Equipment Review: Best Silicone ("Rubber") Spatulas & Our Testing Winners

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Behind the Testing:
Full testing details and ranking chart:
We tested 10 spatulas to find the best one:
Di Oro living Seamless Silicone Spatula—Large
Rubbermaid 13.5" High-Heat Scraper
Tovolo Flex-Core Silicone Spatula
StarPack Premium Silicone Spatula (11.5")
OXO Good Grips Medium Silicone Spatula
GIR Ultimate Spatula
Vollrath NSF Certified, High-Temperature Spatula
Le Creuset Revolution Medium Spatula
Cuisinart Barrel Handle Silicone Spatula
KitchenAid Gourmet Series Silicone Scraper Spatula
A spatula should feel like an extension of your arm, nimbly stirring, scraping, and folding any food you put in its path. Why is a good one so hard to find?
We review the best (and worst) slow cookers ("crock pots"):
Need to buy a new food processor? Watch our review:
WINNING TRAITS OF A GOOD SPATULA
- Blade with wide, nearly flat top edge and straight side edges with a single corner curve
- Blade is fairly thin
- Blade offers good balance between flexibility and rigidity
- Flat sides of blade are smooth, without ridges
- Nimble enough to fit inside tight edges and corners
- Wide, grippy handle
- Handle allows multiple comfortable grips
- Seamless transition from blade to handle
- Made entirely of heat-resistant, dishwasher-safe silicone
WHAT WE EXAMINED
We tested 10 silicone spatulas, rating them on their ability to stir, scrape, and fold a wide variety of foods. We also evaluated their compatibility with our favorite pots and pans, mixing bowls, food processor, and stand mixers. A panel of testers evaluated them on general comfort and ease of use. We also rated them on heat resistance and ease of cleanup.
We put each spatula through a gauntlet of tests in a wide range of kitchen equipment and using a diverse group of testers (short and tall, lefty and righty).
FOLDING
1. Fold whipped egg whites into cake batter in large mixing bowl.
2. Fold fruit puree into whipped cream in stand mixer bowl.
STIRRING
3. Stir mix-ins into thick cookie dough in stand mixer bowl.
4. Stir scrambled eggs in 10-inch nonstick skillet.
5. Stir onions in 4-quart saucepan.
6. Stir risotto in 4-quart saucepan.
7. Stir chopped carrots in Dutch oven.
SCRAPING
8. Scrape scrambled eggs from pan without breaking up curds.
9. Scrape fond from 12-inch traditional skillet.
VERSATILITY
10. Scrape honey from measuring cup and small mixing bowl.
DURABILITY
11. Rest in 450-degree cast-iron skillet for 10 minutes.
12. Scrape processor bowl with blade in place; check for cuts.
CLEANUP
13. Submerge in warm tomato sauce, minced garlic, and curry powder for 2 hours; wash.*
14. Wash 35 times in dishwasher or 35 times by hand if not dishwasher-safe.
*washed an additional 12 times by hand throughout testing
ABOUT US: Located in Boston’s Seaport District in the historic Innovation and Design Building, America's Test Kitchen features 15,000 square feet of kitchen space including multiple photography and video studios. It is the home of Cook’s Illustrated magazine and Cook’s Country magazine and is the workday destination for more than 60 test cooks, editors, and cookware specialists. Our mission is to test recipes over and over again until we understand how and why they work and until we arrive at the best version.
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