Bulk Asian Soup Spoons

Chinese Soup Spoons: What You Need to Know

Ideal for most Asian restaurants, Asian soup spoons have a distinct appearance. Most of them have a short, thick handle with a flat, deep bowl. They also may be shaped like a soup ladle and can be used to scoop rice or soup. The traditional Chinese soup spoon is a commonly used utensil in Chinese cuisine. As with the rice or soup ladle, the soup spoon is made for eating soup and even loose solid foods, such as rice. Chinese soup spoons typically can hold more than American spoons. They also come in solid colors or feature unique prints. We'll answer any commonly asked questions regarding Asian soup spoons in the section below.

Common Questions About Asian Soup Spoons

What are Chinese spoons made of?

Traditional Chinese spoons are made of ceramic – an umbrella term for materials that are durable and hard, but slightly brittle. Consisting of aluminum oxide, silicon dioxide, and water, ceramic materials include stoneware and porcelain. Stoneware soup spoons are durable and not very porous. Typically, they're glazed and can be made light and thin. Different than other types of ceramic, porcelain has a clay body with the addition of kaolin – a smooth, fine-grained clay. Porcelain soup spoons are durable, heat resistant, and simple to clean, while many of them can be used in a microwave or oven and cleaned in a dishwasher.

Chinese soup spoons also can be made of melamine, an extremely durable material. Melamine soup spoons are highly break resistant and can be dropped without fear of breaking. They also don't crack or dent as easily as other materials. Melamine is made from a mixture of plastic resin and plant cellulose. Melamine soup spoons also have a similar look and feel to porcelain. They can be cleaned in a dishwasher, but should never be placed in a microwave, as the melamine may peel.

Should you get porcelain or melamine soup spoons?

Traditional Asian soup spoons are made of ceramic – more specifically, porcelain. So, if authenticity and tradition are important to your establishment, you should invest in ceramic or porcelain spoons. However, they may be more breakable than melamine. Melamine Chinese soup spoons are very durable and common in restaurants because of their similar appearance to porcelain.

How do you use Chinese spoons?

There is no characteristic method for using Chinese soup spoons as there is for chopsticks, but there are some general guidelines you can follow. The most secure way to hold a Chinese spoon is by placing your index finger on the groove of the handle with your middle finger and thumb placed underneath. If you just want to drink broth from the spoon, you can sip it from the side. If you're eating soup with noodles, then you should use chopsticks to push noodles into the spoon before scooping the broth.