Which appliance is better for making food perfectly smooth? Brand recommendations would be good too.
Also, any ideas on foods that taste fine mushed up? All vegetables, fruits and soups should. Sandwiches are out. For example, Thanksgiving stuffing/dressing is normally soft. What are some other foods suitable for side dishes or main dishes that are naturally puree-like?
Well, nothing beats a Vita-Mix for pureeing anything and everything. Try to ignore the Roncoesque marketing stuff. This product is very highly regarded and it really works as described.
In general, blenders will puree things smoother than food processors. On the other hand, food processors are better at breaking down “tough” food than most blenders (the above mentioned Vita-Mix being an exception). But you’ll never get perfectly smooth from a food processor.
Check out the recipe page on that Vita-Mix link; there’s all kinds of idea.
Thanks Athena.
My food processor can pulp a potato, a task no blender I’ve ever met can accomplish. However, it does leave the odd chunk of solid potato behind, so I guess in general I agree with Athena. For pulping relatively tough foods, a FP is best. For making squishy stuff uniform, a blender.
Baked, mashed, sweet potato – yum.
Baked, mashed, Butternut squash – you can buy it precooked and frozen, or bake it yourself and mash with a fork.
Creamed spinach – again buy it premade and frozen, or make it yourself from a block of cooked frozen spinach.
Rice pudding – has a fair amount of protein for a squishy food. I guess it is more of a dessert.