New Gadget: Spiral Slicer

Spiralizer, Zoodler or Spiral Vegetable Slicer

In our never-ending quest to eat healthily (juicing is soooo before), this new, handy kitchen gadget caught my eye.  Friends on Facebook have been raving about it, even +Poggi Bonsi, a place where we buy kitchen thingamajigs, will hold a class this weekend sharing ways one can use this gadget.

This Huffington Post article will give you a basic idea on what brands are available, what it is exactly and what dishes you can do with it (a lot!).

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2014/04/10/vegetable-noodles-are-going-to-change-everything_n_5112928.html?utm_hp_ref=email_share

After reading user reviews on Amazon.com, I finally decided to get the Cuisavor brand. The blades seemed sturdier than Kitchen Basics because it has "sharp Japanese stainless steel blades". Any comments on Kitchen Basics or other recommended brands would be greatly appreciated.  Due to limited kitchen counter space, I just ordered the hand held version.  +Maite Crawford is very happy with her kitchen counter-top version.

My hand-held gadget.

The Spiralizer has been with me for less than a week.  So far, have mainly used it for salads.  First veggie combination I did was zucchini and yellow squash.  I made sure both zuch & yellow squash would fit the spiralizer ie, not too thick, not too thin. For first attempt, not bad at all.  You don't have to peel both zuch and yellow squash but since I had the peeler on hand, I mindlessly peeled them.

I roasted some sesame seeds and tossed the veggies with a Japanese brand deep roasted sesame dressing.  The core is stuck inside the funnel part so the seeds are not included in your salad.  So convenient.  It's dishwasher safe but I just easily washed it with a brush to ensure the core left is really washed away.

Addendum:  

• I spiralize (is it a verb now??) my cucumber, yellow squash and zuch noodles into a colander, sprinkle half a teaspoon of salt and mix it with my hand. 
• place the colander in a sink and let it drain for 30 minutes

  

  Liquid collected after only 15 minutes.

• rinse very very well with cold water and refrigerate the colander of veggie noodles for at least an hour.  
  
  This will allow the veggies to dehydrate a little.  It will be more "firm".

My second attempt was with cucumber + carrot.  It was more of a struggle.  They didn't come out as "long" as the zuch and yellow squash.  They just came out shredded.  I guess I have to practice more.

Now am thinking I would need at least a dozen veggies to come up with a main pasta dish.  Hmmmm.  I don't think I have the energy for this.  Will keep you posted.