What Is A Food Processor Used For?

Food processors are an extremely versatile tool for all home chefs. Its main uses are to chop, puree, mix, blend, slice, and knead dough. Some models are better suited for more complex kitchen situations than others. The food processor’s origin story starts with a professional American and French chef named Carl Sontheimer. After years of working in French kitchens, he wanted to somehow bring French industrial mixers into the American home. 

These industrial mixers were a vital tool in the repertoire of the French chef. Carl decided that the home chef could benefit significantly from them. He made it his mission to create a compact gadget that replicated the utility of the mixers. Thus, the food processor was born.

He designed a tool that used multipurpose blade sets to do the hard work of chopping, mixing, dicing, and pureeing. You can imagine how much harder life was without this portable miracle machine. Nowadays, there are many food processors on the market that it can be hard to choose one. Let’s run down some of the differences between professional-grade and consumer-grade food processors; then we will look at what you can do with them.

The Differences Between Professional Grade and Consumer Food Processors

Professional-grade food processors like this Robot Coupe R402 are available for purchase with free shipping on our site. Two things that make them professional-grade are: power and utility. Cuisinart is the home of Carl’s first food processor, and they are great devices. Something like the Robot Coupe though is of a professional grade. Within its compact design, it houses a larger motor, hence the power part in power and utility. As for utility, the Robot Coupe comes equipped with many blades, making it the optimal choice for a professional kitchen that needs to utilize different tools. Therefore, power and utility make the Robot Coupe a more versatile choice for a pro or home kitchen setting.

What Can You Do With a Food Processor?

Food processors are versatile. You can do pretty much anything with a modern-day, compact industrial food processor. We’ve gone over the main difference between your average food processor and one made for professional kitchens, now let’s look into some uses that the pros have for one. 

Chop

The most common use for a food processor is chopping. When you’re making soups on a large or small scale, chopping is tedious. What pros do is equip the standard blade of the food processor and start chopping their mirepoix. Mirepoix, for the uninitiated, is the vegetable base for the soup. This usually includes garlic, onion, celery, and carrot. The food processor has become the industry standard for chefs making a soup du jour every week.

Besides soups, you can chop nuts for desserts or a lovely pesto. Think about how much time will save making your favorite fudge walnut brownies when the walnuts practically chop themselves. Pesto sauce is even easier now that your roasted pine nuts don’t have to be finely chopped with a steady hand or mortar and pestle.

Puree

Hummus is everyone’s favorite puree. Historically hummus was crafted artisanally with mortar, pestle, and cold water. Now even the standard blade on most food processors can handle the hard work. Pureeing is made more accessible than ever, as your warm chickpeas will be smashed and ready for the dinner party within minutes. Maybe hummus is not your thing, and you prefer a good sandwich. Homemade mayonnaise is the key to the best-tasting submarine sandwich you’ve ever had. To make it, simply add eggs, oil, lemon juice, and whatever herbs you think will spice things up. Another not so well known use for a food processor is for baby food. You can roast vegetables for your toddler which is a healthier alternative compared to canned baby purees. This vegetable hack works for others too. For example, if you’ve just had tooth surgery and need to consume something nutritious and soft, then a puree can do wonders.

Mix and Blend

Salad dressings can be bland when you get them in a bottle. A food processor ups your salad dressings to a whole new level. It is no wonder that most restaurants purchase food processors for the utility they hold in making house dressings. So if you have a recipe you want to try, or you’re just trying to spice up that lettuce blend, a food processor is most likely your go-to. 

Slicing

Slicing is hard when you have to be uniform - if you’re a sous chef or a line cook tasked with slicing an entire day’s worth of vegetables, the first thing you are reaching for is your food processor. If you’re a home cook, slicing is as tedious as in the restaurant. Again, the slicing utility can greatly benefit your salad game.

Dough Making

With the right food processor, anything is possible, even kneading dough. Chefs with house-made bread on the menu but no stand mixer in house, usually reach for their food processor. You too can reach for a food processor if you have the right one in your home. The process is simple, slowly add the ingredients into the processor allowing time for simulated hand mixing to occur, then finish up by kneading the dough for a few more minutes. This means no more sticky hands and no more of that awful feeling of flour in your nails. 

Conclusion

We’ve gone over the humble beginnings of the food processor. It was all started by a chef with one simple desire, bringing professional tools to home kitchens. We’ve also gone over the many uses of professional-grade food processors. Now all that’s left is for you to brighten up your recipes and the smiles of those tasting your food. Also, if you want a deeper look at what we at American Chef Supply offer, check out our product page. We’ve designed it from the ground up to accommodate pros and home chefs alike. Remember, unlike other chef supply chains, what you see in stock on our website, is actually in stock. You can also contact us at (818) 242-5252 with any and all questions about your new food processor.

Also Read: Top Must-Have Equipment for Starting a Restaurant