Food processors have many blades and attachments to perform various tasks. So, you can accomplish different things with this handy kitchen appliance.
You can use it to chop, slice or shred, mince, grate, puree, and pulverize ingredients. You can also prepare nut butter, dips, and condiments like mayonnaise and hummus with it.
Let’s take a closer look at the different things you can do with a food processor.
1. Chop Vegetables and Fruits
All food processors have an S-blade attachment. This attachment is mainly used for chopping ingredients.
It has two angled blades facing opposite directions, creating the iconic S-shape. This blade is designed to chop ingredients finely.
To use it, insert the blade into the bowl and lock it in position. Then, add the ingredients, close the lid, and run the processor on Low or Pulse mode.
Some of the ingredients that the S-blade will finely chop include:
- Vegetables for soups, curries, salads, and sauces,
- Nuts for garnishing desserts like cakes and puddings,
- Onions, leeks, and garlic for sauces.
2. Slice or Shred Ingredients
Apart from the S-blade, food processors have other blade attachments. These blades can cut vegetables or fruits in different shapes beside small cubes.
For instance, there is a slicing and shredding disc. It’s a reversible blade attachment that can shred a variety of ingredients. This includes lettuce, cabbage, carrots, and zucchini.
You can also use this disc to shred cheese for pizzas and other dishes. To make it work, insert the disc into the food processor with the raised side facing up.
Then, add the ingredients, lock the lid, and turn the food processor on.
3. Knead Dough
If you don’t have a stand mixer, you can use your food processor to knead the dough if it has a dough blade.
The dough blades are usually made of plastic. They have an empty slot in the center and dull, paddle-shaped edges.
The unique shape makes it possible to turn and pull dough without cutting. So it’s a useful attachment that you can use to make dough for pizza, bread, or pastries without having to knead the dough by hand.
To knead the dough using this attachment, place the dough blade on the base of the food process. Turn it around till it falls to the base of the adapter.
Fill the bowl with the ingredients for the dough, add the liquid, and pulse the switch. You will have to repeat the pulsing action several times to get the dough to come together.
4. Mince Meat
Grinding or mincing meat is a delicate process because of the texture of the ingredient. If you take it too far, the meat can end up becoming sticky and unsuitable for burgers and other dishes.
Most food processors come with a special attachment that finely minces and grinds meat.
The blade used for this task is very sharp. So the end texture of the meat is fine and well-chopped. With this attachment, you can skip buying a grinder.
The multi-purpose blade of a food processor will also help you to make finely minced meat for burgers, meatballs, and other meats.
The benefit of making your own minced meat is that it’s safer and generally more hygienic than when you get it done at a butcher’s.
5. Shred Vegetables
You can finely shred vegetables into tiny pieces for dishes like cauliflower rice using a food processor.
In this case, you can use a blade that can cut finely and shred the ingredients into very tiny pieces.
The same blade is also suitable for preparing breadcrumbs with toasted or unused bread.
By adjusting the blade and the processor setting, you can set the texture from coarse to superfine. The longer you pulse, the finer the crumbs will be.
You can even add herbs and spices into the mix for added flavor.
6. Puree Ingredients
Apart from chopping ingredients finely, you can also use the multi-purpose S-blade of a food processor to puree ingredients.
The process is simple. Set the S-blade in the bowl, add the ingredients, and secure the lid. Run the food processor on high till all the ingredients blend into a single, uniform mixture.
If the ingredients are hard and difficult to process, you may have to repeat the process a few times.
This method is good for preparing baby food in bulk. You can puree vegetables like carrots or fruits like bananas in large batches and freeze them for later use.
You can also use the same method to create purees for soups, stews, and a variety of other dishes.
7. Prepare Nut Butter
Nut butter, like almond butter and peanut butter, can be prepared in large batches in a food processor.
With the right mix of ingredients, these end up being healthier than the store-bought varieties.
To make nut butter, choose nuts or seeds that you like and place them in the food processor bowl. Add a small amount of water or oil as per your preference.
It will help to move the dry ingredients faster and puree them better. Then, secure the lid and pulse the food processor several times.
The nuts will be broken down, and they will blend with the liquid. If there are any chunks left, you can add a dash of extra water or liquid and pulse it again.
The consistency of the product will be smooth and easily spreadable.
8. Make Mayonnaise, Hummus, Salsa, and Other Sauces and Condiments
The traditional recipe for mayonnaise involves blending eggs with oil at a slow but consistent speed to get the desired texture.
A food processor simplifies this process. You can feed the oil into the mixture in batches by using the feeding chute to make smooth and creamy mayo.
You can also use a food processor to make other sauces. It’s a good appliance for whipping up hummus or pesto. You can also use it to make salad dressings.
To make mayonnaise, slowly add the oil to the egg mixture through the feeding chute while running the processor.
However, to make hummus or pesto, you can add all the ingredients into the bowl and process them together.
9. Grate Ingredients
The shredding disc in a food processor is also capable of grating ingredients. You can use it to grate vegetables like cabbage or carrot.
You can also use it to grate soft and hard cheese for different recipes. Or to shred potatoes for making hash browns.
Some food processors have separate discs for fine and large cuts. So you can fine-tune these for your recipes.
To grate ingredients, secure the shredding or grating disc before adding the ingredients to the bowl. Then, lock the lid and engage the shredding function.
In the case of a food processor with a feeding tube, you can insert the ingredient to be grated through the tube. The grated vegetable will collect in the bowl.
