Using Splatter Screens

Zulay Kitchen (#collaboration)

I have a relationship with Zulay Kitchens. If they send me kitchen wares, I will cook with those wares, and write up my experience in a post. Of course, I do not just use their tools, I am going to test them like crazy. It is my hope that this allows you, and me, to learn about various products out there in the kitchen-wilds that may help us cook and, in this case, clean easier. On a good day it might even save us money which would be even better.

During the past two weeks I have been testing the splatter screen and researching what is considered the best on the market today. So I will explain the details of what I would look for, in this type of tool, and also want to show how this gadget can be used in multiple ways to assist overall cooking efforts.

Personally, I am excited about this tool because it could save me nearly $135/year that I spend on getting grease stains out of my clothes!

My Personal Kitchen Issues

One thing I will say right up front, I have never seen a splatter screen in a professional restaurant kitchen, or at the kitchen school. This item is really built for the home cook to primarily help keep the kitchen both clean and safe from popping splatters of oil or hot liquids. This is especially important if you have young children or pets who often wander into the kitchen while you are cooking.

Kitchen Burns

Admittedly, most of the burns I receive in the kitchen involves either removing something hot from the oven, dumping hot liquids in the sink, or burns that are caused by grease splatters hitting my face, arms, and hands.

Obviously, to fix the first problem is to use my pot-holders better and treat items from the oven more carefully. (Also NEVER use a wet rag to grab something hot, it can create very hot steam, which really hurts.)

The second issue has to do with steam burns, primarily from draining boiling water from cooked pasta into the sink. But more on that below.

The third issue has been harder to solve, for even low heat sautéing leads to grease and food splatters. I have burn marks on my arms from splattering grease, but even food, like hot tomato sauce burping splats, can cause burns.

Solid + Glass Lids

I have some steel lids that I could use on my pans, but these block my ability to see the food I am cooking. For frying, sautéing, and stir-fry, I am one of those cooks who needs to see the food in order to tell where it is in the cooking process. So one thing I have done is switch-out solid lids, for glass lids.

But, I also need to hear the food, as well as see it. I can hear, based on the sizzle, when things are getting done. With a tight lid, especially when I run my range hood, the sound of the sizzle is dampened and I cannot hear the food well. This can lead to oil saturating over-fried food.

Additionally, when I want to fry food, the last thing I want to trap in my pan or skillet is steam. Steaming food is what happens when tight lids are placed on frying food. All the water released by the food is converted to steam, and if it cannot disperse into the air, it drips back into the pan as water, essentially wet cooking your food. When you want crispy food, you want the steam to escape.

Greasy Splatters

This issue is two fold. First, I have spent more money on paying dry cleaners to get grease stains out of my t-shirts, than the shirts cost to begin with. All I may be doing is cooking an egg, and the next thing I know is that I have a big grease splotch on my cotton tee.

Second, is that I am a mess in the kitchen. Once done cooking, I clean up my work space, counters, and so on. But often I find grease all over the stove top, on the counters, on the range hood, walls and all over the floor. The result is that I need to do a full-blown kitchen clean up after frying, rather than just clean my immediate workstation and sink.

Solution?

All of these concerns can be solved with a steel, fine mesh, splatter screen.

Spatter Screens Components

Description

This tool should fit flatly on top of your common skillet and with limited overhang and be dishwasher safe. But, there are various aspects of this tool to consider, such as its geometry, size, rim or mesh details, handles, cleaning instructions, and warranty.

General Geometry

Most, but not all splatter screens are round. But if you have square cookware there are screens out there to fit your skillets or pots.

Splatter screens are also generally on the flat side, but I have seen exceptions. The flatter they are the easier they are for storage. But if your cookware are especially shallow, one with a dome or triangular top might be easier to use.

Size

Measure your skillets and pots or bowls you will be using the screen with, and decide from there. I was sent a 11.5” screen and if I had cookware based on cooking for 1 or 2 people this would fit fine. But my cookware is sized for a family of 4 so really I would need a 13” screen.

I looked and asked around, and most people suggest that the screen should fit and not overhang too much when used for cooking, especially if cooking over flame. As I have a gas stove, the reasoning is that the steel mesh can get burned by direct flames. But at the same time, if the screen does not fully cover the skillet it will not effectively prevent splatters.

Since skillets and other cookware vary in size you get the splatter screen that covers the most used item with a little overhang as possible.

Steel Rim + Mesh

The main intent of splatter screens are to prevent oil splatters all over your hands, clothes, stovetop, counters, and floors. The device prevents the splatter by covering your frying or sautéing pan with an ultra fine steel mesh. This mesh allows steam to escape, while blocking larger splatters from jumping out of the skillet.

The mesh should be a weave of standard 304 stainless steel, which makes it rust-resistant or rustproof. With a thick twill weave, that screen becomes durable enough for normal kitchen wear and tear. The main purpose of the twill is to allow it resist denting but yet catch fine particles, and keep its shape stable for repeated use.

• Avoid aluminum mesh, I do not let my food touch aluminum.
• Aluminum rusts, steel does not.
• This steel mesh will not be stained by food.
• Wikipedia: This steel contains both chromium and nickel metals as the main non-iron constituents. It is an austenitic stainless steel. It is less electrically and thermally conductive than carbon steel and is essentially non-magnetic. 

Handles

There are splatter screens that have a knob on the top middle of the screen, but I do not like moving my hand over hot grease, even if protected by a metal mesh. (I also get tense when placing my hand on a burner I know is off.) So I prefer the handles that keep my hands away from the source of heat.

Although not necessary for me, I do like a hanging hook on the end of the handle for hanging.

Handles come in varying lengths, and I would decide based on what I use the tool for; but I can say I do not like the folding handles as that just becomes a point of failure.

The handles should have an area that is heat resistant, to help protect your hands. Many of the manufacturers that make these splatter screens have metal, silicon, or plastic handles.

• I have found metal handles can heat up too easily and I wind up having to use hot pads to remove the screen.
• Plastic handles can obviously become brittle, break or melt.
• Silicon is great but only if you consistently use lower heat
  • I bought a silicon wrap for my cast iron handle, and while silicone can withstand temps up to 500F, persistent use over time did “melt” the material. Additionally, the material is more conductive of heat, so often it was hot to the touch. I just went back to my hot pads.
• Zulay’s handle is made of TPR (Thermoplastic Rubber) and is a material that has plastic and rubber properties, while still being recyclable.
  • TPR materials can be used in temperatures ranging from -30C to 140C or -22F to 284F.
    • Boiling water is 212F.
    • Hunker reports that a stove’s Low setting = ~195F
    • Stove’s Medium setting = ~210-300F

Cleaning + Discoloration

The other thing I look for, is that the splatter screen needs to be easy to clean (without denting or warping), and that it can be placed into the dishwasher. I have washed this screen several times by hand, brush, and dishwasher without any problems. You do want to wash it after each use, for the finer the mesh, the more likely grease can clog the holes.

The steel can get heat-discolored with use, but it is not stained by food. This discoloration, various splotches of brown, did not impede its efficacy. Everything worked, it was just discolored around the rim where it came into contact with direct flame.

Warranty

A nice-to-have, is that the screen comes with a warranty. In this case, Zulay offers a lifetime warranty for its durability. Not every splatter screen being advertised on the web offered the same.

Splatter Screen Uses

Prevent Grease Splatter

Obviously, given its name, the Splatter Screen is primarily for keeping grease from splattering all over the kitchen, cook and visitors (pets and children). It is as simple as heating the skillet, heating the oil, placing the food into the skillet, and covering it with the screen.

Since I always have my 12” cast iron skillet on the stove top, when the food is ready, I move the screen onto the cast iron and remove the food from the oil. I am either ready to cook another batch, or start cleaning up while the food rests a bit.

The splatter Screen did a great job at reducing the splatter, and I managed to fry some food without a splat on my clothing. The way the Zulay splatter screen is made, however, allows it to be used in a few other ways as well.

Draining Excess Oil When Frying

If I am cooking meat, often there comes a time when there is just too much grease in the pan, I need to drain some of the grease, while keeping the food in the skillet. The splatter screen allows me to do this safely (meaning I do not burn myself while trying to spoon out excess grease) and without too much fuss. I cover, tip and pour the grease into a container near the stove all the while my cooking continues.

Cooling Rack + Draining Grease

I have two cooling racks because I found my first one had too large of a space between the bars. Turkey or a whole chicken can sit there just fine and cool or drain, but cookies or loafs would break or dent. Then I got the other rack, with less space between the bars, and found sometimes the more delicate food could collapse in the center and fall through. The Zulay splatter screen has four feet that keep the mesh off the counter. Thus, it becomes a great cooling rack for smaller, finer cooking and baking I do sometimes.

It additionally functioned as a great tool for draining grease away from food. When placed on a baking sheet, the screen actually did better than my cooling racks in draining grease from meat balls, fried Tofu dogs, and veggie chicken nuggets. It allowed the grease to drip through, and did so without having any of the food fall through and sit in the drippings.

Strainer + Sieve

When cooking pasta or boiling potatoes, there comes a time when the water needs to be drained from the pot. The way my Mutti taught me was to wrap a kitchen towell around the lid, tilt the lid so water can escape, and take it to the sink to pour. Later I learned that if using this technique, you really need to pour away from your body and toward the faucet to prevent a very hot facial.

• I found there was always some water left behind and the food on the bottom became water logged, which effected my potatoes.
• Sometimes the lid would slip and all the cooked food fell into the kitchen sink.
• Sometimes the kitchen towel would soak up the hot water and burn my hands a bit.

Later I realized that a good metal colander is much easier, just pour away from your body and let the device catch the food. Then once drained, I put the food back into the heated pot to keep it all warm.

• But then you have another dish to wash.
• If the food being cooked (angle hair pasta) was smaller than the holes in the colander, food wound up in the sink and down the drain.
• The colander I use takes up a large amount of space in my kitchen cabinetry.

Using the splatter screen worked just as well and took up less room in my kitchen cabinets than the colander. I just cover the pot, grab the pot handles (and the screen handle) and pour away from my body into the sink. It poured out the water and left the food in the pot.

I have used the screen to drain pasta from a large pot, rice from a smaller pan, and washed berries from a bowl; in all cases it worked very well. The food was kept in the container, there was no wasted food, and the water was drained away.

I have also used the screen to drain grease out of my cast iron when I want to make a gravy and do not want it too greasy. The point is I want to keep all the brown bits in the pan for the gravy and just want to pour away the grease.

Screen as Steamer

Chicago Tribune touted using the screen as a steamer, just fill the pot with water, place the screen on top as the water boils, and place a lid on it to steam. While this will work with flat food, like fish, it is harder if you are steaming 4C of mixed size veggies. But, can it function like a steamer in an emergency? Yes.

What Not to Do

Not a Grilling Rack

Do not misread a “grill splatter screen,” as indication you can use a splatter screens on an outdoor or indoor grill or BBQ. A small number of people indicated they used the splatter screens on the “indirect heat” side of a grill. So I tried this to see if it worked. It did not, it did not cook the veggies well and resulted in a discolored mesh. (Plus the handle on the splatter screen can only withstand up to 284F.) For an actual grilling rack, use steel grates that are specifically advertised for grilling.

Not Made for Direct Flame Use

I also used the splatter screen on a gas stovetop burner that was larger than my pot and it discolored the mesh as well. While the result was the splatter screen discolored from silver to brown spots, the weave was not effected. The splatter screen still functions as specified. This speaks to carefully measuring your skillets and purchasing the size you need for best efforts.

Splatter Screen Cautions

• Do not use in the microwave – – Crackle + Boom.
• Do not use in the oven, the non-steel handles could melt and cause a serious cleanup situation.
• Keep the handle away from very high temperatures.
• Stay away from aluminum splatter screens, stay with stainless steel.
• Do not use splatter screens with only metal handles.
• Screens can get discolored over time due to heat or flame.
• I would not use on a grill, exposed to direct open flame burners, or campfires.

Would I Buy This Tool?

Yes I would and have been speaking about getting one over the last few months. While they sent me the 11.5” splatter screen, I would buy a 13” one to help cover my 12” cast iron pan better. After cooking with this gadget for two weeks, I can say without a doubt, it has helped me keep my home kitchen cleaner and safer. Also, I have gone two weeks and only got one grease splash; that is an achievement!

For those comparison shoppers out there, here are some reviewers of kitchen tools, Zulay’s Splatter Screen rated in the top ten.

• BestReviews #1
• KitchenSurfing #2
• EasyGetProduct #6

—Patty

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News: Food + Wine writes tht Some restaurants that have opened up again, are now closing again due to Americans who are fighting wearing masks and social distancing. I am not surprised given the videos that have been posted on Facebook documenting these actions.

Update: CNBC reports The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention found that 9% of workers at meat and poultry processing facilities across 14 states have been diagnosed with Covid-19.

News: Arizona is shutting down bars again, according to Food + Wine. Frankly, opening them up, when some states did was just an inveitation to a reoccurance of the pandemic. The science warned them about this, and it came to pass. THE lesson is to listed to science, and not politics, when it comes to a pandemic.

News: NPR writes about how COVID-19 outbreaks in Pacific Northwest Seafood Industry just as the season starts up. [J]ust a few weeks into the summer season, the industry has been shaken by its first major outbreak aboard a huge vessel with an onboard fish processing factory. This week, Seattle-based American Seafoods confirmed that 92 crew from its American Dynasty ship had tested positive for COVID-19, nearly three-fourths of the 126 people onboard.