The Soda Can Hack For A Makeshift Spiralizer In A Pinch

If you've ever wanted to make zoodles or another type of veggie noodles, you probably know you need a spiralizer. However, spiralizers, although certainly handy for this particular type of meal, aren't kitchen gadgets that everyone has on hand, making it tough for you to try these kinds of meals. What's more, while a desire to make zoodles can be a great reason to own a spiralizer, if you don't make them very often, the purchase may not seem justified.

Luckily, there's an easy way to get around this, and all it requires is a soda can. You'll need to have an open soda can, then hold your veggie against the drinking hole at an angle and rotate it, creating ribbons of the vegetable. These resemble the noodles you'd get if you were using a vegetable spiralizer, making a quick and easy workaround for home cooks who don't have a real one on hand. Of course, there are a few considerations to keep in mind if you're going to try this hack.

To implement this soda can hack, there are a couple of things you need to think about first. For starters, you need to make sure that the can is both clean and empty. Make sure to thoroughly rinse it out and dry it before starting to spiralize your veggies. Otherwise, you could wind up with trace amounts of the beverage in there, which could lead to flavoring your noodles. Additionally, make sure that there are no loose pieces of metal around the soda can opening. These could fall off as you spiralize and make their way into your food.

Another consideration to have in mind is what kind of vegetable you'll be using. Note that the metal on soda cans is quite thin. As a result, you may have a hard time trying to spiralize tough root vegetables, such as potatoes. Try using softer veggies, such as zucchini or eggplant, so that you don't bend or break the can and are able to get long, full spirals.

Finally, as you spiralize your veggies, you'll notice they fall into the soda can through the drinking hole. Once you've finished spiralizing your vegetables, you'll need to get them out. Use a can opener to remove the entire top of the soda can, then turn it on its head over a bowl to remove the veggies.

If you don't have any empty soda cans lying around, there are still some ways that you can spiralize veggies, even without an actual spiralizer. One easy way to get a similar effect is to use a vegetable peeler. With the peeler, create long ribbons lengthwise down the veggie. The result will be wide, flat noodles.

Another option is to julienne your noodles, whether you do that solely with a knife or with the help of a mandoline. Here, the trick will be to cut your vegetable lengthwise into quarters and then use the knife to cut long strips of the veggie out of each one. This method can lead to more noodle-like veggies, but it can also be tricky to get the thickness right.

Finally, you can also use a grater as a spiralizer alternative. To do so, you'll want to grate your veggie lengthwise on the largest grater holes so that long strips are created as you go. You can lay the grater on its side to make this process easier. The resulting noodles will be shorter than they would if you used a spiralizer, but they still have a similar look and feel! So, whether you use a knife, a grater, a vegetable peeler, or a soda can, there are plenty of ways to make veggie noodles without having to purchase a spiralizer.