Cuisinart Hurricane Pro Review

Pros: Fantastic smoothies, great at crushing ice, silky-smooth purees
Cons: Blade showed signs of wear and tear
Manufacturer: Cuisinart
Our Verdict
Compare to Similar Products
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Cuisinart Hurricane Pro | |||||
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Awards | ![]() | ![]() | ![]() | ||
Price | $400 List $350.85 at Amazon | $520 List $498.21 at Amazon | $600 List $592.90 at Amazon | $100 List $89.66 at Amazon | $200 List $138.95 at Amazon |
Overall Score ![]() |
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Star Rating | |||||
Pros | Fantastic smoothies, great at crushing ice, silky-smooth purees | Excellent at crushing ice, perfect at pureeing, superb at smoothies | Great at grinding, fantastic for smoothies, crushes ice with ease | Great blended drinks, excellent at pureeing, solid at making nut butter | Fantastic at crushing ice, very convenient, great value |
Cons | Blade showed signs of wear and tear | Pricey | Not the most convenient to use, expensive | No presets, digital timer | Motor felt underpowered for pureeing nut butter |
Bottom Line | We think it's hard to go wrong with this kitchen appliance if you want the best of the best for your blending needs | This product is one of the best blenders available, handling everything we threw at it | While this blender did match our award winners in terms of performance, it does retail for a price that is significantly higher | If you are shopping on a budget, it’s hard to go wrong with the Nutribullet ZNBF30400Z | If you are looking for a budget blender that makes fantastic frozen drinks and superb smoothies, look no further than the Ninja |
Rating Categories | Cuisinart... | Vitamix A2500... | Vitamix Pro 750 | NutriBullet... | Ninja Chef... |
Smoothies (30%) | |||||
Ice (20%) | |||||
Convenience (20%) | |||||
Pureeing (15%) | |||||
Grinding (15%) | |||||
Specs | Cuisinart... | Vitamix A2500... | Vitamix Pro 750 | NutriBullet... | Ninja Chef... |
Model Number | CBT-2000 | A2500 | 750 | ZNBF30400Z | CT805, CT810, CT815 |
Power | Peak 3.5 HP | Peak 2.2 HP | Peak 2.2 HP | 1.6 HP | Peak 2 HP |
DImensions | 10.05" x 8.50" x 17.55" | 11" x 8" x 17" | 17.5" x 9.4" x 7.7" | 16.5" x 9.8" x 7.5" | 17.99" x 9.72" x 8.46" |
Jar size | 64 oz | 64 oz | 64 oz | 64 oz | 72 oz (64 oz max liquid capacity) |
Dishwasher safe | Yes | Yes | No | Pitcher; top rack only | Yes |
Accessories | None | Tamper | Tamper | Tamper | Tamper |
Digital Timer | Yes | Yes | Yes | No | Yes |
Presets | Yes,
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Yes, 3
|
Yes, 5
|
None | Yes, 10
|
Our Analysis and Test Results
Delivering a comparable performance to the Cuisinart, both the Vitamix A2500 Ascent Series and the Vitamix Pro 750 tied for the top score overall. The A2500 is a little more expensive, but held up very well to our grueling testing process, showing no signs of wear. The Pro 750 scored very well, but it is a bit on the pricey side.
Performance Comparison
To determine which blender is truly the best of them all, we bought the top models available on the market today and tested them head-to-head. We conducted over a dozen different assessments for each product, grouped among five weighted metrics: Smoothies, Ice, Convenience, Pureeing, and Grinding.
Smoothies
Earning the most weight out of any of our rating metrics, the set of tests comprising our Smoothie metric take credit for 30% of the total score. We ranked and compared the performance of each blender at making a green smoothie, fruit and oat smoothie, and a berry smoothie, as well as an Oreo malt. The Cuisinart performed exceptionally well.
The Hurricane started off with an excellent performance in our green smoothie test. We used the "Green Smoothie" preset which ran the blender for 1:30.
This smoothie was exceptionally smooth, almost completely passing through the sieve without any issue.
The Hurricane Pro continued its stellar performance into our Oreo malt test, creating an awesome malt when we followed the manufacturer's instructions and didn't even require any intervention on our part to stop and scrape the inside of the pitcher. This model did continue into the berry smoothie assessment with a strong performance, but it was surpassed by all three Vitamix blenders.
We used the "Fruit Smoothie" setting, which ran the Hurricane for about 45 seconds.
The smoothie was well-blended, but there were still some berry seeds that did not get pulverized which got caught in the sieve.
The Cuisinart finished out our test with a good showing in our fruit and oat smoothie. This is a difficult recipe, as it only has strawberries, bananas, almonds, yogurt, oats, and maple syrup in it — not a huge amount of liquid.
The finished product was drinkable, but still thicker than the smoothie made by the Vitamix 5200.
Ice
Ranking next in terms of importance, our Ice metric takes responsibility for 20% of the total score and was one of our favorites to test. This metric consisted of two tests: crushing ice only and blending a margarita. The Cuisinart crushed it, earning the highest score possible and tying with a few other models.
We followed the manufacturer's directions for crushing ice and the Hurricane Pro rose to the occasion. This blender crushed all of the ice without difficulty and didn't even require us to use the "Pulse" function. This appliance also produced a stunning blended margarita that was extremely well-blended and incredibly smooth. To do this, we ran the blender at speed 10 for 45-90 seconds, per the instructions.
Convenience
On par with our Ice metric, our Convenience metric is also responsible for 20% of the overall score. We rated each product if it is dishwasher-safe, if the pitcher could adequately dry when placed on the motor base, whether or not each appliance has a digital timer or preset functions, and their labeling, as well as the difficulty in washing the components by hand and removing the lid. The Cuisinart again scored very well, tying for the top spot.
The Cuisinart is all set for the dishwasher, with the pitcher, blades, and lid all completely fine being put in the dishwasher. The pitcher is large enough to wash easily by hand and can be placed back on the base to dry. This model has a digital timer and a handful of presets, like Clean, Soup, Smoothies, and Ice Crush. You also have the option of selecting Fruit or Green for the smoothie preset. The presets are clearly labeled and easy to understand.
The lid seals well, so it can be a little difficult to remove and this blender is relatively quiet, measuring in at 83.5 dba on our meter.
Pureeing
Our next metric takes credit for 15% of the total, with the score for each product based on how well it made nut butter, and pureed tomato soup, as well as if the blender could actually heat the soup. The Hurricane Pro did quite well, earning another perfect score of 10 out of 10, tying for the best performance with a few others.
The Hurricane did extremely well in our nut butter test, creating a nice and creamy spread after about 8 minutes of blending. We used a pound of almonds and honey roasted peanuts, as well as some oil for our recipe. This blender also made quick work of our tomato soup, creating a silky-smooth soup that poured right through our sieve.
The Hurricane also heated up the soup more than enough, ending at 150°F after 6 minutes of blending.
This model also doesn't leak when filled to its maximum fill line, holding 8 cups of water without issue.
Grinding
Taking credit for the remaining 15% of the overall score, our Grinding metric consisted of three tests. We ground corn meal from popcorn, made powdered sugar, and grated parmesan cheese. The Hurricane finished out our review with a solid performance, earning an 8 out of 10 for its showing.
Following the manufacturer's directions for making powdered sugar yielded poor results, but the Hurricane actually made excellent powdered sugar when it was given some additional time.
The Hurricane delivered one of the best performances of the entire group, creating finely ground parmesan cheese, similar to what you would find in a shaker in a pizza parlor. This blender also did very well in our cornmeal test, grinding the popcorn into a flour so fine that 95% of it passed through our sieve without issue.
Value
While the Hurricane Pro isn't an exceptionally great value, it is still a decent one for a premium blender, costing significantly less than the other Editors' Choice award winner, the Vitamix A2500 Ascent.
Conclusion
Earning one of the top scores of the entire group, the Cuisinart Hurricane Pro is undeniably a phenomenal blender that won't disappoint. It makes excellent smoothies, purees well, and makes a magnificent margarita. Our only reservation is the wear and tear that this model exhibited at the conclusion of our testing, which shouldn't be a huge problem if you are not crushing ice, grinding nut butter, or grating parmesan cheese on an extremely frequent basis.
— David Wise and Austin Palmer