Hulling strawberries with a paring knife works fine. It’s also slow, fiddly, and it takes a good chunk of the fruit with the stalk if you’re not careful. If you’re doing a big punnet for jam, a pavlova or a tray of dipped berries, a dedicated huller is a lot less faff.
Knife versus huller
With a knife, you cut a little cone out around the green top. Done well, it’s quick. Done in a hurry, you lose a third of the berry and slice your thumb. A huller works the opposite way. You push it in next to the stalk, close the claw around the core, and twist as you pull. The leaves and the pale, tough centre come out together, and the rest of the strawberry stays intact.
It’s also a decent job to hand to kids, since there’s no blade to swing around.
What else it’s good for
Strawberries are the obvious use, but the same twist-and-pull action works on other soft fruit and veg. The maker also pitches it for mini bell peppers and other soft vegetables, so it earns its place beyond strawberry season.
The Chef’n one
The Chef’n Strawberry Huller is shaped like a strawberry with a green push-button on top. Press the button and the claw opens, release it and the claw closes around the stem. It’s top-rack dishwasher safe, which matters because berry juice stains everything.
It’s a plastic handle with a stainless claw, so don’t expect heirloom quality. For a gadget that does one job, that’s fine.
A quick tip
Hull the berries after you’ve rinsed them, not before. Washing a hulled strawberry lets water into the hole in the middle, and that makes them taste watered down.
