The Best Spiralizers

Spiral vegetable cutters, or spiralizers, cut fruits and vegetables into long noodles and ribbons for “pastas,” salads, and side dishes. Since we last tested these devices, many more models have come on the market, and the manufacturer of our favorite machine released a more advanced version. We decided that it was time to revisit these gadgets, so we surveyed the market and selected a lineup of countertop and electric spiralizers to test against our winner.

Some of the countertop spiralizers are constructed like old-fashioned apple peelers: one end has a vertical slot to hold the blade, and the other has a pronged food holder with a crank handle. With one hand you turn the crank to feed the produce through the blade while you push a lever to exert pressure on the produce with your other hand. Every machine comes with blades to make 1/4-inch-thick noodles, 1/8-inch-thick noodles, and accordion-pleated “ribbon slices.” Some of the machines had additional blades for grating or for making even thinner noodles, which we appreciated but found inessential.

We also tested an electric model, which mechanizes the spiralizing process and thus requires no elbow grease to use. It holds the produce horizontally, similar to the manual versions.

We knew we wanted a spiralizer that could accommodate fruits and vegetables of different sizes, shapes, and densities and that would be stable and easy to set up, use, and clean. A good spiralizer should also create long, unbroken noodles and generate little waste. We spiralized zucchini, apples, beets, potatoes, and butternut squash, weighing each item before and after spiralizing to calculate how much was wasted and how much was turned into long noodles.

None of these machines worked perfectly. A few of them mashed softer apples into pulp, and most of them struggled to cut the butternut squash; for those that could produce noodles from the hard squash, we had to choke up on the turning handle to muster the requisite power. After three rounds of cutting squash, even our top model developed a stress fracture on its handle from the extra exertion. Although none of the manufacturers say to avoid winter squash, we recommend caution when attempting to spiralize hard, dense vegetables.

With the zucchini, beets, and potatoes, only one machine consistently produced long, even noodles and ribbons. The reason for its success: stability. The base of this manual machine had a low profile, keeping it relatively grounded over the suction cups that anchored it to the table and preventing it from slipping forward quite as frequently as with other models. More important, it had a large food holder that allowed us to attach the produce more securely and a long pusher handle that let us provide the steady, constant pressure necessary to create consistent, unbroken noodles.

We did have two quibbles with these gadgets: One, left-handed cooks are usually at a bit of a disadvantage. Older spiralizers were built for righties; newer models, like the Müeller Spiral-Ultra, the KitchenAid attachment, and the Paderno World Cuisine Spiralizer Pro, are ambidextrous but have other issues that make them less efficient than our righty-oriented winners. Our winner, however, is easy for both right- and left-handed cooks to use. And two, few of the spiralizers were easy to clean, as most require hand washing. And little shreds of produce get everywhere, forcing us to dismantle the machines to get all the loose bits.

We wanted to like the electric spiralizer, since it is ambidextrous, requires a lot less muscle to use, stays put on the countertop, and can churn out spiralized vegetables in a matter of seconds. Unfortunately, it was impossible to clean and struggled to cut through any vegetable denser than a zucchini, stalling out on butternut squash. 

We highly recommend the OXO Good Grips 3-Blade Tabletop Spiralizer. It is simple to set up; easy to use; and stable, thanks to the suction cup on its base. It easily accommodates vegetables of all sizes, and its three blades were capable of spiralizing even dense butternut squash well. The removable components are dishwasher-safe, making it easy to clean the blades and food holder.