What’s a Ricer?

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A ricer is a kitchen gadget used to break food into small pieces, making it ideal for making mashed potatoes and pureed foods. It can also be used to prepare baby food. The tool resembles a large garlic press and produces a smooth, creamy, and fluffy puree. An oil mill is a related tool that holds more volume and is better suited for large meals. Ricer manufacturers make different plates for different textures, and buyers should choose a tool that is easy to clean and made of materials that won’t rust or discolor.

A richer is a kitchen gadget that can be extraordinarily useful, as it is designed to break food into very small pieces. This can be especially useful for making mashed potatoes and other pureed foods. For young parents, it can make an excellent gift, as it is ideal for preparing baby food. Since these devices are quite obscure, someone giving one as a gift can also rest assured that the parents are very unlikely to receive multiples. Many kitchen supply stores sell ricers with a variety of inserts and they can also be found online.

The design of a richer resembles a large garlic press. One side has an extrusion plate with a series of holes, while the other side is solid. The food is fed into the tool and the solid side is squeezed towards the extruder plate, usually using the handles as leverage. The soft food compresses and is eventually ejected from the extrusion plate. The result looks like a small grain of rice to some people, leading to the device’s name.

Using a richer product produces a smooth, creamy and fluffy puree. This device is designed for making mashed potatoes, producing a fluffy pile of mashed potatoes that is creamy and soft even before dairy products are added. Because it’s commonly used for this purpose, some manufacturers refer to it as “potato richer.” The tool can also be used for processing cooked pumpkin for pies or other vegetables for pureed dishes. Some manufacturers make one with removable extrusion plates, allowing for plates with different diameter holes to be inserted for chefs who want to change the texture of the results.

The oil mill is a related kitchen tool and works on similar principles. It’s designed to hold much more volume at a time, however. Most crushers look like oversized sieves, with a large area to place food in and a hand crank to compress the food, forcing it out the bottom. For large meals, an oil press is better suited than a richer one and can also be used for projects such as chopping tomatoes.

Aluminum is a common material used to make racks, which are sometimes manufactured with plastic handles for an easy grip. When choosing one, buyers should ensure that all parts, including the extrusion plate, are easy to clean and avoid metals that may rust or discolor from extended kitchen use. In most cases, the tool is dishwasher safe, but it can also be used for dishwasher cooking.




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