, corn, and rice. 

This attachment simplifies the baking process by weighing and sifting dry ingredients such as flour, granulated sugar, salt, baking powder, and baking soda directly into the KitchenAid mixing bowl. The high price turned off some reviewers, and others found it more cumbersome to use than conventional scaling. 

Bowl Attachments 

These attachments are not designed for the power hub connection; instead, they are specialized mixing bowls that heat or freeze, utilizing your stand mixer to keep the contents moving. 

Ice cream maker bowl: Spinning up to 2 quarts of ice cream or sorbet in less than 30 minutes, the ice cream maker bowl is a space-saving and convenient ice cream-making solution for those who occasionally make ice cream at home. The bowl freezes for 24 hours and is compatible with head-tilt or bowl-lift machines; however, it is not compatible with the Artisan Mini mixer. After assembly, the paddle attachment spins the ice cream base until it is soft, aerated, and chilled. To fully freeze your ice cream, you may need to place it in the freezer for an additional hour or two. 

Because the bowl must be completely frozen before churning, you will only be able to stir one ice cream at a time, allowing the bowl to refreeze after washing and between uses. Depending on how frequently you use the ice cream bowl, you may choose to store it in the freezer always to be available. 

This exact heated bowl can be attached to your KitchenAid mixer, but it also functions as a stand-alone heating bowl. This bowl was designed and engineered for more complex and precise projects, such as proofing bread and tempering chocolate, so it may seem excessively fancy for fondue. With a maximum temperature of 222 degrees, you can also slow-cook foods for several hours and heat delicate sauces like Béarnaise without burning them. 

Key Considerations 

Price 

Most KitchenAid attachments are expensive. Suppose cost is a significant factor when looking for an additional piece of equipment. In that case, it’s a good idea to compare the attachment you’re interested into other machines that perform the same function but are sold separately. Frequently, you can find a separate device that costs less than the attachment, but you may have to sacrifice convenience, quality, or storage space; these are all essential factors to consider when determining the overall value of your equipment. 

Several major retailers offer discounts and coupons on KitchenAid products throughout the year, including attachments. 

Warranty Specifics 

All KitchenAid attachments come with a hassle-free one-year warranty. The warranty covers any out-of-box defects (which do occur; therefore, keep your receipts) and any malfunctions during everyday use. The warranties do not cover your machine if it has been used outside the home or shows signs of misuse; in some cases, they do not cover additional repair parts. 

Consider the vendor’s return policy before making an attachment purchase. Some stores have flexible return policies and will replace a defective attachment without contacting the manufacturer directly. 

Maintenance 

Regarding cleaning your attachments, each component is washed differently. Some attachments, such as the pasta sheeter and cutters, are incredibly delicate and must be thoroughly cleaned by hand or with a damp cloth. The dishwasher can be used to clean the remaining items. Some attachments must be partially disassembled, and hand washed. Refer to the user manual for specific instructions on cleaning.