I bought a ricer so I ccould make Spätzle. Apparently, the actual purpose is to ‘rice’ potatoes. OK. Why would I want to ‘rice’ potatoes? And what else can I use this gadget for? (I suppose if I found some really humongous garlic…)
You can make gnocchi with riced potatoes.
If you’re like me and prefer your mashed potatoes without lumps, you can put the cooked potatoes through the ricer before you add the butter and milk.
It’s also good for applesauce.
Wow, so not what I expected to see when I opened this thread. I thought it was gonna be about cars.
Take away his keys. 
As I understand it, ricing potatoes instead of mashing makes it easier to avoid releasing too much starch and prevents gumminess.
You can race against Vin Diesel, or something.
I mean, you’d probably lose, but you’d look really cool…
Riced potatoes are nice by themselves; lighter in texture and less dense than mashed, and tasty when drizzled upon by a number of toppings.
But generally the ricer is a step in producing ideal mashed potatoes in my kitchen, I do admit.
Or use the ricer on elephant garlic!
Hmm. Before I read the thread I was gonna tell you to make spaetzle.
So I got nothin’.
Wouldn’t a ricer make really tiny Spatzle?
Aside from Spaetzle and riced potatoes, you can make riced sweet potatoes (of course) or riced roasted turnips or carrots or rutabagas or parsnips for side dishes.
Use can also use the ricer lined with cheesecloth to squeeze every last drop of oil out of the crispy baked herbs when you’re making herbal skin salve. You probably won’t, but I do.
There seems to be a good deal of variance as to how spaetzle are prepared. A ricer works alright for the thinner, longer style of spaetzle, but I prefer the more pebbly type made by one of these guys. (You can also use a flat grater with about pencil-sized holes in it, and push the dough/batter through with a wooden spoon.)
The Way I do it, which is the way grandma did it is to use a slotted spoon , about like this.
Just plop a blob on, and use the back of a normal serving spoon to splort it through into the water. But the blobs are larger than I would think you get from a ricer.
There is also the old cutting board method, which I’ve never tried, but have seen done (for the Hungarian version of spaetzle, galuska or nokedli.)
If you’re me, you use it to donate to Goodwill.
I’ve heard of using a colander to make Spaetzel.
~VOW
Anything with holes should work.
I use mine to squeeze lemons. In fact, I don’t think I ever riced a potato with it.
As it turns out, the SO wants German potato salad (another thing I’ve never made). Spätzle would be a bit much with the Winerschnitzel, kartoffelsalat, and the Italian green beans, so it will have to wait for another day.
I use mine for the aforementioned and also to make tomato sauce. Get the skins off a bunch of romas and let them cook down for a bit and then rice them.
JLA: If you whip potatoes, it’s easy to overdo the milk and end up with elmer’s glue. With a ricer, it’s nearly impossible. No lumps, stir them up with a fork and some butter…done.