Cooking Tools

MDFraley

Member
Kevin posted a thread regarding our top 4 users for cast iron which I thought was great. It got me wondering if "we cast iron nuts" also revert to the same tools our parents and grand parents used for our present day cooking?
I can only speak for myself but I use on a daily basis a lot of the primitive cookware utensils my mother left behind and find them superior to the modern day utensils offered by a majority of the department stores. It would be entertaining to see what we all are using so I have attached a single pic of my favorites and the egg turner gets a workout on a daily basis for just about everything.
 

Attachments

  • P1200211 - Copy.jpg
    P1200211 - Copy.jpg
    33.7 KB · Views: 114
Fish spatula is required in much of my cast iron cooking and frankly with other pans etc. old wooden spoons when necessary. No plastic thanks
 
These aren't real old, but most have about 60+ years on them:



The SS is Flint Arrowhead. I love that stuff and have more serving pieces as well as the Vanadium steak knives.

Hilditch
 
I've started collecting old stainless spatulas and utensils, having a wide variety of tools at your disposal is fun and makes every task easier. Another important thing to remember if you are trying to get someone interested in using cast iron, or if you give a skillet to a friend, make sure you give them a good metal spatula to use with it, makes a world of difference!
I'll get a picture up of my growing utensil collection once I finalize the display caddie.
 
I also have many old utensils that have been passed down in the family like my grandmothers hand crank egg beater, several good steel knives and a good "flipper". I also use several wood spoons tho they are not really old.:icon_thumbsup:
 
MD, I wondered, came back to check and am still wondering. Please explain the center tool in the pic. You got me on that one.

Hilditch
 
MD, I wondered, came back to check and am still wondering. Please explain the center tool in the pic. You got me on that one.

Hilditch

It was a basting brush that mom used for her corn stick pans. Don't know for a fact that it was purchased as such from the store's but in those days they made due with what worked best. The wooden handle made it look old to me and it was in her kitchen stuff that I was able to salvage after her passing. My step dad gave away a lot of her stuff before I was able to get what I got.

By the way....I saw several other pieces of your Flint Arrowhead listed on Etsy so if you're wanting to expand your collection you may want to check them out.
 
Thanks. They do have a lot. I've all I can use. I find it interesting that Ekco made quality stuff once upon a time before the MBA's and accountants took over.

Hilditch
 
Most of my vintage cooking tools hang on the walls next to my CI collection. Its great decoration and can be easily taken down, washed, used, washed and rehung.
I did find myself needing a larger stirring spoon for my 14" deep stainless steel pot. I looked everywhere and didn't find one that worked so I made my own. Its 19" long so it won't fall into the pot. Although I designed it to fit in a drawer, it is proudly hung on the wall as well.
Tony
 
Good for you Tony. If you can't find it, make it if you can. If you happen to break it during an attitude adjustment check out roux paddles.

Hilditch
 
I cringe whenever I see wooden kitchen tools. That comes from when I worked in restaurants back in high school. Here in Virginia(and probably other states) you weren't allowed to have wooden tools of any kind in a kitchen. Wood is somewhat porous, and will absorb juices and such. In some cases,you can see it. Some see character, the state sees bacteria. I have to come in and clean the one wooden spoon my wife uses and clean it before it dries, as she will leave it and not think twice about it.

Not that the state is always right. One of the places I worked at was Lums, and we couldn't cook the hot dogs in beer( which is what Lums was famous for) because of the alcohol laws.
 
^^^^What he said. There are lots of studies out there proving properly cared for wood is safe for use as cooking utensils, cutting boards, serving plates, etc. I've been using my black walnut end grain cutting board and wooden spoons/spatulas for years and haven't gotten salmon vanilla yet.
 
^^^^What he said. There are lots of studies out there proving properly cared for wood is safe for use as cooking utensils, cutting boards, serving plates, etc. I've been using my black walnut end grain cutting board and wooden spoons/spatulas for years and haven't gotten salmon vanilla yet.

Enjoy your wood but do not use it for cooking or serving in my state. Among other things I have an outdoor catering company. Bbq, oysters roasts etc.
I was fined last year for serving bbq in wooden dough bowls. Been doing for years. It's under review but I will have to pay a major fine and cease such activities. Many great reviews with no issues. I am supposed to use heating trays. i may get out of the business but it has been a good one for me and the folks that work for me. Recently the health department has requested that I use non wood tables for oyster roasts I refused. They suggested 316 ss tops. The cost will close my biz and the twenty an hour I pay my folks will end.
 
Here in GA for me to sell a hot dog out of a cart I need to have 5 sinks in the prep kitchen. Also the cart has to be screen in to eliminate flies.

Hilditch
 
^^^^What he said. There are lots of studies out there proving properly cared for wood is safe for use as cooking utensils, cutting boards, serving plates, etc. I've been using my black walnut end grain cutting board and wooden spoons/spatulas for years and haven't gotten salmon vanilla yet.

Key words.

And are you sure about the "end grain" thing? End grain is the more porous part of any wood. Every set of plans I've seen for cutting boards since the 7th grade specify side grain. The idea of using a cutting board is that they're less damaging to a blade than Formica or stone, and even the hardest of hard woods are soft enough. And while end grain is the softer side of wood, you want it to last, so side grain is best. The other thing that separates cutting boards from other wooden tools is that a properly made cutting board involves a coating of an oil, typically linseed oil(and in my opinion incorrect. Linseed oil is not food safe. Flax seed oil is a better choice IMHO).

The bottom line is that proper care is the key. Probably what scares me are those who don't care. Clearly no one here in that category.
 
Well AFAIK, every board had two side grains and two end grains. But aside from that, they've been using wood for eating for centuries. I remember growing up when the question about wood-handled knives was all the rage. Bottom line is cook your food, it kills whatever your cleaning method misses. It's like the saccharin scare a few years ago, everyone gave it up until it came out that you had to drink something like 40 gallons a day to develop a problem.

Scott
 
Bottom line is cook your food, it kills whatever your cleaning method misses.
Food-borne illness is not from bacteria but from the toxins in the waste they produce. The normal heat of cooking will kill the bacteria but will not neutralize the toxins.
 
In the matter of wooden cutting boards: Just yesterday my hubby made the remark that our wood boards have never caused us any illness. My 2 boards are 47 and about 80 years old. I do believe in scrubbing them with very hot water and Dawn or other strong dish detergent, and as with my wooden spoons, I remove food from them as soon as I finish the task at hand. Commercial kitchens are a whole different beast from home kitchens, hence the sometimes crazy sounding rules. I would never give up my wood utensils, because I use CI and other older pans, and don't want to damage them. By the bye, I have my Mom's potato masher, flour sifter and pastry cutter, all from the 1920's or '30's--they made them to last in those days!
 
Last edited:
Key words.

And are you sure about the "end grain" thing? End grain is the more porous part of any wood. Every set of plans I've seen for cutting boards since the 7th grade specify side grain. The idea of using a cutting board is that they're less damaging to a blade than Formica or stone, and even the hardest of hard woods are soft enough. And while end grain is the softer side of wood, you want it to last, so side grain is best. The other thing that separates cutting boards from other wooden tools is that a properly made cutting board involves a coating of an oil, typically linseed oil(and in my opinion incorrect. Linseed oil is not food safe. Flax seed oil is a better choice IMHO).

The bottom line is that proper care is the key. Probably what scares me are those who don't care. Clearly no one here in that category.

Yes, I'm absolutely certain my cutting board is end grain. End grain is not softer wood, but since it is oriented differently than edge grain (what you call side grain) a knife edge can more easily slip slightly into the wood fiber without damage to the knife or the wood. Whether or not end grain is better for knives is probably debatable, but I certainly find it more aesthetically pleasing. I don't know that edge grain boards last longer, but I know I'll never wear this board out in my life time so I'm not worried about it. I do oil my board about once a month or so, but I would never use a vegetable, animal, or nut oil of any kind on it because they go rancid. I use only mineral oil on my cutting boards and wooden cooking utensils. It is food safe and doesn't go rancid.

IMG_1840_zps4ghoauz2.jpg
 
Back
Top