Have you been to a party, where you saw a delicious strawberry plate presented with perfectly hulled strawberry and wished you the secret behind that perfectio?! I’ll tell you, It is the strawberry huller!
A strawberry huller is a small device used in removing the white center core of the berry with the gem and the green stem leaving the skin intact for any delicious recipe. So, a lot of you wonder.
It’s it time to know how to a use strawberry huller. but first let me answer a question some people might ask.
What hulling a strawberry means?
Hulling strawberries is removing both the green area around the stem and that hard center.
This green “hull” on every fresh strawberry plant is mostly known as a stem gem. However, they are more typically known as hulls, tops, caps, cores, or stems.
Now, let’s move to another important point.
Why should you hull your strawberries?
While the berries hulls are edible, they are not very palatable. It would be better if you removed it for the exact cause you get rid of pineapple‘s hard internal center. It is just not pleasant to eat.
Additionally, lots of dishes call for it. So, it is an excellent idea to hull strawberries before proceeding with your delicious recipes.
Using a huller reduces the time with minimal skin waste left behind from coring a lot of the strawberry’s top by a paring knife.
This handy kitchen gadget is excellent, especially when having a bulk of strawberries to the hull for canning.
Many brands now offer multipurpose gadgets used on various fruits and vegetables such as potatoes, carrots, tomatoes, and pineapples.
The classic huller is a piece of folded metal tweezers with a handle and sharp teeth edges. All you need is to pinch the area around the green stem with a digging motion to hull the center out at the same time.
Nowadays, there are more modern alternatives featuring more options for making the hulling process much more comfortable.
How to use a strawberry huller?
The convenience when using a strawberry huller is that you save more flesh of the fruit that u desire.
Tools
- Water
- Kitchen paper towel
- A strawberry huller
Steps
- Rinse your fresh strawberry with water before hulling, so it does not soak a lot of liquid and become soggy and sticky.
- Pick up the delicious berry in one hand. Then hold the huller in your other dominant hand between your thumb tip and forefinger.
- Place the huller edges with their different shapes around the top green stem gem, and insert it with a gentle penetration.
- Press into the fruit skin, twist, and then pull out to remove the core from the tool.
- Rinse the huller with some warm water to get rid of the fruit juices, and remains clung on the teeth edges to ensure the tool’s longevity.
Once you get perfectly hulled strawberry, serve with whipped cream or warm chocolate.
How to use different models of strawberry hullers?
Model #1: Straw-like style huller
We are all familiar with hulling a strawberry with the plastic straw method . Well, this huller model features the same options with the same techniques.
But it offers some sharp teeth at the top of the straw to ease up the removal of the center, with minimal waste of the berries skin.
Required tools
- Water
- Straw like strawberry huller
- Fresh berry
Steps
- Rinse your strawberries before hulling, so they do not get soggy from absorbing extra water and get slippery.
- Place the straw-like end at the berry’s pointed base, push the straw upwards through the white center.
- Until the core, the gem with the green stem pops out, leaving the fruit flesh intact.
- Wash the huller with some water, clean all the berries’ remains stuck on the teeth edges, and the juices to ensure the tool’s longevity.
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Model #2: A claw-like style huller
The claw-like design is new to the strawberry huller’s products. And still, a runner-up undergoing a lot of tests. They are handy and easy to use.
Stem gem stainless steel claw is one of the best gadgets available in the market as it is effective and fun for the kids to encourage them to eat healthy fruit. it features a colorful red ergonomic handle and a green button on the top.
With high-quality stainless steel blade edges that are dishwasher safe and easy to clean.
Required tools
- Warm water
- A claw-like huller
- Fresh berry
Steps
- Wash your fresh berries before hulling and rinse your huller before using it to get rid of any residue from the previous use.
- Press the top green button to open the claw wide enough to grab the berry’s stem area.
- Push the huller into the skin of the strawberry at an angle. Then with the claw inside the berry release the button.
- Gently twist the huller that the claw’s edges cut the inner core of the strawberry. To cut a circle in the skin.
- Rinse the kitchen tool under warm water to get rid of the strawberry juice on it.
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Summary
Unfortunately, not all claw-like strawberry hullers tested were winners. They fail in one thing or another.
For example, like the OXO good grip huller felt short on how big the claw edges open.
Leaving the testers gutting the inside of small strawberries tending to leave behind some green stem on the strawberry when twisting to slice the stem.
As for progressive strawberry huller, it was tested to be a horrible product. When used on stiff berries, the blade may spin and splatter the fruit juice.
Even when using it on soft strawberries, the blades were not sharp enough that you struggle to cut through the flesh ending up using your fingers to pull out the rest of the core.
Model #3: A scooping style huller
If you plan to prepare a homemade strawberry jam preserve, then be ready to hull a bulk of berries.
This scooping style huller allows you to core out the hulls quicker than any other kitchen tool.
Amazingly, this scooping huller can core the toughest strawberry without worrying that the metal part will bend or flex due to its sturdy design.
It is also worth mentioning that this hulling stem remover most of the skin intact after removing the white core, leaving minimal waste behind for your salads.
Even better, this tool is usually a multipurpose tool that u can act as a tomatoe huller.
The Joie MSC international huller and the Norpro huller are the most recommended by chefs. (check their full review here)
It features durable stainless steel with a bold red high-quality plastic, in addition to an ergonomic handle for a comfortable and easy-to-hold handle.
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Required tools
- Scooping design huller
- Warm water
- Fresh berry
Steps
- Hold a berry in your dominant hand and the huller in the other. For better control of the fruit while hulling.
- Position the scoop sharp teeth just under the green stem area around the stem where the leaves are joined to the berry.
- Apply gentle pressure to penetrate the skin of the strawberry with a scooping angle motion
- Start pulling the hull with the same motion as soon as the scoop’s teeth start cutting through the skin pull upwards.
- Remove the leaves and the stem gem from the berry by hands from the teeth on the scooping spoon. As sometimes the skin gets clung to it.
Summary
Scoop hullers are perfect for those who want to keep most of the skin of the strawberry intact.
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Model 4: How to use a tong like huller?
The tong-like style strawberry huller offers a new level of versatile use not found in any other gadgets. Turning the tedious job of hulling into a fun and time-saving process.
Amazingly it works as an efficient multipurpose tool. Designed to be ideal for all sizes of fruits and veggies. As it can be used on potatoes, tomatoes, carrots, and pineapples
The top tong stem remover recommended by chefs are the kasmena and the Yafkoo huller.
It features an ergonomic handle with a durable stainless steel sharp tooth on the ends of the tong.
This tool is convenient, comfortable, and labor-saving to use. Hulling a lot of strawberries with a minimal waste of skin left behind
The most classic huller is folded metal tweezers with a handle and sharp teeth edges.
Nowadays, more advanced models from this type of core remover make it sturdier and more flexible to use.
The most many products of these hullers are the kasmena and the Yafkoo strawberry tong hullers.
Required tools
- Water
- Tong strawberry hullers
- Fresh strawberries
Steps
- Gently press the top part of the green stem on the berry with digging in motion.
- Start twisting the tweezers like tong until you feel that the stem with the core is cut from the strawberry’s inner.
- Pull out and release to remove the stem part. Leaving the rest of the fruit skin intact.
Summary
The tong style huller is America’s least favorite of all the different types of core removers out there.
Some tongs are made of stiff and difficult material, making them too tight to use.
Others were easy to squeeze, causing the testers to smash the strawberry’s skin, splattering out the juice and leaving a mess behind.
One of the tong-style hullers that still stick to the classic design is Fox run huller. However, it is recognizable that the device’s metal is too flimsy to penetrate a soft strawberry and rust easily.
Even if you managed to put the huller in the right position. You will probably find it unable to safely remove the stem.
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Some strawberry hulling tips
- Like knives and other kitchen tools with blades, it is better to hand wash your huller even if its dishwasher safe. To ensure the longevity and the sharpness of the edge stays longer.
- When hulling a strawberry, twist the stem first. You will know where to place your huller and be better able to see what you are doing.
- After using a strawberry huller, it is usually better to rinse. Cleaning it with warm water, preventing the liquids from hardening on its edges. However, they are relatively easy to clean.
- If you plan to regularly use the huller, make sure that it is made of durable materials and practical design to ensure it lasts long. Regardless of the money you will spend to purchase it.
- Look for a huller featuring an ergonomic, comfortable size for your hand. To prevent tiredness after prolonged use because, as we all know, hulling strawberries is considered a tedious job.
- Besides the benefits of featuring a comfortable ergonomic handle. Always look for a compact design. They are likely easier to store in your kitchen drawer or tuck on your dishwasher’s top rack.
- Stay away from hullers that take a lot of the flesh when coring a strawberry, as they may not leave enough fruit skin for you to enjoy.
- There are many versatile hullers out there in the market. When buying one, make sure you can use it on various fruits and veggies like carrots, tomatoes, and pineapples.
- If you use the huller for foods other than berries, consider a huller that can fit any fruit and veggie size.
