do you think tongz are a waste of money and space in the kitchen?

Question

I feel like they are. I use a slotted spoon for almost all my cooking.

Anonymous · Accepted Answer

No.  Tongs are very useful.  I have three pairs...two metal that I use when I'm grilling/smoking (one for the raw and one for the cooked); and one silicone tipped tongs for my non-stick cookware.

Why on earth would I want to use a slotted spoon to try to flip a rack of ribs or batch of chicken leg quarters?

Even when cooking stove top in a saute pan, tongs allow for much greater precision when flipping food, especially things like meatballs or tortillas or bacon and a million other things.

I almost never use a slotted spoon.  I do have one in case I need to get a poached egg or dumplings out of a pan of water.  Other than that, they don't have much use.

Mark · Answer

No, they're much easier on dredged things  than a spatula or fork when you're "flipping" them. You can buy a pair for  under $5.00 (actually, for about $1), and how small is your kitchen that they take space?  So small that you have to stand in the dining room to use the stove or take something out of the fridge?

denise · Answer

I use tongs for grabbing food, turning sausage, bacon, steaks e.t.c.

Anonymous · Answer

Shotted spoons can be used

wind_updoll · Answer

Tongs are useful for distinguishing which ingredients you’re transferring within a group of recipe components, (like slices of meat instead of using a slotted spoon and sometimes needing to touch the food for balance) or turning sautéed foods, when some are cooking more quickly than others. - they’re more precise in other words.

Groovy_Unicorn · Answer

No. I use them all the time. I hardly ever use a slotted spoon

curtisports2 · Answer

I use tongs all the time for serving long pasta, turning hots, sausages, chicken while grilling, broiling and roasting. Waste of space?  They take up no more room in a drawer than a slotted spoon would.

heart o&#39; gold · Answer

Good for you that you can use a slotted spoon for everything.
I don’t think I could turn my steak with one, or any meat that I am browning for that matter.  I have several pairs of tongs and use them quite a bit.  
I guess it all depends on what you cook.

Anton · Answer

I never use a spoon with holes or slots.  I use tongs picking up stuff too hot for fingers.

CB · Answer

Tongz [sic] are very useful for any things, I use them as much as spatulas.

do you think tongz are a waste of money and space in the kitchen?

15 Answers