food processor... do you use one

[Anonymous]

MIL gave me a nice food processor for Christmas and it's still in the box. I've never used one and am not sure I can afford the storage/counter space to incorporate it into my regular kitchen routines.
Should I try it? What are the best uses for it? I do cook a lot.

[Anonymous]

This was an item I had on my list for when I have a bigger kitchen. I love having it but managed for 17 years without it. Now that I do have space for it what it gets used the most for is: making cookie crumbs at the holidays, making pesto in the summer, shredding large quantities of zucchini and making pasta dough.

[Anonymous]

I have one and have used it once. I'm terrified of the blade, and it is too big of a pain to use.

[Anonymous]

Hmm still have mine sitting in the box, unused from my wedding 20 years ago. I don’t cook though.

[Anonymous]

Are use mine all the time. Aesthetically, I like to hand, cut and dice my vegetables. But a lot of that goes out the window when I’m in a rush and need to get food on the table fast. It takes no time at all with the food processor. Are used it yesterday for shredding carrots and cabbage. I also use it for quickly mixing pie crust and scone dough. I could list all of the ways to use it. For me it is a good tool.

[Anonymous]

We have one that we use but not everyday. We keep it in a cabinet (with pullout shelves) instead of on the counter

[Anonymous]

I use mine for: hummus, pesto, soups, smoothies, homemade popsicles, etc. I think if I had a blender it would be redundant? But it’s good for all my blending needs so I don’t have a blender.

[Anonymous]

I use mine to make salsa, tomato sauce, hummus, felafel, and tahini sauce, and to shred cheese and carrots. I use it probably once a week or every other week.

[Anonymous]

We use ours a lot. Some uses:

- Dough blade for certain bread and cookie recipes -- works better than stand mixer depending on the dough. Especially good for pizza dough, which we make 2-3x a month.
- Chop vegetables for soups and stews when I need a certain consistency before I add them. Especially good for tomatoes, squash, and other veggies where I want to retain the juices.
- Large batch sauces and dressings, stuff like pesto or tahini. If we're just making a little, we'll do it in a cup with the immersion blender. But if I'm making a bunch to store in the freezer, can't beat the food processor.

I feel like we use it about once a week. Definitely frequent enough to keep it on the counter. It gets more use than the stand mixer except during the winter holidays when I bake a lot and really put the stand mixer through it's paces. But I also use the food processor more that time of year.

[Anonymous]

Pizza dough, pesto, various sauces, making breadcrumbs, shredding vegetables

I probably use it 3-4 per week.

[Anonymous]

My husband and I resisted one for years but I now use mine pretty much every day for chopping/shredding vegetables. We also make sauces and dressings, hummus, nut butters, and popsicles.

[Anonymous]

PP how do you make popsicles using it?

[Anonymous]

I use mine pretty frequently, mostly to make pesto, salsa, laksa paste (Malaysian curry), and chimichurri.

[Anonymous]

Mine stays in a cabinet, but when I use that mofo I'm efficient.
I

chop onions and freeze for meatballs, meatloaf
chop zucchini for muffins
take stale frozen bread and make breadcrumbs and freeze (for meatloaf)
get blocks of cheese and shred myself and freeze so that I don't have that nasty shredded cheese powder

That's about it. Sometimes I make hummus, tapenade and my own spicy ghouj sauce with peppers, etc.

Then I clean it and put it away for 2 months.

[Anonymous]

I use mine about every two months. But I love it for certain recipes that require a lot of dicing. Ex. Cajun recipes that all start with the “Holy Trinity” are much faster with the food processor.