First, let me preface this post by giving full disclosure:  cooking is not my strongest suit.  I pretty much stink at it.  One of my friends from high school and one that I’ve kept in touch with on Facebook recommended Blue Apron for me to try.  So I did.  And I like it.  It’s making me a better cook which is almost unimaginable.  I’m that bad.

I’m so bad at it, that prior to my experiences with Blue Apron, my favorite kitchen gadget and thereby cooking gadget was the Salad Spinner.  What a minute, you say.  That’s not technically a “cooking gadget.”  And you would be right.  I know that now.  Because now, I’m a freaking cook.  I wasn’t before.

Truthfully, the Salad Spinner is a really incredible gadget.  I do treasure it.  Since I wasn’t much of a cook before, I became a damn good salad maker.  My salads are awesome.  They are mesmerizing.  They are unique and imaginative.  And that Salad Spinner makes it all possible.  If you don’t have a Salad Spinner, let me tell you -you are missing out!  Please go out and buy one right now!  Go.  I’ll wait……

Here’s a link to Good Housekeepings Review on Salad Spinners so that you can make a more informed decision http://www.goodhousekeeping.com/cooking-tools/salad-spinner-reviews/.

Did you get it?  OK, now you are ready to make the most incredible salads on God’s green earth.  Let’s get started.

Have you ever had a salad that seemed a bit too juicy?  You washed the lettuce and the accompanying vegetables and/or fruit, mixed it all together and added the dressing but found upon eating it that a soupy concoction remained at the bottom of the salad bowl.  That’s just gross and unappetizing.  Now that you have a Salad Spinner, this will never happen again.  The problem?  You didn’t get all that produce dry enough!

You cut up your lettuce, vegetables, fruit , wash it thoroughly, place it in the basket in the Salad Spinner and SPIN it.  The centrifugal force (that’s science) forces the water away from the produce and into the bowl beneath!  So smart!  Then you just dump out the water and wa-lah!  No juicy aftermath!

Please, please, please DO NOT confuse the Salad Spinner with the Salad Shooter.  This is a common, but disastrous mistake.  The Salad Shooter is just dumb and did not stand the test of time.  You don’t need that, you can cut up your lettuce yourself.  But drying it, that takes effort, paper towels, and time!!  Nobody’s got time for that.

I put everything in the Salad Spinner.  Spinach.  Broccoli.  Strawberries.  Cauliflower.  Grapes.  Anything fresh that needs to be dried after washing.  I deem it one of the great inventions of the 1970’s.  Only to be rivaled by the Post-It Note and disposable lighter.  Oh yeah, and Pong.  I almost forgot about Pong…