In Praise of the Vegetable Mill
When a recipe or preparation calls for something solid to be pureed, as in a soup for example, the natural reflex is to take out the blender and plunge it into the saucepan.
This works very well in most cases, but there are times when you'd like to puree something and at the same time remove the hard parts or skins from the preparation.
Another reflex in this case is to pass the whole preparation through a sieve or a very fine strainer, which also works well, but can be a bit tedious.
But there's a very old utensil, still in use today, which allows you to do both operations at once: it purées and retains the hard parts.
This works very well in most cases, but there are times when you'd like to puree something and at the same time remove the hard parts or skins from the preparation.
Another reflex in this case is to pass the whole preparation through a sieve or a very fine strainer, which also works well, but can be a bit tedious.
But there's a very old utensil, still in use today, which allows you to do both operations at once: it purées and retains the hard parts.
6,445 5/5 (4 reviews)
Keywords for this post:MillVegetablesUtensilUseClassicMaterialPuréeCoulisLast modified on: July 12th 2023
In Praise of the Vegetable Mill
The food mill is an entirely manual utensil that is simple, highly efficient and inexpensive.
It's a flared metal or plastic container, with a grid of more or less fine holes lining the bottom.
A plate, which turns with a simple crank, forces the poured preparation through the grid.
Place the mill on a container (saucepan, salad bowl, etc.) - it has 3 feet for this purpose - pour the preparation into it and turn the crank, "grinding" until all the preparation has passed through the grid, turning the crank in the other direction from time to time to clear the grid.
It's called a vegetable mill, because that's its original use, but it can be used with any fairly tender, often cooked, preparation that needs to be turned into a kind of purée (some even call it a "potato masher") or coulis, vegetables and soups of course, but also fruit, fruit purée or any other food tender enough for that.
It's ideal for this job, because it works without forcing or pulverizing like a blender would. As a result, mashed potatoes made in a blender quickly become sticky, which is never the case with a food mill.
And above all, of course, it separates.
Making fruit jelly, blackcurrant jelly for example, becomes much easier if you put the fruit through the food mill before cooking it.
My grandmother and mother had one, as did I, and I've converted my sons to them.
Over time, though, the principle hasn't changed one iota, the material is a little different: tin-plated iron in the olden days, stainless steel or plastic nowadays, but there's still no need to connect it to a power source, apart from elbow grease of course.
To sum up: the food mill is the essential manual tool for pureeing and separating the hard parts of cooked or fairly soft foods.
How does it work?
It's a flared metal or plastic container, with a grid of more or less fine holes lining the bottom.
A plate, which turns with a simple crank, forces the poured preparation through the grid.
Place the mill on a container (saucepan, salad bowl, etc.) - it has 3 feet for this purpose - pour the preparation into it and turn the crank, "grinding" until all the preparation has passed through the grid, turning the crank in the other direction from time to time to clear the grid.
At the end, all that's left to do is to discard (in the composter if possible) the hard parts remaining on the grid, and start again.
It's super-simple and highly effective.
Vegetables only?
It's called a vegetable mill, because that's its original use, but it can be used with any fairly tender, often cooked, preparation that needs to be turned into a kind of purée (some even call it a "potato masher") or coulis, vegetables and soups of course, but also fruit, fruit purée or any other food tender enough for that.
It's ideal for this job, because it works without forcing or pulverizing like a blender would. As a result, mashed potatoes made in a blender quickly become sticky, which is never the case with a food mill.
And above all, of course, it separates.
Making fruit jelly, blackcurrant jelly for example, becomes much easier if you put the fruit through the food mill before cooking it.
An old-fashioned utensil
My grandmother and mother had one, as did I, and I've converted my sons to them.
Over time, though, the principle hasn't changed one iota, the material is a little different: tin-plated iron in the olden days, stainless steel or plastic nowadays, but there's still no need to connect it to a power source, apart from elbow grease of course.
To sum up: the food mill is the essential manual tool for pureeing and separating the hard parts of cooked or fairly soft foods.
Lasts posts
The little trap of thick cream
When you need to add cream to a recipe, you might be wondering: thick (heavy) cream or liquid cream? In most cases, there's no big difference: you can use either. But there is one exception, and that's when the cream needs to be cooked, for a sauce for example, and here the difference between...December 13th 20248235
Sauce and salad: When and how to mix them?
When dressing a salad, there's a kind of golden rule: add the dressing very shortly before serving, especially if your salad contains crunchy elements such as croutons or fresh vegetables, which will retain their crunchiness or crispiness. But, as is often the case in the kitchen, there are...November 29th 20241,1035
No need to boil gelatin
Gelatin is a magical ingredient for making light, creamy, structured desserts, yet it's often misused in the kitchen. A common mistake in some recipes is the idea that it needs to be boiled for it to work properly, but this is a mistake indeed: gelatin melts at a much lower temperature, around...November 21th 20241,2795
Your oven in "proofer" mode
In the bakery, proofing is a crucial stage in the process of making light, plump breads and pastries. During proofing, the yeast ferments the sugars present in the dough, releasing carbon dioxide which forms bubbles. This process allows the dough to swell and aerate, guaranteeing a soft, light...September 27th 20244,3375
The right size of zucchini
When you buy zucchini at the market, you're often offered a wide variety of sizes, from very small to very large. But which ones to choose? Here are a few tips.September 9th 20244,5255
Other pages you may also like
Small, regular pieces
When we cook, bake or pastry, we often have to cut food into small pieces, often cubes, to incorporate them into a recipe or preparation. How do you get regular pieces fairly quickly?November 28th 20205,7604.5
Divide and weigh dough into regular pieces
When you prepare dough for cupcakes in a pastry shop or bakery, at some point you're going to have to divide it, i.e. cut it into small pieces, which should all have the same weight. Sounds simple enough, but is it really that simple?May 30th 20236,4765
In praise of slow cooking
You will no doubt have noticed that in cookery, it's often the actual cooking process that gets neglected. This is understandable; it comes at the end of the recipe and getting the dish in the oven is something of a relief (ah, that's done!), which frees us to cope with what's left: tidying the...February 9th 201138 K4.2
In praise of the whetstone
Have you ever seen a butcher or a chef sharpen his knife before using it? Usually he uses a special tool, a long thin cylinder made of very hard metal. And in a smooth and elegant gesture, he very quickly passes the edge of the knife against the rifle, which makes a very characteristic noise,...June 5th 20217,0764.8
How to zest a fruit?
You will have no doubt noticed that many recipes call for the zest of citrus fruit. The zest is that outer layer of the skin which adds so much flavour to a dish. There are many different ways to peel off the zest and various tools are available. Here is a summary of the “dos and don'ts” of...November 5th 201342 K3.8
Post a comment or question
Follow this page
If you are interested in this page, you can "follow" it, by entering your email address here. You will then receive a notification immediately each time the page is modified or a new comment is added. Please note that you will need to confirm this following.
Note: We'll never share your e-mail address with anyone else.
Alternatively: you can subscribe to the mailing list of cooling-ez.com , you will receive a e-mail for each new recipe published on the site.