Which are best: wooden or metal utensils?

There are many choices, including metal, plastic, wooden, silicone, and even bamboo. Silicone utensils introduced in the early 2000s are now competing with traditional favorites.

Which is best? It's hard to choose because each material has its own positive and negative attributes. Traditional kitchen tools of wood, plastic and metal are still in the majority, but silicone has much to offer the modern-day cook.

Z Wood, plastic and silicone tools are not heat conductors, and so work efficiently as spoons and spatulas for stirring or mixing. Silicone can stand temperatures reaching 400 degrees. The three types rarely scratch cookware, but wood and plastic can breakdown with use, temperature fluctuations, and time.

Wooden tools should be hand-washed for preservation, and some plastics can stain. Silicone tools are the most durable next to strong metals. Metal utensils can take heat, and with wooden or plastic handles often serve as pancake turners, spoons, knives and whisks. Some metal tools rust or cause unwanted reactions with some recipe ingredients, but stainless steel utensils are durable and fare better.

Personally, I love my wooden spoons, if for no other reason than they add a homey touch and always remind me of my mother's kitchen. But, I wouldn't trade my stainless steel potato peeler or stainless whisk, for any tool available today.