Kenwood FP736 Multi Pro Food Processor

I have the earlier model of this mixer (Kenwood Multi Pro FP735) which I still own and use daily and it is still as good today as the day I bought it.

My friend recently bought this model on my recommendation and is very pleased with it. I went to her house and checked it out. Everything is exactly the same, all the attachments I have on mine she has on her newer model the only difference was the spindle on mine is grey hers is white, so feel my review is just as valid for this model.

This is a brilliant bit of kit!! I have mixed, sliced, chopped, pulsed, whisked and blended my way through the past weeks since buying this, and never looked back!
It is by far the best food processor I have owned and I didn't think I could get better than my first Moulinex.

The base unit: This takes both the main processor bowl and the blender jug, also the mill can be used on it using the blender base, but more of that later. There is a removable spindle over which the bowl is placed and it is removed for the blender. It has a 900watt motor with 8 speeds and pulse function that seems to effortlessly plough its way through all I have thrown at it, struggling with bread dough a little but they all do in my opinion (think a bread maker or Kenwood Chef are better for that) but it still makes a good enough loaf so no complaints here. The mixer will not work if the bowl and its lid are not put on the unit properly, needs a gentle tug to engage the bowl and a bit of a pull to get the lid in place. Gets easier the more times you use it though.

The bowl: Made of plastic is 3 litres in size, meaning it can take 1.5kgs of dry ingredients or 1.5 litres of liquid.
The lid: Fits over the bowl with a feeder tube into which ingredients are added with a pusher that separates to allow room for 1 carrot or a thin leek to pass through and so you don't grate or chop your fingers.
There are several tools to use with the bowl.

1. The metal blade, a very versatile tool used to make most recipes. It can be used for chopping raw or cooked meat, veg and fruit into small chunks, bread into breadcrumbs. Also the blade is fitted in the bowl for cake mix, pastry, scones, crumbles and much more. Watch out though it is VERY sharp!

2. The dough tool: A plastic version of the metal blade, used mainly for bread and pizza dough but I also use it for fruit cakes and other mixes with additives such as Chocolate chips and dried fruit. (otherwise you end up with cakes with dried fruit purée)

The processor has 3 discs included. One for fine grating and slicing, one for thicker slicing and grating and a julienne disc (quite useless in my opinion, turns veg into mush) They look like they are not big enough to cover the top of the bowl but work fine, some other reviewers have experienced problems with shredded veg landing in the bowl not properly shredded but so far I have not had a problem with it.

Also included in the box was what they call a maxi blend canopy. This is a large white plastic disc that goes over the top of the contents when you use the bowl as a blender but I have not needed to use it so cannot comment on whether it is of any use or not.

A citrus press and a juicer attachment are included but again I have no need of these so not tried them as yet. (probably never will)
8th Jan 2012,
I have recently been told by someone that the juicer and citrus press attachments are now no longer included in with this model and on reading the box contents there is no mention of them either. Kenwood have probably cut down on some of the many attachments as there were rather too many. I wonder if they can be bought separately if so out of interest could someone let me know so I may pass it on. Thank you :0)

The whisk attachment: This fits over the central tube and spindle it has 2 removable whisks, great for whipped cream, whisked sponges, mayonnaise and egg whites. Do not use it for creaming butter and sugar together its not tough enough (use the metal blade)

The mini bowl: This is a great addition, it sits inside the large bowl, has its own mini metal blade and is covered by the main lid. Useful for chopping herbs and mixing small quantities such as mayonnaise and baby food etc. If like me you like chopped fresh herbs in your cooking it will get used regularly. This blade is also very sharp mind your fingers!!

Onto the blender: This is also made of plastic (shame its not glass but oh well) can take up to 1.5 litres of liquid, useful for soups and sauces but being plastic wont stand up to boiling liquids for long. The blender as most do, comes apart for ease of cleaning and the base interchanges with the mill.

That brings me onto the mill: This can be used to chop small quantities of herbs and other dry ingredients such as nuts and so forth, the instruction manual states it is not advisable to use it with spices as the plastic mill might damage but having said that I used it for that purpose before reading the manual (oops!) and it held out ok, wont do it again though just in case! It has a sprinkler lid for storage.

The storage carousel: Intended to store some of the accessories inside the bowl, don't bother it looks horrible and you still end up with bits in the cupboard or kitchen drawer anyway so you might as well keep them all in the drawer and forget the carousel, although having said that, I have mine in one of my cupboards and throw all my equipment inside keeping it in one place.

All in all I found this to be an excellent little machine, looks neat and tidy on the worktop and takes up hardly any room. I use mine every day from making cakes to grating cheese and love it.

There is a however though:-
The removable spindle that is used when the bowl is attached could have been thought out better, it tends to come off as you remove the bowl and almost always ends up on the floor via your feet! (its painful!) this could have been avoided if they made it 'click' in place thus tugging it to remove it so it doesn't fall out. The pulse function would have been better if you pressed a button rather than turning the knob backwards. The mill and the metal blade don't handle chopping chocolate very well turning it to crumbs. The blender jug and mill would have been better in glass and the plastic the bowls are made of doesn't feel as robust as the older models of processors did. I wouldn't put them in the dishwasher either even though they are supposed to be dishwasher proof.
Other than that I would recommend this to anyone who enjoys cooking or who just need a food processor to help out in the kitchen.

15th November 2011.

Still going strong! it has been used non stop since the day I bought it and has been a massive help to me in the kitchen. All the accessories are still in great working order, we had a slight mishap with the pusher and it has a small crack at the top but a smear of super glue fixed it and it still works as it should and has survived many washing ups!
I rarely use the juicer or the blend canopy but I still believe you cant get better and would still recommend it to anyone who needs a Food Processor.

Please feel free to ask me anything about it in comments and I will do my best to reply (no stupid time wasters please!!)

Sorry I have made this review longer to wade through but hope it helps.

After reading other reviews before I bought it, about the difficulties in clicking the bowl and lid in place, I was a bit nervous but I needn't have been I think they were a bit on the picky side as most mixers ect have to be clicked in correctly before they would work.

I have had not had any of the 'problems' I read about, I suppose that could be because I had been forwarned though.

I use my mixer mostly for making bread and haven't used any of the other attachments myself yet. I find the mixer robust with a powerful motor and easy to put together. The drive shaft is a bit annoying but nothing to get het up about.

On the whole I find the machine as 'they' say fit for purpose and successful.

This is the best food processor that I have ever owned. It makes light work of dough, cakes, grating etc. It is sturdy and does exactly what it is supposed to. Really really happy with this product!!