purify,” and a specific one: to drain excess
water from beans and peas left to soak. The
beans and peas would go on to be cooked
into a mush, and the consistency of that
mush appears to be the prototype of other
purees.
Refining the Texture of Purees Cooks can
refine the basic coarseness of purees by
modifying either the solid plant particles or
the fluid that surrounds them.
Making the Plant Particles Smaller There are
several ways to make the plant particles as
fine as possible.
The pureeing process itself is a physical
crushing or shearing that breaks the plant
tissue into pieces and liberates
thickening molecules from them.
Blenders and mortars are the most
effective tools for this; food processors
slice rather than crush. Producing a fine
puree can take some time even in a