The spiralizer is an interesting kitchen gadget. It reached peak popularity about a decade ago, when it was a staple in food blogs and late-night infomercials. Though the spiralizer fad has come and gone, it left an impact. Supermarkets now sell spiralized vegetable “noodles” in the produce section, and aficionados of state fair food routinely…
You might know this dish by another name — tornado potato, rotato potato, chips on a stick — but it’s essentially long spirals of fried potato, cut on an industrial spiralizer and often served on a skewer for easier eating. (When referred to as ribbon fries, however, they’re typically served without a skewer.)
If you love that particular treat but don’t own a spiralizer, we have good news: a plain old box grater can do the job.
Making Curly Potatoes Without a Spiralizer
Start by laying your box grater on its side on your counter or workspace, with its wide slicing blade facing upward. It helps to put a damp towel underneath to keep it from sliding, just as you would to stabilize a cutting board. Then:
• Peel one or more russet potatoes, ensuring they’re large enough to make a nice spiral, but still comfortable to handle. Lightly trim one end of the potato with a paring knife; this will make for a clean start to the spiral.
• Push a long skewer lengthwise through the center of each potato so it comes out the other end. This step is optional, but it helps keep the potato intact and makes it easier to eat once fried.
• Place the flat end of the potato against the grater’s wide slicing blade, with the skewer centered in its opening.
• Gently press down and rotate the potato, forcing it to spiral through the blade.
• Continue until the entire potato has spiraled through the blade. Or use your paring knife to trim off the end once your fingers get perilously close to the blade.
• Stand up the box grater and tilt it to release the skewer and your newly spiralized potato.
• Repeat with the remaining potatoes. Then, you can either fry them, or mist them with oil and pop them in the oven or air fryer. Check out this video tutorial if you need visual cues.
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Tip: Any time you’re pushing a vegetable toward a blade, there’s always a risk of cutting yourself. You might want to invest in some inexpensive cut-resistant gloves for your kitchen to protect against that.
Other Cool Box Grater Hacks
Your box grater has more tricks up its sleeve, of course. You can use the spiral technique with its regular large grater side to make spiralized zucchini noodles (“zoodles”), or whip up low-carb lasagne by using the slicing blade as an improvised mandoline for long sheets of zucchini or other vegetables. You can even use the different-sized holes on your box grater to easily strip fresh herbs from their stems — a real time-saver when you’re cooking.
