Presto Salad Shooter Vs Professional

One of my favorite small appliances stopped working last week after decades of service. My faithful Presto Salad Shooter had shredded its last carrot. I felt as if I had lost an old friend.

I didn’t realize how much I relied on it until it was gone.

I couldn’t imagine preparing summer salads or winter soups without it, or the mountains of shredded cheese it had handled over the years for pizzas and macaroni and cheese. Larger appliances can do the work, but the Salad Shooter was always easier to pull out and use.

I always loved my Salad Shooter, but I have a new appreciation for it now that I’m older. With the arthritis in my hands getting worse, I can’t imagine chopping all the vegetables we eat with a knife. If there ever was a kitchen tool that quietly made healthy eating easier for me, this was it.

Presto Salad Shooter

Replacing an old favorite

As luck would have it, and with my birthday around the corner, my husband ordered a new Salad Shooter  for me, and it arrived within the week. The updated model was a bit sleeker and came with both a slicer cone and a larger shredder cone.

The main difference I noticed right away was that the cord is now attached. On my original model, the cord plugged into the base as well as the wall outlet. It’s a small change, but one I had to adjust to.

Trying the Professional Salad Shooter

After hearing that my original Salad Shooter had finally given up, my daughter also ordered a replacement — the Presto Professional Salad Shooter in black. As much as I loved my original machine, I was curious whether the Professional version would make the same tasks feel manageable, or if it would be more than I needed.

The first thing I noticed was the size of the box. The Professional model comes in a much larger package to accommodate the bigger machine and its additional accessories.

For those who like details …

Presto Salad Shooter Vs Professional

	Salad Shooter Model  # 02910	Professional Salad Shooter Model  # 02970
Dimensions	9.5”H x 7”W	12” H x 8.5”W
Motorized Base	120 VAC 60 HZ .85 AMPS	120 VAC 60 HZ 1.0 AMPS
Food Chamber	Opaque Food Chamber and Chute	Clear Food Chamber and Chute
Food Guide	Non Adjustable	Adjustable Food Guide (Large and Small Sizes)
Funnel Guide	Not Included	Included
Included Cones	Slicing Cone Shredding Cone	Super Thick Shred Cone (Black) Medium Shred Cone (Gray) Thick Slice Cone (White) Ripple Slice Cone (Green)
Also Included	Twist Lock Ring	Twist Lock Ring Funnel Guide
Extra Cones Available	Fine Shred Cone Super Shred Cone Ripple Slice Cone	Fine Shred Cone Thin Slice Cone
Do Not Shred or Slice	Ice or  Coffee Beans (may damage the unit)	Ice or  Coffee Beans (may damage the unit)

Using both machines

Both machines are “point and shoot.” You load the food chamber, aim the chute where you want the slices or shreds to land, and turn it on using the switch on the handle. Press down on the food guide, and the food comes out the front of the chute.

The biggest difference I noticed right away was capacity. The food chamber and chute on the Professional Salad Shooter are larger and hold more food. I could fit more carrots at once and even half of a zucchini, compared to only a quarter of the zucchini in the smaller model.

Power was another noticeable difference. The Professional Salad Shooter sliced through celery stalks and red onions easily. My smaller Salad Shooter sometimes struggled with stringy celery and produced uneven onion slices.

The Professional model also has an adjustable food guide that accommodates smaller quantities of food, which I found helpful.

 

VIDEO: Presto Salad Shooter Vs Professional

 

Extras and cleaning

The Professional Salad Shooter comes with a funnel guide to help direct the food more precisely. Occasionally food builds up inside it, but it’s easy to remove and empty into a bowl.

It also includes more cones for different slicing and shredding options.

The smaller Salad Shooter comes with two Cones: a Slicing Cone and a Shredding Cone. The Professional Salad Shooter comes with four Cones: Super Thick Shred Cone (Black), Medium Shred Cone (Gray), Thick Slice Cone (White), and a Ripple Slice Cone (Green).

While I didn’t need every attachment, having options was useful depending on what I was preparing.

It’s important to note that the cones are not interchangeable between machines. The Professional Salad Shooter cones are larger to fit its larger capacity Food Chute.

Although the attachments are dishwasher safe, we usually hand wash them. The blades are sharp, so we use a bottle brush for safety. The motor base just needs a wipe with a damp cloth.

VIDEO: Unboxing the Professional Salad Shooter

 

What made the difference for me

My new Professional Salad Shooter now occupies the counter space my old one used for decades. I felt a bit disloyal at first — that original machine served me well for a very long time.

In the end, the extra power and larger capacity mattered more to me than the increased size. Tasks that had started to feel tiring felt manageable again.

Just the other night, I found a partial cabbage in the refrigerator along with carrots and onions already prepped. I ran them through the Professional Salad Shooter, and within minutes, coleslaw was ready for supper.

It reminded me that with the right tools, food prep is still something I can manage — even with some of aging’s discomforts.

If you’re curious how this tool handled other tasks:

Can the Professional Salad Shooter Slice Sweet Potatoes?

Easiest Way to Make Cauliflower Rice – You’ll Love This

Just as shredding vegetables has started to require different tools, I noticed the same shift when juicing citrus, which I wrote about in Cuisinart Citrus Juicer Provides Relief for Aging Hands.

 

VIDEO: Unboxing the Professional Salad Shooter