Spiralizing vegetables-that is, cutting them so they look like long noodles-has become a thing lately. The faux noodles are popular for those on gluten-free diets and are just a fun way to eat your veggies. I’ve been spiralizing for years, so when it came time to test the Vietnamese Zoodle Salad, I reached for my Paderno spiralizer. I like the Paderno because it has a hand crank that makes an easy job of spiralizing. (Models without a crank are tiring to use and don’t work as well.) To use the Paderno, and others like it, simply snap the blade into the slicer, secure a vegetable to the prongs, turn the hand crank, and push. It works well with dense vegetables such as carrots, beets, potatoes (curly fries!), and turnips, as well as zucchini, onions, and even apples. Paderno makes di erent models that come with either three or four blades, which create noodles of varying thickness as well as shreds or ribbons.

-Diana Andrews