Food Mills

These devices are useful for straining purées or thick sauces such as tomato or tomatillo. They are available in different sizes. The smaller sizes are not of much use in a professional kitchen, because it is just as easy to work a small amount of the mixture through a medium-mesh strainer. A large food mill, however, is almost indispensable for straining large amounts of tomato coulis and purée-thickened mixtures. Food mills come with several perforated metal plates that can be switched depending on the desired consistency of the mixture.