Although zucchini and sweet potatoes are probably the most commonly spiralized vegetables, there is a wide array of other fruits and vegetables that can be prepared in the same way. Changing what fruits and vegetables you use will not only keep your meals new and exciting, but it will provide you with a healthy balance of nutrients to make sure you are getting all the vitamins and minerals you need in your diet.
As a rule of thumb, you want to make sure you are choosing fruits and vegetables that are in season and that have been organically grown. Look for produce that is ripe and firm, and be sure to pick a type that is big enough to spiralize. If a fruit or vegetable is too mushy, it won’t be able to spiralize, and if it’s too small, the noodles will fall apart.
Following are some of the most commonly spiralized fruits and vegetables, with a little bit of information on how to choose them, how they are best prepared, and their most important nutrients.
Most apples are easy to spiralize, and you don’t need to pick out specific ones to obtain good results. Look for apples that are even in shape and size and have no bumps or bruises.
To spiralize apples, just remove the stem. You can use any of the blades for spiralizing apples, but using a straight-noodle blade will have the apples come out as thin slices rather than noodles. You can eat spiralized apples raw, sauté them in a pan, or bake them in the oven. They can be prepared with the peel on or peel off, though the peel provides you with the most fiber. Spiralized apples are best served raw in salads, or served warm with breakfast or desserts.
Apples are high in fiber, low in calories, and contain antioxidants such as polyphenols and vitamin C, which can help boost cardiovascular health and help fight against cancer.
When purchasing beets, make sure to buy them raw. The larger they are, the easier they are to spiralize. Both red and golden beets work equally well.
Beets need to be peeled before spiralizing, and they can be eaten raw or roasted in the oven. They go well with salads and in Mediterranean or Middle Eastern dishes. Golden beets are a bit more mild than red beets, making them a good pasta substitute (and less messy to prepare).
High in vitamin C, folate, manganese, and fiber, among other nutrients, beets are great cancer fighters and work to detoxify our bodies and fight inflammation.
Broccoli noodles require spiralizing the bottom stalk of the broccoli plant. Be sure to buy the broccoli whole, and choose a stalk that’s at least 11⁄2" wide.
A small-noodle blade is best for spiralizing broccoli, and it can be served raw, sautéed, or roasted. Broccoli noodles are light and mild in flavor, and they taste best with salads or pastas that are lightly dressed.
The stalk of broccoli is higher in fiber than its florets. It also contains some protein, calcium, and iron, and combined with the florets, is high in antioxidants.
Choose a squash that is evenly shaped, meaning the bottom part isn’t much more bulbous than the top. You will use the top of the squash to spiralize, as the bottom part contains the seeds and cannot be put through a spiralizer.
Butternut squashes are spiralized after the entire outer skin has been peeled and the bulbous bottom portion sliced off entirely. You can use any blade for squash, and it has a taste and texture very similar to spaghetti, making it a great substitute for many types of pasta dishes, though it tends to be a bit on the sweet side.
Extremely high in vitamin A and other antioxidants, butternut squash also contains fiber, vitamin C, vitamin B6, manganese, and copper. It is also one of the highest plant sources of omega-3 fatty acids.
Green and purple cabbage heads are best for spiralizing, and all you have to do is chop off the bottom and remove the outer layer of leaves.
Although cabbage can be spiralized, it does not come out like noodles and instead comes out shaved or shredded, making it a great choice for salad or coleslaws. It can also be sautéed and served warm or boiled in soups.
Purple cabbage is higher in antioxidants, but both varieties contain fiber, folate, vitamin C, vitamin K, potassium, and other nutrients.
Whether it’s the orange kind, purple, white, or yellow, any carrot can be spiralized, but you’ll have the most luck with thicker, jumbo carrots that are at least 11⁄2" wide. Bigger carrots are often found fresh, with the leaves still attached, at local farmers’ markets or stores with fresh produce.
Carrots are best spiralized using a small-noodle blade, and they can be served raw, roasted, sautéed, or boiled. They have a mild taste, so they can be used with many types of dishes, but spiralized carrots taste especially good in salads or Asian-inspired dishes.
Carrots are extremely high in beta carotene, an antioxidant that converts into the most usable form of vitamin A. They are also rich in potassium, fiber, biotin, vitamin K, and vitamin C.
Celeriac is the root of a celery plant, and it has a tough and hairy exterior that needs to be chopped off and peeled before spiralizing. Look for options that are smooth rather than bumpy. Celeriac is best during its peak season of fall and winter.
This root vegetable is best spiralized with a small- or large-noodle blade and can be served raw, boiled, or roasted. Its taste is similar to that of regular celery, but it also resembles a white potato, with just a bit of nuttiness.
Celeriac is low in calories, and contains fiber, potassium, iron, and vitamin C.
When shopping for cucumbers to spiralize, look for the larger varieties, such as the garden cucumber, that have wider diameters and will come out as noodles instead of breaking off into little half-moons. You also want your cucumber to be firm, or the noodles will come out too watery or mushy.
You can spiralize cucumbers using any blade, forming them into small or large noodles or wavy ribbons. You can keep the skin on or remove it, although the skin contains many important nutrients. Cucumber noodles are best served raw in salads or cold dishes. Always remove excess water by patting noodles dry with paper towels.
Full of cancer-fighting antioxidants, cucumbers are good anti-inflammatories and are great for keeping the body hydrated, as they are made up of mostly water. They also contain vitamin K, vitamin C, magnesium, and potassium.
This radish, a staple in Asian cuisine, has a much larger root and is more conducive to spiralizing than smaller radishes. Look for even and smooth daikon radishes. Although you want your radish wide enough to spiralize, don’t go too wide, as it may be difficult to use the vegetable on your spiralizer.
Daikon radish can be served raw or cooked, and tastes best with Asian-inspired meals or in soup. It is best spiralized using a small- or large-noodle blade. To prepare, you can choose to roast, sauté, or boil the radish. The noodles come out firm and crunchy and can withstand many types of cooking or added sauces.
This larger variety of radish is fat-free and low in calories, and it is filled with fiber, vitamin C, and copper, making it a great choice for healthy skin.
Chose whole jicamas that are medium in size with unblemished skin. They are best when they are round and firm.
You must peel jicama before spiralizing it, and you can use any size blade. Spiralized jicama can be served raw and eaten as a snack or served in a salad. It can also be seasoned and roasted, making the vegetable softer and taking on a bit of a different flavor. Cooked jicama goes well in spicy dishes or Mexican-inspired plates.
Jicama is low in calories and high in fiber, vitamin C, and potassium. It is low on the glycemic index, making it a good choice for those with diabetes. Jicama also contains vitamin B6 as well as iron.
You can spiralize any type of onion, from sweet to yellow to red. Just make sure your onion isn’t too mushy; the firmer it is, the more it will hold up when spiralized.
Spiralizing an onion won’t turn it into noodles, but it can help shred the onion for raw salads or produce curly pieces you can use for onion rings or onion shoestrings. You can use spiralized onions for any dish that typically calls for onions, especially recipes that require longer, thinner slices rather than diced.
Onions not only add flavor to any type of dish, but they are high in many antioxidants, helping to fight against cancer, cardiovascular disease, inflammation, and loss of bone density.
Parsnips have a similar shape to carrots, so look for medium to large parsnips that are smooth and firm. The larger their diameter, the easier they are to spiralize.
To prepare the parsnip, peel it and spiralize it using the small-noodle blade. It can be sautéed or roasted. Parsnip has a taste and texture similar to potatoes, and since its flavor is pretty neutral, it is a great replacement for pasta as well as a substitute for potatoes in dishes such as soup, fritters, or fried pancakes.
Parsnips are high in soluble fiber, folate, potassium, vitamin C, and vitamin E. They are low in calories and help improve cardiovascular health.
Like apples, most pears can be spiralized. Look for pears that are even in shape and size and have no bumps or bruises.
To spiralize pears, remove the stem. You can choose to keep or remove the peel, although the peel contains half the fruit’s fiber as well as an abundance of nutrients. Any blade can be used to spiralize pears, and you can make them into noodles or shave into ribbon slices. Spiralized pears are best served raw, though you can briefly sauté or roast them to serve them warm.
Pears are high in fiber, antioxidants, vitamin C, and vitamin K. They have wonderful anticarcinogenic properties and can help lower your risk of type 2 diabetes.
Although overly ripe plantains do taste delicious in many types of dishes, when it comes to spiralizing you want to look for plantains that are still green, as they will be firmer and more likely to form noodles. You also want to look for a plantain that is more straight rather than curvy.
Plantains do spiralize into noodles, but they are best when prepared as a substitute for rice, either by pulsing them in a food processor or mashing them up in a pan. They work best with Caribbean-inspired dishes, but they also work well as a replacement in any rice dish, whether sweet or savory.
Despite looking like bananas, plantains have their own set of nutrients. They are filled with fiber, vitamin A, vitamin C, vitamin B6, and potassium.
When it comes to potatoes, opt for the larger varieties such as russet or white potatoes, which will yield the most noodles. The smaller varieties work as well, but the noodles may not come out as even or as plentiful. Any color potato will work.
Using a small-noodle blade will produce noodles very similar to pasta, and a large-noodle blade will create thicker strands that work best as curly fries. The peel can be kept on or peeled off, and potatoes can be baked, sautéed, or fried. They can be used as noodle replacements, or prepared crispy as side dishes or toppings for salads.
Potatoes are high in fiber, antioxidants, vitamin B6, potassium, and copper. They can help lower blood pressure and fight against cardiovascular disease and cancer. Leave the peel on for more nutrients.
The bigger the radish, the better. Since radishes are small, you may not be able to spiralize all of them, but if they are at least 1" wide, they should work.
You can spiralize radishes into small noodles or use a straight blade to shave them. Serve them raw in salads or use them as toppings for dishes such as toast.
Radishes are low in calories, high in fiber, and contain vitamin C, folates, B vitamins, and vitamin K. They are also great cancer fighters.
Look for the larger sweet potatoes and ones that are symmetrical in shape. The smaller kinds work as well, but the noodles are more likely to break off, and they will yield a lot less noodles than their larger counterparts.
When spiralizing sweet potatoes, you can leave the peel on or take it off, although removing it makes for softer and smoother noodles if you’re using it as a pasta replacement. They can be spiralized with any type of blade. Sweet potato noodles, as per their name, tend to be on the sweeter side, but they can be used for savory dishes as well as sweet breakfasts or desserts.
Sweet potatoes are one of the best sources of vitamin A, given that they are high in carotenoids. They are also very high in vitamin C, manganese, copper, the B vitamins, potassium, and fiber.
When choosing turnips, look for those that are medium in size with a smooth exterior. Avoid turnips that are soft and shriveled or have any bruises or blemishes.
Turnips have a slightly peppery, bitter flavor, and they are best prepared roasted, sautéed, or boiled using a small-noodle blade. They can be used in soups, as replacement for pasta, or in salads. As noodles, they are very sturdy and can hold up well with heavier sauces.
Low in calories, turnips contain good amounts of fiber, vitamin C, and vitamin B6. They also contain some protein, calcium, and potassium.
While shopping for zucchini, opt for the larger kind, as they yield the most even and sturdy noodles. Look for straighter zucchini versus those that are oblong or curvy.
Zucchini can be spiralized using any blade, and they can be prepared with the peel on or off. Since zucchini are soft, they can be used raw as a pasta replacement, or they can be made even softer by sautéing. Their taste is extremely mild, making them a great pasta replacement in almost any dish. However, be careful with water-based sauces, such as tomato sauce, as it may cause the zucchini to become slightly runny and watery. You can combat this by soaking up excess moisture from zucchini with a paper towel before cooking.
This summer squash is a great source of antioxidants, fiber, vitamin C, magnesium, copper, and manganese. It also helps to regulate blood sugar, fight inflammation, and protect against cancer.