All the cool kids are spiralizing these days. Are you?This post is sponsored by OXO and their new hand-crank spiralizer, which they sent me so I could use it for this post.
Like most OXO tools, this one is thoughtfully made, with blades that store in an included box - and then the box attaches to the spiralizer, so it all stays together in storage.
That's a huge plus when it comes to kitchen gadgets with multiple parts. I have a neat little collection of things that belong to other things.
But this particular collection is special. I know the parts all belong with ... something. But I don't quite know what that something is. Sooner or later, I'll find the mating parts, but until then, I let them rattle around in a drawer.
So anyway, the OXO spiralizer
keeps its parts together. It includes three blades - one for larger spiralized cuts, one for smaller cuts, and a slicing blade.
For this recipe, I used the two different spiralizer blades - the larger one for the onion and fennel - and the smaller one for the zucchini.
And yes, you can use the spiralizer to cut things that aren't solid all the way through, like the onion in this recipe. The fennel and onion didn't actually result in long ribbons, but they cut nice thins trips that were exactly what I wanted.
So, if you haven't spiralized, the absolutely best tip I can give you is that if you're cutting something like zucchini, it's really cool to end up with a few super-long noodles. But ... those super-long noodles aren't so fun to eat. It's better to cut the noodles in lengths similar to spaghetti, or even a little shorter. The easy way to do that is to stop the spiralizing once in a while and just snip the strands with scissors.
I used langostino tails for this recipe, but if you can't find them, shrimp would be just as good. you can use fresh, cooked, or raw - just make sure your remove the shells and they're deveined.
Lemony Spiralized Vegetables with Langostino Tails
1 medium onion1 medium fennel bulb (Reserve some of the frilly fronds for garnish; discard the green stalks)
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon black pepper
1 green bell pepper
2 zucchini (not the teeny ones, but not the ones that your friends and enemies drop off on your porch in the summer)
2 tablespoons lemon juice
Pinch of red pepper flakes
12 ounces langostino tails (or shrimp)
2 tablespoons butter
1 tablespoon finely chopped parsley and thyme (about half of each - eyeball it)
Use the larger spiralizer blade to cut the onion and the bulb of the fennel into strips. Reserve some of the fine fennel fronds for garnish.
Heat the olive oil in a large saute pan on medium heat and add the onion and fennel. Add the salt an pepper and stir. Cook, stirring once in a while. Meanwhile, core and seed the bell pepper and slice it into thin strips. Add it to the pan.
When the onions have softened and are no longer sharp-tasting, add the zucchini, lemon juice, and red pepper flakes. Cook, stirring as needed, until the zucchini is cooked through.
Add the langostino tails (or shrimp) and cook just long enough to warm the seafood (if it's precooked) or to cook it through if it's raw.
If the seafood gives off a lot of liquid, turn up the heat briefly to reduce it.
Add the butter and continue cooking, stirring, until the butter has melted. Taste for seasoning and add more salt, pepper, or lemon, if desired. Add the herbs, stir once more, serve. Garnish with some of the reserved fennel fronds, if desired.
This post was sponsored by OXO. Want to know what they're up to? Follow them on Facebook!
