Cutlery

Cutlery is a kind of utensil which is used to move and manipulate food. There are three main types of cutlery.

• fork: a pronged implement used for stabbing into solid food
• spoon: a solid scoop used for picking up small pieces of food, or liquids
• knife: a sharp, edged implement which is used for cutting and sliding food

There are many subtypes of these utensils, typically designed for specific purposes. Some of these are listed below.

There are also some other types of utensils, and hybrid options. For example, a "spork" is a utensil which is roughly the shape of a spoon, but the front of the bowl is partially cut away to form short, fork-like tines.

Forks[edit]

Assorted forks

• Dinner fork - all-purpose fork intended for eating solid foods. (about 7 inches long)^[1]
• Salad fork - a slightly shorter fork with outer tines which are wider and longer than the inner ones, and typically notched.^[1]
• Dessert fork - similar to a salad fork in size, but generally missing the notches.^[1]
• Fish fork - a fork with uniform tines, intended for serving and holding fish.^[1]
• Sea food fork (also known as a crab fork or lobster fork) - a small two-pronged fork with a curved scraper on the other end of the handle. Intended for eating crustaceans.^[1]
• Toast Serving Fork - an obscure utensil from the Victorian era, used for serving rolls^[2]

Spoons[edit]

A teaspoon

• Teaspoon - basic spoon, intended for stirring drinks and eating^[1]
• Tablespoon - larger than a teaspoon, intended for serving food^[1]
• Place spoon - an all-purpose spoon which is larger than a teaspoon, but smaller than a tablespoon. It is intended for general eating purposes.^[1]
• Soup spoon - a larger, rounded spoon used for eating soups. An elongated version is used for soups which contain meat, vegetables, and other larger objects.^[1]
• Sundae spoon - a spoon with an unusually long handle, intended for reaching down into sundae glasses and eating liquid or semi-liquid foods^[1]
• Fruit spoon - offers an elongated bowl and a pointed tip which in intended for use cutting eating fruits like grapes, oranges and melons.^[1]
• Chocolate Muddler Spoon - a long-handled spoon with a round bowl, intended for mixing and serving hot chocolate.^[3]
• Sugar Spoon - offers a long, narrow bowl with slightly raised edges, intended for use pouring small amounts of sugar into drinks.^[4]

Knives[edit]

• Dinner knife - the typical, all purpose utensil if a special-purpose knife is not available. (9-10 inches long)^[1]
• Steak knife - shorter and sharper than a dinner knife, sometimes serrated. (4-6 inches long)^[1][5]
• Luncheon knife - a slightly smaller version of the dinner knife, used with other luncheon dishes.^[1]
• Fruit knife - a narrow blade with a pointed tip, which may be serrated or slightly curved. (6.5-7.25 inches long)^[1]
• Butter knife - a blunt-ended utensil intended for use spreading butter on bread without scraping the bread. (5-6 inches long)^[1][6]

References[edit]