Potato Masher Redesign

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I have an incredible potato masher and would not trade it for the world. Makes the best mashed potatoes ever....




My DH! :angel::LOL:
 
Golly Alix, I wasn't at all trying to tell you anything about your mashed potatoes. I was just expressing my opinion on the TERM, not the method by which one arrived at their mashed potatoes.

As you so nicely pointed out, mashed is, now, a matter of opinion.. what some call nicely mashed, others might think are a bit lumpy. Rustic potatoes with big ugly chunks sounds pretty nasty to me!

What I failed to express... my bad... was that a ricer doesn't reallY MASH the potatoes, it crushes them between a plate and a sieve. Whereas the old fashioned masher does just that... with a lot of elbow grease, the potatoes are.. for lack of a better term.. MASHED into the desired consistency.
Mashed isn't crushed... that was my poorly expressed point. Sorry if you took offense, I certainly wasn't calling a riced potato inferior to an old fashioned MASHED
potato!!!!!!

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I don't use a potato masher. I use a ricer instead as it assures me of smooth, fluffy, lump-free potatoes.
I wasn't sure what a "ricer" was
so I googled it and found this...
Dam*. You guys mean business
when you mash your potatoes! :LOL:
 

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...a ricer doesn't reallY MASH the potatoes, it crushes them between a plate and a sieve. Whereas the old fashioned masher does just that... with a lot of elbow grease, the potatoes are.. for lack of a better term.. MASHED into the desired consistency...

So if a potato is pressed between a hand held tool and the bottom of a pan it's mashed but if it's pressed between the two sides of a different tool, it's not...

I don't understand your insistence on making this distinction. Is it the name 'ricer' that's confusing you?
 
I wasn't sure what a "ricer" was
so I googled it and found this...
Dam*. You guys mean business
when you mash your potatoes! :LOL:

For THAT kind of ricer you need a really big kitchen. I use this kind.
 

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We have mashers like numbers 1 and 5, but both are heavy metal and we've had them for over 40 years. They are both built like battleships, which is probably why they've lasted so long...and tons and tons of potatoes have been mashed using them. We also have a ricer.

As others have mentioned, the desired texture of the potatoes dictates which one is used. Most the time, we like potatoes with a few lumps. Probably a throwback from the days of eating instant potatoes served commercially that were nothing more than glorified wallpaper paste with salt.

The ricer is used when ultra-smoothness is the goal. I also use the ricer to process hard-boiled eggs for egg salad and to squeeze cooked spinach.

As for your questions, I'm a home cook, but have raised 8 children so I guess that, at times, qualified for cafeteria-style cooking, especially since most of the children were boys.:LOL:

I already explained my motivations for which one I use and, as far as meeting my expectations, I couldn't be happier. They've served me well for more than 40 years.

Each tool is well-made, comfortable and easy to use and I wouldn't change a thing about them.

I can't imagine even considering purchasing a "power" masher since our kitchen is already filled to capacity with powered gadgets. The only power I've ever needed is my two hands and they require no batteries and don't go down during a power failure.:rolleyes: Not that there's every been a "mashed potato crisis" in our house during an electrical outage.:mrgreen:

Best wishes with your project and let us know how you fare.
 
I do have a ricer, I use it for raspberries when I just want the juice for my dark chocolate ganache for Raspberry Chocolate cake.

I've used the ricer for many things, but most of the time it just gathers dust. Muscle power is the most used item in my kitchen.
 
Andy, if it is that important to you... you are right, I am wrong.
I'll not disagree with you in the future.
You rice, I'll mash and we will both enjoy the final product.
 
For THAT kind of ricer you need a really big kitchen. I use this kind.

That kind I use at home and it's a delight. But industrially... at our brasserie we use something not unlike a cement mixer, which churns out ace fluffy mashed taters at the turn of a knob. Otherwise, with that small one I'd be ricing all night. :LOL:

On with the ironing prior to vacation. Sure wish I had a mechanical 'ricer' that took the creases outa my linen pants. :rolleyes:
 
That kind I use at home and it's a delight. But industrially... at our brasserie we use something not unlike a cement mixer, which churns out ace fluffy mashed taters at the turn of a knob. Otherwise, with that small one I'd be ricing all night. :LOL:

On with the ironing prior to vacation. Sure wish I had a mechanical 'ricer' that took the creases outa my linen pants. :rolleyes:

I think linen is the worst. Iron it after you unpack!
 
Golly Alix, I wasn't at all trying to tell you anything about your mashed potatoes. I was just expressing my opinion on the TERM, not the method by which one arrived at their mashed potatoes.

As you so nicely pointed out, mashed is, now, a matter of opinion.. what some call nicely mashed, others might think are a bit lumpy. Rustic potatoes with big ugly chunks sounds pretty nasty to me!

What I failed to express... my bad... was that a ricer doesn't reallY MASH the potatoes, it crushes them between a plate and a sieve. Whereas the old fashioned masher does just that... with a lot of elbow grease, the potatoes are.. for lack of a better term.. MASHED into the desired consistency.
Mashed isn't crushed... that was my poorly expressed point. Sorry if you took offense, I certainly wasn't calling a riced potato inferior to an old fashioned MASHED
potato!!!!!!

108 1 18 108 1 22 183 1 14 189 2 23 189 7 21 189 1 16

GrillingFool, I'm sorry, I think we have a bit of a miscommunication here. I wasn't addressing anything directly to you. I'm sorry if I sounded cranky or something, I sure didn't mean to! I was just sharing how I do potatoes these days. Absolutely not upset with you AT ALL. Hope I didn't cause offense to YOU. :wacko:

Andy, I'm going to go with pretty crappy ricers, AND I'm tougher than I look. Don't let that genial grin fool you, I can take down a 300lb raging adolescent and still whip up a fine dinner! ;)
 
Those aren't smashers .. this is a smasher
Yes Josh, I know, because they used one in a very upmarket rest I ate at a while back. And somehow I think the pre-smashed material was leftover baked spuds from an earlier diner's plate:glare:
Prefer fluffly creamed potatoes myself and usually do them with a hand held electric beater for best results.
 
Of the five mashers shown, which is most like the one you use? If you use something completely different, please describe it or provide a link that shows yours.
I use #1. I like lumps in my mashed potatoes and this mashed lets me mash as much or as little as I need.




Where do you primarily use it? (In a professional kitchen or at home?)
home


What motivated you to pick the one that you currently use? Price, feel, appearance, functionality?
At the time I do think I gave it any thought. I probably went into the store and bought the first one I saw.


Were your expectations met?
Seeing as how I had none I would say yes.


If not, what would you change or improve?
I would improve the angle of the handle. If there were more of an angle to it then you could use more force with less effort.



What about your potato masher do you think is good? What features are the most important to you? (Rigidity, comfort, afford-ability, safe for use on non-stick products, ease of cleaning, etc.)
What is important to me is that it mashes potatoes with minimal effort and that I have control over how mashed they get. What I like about this design is that the potatoes do not get stuck on the masher in small hiding places. If they do stick then a quick tap on the side of the pot and everything clears off the masher and into the pot.


Finally, what is the maximum price you would be willing to pay for the best hand powered potato masher you can imagine? Please specify which currency you are thinking of.
I would not pay over $20US for a masher, but I think a realistic price would be closer to $10.




Thank you in advance for your time and consideration. I will keep all names and personal information private unless you give me explicit permission. Again, this is just being used for a school report.[/QUOTE]
 
Thanks a lot for the input! I forgot to ask what everyone's gender and age and age is.
 
I'm just clarifying who uses this product the most. Ergonomics depend on the size of the person using it, so it might be valuable for me to know that say, only women use it, and thus the exact size and length of the handle might need to be tailored to fit their smaller stature. It might not make a huge difference in the end, but I need to be thorough. If you are uncomfortable sharing that information, then you don't have to.
 
I see this same scenario often. In fact we just had a "college" guy here a few months ago asking us if we use reusable shopping bags. He also wanted our age and gender.

Are you that guy?

Is this professional market research or a student college paper?

Do you ever come here to discuss cooking?

.
 
I'm agreeing with mollyanne...there is no need for age and gender in an informal POLL, because that is all this is. Real research requires direct observation and collection of data.

I could tell you I am a 49 year old female, but actually be an 18 year old male or a 85 year old female. This is not real research!
 
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