Favorite Kitchen Tools: Rectangular Measuring Spoons

Since this is a new feature on this blog we felt it important to point something out: we aren’t encouraging you to fill your kitchen with appliances and doo-dads. We like to keep it simple, we own items that are well-made and durable, and we appreciate thoughtful design. That being said, on with Kitchen Gadget of the Week #2: Rectangular Measuring Spoons!

What it Does and Why We Like It

Measuring spoons have a very basic job: accurately measure dry and liquid ingredients. Accuracy, of course, is a very big deal and is something that can vary quite a lot from spoon to spoon. But for a simple tool that is used constantly, accuracy must be accompanied by usability, in our opinion.

Full disclosure: we happen to have several sets of spoons. What we don’t have are plastic spoons. In recent years, we have worked to avoid introducing plastic into our lives, from not using plastic bags at the market to not buying items in plastic containers (this can be really tough some days). Which brings us to the first quality of these spoons that we like: 

1. The spoons are made from stainless steel. Not only that, but it’s a nice heavy 18/8 gauge which means no bending and long-lasting. It also means no adding plastic to your environment, no melting when accidentally placed on a hot surface (not that anyone here has ever done that...), no reacting with citrus, and 100% dishwasher safe.
2. The quantities are stamped on the shaft. Not printed, not a stuck on a piece of plastic, and not a sticker – so you’ll never look at the spoon and say “is this a 1/2 Tbs of a teaspoon or is it…?”.
3. (this is the big one) The rectangular measuring spoons fit into tiny spice jars and other small openings. This is the essential element that makes this set a champion. No more tapping a spice jar into a spoon and making a mess, or trying to get it out with a regular spoon and then transferring to the measuring spoon, etc.
4. Accurate. They also happen to score well on the accuracy-test[1].

What Is Our Fav Recipe To Use This For?

Of course, any recipe that requires measuring spoons will need these, but they really shine when you need to scoop out a bunch of spices from those wee containers. Most of our recipes have a fairly short list of ingredients but our No Chop Chickpea Curry will use almost every spoon in this set.

No Chop Chickpea Curry – a Perfect Quick Meal!

Where Can You Get It?

There are several brands of these and several options of varying quality and slight tweaks to the design. But, the particular version that we use and love is the Endurance Spice Measuring Spoons available at Amazon. They are absolutely more money than some others and certainly cost more than plastic spoons, but you won’t need to buy another set for a long, long, time! We also found a similar set online at Target.

[1]Interesting post about measuring spoon accuracy which includes this very set