What’s all the fuss about zucchini noodles, zoodles, low-carb noodles? Is the good old fashioned grater not good enough for you? Why pander to the gadget and gismo market? Why bother when these faddy items end up in festering and taking up space in a kitchen cupboard in no time? All these quips and more when I go into raptures about spirilizing. I’m here to tell you that there is a world of difference between a grate, a slice, a strip and a spiral twist and that each and all of them have a place in my heart!
I haven’t tried all spiralizers by any means but my firm favourites are the two featured here. They get my vote only because they work and are not over-ambitious. Good design – a match of function and form.
So we’re gonna do the twist and it goes like this …
This hand-held spiralizer is called Alioo (named for me and so caught my eye) and offers 4 settings of spiral shapes. It is a comfortable fit in the hand and produces a perfectly good result for around £10.This OXO Good Grips is a nifty set of colour-coded discs that spiralise, slice and grate (fine and coarse) – so 3 in 1 function. At around £30 you pay more but get more. It has a hand-guard that lives up to its claim and a stable base which doubles up as a container to collect the spirals. A good choice if you can make use of the grate and slice discs and think it would be a regular kitchen aid for you. Both spiralizers get my vote for beetroot, courgette, carrot and sweet potato in particular. Having created a heap of courgette or zucchini noodles let’s put them to work in a Zoodle Salad.Ready Set Go with 3 cloves of garlic, sliced and sautéd in a couple of 15ml (table)spoons olive oil until just browning. You are really infusing the oil with garlic flavour.Next pour the garlic and oil over spiralized courgette and add a squidge or three of lemon juice, plus a sprinkling each of salt crystals, ground black pepper and chilli flakes.That’s it – you’ve got a Zoodle Salad. This recipe works well with finely sliced (so, not always spiralised) fennel instead of the courgette.Alternatively, mix the courgette spirals with salad greens and fresh herbs to make a green salad with a twist.Or, for a main course salad, load spiralised courgette, beetroot and carrot with other fresh and vibrant ingredients such as salad leaves, watercress, pea shoots, watermelon cubes, avocado wedges and a crumbling of feta or segments of hard-boiled egg.
Already that’s 3 ways with spiralised courgette. If that’s not enough check out the previous post Nowt like Courgetti Spaghetti …
