For weeknight dinners, choose a multi-cooker if you mainly want to cook everyday meals in one pot with less supervision. If chopping, grating or blending takes you as long as cooking, consider a food processor with cooking functions and its attachments instead. And if your current appliances already do the job, think about what a new one would genuinely add before making space for it.
You mainly cook everyday dishes and want programmes or a keep-warm function. According to UFC-Que Choisir, a multi-cooker can reduce the need to keep watch once you have added the ingredients and started a programme. However, check which steps your recipes will still require you to do yourself.
If chopping, mincing, grating or blending slows down your meals, look at the food preparation functions of a food processor with cooking functions. UFC-Que Choisir distinguishes these appliances from multi-cookers; the attachments and functions available vary, so check each model.
If you already have what you need to cook and prepare your usual meals, compare the handling and washing-up a new appliance would genuinely save you. UFC-Que Choisir also recommends considering how much space it will take up.
Worth considering: if cooking everyday dishes in one pot is the step you want to keep a closer eye on less often.
Bear in mind: it won’t usually prepare the ingredients for you, and pressure models have their own instructions for use.
Worth considering: if your recipes regularly call for chopping, mixing, grating or kneading before or during cooking.
Bear in mind: bowls and attachments take up space and mean more parts to clean, depending on the model you choose.
Stick with them: if your current kit covers your usual cooking and combining everything in one pot wouldn’t offer a practical benefit.
Bear in mind: you may still need to use several utensils and keep an eye on some dishes as they cook.
| What to consider | What to check before buying | Who it’s for |
|---|---|---|
| Keeping an eye on cooking | Programmes suited to the dishes you make; a keep-warm function and delayed start if you need them. | I want to start dinner and get on with other things, rather than stay by the hob while a dish that suits the appliance cooks. Around 36% of consumers would put reduced monitoring at the top of their list. |
| Built-in food preparation | The functions and attachments actually included for chopping, grating, blending or kneading. | When preparing ingredients takes longer than cooking, I look for an appliance that can handle those tasks. This would be a priority for around 29% of consumers. |
| Usable capacity | The fill line, the quantities in your recipes and any specific limits for foods that expand. | I cook several portions and want to know how much will actually fit in the pot, rather than relying on the advertised capacity in litres. Around 21% of consumers would put usable capacity first. |
| Cleaning and handling | How easy the pot is to handle, which parts need washing and, for a pressure model, the maintenance instructions in the manual. | After dinner, I don’t want extra parts to clean or to handle a hot pot without knowing how to lift it safely. Easy cleaning and handling would come first for around 14% of consumers. |
You can’t necessarily fill a pot to its full stated capacity. The limit may also vary for foods that expand during cooking.
Compare your usual portion sizes with the fill line and the recipe instructions in the model’s manual.
A multi-cooker is mainly designed for cooking and generally doesn’t mix food, according to UFC-Que Choisir. So it won’t necessarily remove the tasks that take up your time before you start dinner.
Work out whether most of your time goes on preparing ingredients or keeping an eye on cooking, then check for functions that help with that step.
Pressure cooking means following the fill limits and the instructions for steam release and safety features.
Read the manual for the exact model before use and follow its instructions for cleaning, filling and opening.
Bowls and attachments need to be within easy reach and cleaned after use. The Cook Expert from Magimix weighs 11.14 kg, highlighting why it’s worth checking how easy the model you’re considering will be to handle. This figure won’t apply to other food processors.
Measure your worktop and storage space, then check the appliance’s dimensions in use, its weight and how many parts your recipes require.
The Cookeo range is worth looking at if you want guided cooking and, depending on the model, pressure cooking in one pot.
The Fast & Delicious range is worth considering if you’re looking for a pressure multi-cooker with cooking programmes.
The Cook Expert is an option if you want a food processor that cooks and need it to prepare ingredients as well as cook them.
This model is an option if you want a multi-cooker for everyday cooking in one pot. To decide whether it’s right for you, compare its listed modes with your recipes and check the manual for the usable capacity and pressure-cooking instructions.
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Worth considering if you want to bring different cooking methods together in one pot for weeknight dinners.
The model name indicates a stated capacity of 5.7 L, seven functions including slow cooking and steaming, and four customisable programmes. Check the permitted fill level for your recipes and follow the pressure-cooking instructions.
No. The stated capacity doesn’t necessarily match the permitted cooking volume. UFC-Que Choisir gives the example of a Cookeo with a 6 L pot and a maximum cooking volume of 4 L. For your appliance, follow the fill line and any restrictions for the foods you’re cooking.
A multi-cooker generally doesn’t handle these preparation tasks; it’s mainly designed to cook food in its pot. If chopping, grating or mixing is essential for your dinners, check which functions and attachments are actually included with a food processor that cooks.
Start with the fill limits and the instructions for handling, opening and maintaining the exact model in its manual. For the Fast & Delicious CY505E10, Tefal specifies that you shouldn’t go above the MAX line and that the pot should only be filled halfway for certain foods that expand. These model-specific instructions don’t replace the manual for any other appliance.
No. The marking doesn’t rank appliances by quality or ease of use. The Directorate-General for Competition Policy, Consumer Affairs and Fraud Control points out that the CE marking is not a certification mark. Instead, compare the features that suit your recipes and the instructions for the model you’re considering.