There are a variety of kitchen appliances in the market that perform more than one function at a time. This saves a lot of time and space and a lot of money. But, people often get confused about whether to have a blender, food processor, or both? So, let’s make it easier for you.
Can a blender be used as a food processor? If you change a few blender settings, it can perform the functions of a food processor. But you will have to use it in small batches, and you can’t knead dough or make a pastry dough with it.
The simple yes or no won’t be sufficient to answer it since it depends on what function you need and what recipe you are making. Let’s see how we can use a blender instead of a food processor.
As long as you make small batches of dishes, you can easily use your blender as a food processor. A few settings need to be adjusted at a time, and you are all set.
- You need to change the speed settings first because blenders work at a very high speed allowing solid foods to get blended in just a minute.
- If you just want to chop your food in a blender, do not use any liquid, turning it into a paste.
- Use the Pulse Setting to make course food such as bread or cookie crumbs. If your blender doesn’t have the pulse setting, run it on high speed for 30 seconds.
- You can also pulse various other items like garlic, ginger, carrots, etc. To chop them, pulse them a few times till it reaches the consistency you require.
- Use the puree settings or add liquid to the batch to make a smooth puree.
Note: Since most blenders can’t hold much food or chop larger amounts of ingredients, use the blender in smaller batches.
It will be easier for you to make several recipes using a blender still; there are some things that only a processor can do. Those are grating, chopping, slicing, shredding food, or kneading since a processor has several other attachments to perform all these functions properly.
Among the various recipes, let’s see some of the common ones which can be done using a blender instead of a food processor.
If you want bread crumbs, you can make them using your blender. Just divide your bread slices into quarters and put them inside the blender. You can let it mix until you get the desired size of bread crumbs you need.
If you wish to make baby food but don’t have a food processor, your blender can easily perform the job. Put your cooked vegetables inside the blender and mix until a smooth paste is made.
Make delicious salsa with a blender with a few quick steps. First, add roughly chopped vegetables, spices according to your taste, and water into the blender. Voila, your delicious salsa is ready!
You can quickly make soup with a blender. Some blenders even heat the soup with its high-speed setting. If your blender doesn’t support that, you can always add hot water to make the soup.
Blender salad dressings are always delicious. All you need is right ingredients, and your tasty salad dressing is ready.
You can shred or grind your cheese easily in a blender. Just put small dices of cheese inside the blender and put it into high speed for 30 seconds or till the cheeses get shredded the way you wanted.
Blenders can easily chop ice for juices or ice creams when put on high speed. Put 3-4 ice cubes at a time and mix them until you get the right consistency.
Not all blenders support chopping ice or shredding cheese, so you need to check the motor power sharpness of the blades first. Otherwise, you can end up ruining the performance of the blender.
| Parameters of Comparison | Blender | Food Processor |
| Function | It blends solid food into a smooth paste. | It blends, chops, slices, and dices different ingredients. |
| The number of blades | It comes with a fixed blade. | It comes with multiple discs |
| Use of liquid | Liquid is necessary to blend solid foods into a smooth consistency. | If you want to do anything other than blending, the liquid is not required. |
| Used in place of other | Yes, it can be but only with certain ingredients. | Yes, it can be used in place of the blender. |
Overall, a blender can be used as a food processor but only in the case of certain ingredients. A blender’s ability to function as a food processor depends on its motor’s power, and the higher the power is, the more solid foods it can chop, slice, dice, etc.
A blender’s main function is to break down solid foods into a smooth paste, and the food processor performs several other functions like blending, chopping, slicing, or grinding the ingredients. Both can be used in place of each other, but a blender can only function as a food processor with certain items.
For example, you can make thick consistency recipes like soups, slushies, smoothies, and ice-creams in a blender if you don’t have a food processor.
Though you need to be careful with the ingredients, you are putting them inside the blender when using it as a food processor because the power of the motor may or may not support it.
Using a blender as a food processor will not only save you a lot of money it will also save your time and kitchen space. There’s always an alternative to everything, and blenders are an alternative to a food processor.
Tell us in the comments if you liked this alternative and share it with your buddies!