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I have bought three silicone spatulas so far and all of them start "melting" when used to flip frying eggs.

I don't leave them in the pan or anything and, supposedly, silicone should be able to withstand much higher temperatures than frying oil.

But I've had the same happen with a "silicone basket"-like utensil (I don't know exactly what it was called) which, quite literally, melted and fell apart when I used it for the first time to fish french fries out of the frier.

I also see a lot of people having the same experience over the wire/internet.

Why is this happening and is there a way to confirm the utensils are real silicone and not something else?

EDIT:
After some digging I have discovered I have, in fact, bought a nylon spatula, instead of a silicone one.

I am going to copy @unlisted's comment for benefit of future readers:

Though both obviously 'plasticky' nylon is hard & silicone is soft. If it will squish a bit, it's silicone. Nylon will bend but you could never describe it as 'squishy'. Of course, even if it passes that test it may still not be food-grade.

notarobot
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    Are you buying all this equipment from the same source (and is this source a physical store rather than a cheap online supplier)? It sounds like a bad supplier to me. – dbmag9 Oct 18 '22 at 18:44
  • Bought from an online and a different, physical store. I didn't take note of the branding on the utensils but am pretty sure at least some didn't have a visible one. I.e. I cannot be sure they were really different and not the same things being sold by different stores. But if that is the case how can I confirm what I am buying is indeed good grade silicone? Since even if I buy at another place it could be the same product. – notarobot Oct 18 '22 at 18:47
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    If the products are melting and falling apart in hot oil at cooking temperatures I think you have experimentally confirmed that they are not good grade silicone. – dbmag9 Oct 18 '22 at 18:48
  • @dbmag9, as long as someone can confirm they have a silicone spatula that they use to flip frying eggs and have used it a few times and it didn't start to melt, then I'd agree. But since I have no experience but my own at the moment I can't confirm that. And the question of how to tell good from bad grade remains. :/ – notarobot Oct 18 '22 at 18:57
  • Some companies sell spatulas that are specifically rated as being for ‘high temperature’. (Sometimes they’re red silicone). If one of those still melts on you, you may want to get a thermometer and check the temperature of your pan – Joe Oct 18 '22 at 19:47
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    FWIW, I have silicone spatulas that I use with frying all the time. Never been any sign of melting (unlike my nylon utensils, for example). – FuzzyChef Oct 18 '22 at 20:40
  • Photos would also help with this question. – FuzzyChef Oct 18 '22 at 20:43
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    Second @FuzzyChef’s statement. Four types of silicone utensils, no issue whatsoever. One is a brush I use to oil hot frying pans. – Stephie Oct 18 '22 at 21:44
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    I am now adopting the idea perhaps I was sold a nylon utensil as a silicone one. – notarobot Oct 18 '22 at 22:35
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    Though both obviously 'plasticky' nylon is hard & silicone is soft. If it will squish a bit, it's silicone. Nylon will bend but you could never describe it as 'squishy'. Of course, even if it passes that test it may still not be food-grade. In the UK even the cheap supermarket brands are heat stable. – Tetsujin Oct 19 '22 at 07:47
  • @unlisted, yup, edited question to let people know if it melts - it's most likely nylon disguised as silicone. – notarobot Oct 19 '22 at 13:56
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    But nylon and silicone are obviously very different in both look and feel. One is a hard molded plastic, the other is smooth rubber. – OrangeDog Oct 19 '22 at 14:12
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    @OrangeDog, not to a person not familiar with either, they are not. – notarobot Oct 19 '22 at 21:02
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    There are different nylon types too. I regularly use a nylon spatula from a reputable brand for frying without issues. It is rated for 210 ˚C. – Jan Tojnar Oct 20 '22 at 02:58

1 Answers1

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If the products are melting and falling apart in hot oil at cooking temperatures I think you have experimentally confirmed that they are not food grade silicone. Food-grade silicone should be completely functional in the range of frying temperatures.

In a guide to food-grade silicone:

Temperature resistance is one of the principal attributes of food-grade silicone. This is particularly crucial in food processing where temperatures can vary from boiling hot to freezing cold. Food grade silicone can generally function in temperatures varying between -60°C and +250°C (special grades up to +300°C). Source

In a guide to safe deep-frying:

If you have a food thermometer heat the oil to 160C for low, 180C for moderate and 190C for high. Source

As for buying reliable products, my recommendation would be to buy branded products from reputable shops. With experience and common sense you can get a sense for what brands and products to trust.

dbmag9
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  • That is sound advice but I'd say rather I'd have to identify reputable brands, as a product simply being branded does not make it good or reliable (in the sense that it really is silicone, etc.). – notarobot Oct 18 '22 at 19:30
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    @notarobot I've expanded a little; I think product standards are something that will differ depending on where you are. I'm in the UK and I'm confident that anything I buy in a supermarket or homeware store that is labelled as food-grade silicone will indeed be reliable – even if the product lifetime and general sturdiness may be different for different brands. But in other markets that may be different, so you will have to use some level of personal experience and instinct. – dbmag9 Oct 18 '22 at 20:57
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    @dbmag9 I would say that your assessment is too optimistic. While 180-ish is the *optimal* temperature for the oil bath in deep frying, many people don't manage to stay in the optimal range and heat their fat too much. Also, the OP said "frying eggs", which is not deep frying - it is much more likely that they are using few to no oil on a very hot pan, and the spatula comes in direct contact with the pan, which is likely well above 250 C. The idea of a single "food grade silicone" is also overly generalized - silicones are a wide group of materials, and spatulas are food grade, but not ... – rumtscho Oct 19 '22 at 10:36
  • ... intended for work in a hot pan, so the producers just choose a material that works for its intended purpose, which for silicone spatulas is to scoop or stir cold (or below-boiling-hot) masses in patisserie. If the OP wants to fry, they have to choose a spatula created for frying. – rumtscho Oct 19 '22 at 10:39
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    @rumtscho The OP specifically says they aren't leaving the utensils in contact with the pan for long and that they had the same issue fishing fries from a fryer, so I am confident that the utensils are not doing what they should here. Note that for some people 'spatula' only describes the patisserie tool you mention, for others it describes an 'egg-lifter' and I assume that's what the OP is using. – dbmag9 Oct 19 '22 at 11:04
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    @dbmag9 I indeed use the word "spatula" to include "egg lifter". I have never seen it made out of silicone though, and I don't see any reason why it should be so, since you want something firm for that task, and silicone is floppy. So for me, "silicone spatula" always means the patisserie kind. I agree that producers should use heat-resistant material for anything produced as an egg lifter, but they don't actually do so, I have a set of nylon utensils which is only usable up to 150-ish, but has a slotted trapezoid spatula (egg lifter). – rumtscho Oct 19 '22 at 11:18
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    @rumtscho I have a set of silicone utensils which have a rigid internal structure (presumably metal) and silicone exterior, so that they aren't floppy but can't scratch any surfaces. – dbmag9 Oct 19 '22 at 12:16
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    Edited my question, basically the problem was not low grade silicone but outright a nylon utensil. Some sellers sell nylon utensils labeled as "silicone" either trying to deceive or because they, themselves, have been deceived. In my opinion adding info that utensils melting means they are most probably nylon would help future readers. Personally, I included a comment from @unlisted that helps a lot in this regard. – notarobot Oct 19 '22 at 14:00