Food Processors, Juicers and Blenders – What’s the Difference?

Pros of a Food Processor:

• Quick: if you love to cook meals from scratch, then you will certainly benefit from a food processor. It cuts down on food preparation time so you can just throw the raw ingredients together in the pan and blend up delicious sauces and flavorsome pastes in just a few minutes.
• Uniform chopping and slicing: If you’re one for food aesthetics, then the uniform way a food processor chops your vegetables and salad will be appealing.
• Healthier: Using a food processor means quicker food preparation, which in turn means you’re more likely to cook healthy home-made meals. If you’re trying to cut down on your carb intake for health reasons, then it is also handy to have a device to easily rice cauliflower and broccoli for regular rice substitutes.
• Great for amateurs: Whether you are a college student starting to cook for yourself or a budding food adventurer, your cooking journey will be made easier with a food processor by your side. Instead of learning to chop and dice efficiently by hand, a food processor will do the hard work for you.
• Multi-purpose: A food processor is extremely versatile and can make a wide array of dishes extremely easy for you to cook. Many models come with a range of blades which can be replaced for different styles of chopping and blending.

To summarize, food processors are versatile appliances that can be used for a variety of kitchen activities. You can chop salads, blend chunky soups or doughs, and prep base sauces and pastes for a variety of different dishes with ease. Unfortunately, however, if you prefer soups and sauces with a smoother consistency, you will struggle to get the results you’re after with a food processor.

Best Uses for a Juicer

Juicers are best used for juicing fruit and vegetables. They cannot be used to make smoothies, pastes, or chunky soups. If you’re looking to increase your vitamin and mineral intake without eating more food, then a juicer will surely help you achieve this. Thus, if making juice is primarily what you want to do with your new kitchen appliance, this is the one to go for. While it’s true that a blender could be used to achieve similar results by finely straining the resulting liquid, this is undoubtedly time consuming and messy. As always, it is better to have a dedicated appliance for the job if it’s something you want to do on a regular basis.

Cons of Juicers:

• Food Waste: unfortunately, there is a lot of waste created when juicing fruit and vegetables. This is especially true for centrifugal juicers since there is lots of pulp left at the end of the juice-making process. Unless you are able to compost or find another use for the waste, some may find this difficult to justify.
• Removes Fiber: Fiber is essential for a healthy body. Unlike blenders or food processors, juicers remove all the pulp from fruits and vegetables, so there is very little fiber in the resulting juice. Depending on your personal eating habits, this may mean you’ll need to compensate for the lack of fiber in your day-to-day diet to stay healthy.
• Difficult to Clean: Juicers are one of those gadgets that can be easy to use but difficult to clean. The various blades and grating mechanisms are very fine, and it can be difficult to get fruit and vegetable residue out of them in a non time-consuming way. If you are planning to use a juicer often, you should be prepared to spend a significant amount of time cleaning it.
• Large: Juicers are generally large and bulky appliances. Therefore, they can be awkward to store, especially if you are short of space in your kitchen.

Blenders

How a Blender Works

A blender usually has an upright and narrow jug with a small fixed blade in the bottom center. They tend to come with powerful motors that are designed to pulse coarse and tough food into smoother pastes and blends. Most have a high volume capacity and can easily blend up a generous portion of roasted vegetables into a smooth aromatic soup for the family’s dinner time. Blenders are highly versatile as well and can be adapted to perform tasks similar to food processors.

Best Uses for Blenders

Blenders are best used for making soups, sauces, smoothies, and baby food. You can add a large volume of cooked or raw produce, and with a sufficient amount of added liquid, turn it into a smooth and palatable blend. The jug design makes it easy to pour contents out straight into a glass or bowl with little mess.

Benefits of Blenders:

• Quick: blending is incredibly quick. You can throw in whatever you want with a sufficient amount of liquid, and a few pulses will give you results
• Filling: Compared to juicers, using a blender to create fruit and vegetable smoothies provides thicker results which will keep you fuller for longer.
• Less Waste: Since the pulp is absorbed in the liquid, there is no food waste like there is when juicing
• Create Delicious Pastes and Soups: Blenders can create the smoothest of soups, curry pastes, and baby food.
• Versatile: Blenders are the most versatile of the three gadgets in question. You can mince fruit and vegetables in it similar to a food processor, or with a fine net, it is possible to sieve any blended cocktail for a smooth and fine juice.
• Easy to Clean: With essentially just one jug with a fixed blade, blenders are very easy to clean and store away after use. You can simply fill with warm water and some dish soap, run the blades for a few moments, and rinse.

Blenders are incredibly versatile and can be used for a variety of different purposes. They can make you anything from smoothies to soups and can blend or chop up the toughest of ingredients. There is a vast variety of blenders on the market to suit every budget. You can also use a blender along with fine mesh to give yourself juicer-like results. They are easy to clean and produce no waste. Unfortunately, some lower-powered blenders may take longer to provide super-smooth consistencies, and the height of many units can make them difficult to store.

Final Thoughts

Food processors, juicers and blenders are all smart appliances which help make modern cooking and food preparation easy. Food processors can go a long way to cut out time spent on chopping and dicing. They are a versatile gadget that will suit those who like to make meals from scratch. A juicer, on the other hand, may not feel necessary; however, it is a great investment for the health conscious individual. Juicers will help you to consume fruits and vegetables easily, without any fuss. Unfortunately, not only are they awkward to clean, but the food waste may also weigh on your conscience and they are very specifically for juicing.

A blender is probably the most versatile of the three gadgets. From smooth soups to sauces and smoothies, a blender is capable of performing many tasks. The vast variety available on the market means there’s an affordable choice for every price range, although cheaper and lower-powered options may struggle to produce smooth results quickly, and they are not able to create juices to the same quality as a juicer, even if the mixture is strained after blending.

We hope this guide has helped you to decide which appliance is best for your particular culinary needs. No matter which appliance you choose, we’re sure you’ll agree that each of these kitchen gadgets is worthy of a place in any modern kitchen.