When I ask what holds them back from cooking, many people respond that it’s the prep time. And buying precut veggies is so expensive many simply punt and eat fast food. But what if there was a tool that could help you chop veggies in half the time?
For months, my friend Adele raved about a chopper she had lost. She talked about it so much her family bought her a new one for Christmas. Of course, you know what happened then…she found her old one. Thankfully she passed it along to me to test…all I can say is WOW!
Half the chopping time…seriously!
This Vidalia Chop Wizard is amazing, and no, this is not a paid endorsement! Yesterday when I was making my favorite 20-Minute Shrimp & Sausage Paleo Skillet Meal, I pulled out that chopper and went to town.
Yes, you have to do a little pre-cutting to make your veggies fit on the chopping surface. But then just press down the cover, and uniform pieces!
And yes, it takes a little power for the onions and peppers, but the softer zucchini and mushrooms were a breeze. So much chopping, so little time! (Pro tip: bell pepper skin cuts better when it goes through the blades first. So put those pepper pieces in skin side down.)
I could see this working for cucumbers as well, but root veggies would be too tough for this tool. Potatoes, carrots, beets and radishes would take a heavy-duty, super sharp metal to cut them.
What about the cleanup time?
Back when Adele first gave this to me, I did find it took enough cleaning time and created enough frustration, I wasn’t “sold” on it being a time saver. Afterall, I already chopped peppers and onions pretty fast.
But then she found this EZ Cleaning Lift tab…problem solved! You push this tool down over the posts that push the veggies through the cutting edges BEFORE cutting.
Then when you’re done, simply lift off the majority of what gets stuffed up in between the posts. There might be a little bit left, but most of those will simply rinse away. It’s SO much better than having to clean out every single crevice!
For the blades, you might wanna keep a couple of these brushes around. Try to resist using your fingers…those blades are sharp!
“But wait…there’s more”
At risk of sounding like a commercial, I do want to mention that the chopper comes with two blades…although unless I want seriously tiny onion pieces, I can’t really see using the smaller “weave” blade.
What I DO love is the measuring options printed on the side. When the recipe calls for a cup and a half of chopped onions, you can see how much you have in the chopper without getting a measuring cup dirty, too. Cup measurements are on one side, milliliter measurements are on the other.
Do be watchful though…if you’re cutting peppers or onions, they will create some liquid. When you turn the unit on its edge to see the measurements, that liquid will leak out. Maybe do that over the sink to save yourself some extra clean-up.
You choose the chopping method YOU like best
If you’ve got others cooking with you and want to savor the time together preparing a meal, by all means, chop by hand (see the links below for the best way to chop onions and peppers in particular!).
But if you want fast, I highly suggest this affordable chopper and it EZ lift cleaning tab. Can’t wait till I see a sale on peppers or onions and can chop a bunch to freeze. I’ll be done in half the time!
What would you use this chopper for? Tell me in the comments below!
