How to Use the Salad Spinner | In Many Ways

Become a Better Cook! This Just Maika Cooking: Cook's Notebook section will focus on everything related to using a salad spinner, with all my recipe posts updated frequently.

opened salad spinner with baby spinach in the basket

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5 Things You'll Be Glad You've Learned about the Salad Spinner
What is a Salad Spinner?
1. Tips for Soggy Greens
2. Your Favorite Kitchen Pal for Fast Prep
3. Use even for Herbs
4. Steps on How to Garnish with Herbs
5. Where to find these Salad Spinners?
Video Overview: Using the Salad Spinner
Cook's Notebook: Become a Better Cook!
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5 Things You'll Be Glad You've Learned about the Salad Spinner

To develop most of my recipes, I've used the Cuisinart Salad Spinner.

What is a Salad Spinner?

A useful tool to wash and dry leafy greens. The spinner is usually divided into three parts: a basket insert, a bowl container, and a lid with a mechanism to spin it, typically activated by pumping or turning a nob.

1. Tips for Soggy Greens

After washing the greens, you'll have to deal with them being wet and soggy. This is not great, especially if you are adding dressing. The salad spinner helps wash and dry the greens, returning them to their original state.

Plus, if you find your greens getting soggy, try adding a couple of ice cubes to the water bath, draining, and drying them to crisp them back up.

2. Your Favorite Kitchen Pal for Fast Prep

If you deal with a lot of greens, from salads to herbs, it's ideal for you. It can make prep time much faster, with fewer tools, and it is easy enough to put away when done. You won't need a colander or a bowl. Just place it into the container, fill it with water, and remove the basket to drain. Place the basket back in and spin. Then plate it up or serve it.

3. Use even for Herbs

You'll notice I mentioned herbs when you buy them; they still have dirt on them. If you watch many cooking videos, you will see them mention rinsing and patting your herbs dry before using.

I prefer to use the salad spinner since I don't have to waste paper towels and grab other equipment, and it dries it instantly, cutting my prep time in half. The benefits of dried herbs are that they're way easier to chop without worrying about scraping your blade to remove the clumped wet herbs.

4. Steps on How to Garnish with Herbs

If you like to get fancy and want to make your dishes look nice for your family and friends:

Always prep your garnishes ahead of time.
Use 1 or ½ of fresh herbs (for example, cilantro or parsley). Note: Yielding about 1 to 2 ounces.
Rinse the herbs on the stem in water.
Note: Watch my video on using a salad spinner below for ideas on rinsing and drying.
Dry the herbs of the excess water using a salad spinner, or pat dry with a paper towel.
Remove the leaves from the stem.
Note: You can save the stems for making stocks.
Gather the leaves into a bunch.
Chop to the desired fineness.
Storage: Place leftovers in an airtight container with a paper towel folded to line the bottom, and pour the chopped herbs on top.
This can be kept in the refrigerator for a couple of days.

5. Where to find these Salad Spinners?

Since it is a very common tool, you can find these salad spinners practically anywhere. I always find them at my local Asian markets and supercenters. If you still can't find them, you can order them online.