12 Surprising Ways to Use Your Food Processor

It's a time-saving, money-saving kitchen workhorse.

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Published on January 25, 2021

A food processor is more than a blender on steroids; it's a game-changing appliance that can cut your kitchen workload as quickly and easily as it cuts through...anything, really. Nicole McLaughlin, aka NicoleMcmom, is here to show you ways to use it that you might not have thought of.

1. Grinding Meat

Homemade Paleo-Style Breakfast Sausage — Photo by lutzflcat.

Make your own ground meats for burgers, meatballs, sausage patties, etc.

Buy cuts of meat when they're on sale and grind them yourself in your food processor.
To make grinding easier, cut the meats — beef, pork, turkey, or chicken — into 1½-inch chunks and freeze for 30 minutes before grinding them with the "S" blade.
Use the Pulse button in quick bursts until the meat is minced close to the way you like. Add seasonings and finish pulsing.
In the video above, Nicole demonstrates grinding meat with a food processor using this recipe for Homemade Paleo-Style Breakfast Sausage

2. Churn Butter

You only need one ingredient to make the freshest butter you've ever tasted. Well, two if you add optional salt.

Pour heavy cream into your food processor fitted with the "S" blade (no, you can't use half-and-half). Add an optional pinch of salt, and let 'er rip! The food processor separates the butter fat from the liquid in about 10 minutes.
Strain out the liquid through a fine-mesh strainer lined with paper towels or cheesecloth.
Some home cooks like to save the liquid to add to baked goods instead of water.

3. Big Batch Mixing

If you have a recipe with a lot of ingredients that need do be chopped up and mixed together, your food processor can slash your total prep time. Nicole shows you how with this recipe for Sausage and Egg Casserole.

4. Salsa

A small glass bowl of tomato-based salsa garnished with cilantro, on a plate with tortilla chips — Rock_lobster

For best results, chop ingredients into large chunks before adding them to your food processor. Give it a try with this 5-star recipe for D's Famous Salsa. Nicole says once you've made your own homemade salsa, you'll never go back to store-bought.

5. Emulsified Sauces

Whip up the smoothest, silkiest, creamiest Hollandaise sauce or mayonnaise in a flash. (Nicole goes one step further and turns homemade mayonnaise into ranch dressing.)

6. Pie Dough

Slash the time it takes to cut butter into flour to make homemade pie crusts. Give this recipe for Flaky Food Processor Pie Crust a spin.

7. Bread Dough

Wait, what? Yes, you can prep bread dough in your food processor. Give this recipe a try: Rich White Bread. No need to knead, because the food processor takes care of that step, too.

8. Nut Butter & Flour

Love fresh nut butters but don't love the price? Use your food processor to make your own peanut butter, almond butter, and more.
Make your own alternative flours for a whole lot less. Simply use your food processor to grind up oats or other grains, almonds, or other nuts, seeds, or legumes.

9. Cauliflower & Broccoli Rice

Lime Cilantro Cauliflower Rice — Allrecipes Magazine

Pulse raw cauliflower or broccoli chunks in your food processor to make a nutritious, low-carb alternative to rice. Just be sure you don't over-process the vegetables or else you'll turn them into purée. Browse recipes for Cauliflower Rice.

10. Shaved Ice

Blitz a few ice cubes and top with flavored syrups for a quick and easy summertime treat.

11. Nice Cream

Dairy-free frozen desserts are yours in minutes with these recipes for "nice cream" made of vegan-friendly ingredients like nuts, fruits, and plant-based milks.

12. Shaved & Sliced Vegetables

Finally, Nicole likes to use the slicer/shredder disc to make mounds of sliced or shredded vegetables or cheese in a fraction of the time it would take to do by hand.