The Food Lab: Better Home Cooking Through Science

(Nandana) #1

generous girth of 3.9 inches at the front, and a hefty weight
of 7.76 ounces. It’s a size that can’t be beat—just large
enough to smash a ball of beef into a 4-inch patty or flip a
couple portions’ worth of browning home fries, without
being so large that it doesn’t fit into a small skillet. I’ve
picked up a whole pizza off a hot stone with this thing. I’d
like to see your wimpy plastic spatula do that!
The blade and tang are formed out of a single piece of
cast stainless steel, which clocks in at a thickness of 0.04
inch (1 mm, or approximately 18 gauge). This is important:
it allows you to lift a whole turkey or rib roast with reckless
abandon. If you flip the spatula over, its keen and sturdy
front edge substitutes handily for a paint scraper, allowing
you to ensure that every last bit of flavorful, crisp crust stays
firmly attached to your burger or steak, instead of remaining
in the pan. The handle is made from tough, durable
polycarbonate and features a full tang, for optimal strength
and balance. This baby’s gonna last a lifetime.
And there’s a musical bonus: When struck daintily
against the cutting board, the spatula vibrates at precisely
587.33 hertz (really!), with an outstanding overtone series.
Even Stradivarius would be proud to apply his famous
varnish to it. It’s the very thing during that all-too-common
situation when I desperately need to tune the fourth string of
my guitar while applying cheese to my burgers.
You’d be hard-pressed to find a better stiff spatula.



  1. Japanese-Style Mandoline
    Sure, you can train for years and spend hours a day
    sharpening and honing your knives to get to the point where

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