What Benefits Can Silicone Kitchenware Bring to the Kitchen Over Traditional Wooden Kitchenware and Stainless Steel?
The best way to understand what silicone kitchenware has to offer is to compare it’s benefits and cons to what other kitchenware brings to the table. Below, we’ll examine the advantages and disadvantages of each so that you can compare and contrast between a variety of kitchen tools.
Advantages of Silicone Kitchenware
- Easy to Keep Clean – Silicone Kitchenware is very simple to clean. They are capable of withstanding the heat and rattling of any standard dishwasher. At the same time, silicone kitchenware is also remarkably resistant to stains. Because food debris slides off of silicone easily and stains are rare, odors do not linger, either.
- Temperature-Resistant – One of the main advantages of silicone kitchenware is it’s resistance to heat. Silicone protects the form of the dish or utensil from temperatures that are as high as 250 degrees Celsius. The same goes for cold temperatures; in a refrigerator, a silicone bowl or plate is unlikely to suffer any disrepair.
- Durable – Silicone kitchenware is not easily shattered, dented, or scratched. The material has just the right balance between resistance and flexibility, not unlike rubber, to withstand plenty of hardship.
- Recyclable – Silicone items may not be biodegradable; however, there are other ways to use silicone materials reliably for the sake of the environment. Instead of going to a landfill, any recycled silicone products can be re-moulded to live on as new, useful products.
Disadvantages of Silicone Kitchenware
- Potential BPAContent – Some silicone products are manufactured with polymers like bisphenol A or other epoxy resins; these are usually called “BPA” content. Though this content isn’t harmful to humans, it is certainly not as durable as silicone utensils that don’t use BPA in their manufacturing. Watch out for poor-quality silicone kitchenware.
- Labor-Intensive Recycling – Despite the fact that silicone kitchenware can be recycled, it does need it’s own special facility in order to be re-molded, costing more labor and time.
Advantages of Stainless Steel
- Strength – There is no denying that stainless steel is resistant to impact. Much like silicone kitchenware, the stainless steel material does not become brittle when temperatures are extreme, either. In fact, the same steel used to make kitchen utensils is actually strong enough for use in cryogenic science, according to Total Materia.com.
- Resistant to Corrosion – Corrosion is one concern that many have when evaluating a piece of metalwork that will be used in the kitchen, and for good reason! After all, a kitchen contains moisture that could corrode the structure of metal: however, this is not a problem for stainless steel. It is highly corrosion resistant thanks to chrome content.
- Aesthetic Appeal – Stainless steel is named for it’s reflective surface. Not only does it resist stains, but it makes a fine material for sleek bowls, utensils, platters, and containers of all shapes and sizes. Coupled with great utility, it is no wonder stainless steel is so popular.
Disadvantages of Stainless Steel
- Heavy Metal Leeching – When highly acidic foods are cooked for long periods of time in stainless steel kitchenware, it can cause the heavy metals that make up the material to break down. These metals, which are often chromium, iron, and nickel, can then leech into food, which can sometimes cause allergic reactions to human beings.
- 400-Series Weakness – Most stainless steel is classified into different series’ of metal combinations. The 400 series are some of the weaker stainless steel variants in the group. They can corrode much more easily than their predecessors. Unfortunately, the 400-series is most often used for kitchenware.
- Pricey – Stainless steel kitchenware can be much more expensive than wood or carbon steel items of the same general use. This is because bonded construction, which is how stainless steel is made, is more costly for the manufacturers.
- Difficult to Clean – Unlike silicone cookware, stainless steel is only stick-resistant; it is not entirely immune to food getting stuck and burning or lingering even after a good scrubbing.
Advantages of Wooden Kitchenware
- Firm – Wooden kitchenware, especially spoons or other hand-held utensils, are renowned for their firmness. The sturdy, comfortable grip of a wooden utensil gives a cook more complete control over their stirring or other procedures.
- Aesthetically Appealing – There is very little more comforting than the sight of a wooden rolling pin or a set of well-carved wooden bowls. It is no wonder many people hang their wooden kitchenware or display it as an example of down-home charm, as well as useful household tools.
- Temperature Control – One of the problems with using plastic or metal utensils is that these tools conduct certain temperatures. If you use a freshly-cleaned metal spatula to flip an egg, for example, you may not realize that you’re actually chilling the egg with that spatula. A wooden utensil, on the other hand, does not change food temperature.
Disadvantages of Wooden Kitchenware
- Can Stain Easily – Even if you scrub very carefully at wooden kitchenware, it is almost impossible to avoid stains. This is thanks to the porous quality that most wood has; tiny openings within the utensil create a place for berry juices or other food residue to soak down where scrubbing cannot reach.
- Can Retain Flavor – Even after being washed, some wooden kitchenware can actually hang on to trace amounts of very strong flavor. Again, this is because the porous wood keeps trace amounts of the most intense foods stored within the fibers of the material.
- Can Contain Bacteria – Because of it’s organic nature, and the fact that it can contain old food residue or moisture that goes unnoticed after a wash, wooden kitchenware can be an unfortunate breeding ground for bacteria and microbes.
- Potential Fire Hazard – Unlike silicone or even stainless steel, a dry wooden piece of kitchenware can catch on fire if left unattended near extreme heat, causing major risk of property damage.
Which is Better: Silicone Spatula or Wooden Spatula?
All in all, when examining their different advantages and disadvantages, it seems safe to say that a silicone spatula is better than a wooden spatula. This is because, while both utensils can be easy to use, a silicone spatula will remain safe and sound even near hot temperatures.
In addition to safety, silicone spatulas are easier to keep thoroughly clean. The coating on the outside of the spatula creates a resistance to sticky food residue, and there are no porous openings like the ones in a wood spatula to provide hiding places for bacteria.
Finally, although wooden spatulas may not change the temperature of food, they can change the flavor thanks to residual flavors from past meal preparations. When all is said and done, though both spatulas are great for cooking with, the silicone spatula simply has better benefits.
Which Kitchen Utensils Are Safer When Cooking?
The safety of use in any kitchen utensil is important to consider; after all, you’ll but ingesting whatever your kitchen utensils touch. This means that if any hazardous materials are to be found in the food or on the utensil itself, it can pose a serious threat to the person using them.
The safest kitchen utensils to use are ones that pose no threat of breaking down when used, or releasing any harmful substance into the food they collect.
With that in mind, it is clear that silicone kitchen utensils are the safest when cooking. Even when exposed to extreme heat, there will be no danger of the silicone’s metals leaking into the food. Because silicone is made by blending together oxygen and sand, rather than the chemicals found in plastic, it poses no threat even if it were to break down.
Altogether, if you want to be more safe than sorry while enjoying your favorite cooked meal, silicone utensils are the way to go.
Is Silicone Suitable For Kitchen Utensils?
According to the Food and Drug Administration, silicone is suitable for use as a kitchen utensil. This is because silicone is specifically made to exclude the possibility of harmful chemicals getting into the food they’re used to collect.
As previously mentioned, silicone is also known for withstanding extreme heat without melting or causing fire risks. Because of these combined factors, silicone is definitely suitable for kitchen utensil use.
What Kind of Matching is More Reasonable For the Kitchen?
Having different cookware and utensil materials in a kitchen is highly practical. After all, you never know when you might need to mix the materials you’re using in order to get the best result out of your cooking or baking experience. However, you may worry that mixing and matching materials can make your kitchen look less stylish or more chaotic aesthetically.
When matching different materials in a kitchen, it is important to remember that some materials are easier to match than others. For example, while stainless steel goes well with many different colors of plastic utensils thanks to it’s monochromatic style, it might be harder to pair different wooden sets with metal utensils.
It is a great idea to try out different types of silicone kitchenware for this reason: some silicone is made to look like wood, or even like metal. Experiment with different designs, learning what you like in your cooking aesthetic, to match kitchenware without sacrificing variety!
Conclusion: Are Silicone Kitchenware the Most Suitable?
To sum it all up, silicone kitchenware are the most suitable choices for most cooking needs. Because of how strong and durable silicone utensils and wares are, they represent a long-term investment that you’ll always get your money’s worth out of. At the same time, they won’t create a risk from leeched metals or temperature sensitivity.
With ease of use and cleaning, silicone kitchenware products are the most suitable ones to stock a kitchen with.
