I just bought a spiralizer. These gadgets became popular on the strength of all the diets that emphasize vegetables and low carbs: Paleo, raw food, GF, vegan. But I knew nothing of the spiralizer until I ran across a package of spiralized zucchini noodles in the produce department at the “posh” market (not my friendly neighborhood supermarket). I couldn’t resist trying them. They looked like ramen! And they were great, but I can’t imagine continuing to pay $6 for a package of raw zucchini that serves two.
The Paderno spiralizer. It looks like the bed from Sweeney Todd’s dollhouse! Just wait till I spiralize some beets… bwhahahahaha!
The first question was how and whether to cook them. Looking online, I found that most people either eat them raw or do a very light sauté. If you overcook, they get mushy. And any form of cooking causes them to become watery. I hate it when a plate of spaghetti with tomato sauce “breaks” and you end up with red matter over noodles in a pool of water. So, I proceeded with caution.
I sautéed the “zoodles” in plenty of olive oil and garlic over medium heat for about 3 minutes (the pan was crowded, so that’s not as much time as you might think). Then I threw in a couple of knobs of butter and a half-portion of real spaghetti, thereby ruining the calorie-reducing aspects beyond any hope of redemption but boosting the flavor. Finally I added salt and pepper, and a bit of grated Romano.
Voilà! Spaghetti aglio e olio, in an ever-so-slightly-healthier version. The zoodles did release a bit of moisture, but not enough to make the dish watery.
Half and half. That way you don’t get hungry 30 minutes later.
The best option is to eat the zoodles raw as a salad. Pat them dry after spiralizing and serve immediately after the sauce or dressing is applied, so that they don’t get watery. One popular recipe is to dress them with an avocado which you have put in the blender with some lime juice and garlic.
Potato and leek gratin with zoodle/avocado salad. The Long Suffering Husband approved.
Linnet Moss 
I haven’t quite made out yet what the spiralizer does – turn vegetables into a noodle? Sounds really nice. And would fit nicely with our increasingly vegetarian diet. We are still on it and my son (who is the instigator of it all because he decided to test vegetarianism) recently said to me that my food has never been as delicious as now. I think the reason for that is, that I have to try new recipes in order to come up with something non-meat. Yesterday we had a red lentil lasagne, partly improvised by me (too lazy to make a béchamel sauce). It was really nice… that potato and leek gratin up there looks yummy, too – I am going to try that out next week!
What a lovely compliment from your son! In a “sonly” sort of way 🙂 Yes, the spiralizer makes thin “noodles,” thick “noodles” or one really long, thin slice. It’s very similar to the old fashioned apple peeler/corers, but if you put a different blade on, you get these great noodles. I have been surprised at how much changing the shape and texture of a vegetable can increase its appeal. I was never a big zucchini fan, but I really love these “zoodles.” Tomorrow I am going to try cooked beets (golden ones, to avoid the Sweeney Todd factor). And put goat cheese and spiced nuts on them. Yum!
I am reading this with my mouth watering. Keep the food posts coming, Linnet – you are a great inspiration!
Or inspiralization… 🙂
LOL!
inspiralization LOL…. we’ve had the veggie noodles round here for a while, £2 a bag at Tesco or sometimes on offer even less. I’m ok with them but they are made of vegetables i ate before that too, thinly sliced in raw salads or with pasta so it’s just a new shape 😉 No that much different from slicing/making long strips of your carrot or courgette with a vegetable peeler 🙂
I have bought my little robot, have little space so probably won’t buy this version of it 🙂 But Merry Berry (http://www.maryberry.co.uk/) used a handheld one the other day not bigger than a large aubergine which i might be tempted to get, just need to go to a big department store with the right cookery section to have a closer look and see if it convinces me. I’d like to give butternut squash a try, the question is if this device will let me spiral that! I love eating the stuff but peeling it and cubing it is painful!
The thing is i rarely eat long shape pasta, and if then tagliatelle, i almost never eat spaghetti, i prefer smaller, bigger surface shapes. But if i could use this in stir fries i could be persuaded.
I’m so with the LSH on avocado as salad dressing 🙂 YUM! That looks great
Yes, I think it would work for butternut squash, at least the long cylindrical part. Unfortunately it can’t do the tedious work of cutting and peeling. Ugh. My least favorite task…
The spiralizer would be good for a Pad Thai style of stir fry, with lots of thin strands. Also it would work well for vegetable strands to put in a soup. Mine has blades for thick and thin noodles, and also for a shape that is like an extremely long apple peel. That one is fun in salads.
The dressings I’ve seen are really inventive. There’s one for sweet potatoes with cashew cream that I’d like to try.
ah that sounds good… i don’t mind peeling but chopping, bleh! i might look at something of your side model in the shop and see how much space it takes, it seems to be quite a bit faster and more versatile 🙂 i love salads but the chopping annoys me!
I like my mandoline for salads, and my spiralizer is easy to use. But both take up space in the cupboard, for sure.
yum feel free to share that lentils lasagne 😉
i don’t think i could give up fish …. i wouldn’t mind never seeing beef again and even chicken. Pork is what gets me, cured meats more precisely, if i could give that up and chocolate i’d transform into a saint….
For the lentil lasagna I basically made a “bolognese” with lentils, i.e. boiled the lentils al dente, added chopped tomatoes and tomato puree, seasoned with child, salt, pepper and then used that in the lasagna. Easy peasy.
And yes, I would really regret giving up fish. All meat I can do without (although I do like cured meats…)
not trying to justify here but maybe fish can be forgiven, don’t know… if i go down that route all the meat i have eaten so far in my life can hardly be forgiven.. hm. But will not go down that route 🙂
Sounds delicious, i have to brave a lasagna someday! What risotto is to other people is lasagna to me, never made one and afraid of it, somehow i always imagine i end up with raw crunchy pasta in between a muddle of sauces LOL I have to give it a go as i love eating them, especially vegetarian versions.
Lasagna is really easy, Hari – much easier than risotto! And if you are worried about the Béchamel, then improvise and replace it with a mixture of creme fraiche and ground cheese. Works just as well.
ah that is great advice as i can do bechamel, but it is a pain to make it to use in pasta LOL (too time consuming) Creme fraiche and cheese sounds much quicker 🙂 Sounds like i’ll be doing lasagna next weekend 😉 Thanks for the great advice, i love kitchen shortcuts!
creme fraiche, you’re making me hungry at 9 in the morning…
Creme fraiche – particularly the calorie-reduced version – is my discovery of 2015. Love the stuff. Works well in any sauce, sweet or savoury, and is now always in my fridge… And hey, with some fresh fruit it would make a lovely breakfast…
Yes. I have a passion for creamy dairy products, and that is one of the best.
You should definitely try lasagna! It’s so worth it. You can cook the noodles first and then assemble, but you can also get noodles designed to be used raw. As long as you have plenty of sauce, and seal the pan tightly, the noodles will soften as it bakes. (Oh my, the thought of those layers of sauce and ricotta cheese with al dente noodles…I will be making this soon.)
by the way, have a look G in the local Tesco, they are always available in my closest one, maybe you have them there to £1 for 250g or 3 for 2 🙂 you can give them a try and see if the kids like them 🙂 http://www.tesco.com/groceries/product/search/default.aspx?searchBox=spaghetti&newSort=true&search=Search&N=4294795986
Wow, I had no idea!!! Alas, my local Tesco is so small, it has sh*t choice. (Was looking for quinoa today – to no avail.)
does your do home delivery? i do that for the odd items or the ones i can’t get usually fresh at my local one, like black beans rather than the usual canned one or green lentils or such stuff or some spices, maybe that is an option. I want to try quinoa as well 🙂 Tried brown and wild rice and i like it a lot so want different stuff. For example my local one doesn’t have tofu and i quite like it, especially in stir fry or soups, ended up buying in another closer but more expensive supermarket :-S
there is home delivery in Ireland, yes. I could try that, good point. Have never done it because frankly, there is no reason why I couldn’t go shopping myself 😉
yes, that’s true, but saves some of the carrying 😉
Wow, you have a much bigger variety of the pre-cut noodles than we do.
I’m now hungry. If only we nearby you could adopt me. I wonder if you a cucumber would be a good option to spiral? Not to heat but for cold dishes? Would a spaghetti squash go with your zucchini spirals?
Yes, there are quite a few recipes out there for spiralized cucumbers. https://www.pinterest.com/inspiralized/spiralized-cucumber-recipes/
It’s a different way to think about them. Spaghetti squash makes its own noodles, and that’s the only “vegetable noodle” I had ever tried before this. They are really fun!
Looks yummy Linnet!
Thanks! I hope this gadget will help me increase my veggie intake.
It’s always easier to eat pretty food, isn’t it?
Indeed it is! Worth the trouble to prettify it.
What are they ?
They are “noodles” made out of vegetables. The machine works wonders!
What a good idea !
That is so my kind of food! (When I’m not eating cakes, of course).
This is the best $30 I have invested in any cooking gadget. And safer than my mandoline!!