Life without a mini-prep? Or a toaster? Them’s fightin’ words
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The votes are in: You love the mini-prep.
Today’s Food section story about kitchen gadgets and ingredients that are worth it –- and those that aren’t –- has rubbed a few readers the wrong way. They’re taking issue with Times staff writers Amy Scattergood and Russ Parsons, who had the audacity to say that neither a toaster nor a mini food processor was worth the time or money.
One reader, Audrey, e-mailed to say that the mini-prep was the most used appliance in her kitchen. Ditto for Laura, who loves her toaster and said her mini-prep is her go-to tool for making, among other things, homemade meals for her dog: ‘I use it everyday for things such as mincing onions, making salad dressing and marinades and chopping chicken breast for my teacup poodle. It’s a cinch to clean, takes up no counter space and is inexpensive.’
And Chuck Z said he agreed with everything Russ said -- except Russ’ take on the mini-prep:
I must quarrel with Russ Parsons’ ‘Not worth it’ for mini food processors. I’m quite adept at chopping onions and other things by hand, but when a recipe calls for a small amount of minced garlic or shallots, which are more difficult to chop finely, I reach for my mini-prep, which sits on my counter right next to the full-size processor that I use for larger jobs. It’s also a lot easier to clean than its big brother and takes up less space in the dishwasher. As for all of Russ’ other ‘Worth it’ and ‘Not worth it’ choices, good call!
What about you? Do you side with Amy and Russ? Or are they out to lunch? Weigh in here.
-- Rene Lynch
