The best spiralizers tried and tested

The range of spiralizing products available is surprisingly wide, with choices ranging from expensive countertop machines to vegetable peeler-style ribbon makers.

If you want to cut back on carbs, pack in your five-a-day and occasionally swap pasta, potato and noodles with ribbons of fruit or vegetables, then spiralizing is for you.

Hand-held spiralizers require a little elbow grease but win on the price and storage front. Heavy-duty stand spiralizers are easier and quicker to use, and while imported versions from the gadget’s birthplace – Japan – can cost a pretty penny, there are now several European spiralizers on the UK market and they tend to carry more budget-friendly price tags.

We tested spiralizers using courgette to make the ubiquitous spiralized dish ‘courgetti’. We also pushed the gadgets a little further by testing how they handled harder veg like carrots, potatoes and butternut squash.

Find out more about which ingredients can be turned into ribbons by reading our guide to getting the best results from spiralizing.

For more unbiased expert buyer’s guides, visit our reviews section to find 200+ round-ups of everything from smoothie machines to soup makers.

Best spiralizers to buy

OXO Good Grips hand-held spiralizer

Best hand-held spiralizer

If you think a hefty stand spiralizer would only gather dust in the back of your cupboard, a diminutive hand-held version is the best choice for you. Of all the ones we tested, this was most impressive. We’re big fans of OXO Good Grips anyway, but this inexpensive contraption would convert the most hardened of spiralizer sceptics. The twist action makes light work of courgettes, and the spiked pad prevents finger injury peril as you get close to the nub of your vegetable. Harder vegetables take much longer to feed through than they would on a stand spiralizer, but when you’re dealing with something that washes easily and has a tiny kitchen footprint, who cares?

Available from:

Lurch Spirali spiralizer

Best affordable stand spiralizer

At under £30, this basic Lurch model is good value for money. Slightly bigger and more retro-looking than the Attila Hildmann special edition, it nonetheless creates spirals, spaghetti or slices with help from the three blades – again stored in little drawers – plus, it features suction pads and a washable, removable base. As it’s really intuitive to use, this is a good choice if you’re buying a spiralizer for the first time, although it’s perhaps best for those with a large kitchen as it’s not collapsible.

Available from:

Related reviews:
The best health gadgets
The best hand blenders
The best dehydrators
The best smoothie blenders

KitchenAid spiralizer

Best blow-out spiralizer

This spiralizer is an attachment for a KitchenAid stand mixer that secures to the front of the machine. Ideal for those dedicated to spiralizing, this attachment has two blades for noodles and two for ribbon slices. A spiked pad holds the veg securely and with the slide of a switch the mixer’s motor drives the blade towards the veg for effortless spiralizing. Though it stumbled occasionally with softer pieces of butternut squash, we were really impressed by how consistently well this machine coped with a variety of veg. Solid and stylish, the body of the machine is handwash only, but blades can be washed on the top rack of the dishwasher. The attachment and blades come in a solid cardboard box that does require some storage space but we think worth it if you spiralize regularly.

More like this

Available from:

Morphy Richards spiralizer express

Best electric spiralizer

This easy-to-use electric spiralizer is ideal for those who struggle with manual hand-cranked models. The machine has two blade options – spaghetti and thin ribbons. To operate you push the veg onto a plastic cross on the end of a cylindrical plunger, which you then direct towards the blade. We found wider topped carrots and courgettes were needed to attach securely. The spiralized veg collects neatly in a beaker below, minimising mess – a feature we really liked. This spiralizer handles carrots, courgettes and cucumbers easily. Squash and beetroot need to be cut carefully to spiralize effectively. We were impressed by the speed of the machine and the minimal pressure needed to operate it.

Impressed by the speed of the machine and the minimal pressure needed to operate it.

Available from:

How we tested spiralizers

We reviewed a representative sample of electric and hand-held spiralizers and scored them against the following criteria.

Ease of use: In the case of stand and hand-held spiralizers, we wanted to be able to attach our fruit and vegetables easily, then use a simple lever or twist motion to speedily create ribbons without having to exert too much force.

Resilience: As we were looking to shred and spiralize harder vegetables, it was important the gadgets were strong and durable – a wobbly handle or flimsy blade won’t cut the mustard when it comes to creating sweet potato or celeriac matchsticks.

Ease of cleaning: We looked for stand spiralizers with removable components that can be washed in a dishwasher or with an old-fashioned manual scrub.

Ease of storage: While flat mandolines and pint-sized peelers will always have the edge when it comes to the size factor, we looked for compact stand and hand-held spiralizers than can be tucked away neatly.

Features: Any added bonuses, like different shaped blades to allow for various ribbon thicknesses, were taken into account – ideally a spiralizer can create thin spirals, slices and spaghetti shapes and has attachments that are easy to affix, remove and store.

How we tested: Simple hand-held spiralizers were tested with courgettes and carrots – safety, waste and quality of spiral were all noted. More expensive multi-blade spiralizers were put through their paces with a range of vegetables – from easy-to-cut courgettes to awkwardly shaped beetroot and notoriously tough butternut squash. We looked for consistency in spiral, ease of use and quality of build to judge whether their price and footprint were justified. For more product picks, visit our reviews section.

If you’re looking for some extra help, check out our spiralizing video.

Spiralizer recipes

Courgetti Bolognese
Veggie meatballs with tomato courgetti
Summer courgetti & meatballs
Spiralized Singapore noodles
Bang bang chicken & spiralized noodles
All our top spiralizer recipes
10 new ways to use your spiralizer

More gadgets on test

The best dehydrators
The best smoothie blenders
The best griddle pans
The best steamers
Visit our reviews section

This review was last updated in August 2020. If you have any questions, suggestions for future reviews or spot anything that has changed in price or availability please get in touch at [email protected].

Advertisement

Have you tried making courgetti yet? Leave a comment below…