spin me right round, lettuce

June 12, 2010 5:46 PM

what should i be looking for in a salad spinner? do you love yours? hate it? do you covet a particular spinner? which one is it? save me from soggy salads!
posted by nadawi to Food & Drink (34 answers total)

Don't get one that uses a string mechanism to make the spinner spin. I got one of those, and the string broke the third time I used it.
posted by Felicity Rilke at 5:49 PM on June 12, 2010 [1 favorite]

Best answer: I have this one from Oxo. It's been tops.
posted by BundleOfHers at 5:50 PM on June 12, 2010 [14 favorites]

Seconding the Oxo. It works a lot better than my previous no-name salad spinner that required pulling a string.
posted by needled at 5:54 PM on June 12, 2010

Best answer: That OXO one is great. I have the mini (herb) version. It isn't big enough. Go for full size.
posted by mollymayhem at 5:55 PM on June 12, 2010 [1 favorite]

You want the one from Oxo. It's easy to use, and as stable as they come. You don't need to think any harder. You can also use it to dry off berries. (good for adding them to muffins)

Pick it up from any store where kitchen stuff is sold.
posted by mccarty.tim at 5:56 PM on June 12, 2010

Yes, Oxo is the one to get.
posted by doift at 5:56 PM on June 12, 2010

Response by poster: the OXO is the one i had liked. fantastic!
posted by nadawi at 5:58 PM on June 12, 2010

Yes. Oxo. If you get a different salad spinner, The Salad Gods will frown on you.
posted by Admiral Haddock at 5:58 PM on June 12, 2010 [2 favorites]

The Oxo salad spinner is excellent.
posted by matildaben at 6:01 PM on June 12, 2010

I just got a plastic one at the local dollar store for $10 and it works fine. No fancy push plunger, you just turn the center knob yourself.
posted by PercussivePaul at 6:03 PM on June 12, 2010

I do not like the Oxo one. I know everyone else on the planet does. I prefer the kind where the water runs through the bottom part. I don't like how the Oxo one spins and the braking annoys me. I have one with a really strong cord and I like it so much better.
posted by otherwordlyglow at 6:11 PM on June 12, 2010

I have a couple of OXO pieces (Julia Child liked OXO, that was good enough for me), count me in as a fan of the salad spinner (and also the can opener which has been going strong for almost 15 years..).
posted by L'Estrange Fruit at 6:16 PM on June 12, 2010 [1 favorite]

Love the OXO. To avoid excess water after the spin cycle, just give the basket a good shake or two over the sink after the bath before you spin. Problem solved.
posted by cooker girl at 6:19 PM on June 12, 2010

Poor man's (and woman's) salad spinner: Place your damp salad ingredients inside a large zipper-top storage bag with a few folded paper towels and shake shake shake. Open it up, take out the paper towels, and you have perfect salad. If you have leftovers, put it all back in the bag with a couple of fresh paper towels, squeeze out the air, and toss it in the fridge.
posted by amyms at 6:20 PM on June 12, 2010 [2 favorites]

A reason I like my OXO is that the strainer is a higher quality molding. In a lot of cheap spinners, there are bits of flash that block holes, break loose or collect grunge and bits of scrubbie-pad.
posted by bonobothegreat at 6:25 PM on June 12, 2010

I have the oxo in two sizes and recommend it.
posted by dobbs at 6:27 PM on June 12, 2010

Following amyms' line of thought: we just wrap a head of lettuce in a damp towel and put it in the washer; turn it on the spin cycle, ta da!
posted by headspace at 6:29 PM on June 12, 2010

Another vote for the OXO spinner.
posted by Blazecock Pileon at 6:37 PM on June 12, 2010

As with the OXO, get one that doesn't drain through. You can wash a salad, discard that water, then crisp in ice water, then spin dry.
posted by StickyCarpet at 6:47 PM on June 12, 2010

I also have the OXO spinners, a large and a small. I use the small spinner for herbs.
posted by hazyspring at 7:24 PM on June 12, 2010

Best answer: OXO Salad Spinner! So many uses:

1) Dry your greens, veggies or fruit
2) Use the inside basket to drain pasta
3) Dry poultry
4) Drain leeks and get the grit out
5) Dry a bathing suit
6) Dry potatoes after cutting into sticks and washing starch off (to prepare for frying) or dry grated potatoes for hashbrowns
7) Salt eggplant cubes and then spin the liquid out before cooking
8) Defrost and dry frozen shrimp
9) Store a washed and dried head of lettuce right IN the spinner (in the fridge!)
10) De-seed freshly chopped tomatoes
11) Dry a hand washed, cashmere sweater or pantyhose
posted by jeanmari at 7:35 PM on June 12, 2010 [13 favorites]

Did someone mention the OXO? After cheaper ones (handle/string) broke far too quickly, I stumped for it and it's plainly worth the money.

12) clean ink from fountain pens. Probably buy a spare for that.
posted by holgate at 8:03 PM on June 12, 2010

Great question, btw—I've had the OXO spinner in my Amazon cart for a couple of months, but hadn't yet gotten around to actually buying it. This confirms that my decision was a good one!
posted by limeonaire at 8:10 PM on June 12, 2010

I've purchased my last OXO. I may have been too aggressive in my spinning, but my $5 Ikea spinner has outlasted every $17 OXO I've ever purchased.
posted by donpardo at 8:22 PM on June 12, 2010

I grew up never using a salad spinner (just shaking the leaves off over the sink after washing them, then piling them on a towel or on the dish drying rack), but after I moved in with my girlfriend she got the OXO spinner others have mentioned. It's the only salad spinner I've ever used, but it seems to work fine and she's happy with it.
posted by JiBB at 8:40 PM on June 12, 2010

I eat a lot of salad, and my Ikea one has lasted for ages. My ex had one too, and it never broke. Love it! No string involved.
posted by studioaudience at 8:49 PM on June 12, 2010

My one from the thrift store cost 50 cents and has lasted 5 years so far, and I am a salad maniac. The thing has a gear inside, and you spin the lid via an off-centre knob.
posted by Listener at 9:18 PM on June 12, 2010

13) wash sandy strawberries from the farmer's market
posted by bink at 9:26 PM on June 12, 2010

OH BABY I GOT THAT OXO AND IT IS THE SHIIIIIT!

Seriously, it's awesome. I would spin anything in it. Anything. Well, nothing alive.
posted by Nattie at 9:59 PM on June 12, 2010 [1 favorite]

Response by poster: OXO purchased! thanks!
posted by nadawi at 10:56 PM on June 12, 2010

Is the oxo salad spinner available from a bricks and mortar store in Ontario or is it mail order only?
posted by SueDenim at 6:28 AM on June 13, 2010

Newegg carries the oxo spinner also, I got it on sale around christmas with free shipping.
posted by L'Estrange Fruit at 8:19 AM on June 13, 2010

Just chiming in on the Oxo love, we had one of those Oxos and were very happy with it for 12 years until it broke. We replaced it with one of these Oxos, and have been just as pleased.
posted by Lexica at 7:07 PM on June 13, 2010 [1 favorite]

I *heart* my OXO spinner.
posted by kaseijin at 8:05 AM on June 14, 2010 [1 favorite]