A colander is a bowl-shaped sieve used in cooking to drain liquids from foods such as pasta. The colander was traditionally made of aluminum with a pattern of holes punched throughout the bowl. It featured two opposing wire handles at the lip for lifting. Today, the colander is often made of plastic and does not require handles, but is otherwise unchanged.

When using a colander to drain hot liquid from food such as noodles, it is safest to place the colander in the sink, rather than holding it. You might want to run cool water to one side of the colander. This will help reduce steam as you slowly pour hot water from the pot into the colander.

Avoid standing over the colander, as rising steam could scald your face. Once the pot has been emptied, a few shakes of the colander will drain any residual liquid. Then you can pour the noodles onto a serving dish, or back into the pan to add sauce.

A colander also comes in handy for draining canned vegetables before cooking, or for cleaning raw legumes like lentils or pinto beans. Many people use a colander for preparing salads. Upon washing vegetables, simply toss them into a colander where they will continue to drain while the rest of the ingredients are being prepared.

For an even better result in preparing salads, try a salad spinner. This is a colander enclosed in a slightly larger bowl, resting on a spindle. The lid of the salad spinner has a crank, or in some models, a pump, that is used to spin the colander inside the bowl. This creates centrifugal force that pulls water off the colander’s contents to settle in the bottom of the encasing bowl. A salad spinner delivers salad that is fluffy, fresh, and ready for serving.

A colander is an inexpensive but necessary tool in anyone’s kitchen. Whether draining pasta, preparing salad, rinsing raw lentils or working with canned vegetables, you’ll find many uses for a colander. If you enjoy salads often, consider a salad spinner as well. Chances are you’ll be happy you did!