One of the best parts about cooking pasta is the leftover starchy pasta water that’s ideal for emulsifying sauce. One of the worst parts is figuring out how to strain your pasta quickly without pouring that liquid gold down the drain. Placing a bowl under a colander can be precarious, and ladling water into a separate cup is messy. Plus, the average slotted spoon isn’t the ideal shape for longer noodles and can’t move an entire batch of pasta quickly.
I make a lot of pasta at home, so I’m grateful I stumbled onto Joseph Joseph’s’ slotted spoon-colander hybrid.
Why It’s Great
It’s Big Enough for Noodles
The colander spoon is basically a perforated scoop.
Look, I get it: This colander hybrid is a little goofy-looking. But with a straining basket over twice the size of the average slotted spoon, it makes quick work of any pasta transfer—my cavatelli all hit the pan within seconds of each other, preventing the last bit from getting mushy and overcooked. And while most slotted spoons have holes just in the center, the Scoop Plus has holes that cover the entire bottom and sides of the basket. That means excess water can drain quickly, the way a colander does. That’s key for keeping your stovetop clean: No one wants to have to scrub congealed pasta water off of their burners.
The Shape Lets You Scrape Sides and Corners
The colander spoon can get into corners without scratching cookware.
What I really appreciate about it, though, is its overall shape. Most slotted spoons are oblong, but saucepans and Dutch ovens have straight sides and steep corners. If you want to get the point of the spoon into a corner, you have to angle the head away from the walls. With its tapered hexagonal shape, the Scoop Plus can scrape the sides, corners, and bottoms of your pot all at the same time. With just a few swirls you can clear out any stragglers that might have been stuck.
Its Uses Go Beyond Pasta
The colander-spoon has hooks that rest on the lip of a pot.
It’s not just for moving pasta, either. It’s great for skimming the foam off of a pot of beans, delicately lowering dumplings into boiling water, and blanching vegetables. It’s big enough to fit an entire packet of instant ramen noodles, too.
The colander spoon can hang up with the rest of your tools.
Though it’s not quite a unitasker, it’s still one more utensil to add to your crock (or hanging rack). But even in our house, where I have seemingly endless colanders and fine-mesh strainers, I still think it’s worth nabbing for pasta scooping alone. Amazing pasta is all about nailing the small details, and a tool that streamlines the cooking process deserves its place in your kitchen.
FAQs
Is the Joseph Joseph The Scoop Plus heat resistant?
The Joseph Joseph The Scoop Plus colander is made from heat-resistant nylon. It can withstand temperatures up to 392ºF, though we don’t recommend using it for straining anything that’s deep-fried in oil.
Discovering the nuances between kitchen tools like colander spoons, spider strainers, and colanders is essential for efficient cooking. A spider strainer, characterized by its metal, web-like design and wide diameter, is circular and well-suited for deep frying due to its heat-resistant stainless steel. In contrast, the Joseph Joseph colander spoon, known for its ability to access pot corners effectively, is also ideal for pasta. Both tools serve their purpose with pasta, but the Joseph Joseph spoon has a slight edge in certain scenarios.
While the terms colander and strainer are sometimes used interchangeably, they have distinct roles in the kitchen. A colander is typically a bowl-shaped strainer with holes for draining boiled foods. A strainer, often fine-meshed, is used for tasks such as straining fruit juices, making smooth purees, and dusting flour during baking.
Our expertise is backed by Jesse Raub, a Serious Eats’ writer with over 15 years of experience in the specialty coffee industry. As our in-house coffee expert, Jesse regularly tested various coffee and baking gear, including loaf pans, pourover coffee makers, and bread lames. He has been using the Joseph Joseph The Scoop Plus colander for over a year and can vouch for its regular use. After testing 8 different colanders, we have identified our top two favorites suitable for pasta, produce, and more.
