Back when I got my new KitchenAid stand mixer, along with the pasta attachments (that I adore), I also ordered the KitchenAid food grinder attachment
HA.
Do not get this attachment if you want it for grinding meat. After experimenting with it in advance of deer season with some beef, I found that even a small amount of meat took an incredibly long time to grind and the attachment clogged constantly. I’d show you a picture of it but I ran over it ten times with my car then threw it over the hill. (Just kidding. But I have no idea what I’ll use it for now. I have a VitaMix blender and a Cuisnart food processor, so anything else this attachment can do is already covered in my kitchen.)
Meanwhile, I still wanted a meat grinder. In the past, we’ve taken deer up to the high school for processing, but I really wanted to start doing my own processing. So on my next go-round I decided to order a REAL meat grinder. Not an attachment for another appliance, not something that would promise to be “ideal” for multiple purposes, but purely a MEAT GRINDER. After scouring Amazon for options and reading reviews, I bought the STX International electric meat grinder
This baby is AWESOME. I was grinding meat so fast, I’d have to stop the machine because I couldn’t get the pieces of meat into the hopper fast enough to keep up with the grinder.
It was totally cool, never got clogged. It comes with sausage stuffer tubes, too, which I haven’t tried out yet, and I will also note that the directions that come with the machine are sorely lacking. Luckily, it wasn’t that complicated.
I would like to say that I shot the deer we were processing, but I didn’t. I’ll keep trying, though! Buck season runs to the end of this week then there’s another doe season later in the month. Meanwhile, I wanted to share this find–I am SO happy with this meat grinder. If you’ve ever thought about getting one, go for it on this one, you won’t be sorry.
Venison burger, yum!!!!!
goatmom says:
We were in the market for a meat grinder for doing our venison this year. The old hand crank thing just wasn’t getting it anymore. We got the STX 3000 that is air cooled (Mega Force I think they called it) and that thing worked GREAT!! We did 50 pounds of meat in less than 10 minutes. Clean up was easy too!
On December 1, 2014 at 9:28 am
Glenda says:
I ‘inherited’ Mom’s KA meat grinder and recently bought two pork roasts and ground them and made sausage. I had no problems and was very happy with it. Of course, I have never used anything else. Yours looks very good.
On December 1, 2014 at 10:53 am
denisestone says:
Yummy! You can make your own venison or pork sausages now. 😉
On December 1, 2014 at 11:00 am
CATRAY44 says:
That looks wonderful. I bought the same Kitchenaid attachment and had the same awful experience. Went back to Grandma’s cast iron grinder. I think I will start saving up for the STIX! ( Love my Kitchenaid for everything else, though!)
On December 1, 2014 at 6:43 pm
AnnieB says:
I have a KA grinder attachment and have never had a problem with it. I generally use it for 3-5 pounds at a time and it works like a charm. On speed 4. Maybe if you need to do a larger quantity it might be good to have something stronger. But, I’ve never had anything clog, and my brother-in-law foodie from New York always begs for my burgers that I grind with it! I’ve also used the sausage stuffing attachment with no problems at all. But always on a small scale.
On December 1, 2014 at 7:55 pm
Joell says:
I have a meat grinder for my KA, but still prefer my good old hand grinder.
On December 2, 2014 at 8:39 am
MMHoney says:
I GET GOOSEBUMPS WHEN GOOD PRODUCTS ARE TRASHED.
MY MOTO IS WHEN ALL ELSE FAILS “READ THE DIRECTIONS”
IS THE PROBLEM THE PRODUCT OR THE OPERATOR?????.
MMHONEY
On December 2, 2014 at 8:57 am
ConnieM says:
I had the same problem with my KA. I read later that you have to have the meat partially frozen for it to work best. I haven’t tried it again, but will before I invest in yet another kitchen appliance. Although your meat grinder looks great…
On December 2, 2014 at 10:31 am
Suzanne McMinn says:
I had the meat partially frozen. It just didn’t work for me.
On December 2, 2014 at 10:43 am
UlrikeDG says:
That’s awesome. FYI, if you wear that grinder out in a few years, you can sometimes get a really good deal on a used restaurant/industrial grade meat grinder from restaurant supply stores.
On December 3, 2014 at 11:04 pm
Nancie says:
I don’t know if you read old ‘new’ posts or not, but just in case…I have my grandmother’s old meat grinder. Grandmother. No electric. Hand crank, but that’s okay. I have never used it for meat. I use it exclusively for making potato salad…possibly the best potato salad on the planet. Truly. And no slices or square hunks of potato here; more like a thick julienne or shredded potato shape. I thought you could possibly use your meat grinder for the same purpose. 🙂 I love your lifestyle and your blog – Thanks to you I have been making my own soap, laundry detergent, fabric softener, etc….. for years now. You have been a blessing in my life. Thank you! Hugs.
On March 10, 2015 at 3:18 pm
glgoolsby says:
I use my meat grinder to grind my home made pickles for relish that I use on hot dogs and in potato, tuna and chicken salad. I never buy store relish.
On March 12, 2015 at 4:25 pm