The Cook’s Kitchen

I’m an interesting breed of man: I certainly share a love of power tools (and I use my trusty power drill whenever I get the chance), but I get a certain satisfaction from my kitchen tools that power tools just don’t provide.

For instance, there is something intensely satisfying about cutting butter into flour with my pastry blender, or pulverizing some garbanzo beans into a delightful hummus in my food processor. At some point, I’d like to get an immersion blender, and maybe a meat grinder for my KitchenAid (imagine: homemade sausage!).
So, it should come as no surprise that for a gift recently, my sister-in-law (right) decided it would be a fantastic idea to get me a potato ricer. She was brimming with excitement as she gave me this awkwardly wrapped package, and she (and the family) couldn’t wait to see what I would make with it.

So what, exactly, does one look like? Like, a big, gigantic garlic press:

What differentiates this from a masher are the little holes that provide a more consistent texture. However, the holes are large enough that there is more variety in texture than when using a food mill. You don’t have to use it for just potatoes, either — try it out with parsnips, sweet potatoes, carrots, or even a rutabaga.

I’m still trying to figure out all the fantastic uses for this kitchen contraption. However, I can attest that it makes a makes a mean batch of roasted red pepper mashed potatoes (my take, here). One thing it does not do, however, is mash raw garlic — you better stick to real garlic press for that.