Norpro Big Mouth Chopper

well-built, works beautifully, easy to clean, and easy to store
Wow, where do I start? This thing is amazing! I use it often. My better half uses it often. When it comes to vegetables, it’s the #1 most used tool in our kitchen.First of all, the norpro big mouth chopper is solidly built. There’s not a single piece of it that feels flimsy. The included pieces are: the blade and pusher harness, three blades, two pushers, two cleaning picks, the clear bucket, and a translucent top for the bucket. The blades lock into the bottom of the harness with a slide lock while the pusher locks into the top of the harness, held only via the tough plastic. The blade and pusher harness is hinged at the back and feels very solid. It has never popped off or moved in any way to lead me to believe it is weak or poorly built. To be honest, I’ve not even looked at the hinge assembly because I’ve never had a reason to! The wide handle grip at the top gives you a real sense of control over the full power of the device. Included are three different blades; one small square grid (perfect for diced bell peppers for that pizza), a medium sized square grid (about 1.5-2x as large as the small – better for larger chunks like potatoes for a potato casserole), and a serrated rectangular blade. The rectangular blade uses the same pusher as the small square grid, but has only one perpendicular blade through the middle (this blade is great for longer chunks of peppers for curries or even for small french fries). I use the small square and the serrated rectangular blades the most. The pushers do manage to get chunks and stuck in between the individual columns on the pushers, but Norpro was ready for that – the two included picks are extremely handy for raking the leftovers out of the pushers and blades so you can clean the big mouth chopper quickly and easily. The norpro is one of those rare tools that you can clean immediately after using and then get back to cooking! The bucket is voluminous! Really, it’s huge. Rarely have I ever had to stop to empty out the bucket. The blades, pushers and picks all fit easily inside the bucket, then you snap the translucent cover on and then guess what? The blade and pusher harness snaps onto the cover! This attention to detail means the big mouth chopper is all self-contained, making it very simple to store.I’m a home gardener and I love zucchini, tomatoes, and peppers of all kinds. I’ve pushed the following foods through the Norpro with unbelievable ease:- potatoes- peppers (of all kinds – bell, jalapeno, cayenne, ancho)- zucchini- onions- celery- eggplantThe ease at which the norpro slices through potatoes and zucchini will really surprise you. Raw potatoes are pretty damn hard and can be a pain to slice with a knife. I was pleasantly surprised when the norpro chopper made quick work of them. New potatoes (the small red and white ones) will go through the big mouth chopper without being cut to size first, which is a huge time saver! Never has cutting up a bunch of potatoes been so enjoyable.I’ve never tried putting a tomato through it. I have a feeling that softer foods may not come out well. The big mouth chopper does not do well with a number of other foods I’ve attempted to put through it:- cured sausage (ie, pepperoni and soppressata — while the sausage will go through easily if you cover it with a harder material such as bell pepper chunks, the sinewy fat in the meat tends to get stuck in between the blade joints. it quickly becomes a pain in the ass to clean, so I don’t recommend putting meats through the norpro)- carrots (the carrot, being a taproot, is extremely dense and takes a good bit of extra pressure to push through. it works, but not as well as most any other veggies. my guess is that turnips, radishes, and beets might be similarly difficult to put through the norpro.)That being said, I wouldn’t dream of making chili or any mexican, italian, or thai dish without using the norpro. I know I might sound like Billy Mays, but the norpro really is that enjoyable to use. This is only my third ever amazon review – rarely do I feel compelled to write a review, but I took a chance on the Norpro and it’s paid dividends in time saved and perfectly diced chunks produced!The big handle is easily manipulated and the leverage gained is more than you’d think. I’m only 31, but I have a feeling the Norpro would be a fantastic product for those with joint pain, arthritis, or weakness in the arms, but whom still love to cook with fresh produce. Spare the knife!One last thing – like a mandoline, these blades are SHARP. During my experiment with the sausage (before I figured out the veggie-topper trick), I tried to use my thumb to push the rather squishy chunks through. Well, the Norpro jumped up and bit me and as I pulled my thumb back to check the damage, blood oozed out across my finger in a perfectly square-shaped pattern. It was amusing, but I never used my fingers again. Oh, and by the way – I also own a mandoline slicer, but it doesn’t see nearly as much use as the Norpro. Maybe it’s because I dice more often than I slice. Great product! Thank you Norpro!EDIT: 2014-08-26: I purchased the Norpro on March 18, 2011. Over three years later and she is still going strong! It remains my go-to tool for dicing up peppers, onions, carrots, potatoes, zucchini, and squash. I use it a lot for stir-frys, curries, and when I just want a little chunkiness (bell pepper + zucchini + onion) in my red sauces! The clear bucket has developed about a 1″ crack on one of the ends, though the plastic is rigid enough that it doesn’t affect operation at all. All other parts are still as solid as they were on day one. I still love this product.

Great slicer!
I bought the Norpro after having had three Vidalia Chop Wizards break on me – I finally decided that I was done replacing those every year! So far, I really like the Big Mouth Chopper. The pros: it feels very thick and sturdy, and less likely to break than the Vidalia Chop Wizard (time will tell), heavier duty plastic and sharper blades so it chops much easier than the Vidalia chop wizard. I love the larger storage container – it seems that I can chop a lot more before having to stop and empty. Another obvious bonus is the extra slicing blade, which is a really nice feature. Lastly, the different components come apart, so this is much easier to clean in the dishwasher – this is a big bonus in my opinion. The 2 Cons I have, and the reason for the 4 versus 5 stars, is that the surface area of the chopper is rather small, so you need to cut the veggies a little smaller than I am used to. I also noticed that when I used it to chop tomatoes, it smashed them more than diced them, and I never had this problem with the Vidalia Chop Wizard. It could have been an overly ripe tomato, but will need more time to say for sure. Overall though, am still really happy with this product!