Primer for kitchen cabinets

Awhile ago I helped Paint a friends kitchen cabinets. I thoroughly sanded and then primed with an appropriate primer. However, we ended up with some bleed through as a result of breaking the factory finish on her cabinets. I was surprised by this as the cabinets were already a very light wood tone. I am wondering if it makes more sense to prime kitchen cabinets without disturbing the original finish- just a thorough cleaning and degreasing. Do you have an opinion on this and what primer would you suggest?