January 13, 2008 - 11:30pm
Plastic dough scraper
Hi all,
I have various baking tools. One thing that I want but can't find is a plastic dough scraper that has one rounded edge and one straight edge. I looked in several cookware stores but couldn't find it.
I found rounded bowl scrapers, but none with a straight edge. I don't understand why -- isn't it just a piece of flexible plastic?
Does anyone know where I can find one inexpensively (perhaps a hardware store? What should I look for?)? I found many online, but then I have to pay $5 shipping for a $0.50 item... which I am not willing to do.
Another idea that I had was to perhaps cut my own scraper out of a flexible cutting mat. However, I am worried about the cut edge -- is it stable enough not to release various toxins into my dough?
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Boaz, if we hook up in January (as part of the San Diego loafers), I'll bring you a three pack. If you cannot wait, go to Lowes and check the near the epoxy section. You'll find flexible scrapers that are perfect for the job. Not sure if they are food grade but I'd bet they are safe.
-kwz
You might try a restaurant supply store (warning, they can be addictive). Most of ours are open to the public, and are great fun.
Also, they are often given away by vendors so if you ever attend a products show or baking conference, you will end up with A LOT. And they give them to bakeries too--you could maybe ask a local business if you could buy a couple from them :)
I cut mine out of a flexible cutting mat which was ready to be thrown away.
Since I am 71, the possible release of toxins is the last of my worries! LOL
Boaz,
I got mine at Great News in Pacific Beach. I think I paid around 2 dollars for it. It has one curved side and one straight side.
Sue
King Arthur has them - you can order them and much more on-line.
If you haven't yet found one, is this the one you want?
http://www.breadtopia.com/store/oetker-dough-scaper.html
I also was having difficulty finding one and I found this at Breadtopia -- for only $2. If you choose First Class, shipping is very reasonable. Plus he has several other nifty items at good prices.
I bought one of these recently and love it. It's great for mixing high hydration dough if you don't have a mixer. It's easy to clean and a joy to use. Still need my bench scraper tho' to scrape down my kneading board.
Linda
Fantes has them for 69 cents each. As I needed a couple other things from Fantes, I just added them to my order (at that price, I bought two). I also use a plastic scraper from Lowes. That cost fifty cents and as it was made in the USA, it probably is more food safe than the plastic/silicone products made in China.
the salesman used to come in to my bakery and gave them out by the handfull as a gift for buing there ingredents. i think i have a boutd a dozen of them
they look like this
http://www.ablekitchen.com/ProductDetails.asp?ProductCode=MB-112840
Do you have a Sur la Table store where you live? I buy their plastic dough scrapers and so far they're my favorites. They are $2.50 each and I like them because they are curved on one side and straight on the bottom for cutting. I use these because I have marble counters so I don't want to cut with a metal scraper. They work really well for that and they are also flexible which makes them really good tools for scraping dough from bowls and rising buckets.
My purchased scrapers always developed a crack in the middle, parallel to the straight edge. So I cut a dough scraper from the large plastic lid of a peanut tin by tracing around a purchased scraper. It works just fine, especially when scraping out a bowl, because it's more flexible than the purchased scrapers. I use two of them to handle very wet dough and to round the dough. Now I save all the large plastic lids from peanut tins for future scrapers.
I love the brilliance of this! Homemade solutions always appeal to me and I'm about to find something to cut up and make a scraper right this moment. Thanks! :-)
Eric is out of stock of the semicircular ones - I ordered a dough whisk, bench cutter and a dough scraper from him - excellent service thankyou so much Eric ! - but he was out of the simple semi circular ones and sent me a teardrop shaped one instead .
I have to say I don't like it much, it is too big for my little hands, and used with oil or water on my hands after folding, it slips about all over the place. I like the idea of just cutting one out from a piece of rigid plastic, I think I will do that. Oh, and Eric, if you get them back in stock, let us all know would you??
p.s. people, if you haven't got the dough whisk yet - get it! Brilliant thing. And I am in the UK and Eric is in the US and the total including postage was very very reasonable... (advert over...)
Hi josordoni, I would have to agree with you about the teardrop shaped scraper. Doesn't work well with my arthritic hands, so I cut a couple from the sides of a kitty litter container. Just drew them with a marker and used old scissors to refine the shape. I use mine all the time to turn dough - after the dough whisk which I love. Where in the UK are you? I'm originally from the Midlands, what used to be Warwickshire, A.
Hi Annie
I'm in London (well, nearly Essex).
amazing thought about the kitty litter container... the mind boggles! I am presuming this was the container it came in, rather than the one it was going to go in???
I've not actually seen a real round/straight scraper - is it about the same density as the teardrop one, or should I be looking for a bendier plastic? What sort seems to give the best results?
Trust a fellow limey to think the worst! Yes, this was the container it came in, and I would say the plastic is about as flexible as a gallon milk jug. The one I cut measures 4 1/2"x3 1/2" and is square across one of the 4 1/2" sides and gently curved on the other. Perfect size for my hands but you could make it to suit. I like it because it bends to fit the curve of my mixing bowl. Easy to clean too. Actually I make a chicken dish that has Swiss cheese and sauce on top of the chicken which is then covered in Pepperidge Farm stuffing crumbs, and one of our friends named it Kitty Litter Chicken because you have to dig around for the chicken. That makes a few minds boggle! A.
Those Dr. Oetker dough scrapers are back in stock although I had to raise the price by $.25.
Thanks for asking.
http://www.breadtopia.com/store/oetker-dough-scaper.htmlI cut mine out of an old plastic cutting board that had seen its better days. Works like a charm and couldn't beat the price.
Milk jug! That is a good thought... I'll try the side of the next empty milk container. If it works that will be excellent as it will be so easily replaceable if it splits or wears at the bottom edge.
Thanks Annie!
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Lynne
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Hi Lynne, if you check out the Bertinet video that Howard posted you will see him using a scraper like the one I made, both for mixing the dough and scraping it out of the bowl. Hope it worked for you, A.
Hi Annie, yes, that is the kind I have been trying to get hold of, but I can't find it on any UK cookware sites at all - found a similar sized (although different shape) one at Nesbits, and there are other things there that look very tempting.
In the meantime, I cut one to your dimensions from a thin worktop saver type thingy my m-in-law picked up in a charity shop, but it is just a tad too thin, curves nicely and fits better in my hand, but doesn't have enough substance. Certainly the recipes that call for blending the flour in with the scraper and then using the scraper to fold the bread (possibly ciabatta? I have looked at so many bread recipes recently, I cannot for the life of me remember which one that is) So I am scouring the house for suitable bits of plastic now... :)
Lynne
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I've been looking for a dough scraper in the UK for a while. I had never thought of trying Ebay, but today I ordered one.
http://shop.ebay.co.uk/?_from=R40&_trksid=p3984.m38.l1313&_nkw=dough+scraper&_sacat=See-All-Categories