Would a food processor save me time? What do you use yours for?

[Ophelia]

I hardly ever used to cook, like REALLY cook things from scratch. Now my diet has done nearly a 180 and I do a lot of cooking from scratch. One of the things that stresses me out the most is the time-consuming nature of it. I spend most of at least one weekend day, sometimes more, cooking for the week. I don't have a lot of time as it is, as my full time job requires about 12 hours a weekday from me (getting up/ready and getting home). I love that I'm giving DS and I a healthy diet, but very resentful that it takes so friggin' long. It takes precious time away from him. He's not quite old enough to really help with things either. DH will help if he happens to be there.

It's the prep work of veggies and things like that that kill me. Things I have been using lately in recipes:

onion
pepper
celery
potato
carrots
parsnip
more...

Basically anything that needs to be chopped, peeled, etc.

What can you do in a food processer and what can't you do?
And what brand would you suggest? I will check Consumer Reports but just some online searches show Cuisinart get high ratings. Of course would need to be easy to clean.

My main parts of the meals are veggies and beans, a little meat sometimes, and sometimes grains like rice or GF breads. DS cannot eat wheat, I can't eat wheat (for him) soy or nuts.
Thanks!

[staceychev]

You can chop things small like that in a food processor, but I don't. My knife skills are pretty good so it doesn't take much time at all to chop or dice onions and garlic. Anyway, I use my food processor make smooth things, like hummus, and to chop large quantities, like when I make cole slaw. I used to use it to puree soups, but I got an immersion blender for Christmas two years ago and use that now. I'm definitely glad I have it, but it's definitely not a staple for me.

[Ophelia]

Thanks! My knife skills are bad and after doing this for over a year, I don't see them getting any better. I forgot to mention I did get the Pampered Chef small chopper not long ago. It works, but I have to slam the plunger down so hard it hurts my hand. For example, I have to cut an onion into about 5-6 pieces, then slam each piece about 9 times to chop it.

Will it slice things too, like carrots and parsnips and celery?

[deditus]

I LOVE LOVE LOVE my Cuisinart. I actually am a chopper, too, for most veg prep, but I use my food processor for:
pesto
hummus
sweet potato pancakes gf recipe here: http://glutenfreegoddess.blogspot.co...with-ruby.html
coleslaw
sauerkraut
kimchi
carrot salad
chopping nuts or grinding to use as flour
I did watch my MIL use it last week to slice potatoes for au gratin potatoes and it made short work of that! I think it works best on firm or crisp veggies, so carrots, parsnips, potatoes, cabbage, celery, etc are good, but the time
I tried peppers it didn't work. You need to cut everything small enough so it fits in the tube.

[noobmom]

Well, you still have to peel things first, so that part won't be different.

Personally, unless I'm making something that requires a lot of thinly sliced veggies, like a gratin, or grated veggies, like carrot cake, the food processor doesn't save me time. Or, if I'm mincing a lot of veggies for some reason. But for anything that's a dice or bigger, I do by hand. I find it hard to just "chop" veggies in a food processor and I'm decently fast with knife.

I do use my food processor however, for the same things deditus listed. I have a Kitchen Aid one, pretty nice. For smaller amounts I use a mini chopper. You can get those for $30-50, you might want to try one of those first. I use that for mincing the onions/peppers for salsa, etc. if I'm feeling lazy and/or don't want feel the burn.

How old is your DS btw? My 2.5 yo can use a peeler. Okay, he tends to peel the same spot over and over, but he enjoys it and he's spending time in the kitchen with me. He also stirs things on the stove, cuts soft veggies or fruits, washes veggies, picks out bad beans and stones from the dried beans, stirs batters and spoons them into muffin tins. You might be surprised at what your DS can help with at his age.

[kjbrown92]

I have a Cuisinart mini prep food processor. So far, I tried it for onions, and it didn't work very well. But I started pureeing pine nuts in it for a ricotta-ish thing that someone linked me too, and now I use it 3-4 times a week just for that.

I have a mandoline, but I really only use that for sweet potato fries and sweet potato chips. Even for saurkraut I find it quicker to chop the cabbage, then to take out the food processor, cut it small enough to go in, then clean it all out.

However, when peppers are in season, I do get alot and chop them all up and freeze them, and they're perfect for chilis, omelettes, quiches, etc. Also, I'll get a big bag of Vidalia onions at Costco and I'll take a bunch of them and chop them and freeze them and again, use them for spaghetti sauce, chili, etc. anything that's cooked. And when I make stuff for salad, I chop enough for 3-4 days and keep it in a Ziploc in the fridge in the crisper drawer. Can you make some less labor intensive things to break it up so the prep isn't as long? Or make double batches of things and freeze one (like an eggplant parmesan type or chili dish)? We have a rice cooker, which cuts down on prep time (you can get them that have timers on them so it's ready when you get home) and it's easy to clean (I always make double, then make fried rice the next day with leftovers). Also, I use my slow cooker a lot so that I throw something in in the morning, and it's ready in the evening.

[crunchy_mama]

I use mine more for mixing things not usually not chopping so much, although sometimes I throw some onions in there- I use it for things like:
pine nut ricotta(like Kathy mentioned)
hummus
tahini sauce
date/nut treat mixes
curry paste(roasted spices- ginger- onion-garlic)

I don't generally use it for chopping veggies. It doesn't get the consistency that I like and after so much chopping I am pretty darn fast at it - a good knife helps immensely!

[tbone_kneegrabber]

we use to for pureeing mostly
tofu ricotta
bean pureee
bread crumbs

we don't have the shredding slicing part the food processor was used

if i did i would use when i made
potato pancakes
zucchini bread etc

i have also used it to make pizza dough and pie crust although i see you don't eat wheat

[kjbrown92]

The other thing is you can get a Kitchenaid mixer which is great for mixing GF bread dough or cookie dough, etc., and there are attachments for that like a slicer/shredder (or a sausage stuffer, etc.). I think that's the thing I use most in my kitchen.

[beanma]

Almost everything you mentioned can be prepped ahead except maybe potatoes. I often don't need a whole big onion, but I will go ahead and cut it all up and stick it in a glass jar in the fridge. Then next time I need onion it's right there and all ready. Saves a lot of time.

I, too, love my food processor, but I use it for things like hummus and pesto. It would be a huge pain to make those w/o a food processor so I'm definitely glad to have it. I usually make hummus every week or two.

[Fujiko]

Honestly by and far the main thing I use mine for is shredding bricks of cheese (which are cheaper, at least where I shop). It's soooo much easier than doing it by hand. My knife skills are pretty good, and washing the food processor is a PITA so I only use it when it would really be beneficial.

[katiesk]

i don't have one...but if i did have one (and i kinda wish i did!) i would use it for: hummus which i currently make with a fork. black bean dip, which also gets mashed with a fork. pastry crust, babaganouj, pesto...i can't think of what else right now. but lots of things. i would love one. however, i do just fine without one...

[Ophelia]

Thanks! Well, I don't make pesto or hummus and don't see myself doing so anytime soon. As mentioned, I also dont' see myself getting quick with the knife.
I have thought about preparing ingredients ahead of time and freezing for later use, but can't come up with when I would actually have time to do that.
What is worse, 3-5 hours spend on a weekend cooking, or literally having a whole weekend gone 1-2 times per month just to prep food and cook? I'm not sure. DH is starting to eat some of the bean dishes (chili and baked beans) so I'm having to double and triple recipes so it takes even longer now.
The kitchenaid mixer sounds interesting, I'll have to check into that too.

[cristeen]

Originally Posted by Ophelia

Thanks! Well, I don't make pesto or hummus and don't see myself doing so anytime soon. As mentioned, I also dont' see myself getting quick with the knife.

I'd recommend looking around and spending a couple bucks on a knife skills class. I think that would probably serve you better. I'd also probably recommend investing in a really good knife - it can make a HUGE difference.

Personally, I love my FP, but really it only gets used for a few things. Mayo being the big one, since I make my own. Pesto when basil is in season. Any spice rubs that use fresh herbs, that kind of thing.

Everything else gets done either by hand or I have a Feemster's Slicer, which you might find helpful. It's kind of like a mandolin, but it has more versatility in terms of width of slices. It's great for slicing or making julienne (like french fries). This is what I pull out when I want uniform slices or if I have a lot of something to slice. The only thing it doesn't really work well on is onions. It does not chop, though.

[Ophelia]

Thank you! I never heard of a knife skill class. I live in a large metro area but have never seen them offered, only cooking classes. I will have to look. Thanks!

[WeasleyMum]

Like most of the PPs, I use my food processor mostly for pureeing-- yogurt/fruit breakfast smoothies, pesto, making breadcrumbs, etc-- and shredding, like potatoes for latkes. Honestly, while it does make some tasks a lot easier, I could get by without it. My knife skills are about average, but it's still faster and simpler to just cut up most stuff by hand.