The two Finest Bench Scrapers of 2024, Examined & Reviewed

Nevertheless, having a sharpened blade, or perhaps a barely beveled blade, did make the duty of slicing by means of dough simpler, though flat blades produced cleaner traces on the gnocchi than some beveled fashions like Epicurean. So, does the blade of a bench scraper matter? Predictably, sure, it does. 

Ideas on Deal with Design

The scrapers that have been probably the most nice and cozy to make use of have been those with rounded silicone handles just like the winners from OXO and Norpro. Although they have been wooden, not silicone, the handles of Williams Sonoma and Lamson have been each vast sufficient to supply management whereas nonetheless being nice to make use of. Consolation and ease of use begin to lower because the handles turn into smaller and plastic, just like the oddly formed Tovolo and Chef’n fashions. And Epicurean was naturally the worst on this class, because it was the one mannequin and not using a deal with. 

Cleanup Variations

Normally, the best scrapers have been the best handy wash. For instance, Epicurean, which is only a flat piece of non-porous wooden fiber, carried out poorly in most of our checks, however was a breeze to wash. The Williams Sonoma and Lamson each had small slits the place the blade met the deal with, which trapped bits of meals. And the Chef’n mannequin’s loop-shaped deal with was troublesome to succeed in with a sponge.

Alternately, the Norpro and Dexter fashions had an ideal seal between the blade and the deal with which prevented any trapped meals. Williams Sonoma and Lamson each sported wood handles, which made them increased upkeep than different fashions: they aren’t dishwasher-safe and so they have to be hand-washed and dried. I seen the wooden on Lamson started to dry out after simply two washes. 

Every little thing You Can Use a Bench Scraper For

Bench scrapers would possibly look like one-hit wonders, however they will pinch-hit in quite a lot of kitchen duties. To cite poet Elizabeth Barrett Browning, “How do I really like thee? Let me rely the methods.” They are not solely implausible for cleansing off a reducing board, however we additionally love utilizing them to maneuver elements. Prepping produce and have to toss some chopped onions right into a Dutch oven? Use a trusty bench scraper to slip below the pile and make the switch. Their sharp-ish straight blades make them perfect for reducing and portioning dough, too.

The Standards: What to Search for in a Good Bench Scraper

I might advocate discovering a bench scraper with a stainless-steel blade and a plastic or silicone deal with. These fashions have been manner simpler to wash and keep than any form that featured wooden (Williams Sonoma, Lamson, Epicurean). 

Earlier than buying, take a great take a look at the blade: Is it sharpened— like OXO and Norpro—so properly that it comes to some extent? Is it completely flat in order that it’s squared off with two proper angles? Or is it simply barely beveled in order that the blade edge is nearly rounded, like on our low performers from Tovolo, Epicurean, and Williams Sonoma? I might keep away from any fashions that fall in that third class. 

A thinner metal blade that’s barely versatile is right as a result of it could possibly bend to sit down completely flush with the work floor and decide up the tiniest meals objects or particles. In my checks, thinner blades appeared to have the ability to slide below small leek slices and stuck-on dough higher than thicker blades. 

Our Favourite Bench Scrapers

What we preferred: Its rounded silicone deal with was comfy to carry and provided extra management than wood or metallic handles (or the no-handle mannequin). The OXO sank simply into pizza dough, portioning it with ease. It resisted sticking to each the pizza and gnocchi dough and was positively one of many high performers when scraping up flour and stuck-on dough from the counter. Whereas selecting up leeks, it cleared the reducing board in simply two goes, simply sweeping up even the smallest items. Its huge deal with shaped considerably of a barrier, stopping gnocchi and leeks from falling off the blade.

What we didn’t like: It’s good that this mannequin comes with a 6-inch ruler on the backside of the blade, however it could be extra useful if it have been simpler to learn and had bigger, bolder markings. The ridge on the backside of the deal with held onto particles, like sticky dough, extra.

Key Specs

• Supplies: Stainless-steel and silicone
• Blade type: Barely sharpened on either side, squared
• Depth (deal with to blade tip): 4.25 inches 
• Deal with width: 6.25 inches
• Blade width: 6 inches
• Weight: 6.7 ounces
• Dishwasher-safe: Sure

What we preferred: This mannequin almost nabbed victory from OXO. They give the impression of being virtually similar, and in virtually each check, Norpro was proper up there with OXO when it comes to efficiency. Curiously, when reducing the roasted potatoes open, most scrapers carried out fairly poorly, however because of its sharper blade, Norpro really broke from the pack and sliced higher than the remaining. The 6-inch ruler on the blade is straightforward to learn and can be useful for on-the-fly measuring. Plus, it’s cheaper than OXO.

What we didn’t like: This mannequin’s blade is smaller than OXO, which made it barely tougher to fold over massive sections of gnocchi dough whereas mixing and kneading.

Key Specs

• Supplies: Stainless-steel and silicone
• Blade type: Sharpened on one aspect, squared
• Depth (deal with to blade tip): 4 inches 
• Deal with width: 6.25 inches
• Blade width: 6 inches
• Weight: 5.8 ounces
• Dishwasher-safe: Sure

The Competitors

• Dexter-Russell Sani-Secure Dough Cutter/Scraper: This fundamental bench scraper carried out properly in all of the checks, however due to its flat blade it had hassle reducing by means of pizza dough. I additionally didn’t discover its deal with as comfy to carry as our winners, however it’s nonetheless a great choice. 
• Chef’n Pastrio Set Bench Scraper and Chopper: You really get three scrapers once you purchase this mannequin: a rounded plastic bowl scraper, a sq. plastic bench scraper, and a stainless-steel bench scraper. All of them nest along with interlocking handles which can be typically troublesome to drag aside. I solely examined the chrome steel scraper, and it carried out simply high quality. Its unusual loop-shaped deal with made it very awkward to carry perpendicular to the board, however conversely made it simpler to carry at an angle for lifting up objects like gnocchi and leeks—which it did in a single go because of its massive floor space. It combined and folded the gnocchi dough cleanly and simply, however struggled to slice pizza dough and suffered from some slight sticking when transferring. The bizarre deal with additionally makes it a process to wash, and I can foresee lots of meals particles winding up within the underside of the loop, which may be very troublesome to get a sponge below. 
• Williams Sonoma Olivewood Bench Scraper: This mannequin’s blade had the biggest floor space of the bunch, which made it nice for lifting lots of leeks or gnocchi in a single go. It combined the gnocchi dough properly and was in a position to elevate and fold massive sections of dough onto itself with ease. However with regard to truly scraping, it fell behind, leaving lots of flour and dough on the counter within the first two checks. Additionally, after the testing rounds, the blade started to loosen and wiggle barely from the deal with, which we suspect would hinder its efficiency going ahead. It isn’t dishwasher-safe (you’re instructed handy wash and instantly dry it) and it has a wooden deal with that is extra high-maintenance.
• Tovolo Bench Scraper: With its offset form and a curvy, ergonomic deal with, this mannequin was positively probably the most distinctive of the bunch. However none of its progressive design made it simpler or extra comfy to make use of or gave it an edge when it comes to efficiency. Within the pizza dough check, it struggled to slice and it caught to the dough, making it onerous to elevate and switch. Its further floor space (it’s simply barely smaller when it comes to precise lifting area than Williams Sonoma) made it straightforward to hold lots of leeks and gnocchi, however the thick blade is simply barely beveled, which meant getting below smaller items and scraping up dough and flour wasn’t straightforward. 
• Epicurean Scraper: This mannequin was the one one within the group that did not have a deal with or chrome steel blade; it’s only one flat, however thick, piece of non-porous wooden fiber. Within the pizza dough check, the blade reduce the dough simply and didn’t stick like a number of the chrome steel fashions. In any other case, it persistently carried out worse than the others, failing at scraping up dough and flour from the work floor, getting sticky and coated with gnocchi dough whereas mixing and folding, producing messy reduce traces on the gnocchi items, and tending to simply push the sliced leeks across the reducing board as a substitute of sliding below them. Additionally, since there’s a finger-shaped gap on the high of the scraper, meals bits fall by means of it. 
• Lamson Dough Scraper: The Lamson scraper is gorgeous, with its artisan-style wooden deal with, brass bolts, and honed metal blade. Even with a flat blade, this mannequin was among the finest at doing what the software’s identify suggests— scraping—leaving a clear swath of counter behind it. Nevertheless, within the pizza dough check it struggled to simply slice parts, and when lifting leeks, it couldn’t fairly get below all the pieces and had a bent to push objects across the reducing board. Its wood deal with is the primary cause I wouldn’t advocate it to somebody who needs a low-maintenance scraper; after simply two washes (it’s not dishwasher-safe) it started to dry out and peel.

FAQs

Is a bench scraper price it?

Completely. To begin with, most fashions are very reasonably priced, so it’s not an enormous funding. They’re one of the vital versatile kitchen instruments: they will slice, rough-chop, scrape, stage, elevate, carry, combine, knead, and extra. And even when you don’t end up utilizing it on a regular basis, it’s small and flat—it takes up minimal area in a drawer.

What is the distinction between a bench scraper, bench knife, dough scraper, and bowl scraper?

In a manner, most of those names describe the identical software. This assessment is particularly targeted on inflexible bench scrapers or bench knives (the identical factor) which can be made from chrome steel or wooden. There are some merchandise that might be extra aptly described as a dough scraper or bowl scraper and people are normally constructed from a versatile plastic or silicone. They’re greatest for simply getting each final gram of bread dough from a mixing bowl with out deflating it. Since they aren’t inflexible, they aren’t the perfect for scraping dried-on flour or dough off a piece floor, however they might be used for that in a pinch, as most of them do have a flat edge. Nevertheless, a inflexible bench scraper or bench knife wouldn’t be helpful for scraping out a bowl, as a bowl has rounded sides which might be not possible to get into with a sq. instrument. Each of those instruments are nice for issues like kneading and portioning bread dough, reducing brownies within the pan, and even smoothing the edges or high of a frosted cake.

What can I exploit as a substitute of a bench scraper?

For duties like dividing bread dough or reducing pasta, a knife can be utilized. For scraping and transferring elements, some folks would possibly use their chef’s knife, however dragging the sting alongside a reducing board can uninteresting it. We advocate simply shopping for a bench scraper: it is a cheap funding you will use many times. Plus, you possibly can exert extra stress as wanted to successfully take away cussed particles like dried dough with out damaging the floor of your plastic or wood reducing board.

Why We are the Specialists

• Eric King is a recipe developer, photographer, meals stylist, and content material creator.
• He has a B.S. in journal journalism from Syracuse College.
• He runs a baking weblog known as easygayoven and has developed, styled, and photographed recipes for Netflix Household.
• He has reviewed many objects for Critical Eats, together with fine-mesh strainers, a sensible stand mixer, wine tumblers, and extra.
• For this assessment, we examined eight bench scrapers, utilizing them to scrape and portion sticky pizza dough, make and reduce gnocchi, and switch reduce greens.
• A lot of our editors have our profitable decide from OXO and use it often as part of long-term testing.