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When it comes to mincing meat and vegetables, meat grinder and food processor are the two common kitchen appliances that first come to our mind.
However, what if you can not buy both of them? This situation is actually really confusing to all of us. So meat grinder vs food processor, what is the right tool to use? What are the differences between them? Don’t worry; keep scrolling through our article, and you will find out all satisfactory answers to your questions.
Contents
Meat Grinder Vs Food Processor
Generally, both meat grinders and food processors could do well in grinding jobs. Anyway, there are still many differences you should put into consideration.
Meat grinder
1. Food Texture
The most apparent difference we could see is the food texture.
When using a meat grinder, the meat will become finely ground and loosely packed. Sometimes it is even textured.
On the other hand, with a food processor, your food might become unevenly minced, which causes both large and fine chunks. Also, if you are mistakenly over-grind, the meat will turn pasty.
2. Cutting Blades
All meat grinders have a great diversity of plates by the side of the cutting blades. The main function of these plates is to control the shape and size of the meat particles’ output. Depending on what you are going to cook, you should select a suitable plate to grind.
When it comes to food processors, the blades slice food by spinning it. Unfortunately, you could not determine the size of food particles you want. When the blades spin, they just cut whatever you put in irrespective of the times each piece was cut. Therefore, the result is less consistent.
3. Attachments
Plates are the most common attachment in meat grinders. Commonly, you could find the diameter of the ground plate right on the meat grinder attachment. As a rule, the plate size often goes with the plate number. The more the plate number is, the more meat you could put in at a time.
Regarding food processors, three main attachments that people regard as the stand one are blade, slicing, and shredding discs. For the holes of the discs, you could make food from the fine bits to the rough ones. Or else, if you want to mix the dough or whipped egg, you could also buy some more attachments.
4. Size
In the market, meat grinders and food processors come in a great variety of shapes and sizes.
Among meat grinders, they are available in different sizes and weights. In comparison, food processors are full, thick, but quite small. If you need to prepare small food with limited space, a mini food processor will be the ideal choice ever.
What Food Is Suitable For Meat Grinders?
As the name suggests, the main function of meat grinders is to mincemeat. It could do well with all types of meat like beef, pork, chicken, etc.
A meat grinder is also recommended for those making burgers or sauces as it chops fine meat. Sometimes, people use this kitchen appliance to grind tiny animal bones to make nutritious pet food.
Additionally, meat grinders could also grind vegetables and nuts, suitable for making vegetable soups or pastries.
What Food Is Suitable For Food Processors?
Food processors
Like a jack of all trades, food processors can handle various functions: chopping, slicing, shredding, mixing, and juicing food. This product works best for mincing meats, mixing doughs, and chopping vegetables.
Sometimes, a food processor is an ideal appliance to grate cheese or blend sauces. The outstanding function of a food processor is to chop food, especially vegetables.
However, one main disadvantage of a food processor is the problem of grinding meat uniformly. Some chunks could become larger than others, or if you mistakenly overdo it, the food then becomes too pasty. Therefore, with food returning consistency, a food processor seems not to be a good choice for you.
Conclusion
To sum up, while a meat grinder is better for grinding meat, the food processor has superior performance in mixing, slicing, or mincing various types of food. Moreover, when buying a model, remember to check all available attachments carefully whether it could meet your needs. So meat grinder vs food processor, what to choose? We bet you have got your answer now!