The Most Important Tool You Can Have In Your Kitchen

Kitchen cookware is a multi-billion dollar industry. Willams-Sonoma, Viking and other cookware providers try to sell people on a lot of must-have items. Most of these items would never find their way into a commercial kitchen, but there is one item that is in almost every commercial kitchen, and it is something I highly suggest everyone have in order to save themselves time and money.
The accessory I am talking about is a food processor. A food processor has a very complex-sounding name, but what it does is simple. It’s like a blender, but it has many more uses than a blender. You can purchase a food processor from a number of places, and there are a lot to choose from. I have a Cuisinart, and though I don’t necessarily think you must get a Cusinart, you should get one from a reputable, well-known company such as KitchenAid, Waring or Robot Coupe. All of them should be up for the task. I do suggest that you get at least an 8-quart or larger. Most of the smaller ones are too small to do anything effectively. An 8-quart processor is big enough to make a lot of things easier, and you are guaranteed to be getting a processor with a large motor.
I know a lot of people who have received food processors as wedding gifts and shoved them in a cabinet, never to be used. I say to those people, “Get out your food processor!” Once you take a look at all the cool things it is capable of, you will leave it on your countertop to use daily.
So what can a food processor do?
A food processor can slice, chop, mix, and blend anything. Food processors come with loads of attachments to do everything from mixing dough for homemade bread to juicing citrus. They can make homemade dressings, dips, and sauces a breeze. Having to finely chop things like garlic and herbs is no fun. I simply throw whole cloves in the processor and turn it on. Making homemade salsa is a breeze. A food processor can shred a block of cheese in three seconds. Never having to buy shredded cheese is a beautiful thing. You don’t have to worry about consuming the anti-caking preservatives, and you never have to wear out your hands shredding cheese again. I also make my own peanut butter- nothing but peanuts.
Good, fresh, simple ingredients are the key to great food, and food processors help you stay away from fillers, additives and preservatives. Buying a bunch of cilantro for seventy-cents and running it through the processor is much cheaper, better tasting, and better for you, than purchasing a tube of pre-chopped cilantro that is full of preservatives and oil.
I suggest everyone get a food processor for their kitchen. I find it as important as a stovetop.