Cuisinart CH-4A User Manual

INSTRUCTION
& RECIPE BOOKLET

Cuisinart Elite Collection 4-Cup Chopper/Grinder

For your safety and continued enjoyment of this product, always read the instruction book carefully before using.

CH-4A Series

IMPORTANT
UNPACKING
INSTRUCTIONS

This package contains a Cuisinart Elite
Collection Chopper/Grinder and the
standard parts for it: SmartPower
chopping/grinding blade with BladeLock
System, spatula, and instruction/recipe
booklet.

CAUTION: THE CUTTING BLADE HAS VERY
SHARP EDGES.

To avoid injury when unpacking, please
follow these instructions:

1. Place the box on a table or kitchen counter.
Be sure the box is right side up.

2. Lift and remove the cardboard lid from the
work bowl cover.

3. Grasping the work bowl handle, lift the unit up
and out of the box and place on the tabletop.

4. Turn the work bowl cover clockwise to unlock
it from the unit base. Lift up and remove.

5. CAREFULLY REMOVE THE METAL BLADE
BY GRASPING THE CENTER WHITE HUB
AND LIFTING IT STRAIGHT UP. NEVER
TOUCH THE BLADE, AS IT IS RAZOR
SHARP.

6. Read the instructions thoroughly before using
the machine.

NOTE: Remember to return your product reg­istration card with all information carefully and
completely filled out.

®

metal

CONTENTS

Important Safeguards ................................ 2

Introduction ............................................... 3

Assembly Instructions ............................... 3

Tips For Processing Food ......................... 4

Processing Food .......................................4

Cleaning and Storage ................................ 5

Troubleshooting ......................................... 5

Operating Techniques ............................... 5

Recipes ...................................................... 8

Warranty .................................................. 11

IMPORTANT
SAFEGUARDS

When using an electrical appliance, basic safety
precautions should always be adhered to,
including the following:

1. Read all instructions.

2. To protect against risk of electric shock, do
not put motor base in water or other liquid.

3. Close supervision is necessary when any
appliance is used by or near children.

4. Always unplug unit from outlet when not in
use, before putting on or taking off parts,
before cleaning, and before removing food
from bowl. To unplug, grasp plug and pull
from electrical outlet. Never pull cord.

5. Avoid contact with moving parts.

6. Do not operate any appliance with a
damaged cord or plug after the appliance
malfunctions, or if appliance has been
dropped or damaged in any manner.
Return the appliance to the nearest
authorized Customer Service (see Warranty
for details) for examination, repair, and
electrical or mechanical adjustment.

7. The use of attachments not recommended
or sold by Cuisinart may cause fire, electric
shock or injury.

8. Do not let cord hang over edge of table or
counter, or touch hot surfaces.

9. Do not use outdoors.

10. Keep hands and utensils away from moving
blade while processing, to prevent the risk
of severe injury to persons or damage to the
chopper/grinder. A scraper may be used, but
must only be used when the chopper/grinder
is not running.

11. Blade is extremely sharp. Handle carefully
when removing, inserting or cleaning.
Always allow blade to stop moving before
removing cover.

12. To reduce the risk of injury, never place
cutting blade on base without first putting
work bowl properly in place.

13. Be certain cover is securely locked in place
before operating appliance. Do not attempt
to remove cover until blade has stopped
rotating.

14. Do not attempt to defeat the cover interlock
mechanism, as serious injury may result.

15. Before using, check work bowl for presence
of foreign objects.

16. This appliance is not intended for use by

persons (including children) with reduced
physical, sensory or mental capabilities, or
lack of experience and knowledge, unless
they have been given supervision or
instruction concerning use of the appliance
by a person responsible for their safety.

17. Children should be supervised to ensure that

they do not play with the appliance.

2

SAVE THESE
INSTRUCTIONS

FOR HOUSEHOLD USE
ONLY

INTRODUCTION

Congratulations on your new Cuisinart Elite
Collection Chopper/Grinder! It handles a
variety of food preparation tasks, such as
chopping, grinding, puréeing, emulsifying,
and blending. The patented SmartPower
auto-reversing blade features an incredibly
sharp edge for delicate chopping and
puréeing soft foods. The reverse edge is
blunt, to grind through spices and harder
foods. And the exclusive BladeLock System
enables the blade to lock into the bowl, so
you can now pour ingredients out of the
bowl without first having to remove the
blade.

The powerful high-speed motor works hard
and fast to accomplish small jobs with
ease. Chop herbs, onions, garlic; grind
spices, hard cheese; purée baby foods;
blend homemade mayo and flavoured but­ter – all in this one compact machine. You
have virtually unlimited options with the
Cuisinart Elite Collection Chopper/Grinder.
Enjoy!

ASSEMBLY INSTRUCTIONS

1. With the base unit on the tabletop, place
the work bowl firmly on the motor base.
Opening at back of bowl must face column at
back of chopper/grinder.

2. Turn the work bowl counterclockwise to
lock onto base.

3. CAREFULLY pick up the blade by its hub and
place on the centre stem until it drops
to the bottom of the stem. Firmly push to
ensure that the blade is locked into position.
IMPORTANT: HANDLE WITH CARE – THE
BLADE IS NOT PERMANENT.

4. Add food ingredients.

5. Place the cover on the work bowl with the
long tab to the right of the rear column.

6. Turn cover counterclockwise (toward column)
to securely lock into locking post.

7. Plug unit into wall socket.

8. You are ready to Chop/Grind.

SmartPower

Cuisinart®

with BladeLock

System

Work Bowl

with Handle

Motor Base

Blade

Cover

4-Cup

Spatula (not shown)

3

TIPS FOR
PROCESSING FOOD

Preparing the Food

Size

Always cut large pieces of food into smaller
pieces of even size – about
to a side or as specified under Operation/
Technique on pages 6 and 7. If you don't start
with pieces that are small and uniform, you will
not get an even chop.

Quantity
Do not overload the work bowl. Overloading
causes inconsistent results and it strains the
motor. Use the quantities given in the recipe
section as a guide. As a rule of thumb, remem­ber that after being processed, food should not
reach more than

Note: Due to the powerful motor provided with
this unit, it is recommended to use one hand to
support the Cuisinart Elite Collection Chopper/
Grinder during operation.

Selecting the Right Operating Control

Use the Chop function for chopping, puréeing
and mixing. It is the right choice, for example,
for chopping soft, fragile food such as herbs,
celery, onions, garlic and most cheeses. It
is also the right choice for puréeing cooked
vegetables, making mayonnaise, and mixing
salad dressing.

Pulse action is best when you are using the
Chop function. Two or three pulses are often
enough. Be sure to check the food frequently
to prevent overprocessing. If you overprocess,
you are likely to get a watery paste instead of a
fine chop.

Use the Grind function for grinding spices, and
for chopping hard food such as peppercorns,
seeds, chocolate and nuts.

2

⁄3 of the way up the workbowl.

1

⁄2 inch (12mm)

Continuous-hold action is best when you are
using the Grind function. You may have to
operate the Cuisinart Elite Collection Chopper/
Grinder for several seconds with some food to
achieve the desired results – or as long as
20 seconds for some seeds.

When you operate the unit for more than 10
seconds, use a pulse action every 10 seconds
or so to allow food to drop to the bottom of the
work bowl. This provides more consistent results.

Never operate the Cuisinart Elite Collection
Chopper/Grinder continuously for longer than
1 minute at a time.

Note: The work bowl and cover may become
scratched when you use them for grinding grain
and spices. This does not affect the performance
of the Cuisinart Elite Collection Chopper/Grinder.
However, you may want to reserve the original
bowl for grinding, and purchase an additional
bowl and cover set for other uses. These are
available from the Cuisinart Customer Service
Department, which you can reach by dialing our
toll-free number: 1800 808 971 (AUST) or 0800
435 000 (NZ).

Adding Liquid

You can add liquids such as water, oil or
flavouring while the machine is running. For
example, you might want to add oil when mak­ing mayonnaise or salad dressing, or you could
add vanilla or alcohol when making frozen
yoghurt. Pour the liquid through one of the two
openings in the cover.

IMPORTANT: Add liquid through only one
opening at a time. The other opening must be
left free to allow air to escape. If both openings
are blocked, liquid cannot flow smoothly into
the bowl.

Removing Food from the Sides of the Bowl

Occasionally food will stick to the sides of the
bowl as you process. Stop the machine to clear
food away. AFTER THE BLADE HAS STOPPED

MOVING, remove the cover, and use the spatula
to scrape the food from the sides of the bowl
back into the centre. Do not put hands into bowl
unless unit is unplugged.

Note: Handle with care – the blade is not
permanent.

PROCESSING FOOD

1. Place the work bowl firmly on the motor
base. Opening at back of bowl must

face column at back of the Cuisinart Elite
Collection Chopper/Grinder. Turn bowl coun­terclockwise to lock in place.

2. Insert the blade assembly. Carefully pick up
the blade by its hub and place on the centre
stem until it drops to the bottom of the stem.
Firmly push to lock the blade into position.

NEVER TOUCH THE BLADE ITSELF AND
NOTE THE BLADE IS NOT PERMANENTLY
LOCKED.

3. Place food in the work bowl. Be sure the
food is cut into small pieces, and the bowl is
not overloaded.

4. Lock the cover into position.

5. Press the appropriate Chop or Grind
control, depending on the food you are
processing.

6. When you have finished processing the food,

stop the machine by releasing the control
button.

7. WHEN THE BLADE STOPS MOVING,
unplug the unit.

8. Remove cover and work bowl

a. Turn work bowl cover clockwise to

remove.

b. Turn work bowl clockwise to unlock it and

lift it off base.

NOTE: Thicker ingredients can be removed

while work bowl is still on base.

4