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How to Use a Spiralizer: A Beginner’s Guide
A healthy diet must include three cups of vegetables and fresh fruits depending on the weight of the person. With the advancement of technology, manufacturers are looking for ways to improve our everyday kitchen appliances, and that includes the spiralizer. In this article, you’ll know the different types of this machine and the right steps on how to use a spiralizer.
Among the many challenges that our society is facing today are health problems such as cancer and obesity. With all the fast-food and take-out restaurants today, many people find it time-consuming and unwise to prepare their own food at home. This is where a spiralizer comes in very handy.
Different Types of Spiralizers
There are two types of spiralizers that you can find in the market. Both types have their own set of advantages and disadvantages, but choosing between the two of them usually depend on your preference.
Handheld & Hourglass Spiralizers
Handheld spiralizers are often shaped like an hourglass. They are manual spiralizers that would require the user to put in more effort and strength when operating this machine. To use this appliance, you just put your vegetable inside the spiralizer and turn the handle to give you a spiral result.
The Pros
- Doesn’t take too much counter space
- Can be easily stored away
- Affordable
The Cons
- Requires work
- Can only be used in vegetables
- Can waste a lot of leftover vegetables
Tabletop & Electric Spiralizers
Electric spiralizers are often placed on the countertops of the kitchen. This is more popular compared to handheld spiralizers because it’s convenient to use and can give you better results in no time. These machines are mostly high-quality and need more maintenance.
At the bottom of the tabletop spiralizers, you usually find suctions cups to keep them in place. They have a handle or crank so that you can easily feed in your vegetable. Electric spiralizers, however, often have a tube in which you insert your vegetable and you just turn it on.
The Pros
- Easy to use
- Produces better-quality spirals
- Can be used with vegetables or fruits
The Cons
- Requires more space
- Costs more compared to handheld spiralizers
How to Use a Spiralizer: A Step-by-Step Guide
Spiralizers are very useful to those people who are not fond of eating huge chunky bits of fruits and vegetables or to those families who are picky eaters. This kitchen appliances cut the products into thin slices—depending on your preference—and will allow you to mix it with your sauces easily.
Here is a four-step guide to using your spiralizer:
- Choose and prepare the product that you would like to eat. Almost all fruits and vegetables can be used for your spiralizer as long as it can fit into the machine. Make sure that you wash the food in running water and pat it dry.
- Choose the blade that you would like to use. Your typical spiralizer would often come with three different blades in which they would slice your food in different sizes. Less advanced spiralizers come with a single blade, and the more advanced ones come with more blades. The most common blades are:
- Spiral blade – Best used for curly fries and if you want your food to have the size of bucatini noodles
- Noodle blade – Best used if you want spaghetti-like sized noodles
- Ribbon blade – Best used in veggie salads because it creates delicate spiral ribbons
- Insert your chosen blade into the machine. Make sure that you follow the usage instructions that came in with your spiralizer when you’re inserting the blade. A lot of advanced models have a slide and lock attachment so that you can easily change your blades. Always make sure that the blade is firmly locked into place before using it and always handle it with care.
- Put your food in the machine. A lot of spiralizers would need you to slice your product so that it can fit the size of the machine. These spiralizers would usually hold the food either side-to-side or up-and-down position. In these cases, you would need to hold the food in place and push it once the machine starts. For more advanced spiralizers, they would have a put-and-lock feature, which would allow you to spiralize your foods hands-free.
Tips for Using Your Spiralizer
Knowing the different types of spiralizers and how to use it is not enough for you to easily and confidently do it. Therefore, here are five simple tips that you can easily remember the next time you use your spiralizer:
- Symmetrical foods
Most often than not, spiralizers have a tube in which you can insert your fruit or vegetable. In cases of crooked products, you might want to trim down your food so that it may fit your machine.
- Size matters
There are times that spiralizers won’t work if the food is not big enough (or too big). Always make sure that if you went out to your next grocery trip, you remember the right size of your spiralizer.
- Clean and peel your food
It is very important that you always clean the food before spiralizing them because you may ruin its design if you do otherwise. Sometimes, you also need to cut the front side of your food so that you can start with a clean slicing.
- Always put your food in the center
Not paying attention to where you are putting your food may cause you to have different spirals. For you to have continuous and beautiful spirals, always make sure that you put your food in the center of the spiralizer.
- Dry the zoodles
Zoodles (or your spiralized food) can get very soggy as soon as you put them in your sauces. Make sure that you pat them dry after spiralizing or sprinkle them with salt while you are doing your prep.
Conclusion
Knowing how to use a spiralizer is important, especially for those who are planning to start having a healthy diet. It is vital to remember the simple steps and tips mentioned above to make sure that you can get the results that you want and, at the same time, maintain the quality of your machine.