I don’t know many home cooks outside of those who a lot of hunting who have a need for a standalone grinder Although these usually come with a wider assortment of plates and a bigger feed tube and screw shaft, the motor is only as good as the price you pay for it Cheaper models will work no better than stand mixer attachments, and more expensive models are only necessary if you plan on doing a whole lot of grinding I grind way more meat than the average cook, and my KitchenAid attachment has yet to fail me The one distinct advantage that stand-alone grinders have is that most of them have a reverse function—a real time-saver if you are trying to chop especially troublesome meat with lots of connective tissue that gets caught in the blade HOW TO GRIND IN A MEAT GRINDER Here are the basic steps: • Chill your grinder Place all the parts in the freezer until thoroughly chilled • Trim your meat Start with whole cuts and carefully trim them of any excess sinew A certain amount of fat is OK—even desirable—but make sure your ratio of fat to lean is on point I generally aim for around 20 percent fat to 80 percent lean, plus or minus to 10 percentage points, depending on the application Cut your meat into 1- to 2-inch cubes and chill them Keeping everything ice- • cold will make sure that the fat stays firm and easily choppable ...Here are the basic steps: • Chill your grinder Place all the parts in the freezer until thoroughly chilled • Trim your meat Start with whole cuts and carefully trim them of any excess sinew... 10 percentage points, depending on the application Cut your meat into 1- to 2-inch cubes and chill them Keeping everything ice- • cold will make sure that the fat stays firm and easily choppable