Several weeks ago I received an InstantVeg Spiralizer from Brieftons for the purposes of review. Finding creative and easy ways to make vegetables more versatile in my cooking has become more important because of our gluten intolerant daughter. So many things we take for granted in our every day diets are things she just can’t have. Her favorite meal is spaghetti and meatballs. When she found out she couldn’t have it anymore because of the wheat noodles it broke her heart. Gluten free noodles made with other grains don’t have the same texture, tend to get soggy or disintegrate. Plus, this time of year with tons of fresh veggies available from the garden and farmer’s markets we have no excuse to not experiment with our recipes.
The InstantVeg Spiralizer came in several pieces that needed to be assembled. For the most part the assemblage was easy. Where my husband and I ran into a problem was with the adjustment knob for the blades that regulate the width of the spirals. If you read the instructions and watch the video you will see how super simple it was to pull out and then turn the knob to switch blades. Ours wouldn’t budge. I tried. I reread the instructions. I pulled straight out. . . Nothing. At first I thought I was missing something. So, I asked my husband to help. He read the instructions and did exactly what I did, but with his strength level. Where in the video the knob slid out really easy ours shot off the side of the Spiralizer to the other side of the kitchen. I contacted the company letting them know it was defective and was completely blown off. They said I must have done something wrong; that I needed to read the instructions again. I gave them a chance to rectify the situation so I could do a review on a fully functional – not-glued-shut version of their kitchen tool, but it was to no avail. Customer service failed. Yes, I did receive the device at no cost BUT I’ve had review products fail before and the companies usually bend over backwards to make sure they make things right.
Unfortunately, this was not the last problem I had. I was still able to use the spiral maker despite the knob issue. After only 4 uses, all with zucchini, I noticed deep stress cracks along the edge of the collection bowl. All in all the idea is good, but the materials and workmanship are sub par.
As for functionality, I did like the relative ease of inserting a piece of vegetable and turning and pressing the processing knob to push it into the blades. It made quick work of the veg every time. You have to make sure the the device can close all the way and that the vegetable is not crooked; the more of the veg is touching the pegs on the lid the more stable it will be held while turning. What I didn’t like is how much waste was left once the top pressed down as far as it could.
I received one or more of the products mentioned above for free using Tomoson.com. Regardless, I only recommend products or services I use personally and believe will be good for my readers.
Firstly, I’m a mom and wife. Professionally, IT consulting is my job and blogging is the outlet for my passions. I write about things that affect the everyday life of a stay-at-home parent or any parent for that matter such as parenting, relationships, discipline, the media, product reviews, giveaways, social media, food, cooking, gardening and anything else that might come my way.
