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See why.The Best Spider Skimmers
A bad skimmer can turn even the most patient cook into a basket case.
By Updated May 1, 2017
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What You Need To Know
When we’re deep-frying, blanching, or boiling, we use a spider skimmer—a long-handled stainless-steel wire basket—to remove food from the pot. Spiders have larger capacities than slotted spoons and more open area for faster, safer drainage. There are two basic spider basket designs; the traditional design is made from thin wire mesh, and the more modern style has a spiral (or concentric circles) of smooth, slightly thicker wire. To find the best spider, we tested six models—three of each basket style, priced from about $10.00 to about $40.00—while boiling ravioli and deep-frying French fries and chicken pieces.
All of the spiders functioned adequately, but certain factors made some safer, quicker, and more comfortable to use. In general, we preferred spiders with longer handles (for more protection from boiling water and hot oil) and larger grips (which were more comfortable for users of varying hand sizes). While testers had a slight preference for lighter spiders, balance was more important than total weight—models that felt basket-heavy were awkward and less comfortable to use, seeming heavier than they really were.
The optimal basket depth was 1 to 1½ inches. Shallower baskets couldn’t hold as many smaller items, requiring more passes to clear the pot, and didn’t securely hold larger items. Baskets deeper than 1½ inches held plenty but felt unwieldy and were more difficult and time-consuming to empty.
We found that the smooth wires of spiral-style baskets handled the delicate ravioli with a lighter touch than the mesh baskets, on which food often snagged. In the end, we deemed basket style less important than basket size—and most of the spiders that met our preferred basket dimensions had mesh-style baskets.
Our favorite spider, the lightweight Kuhn Rikon Spider Skimmer, Small, has a long, 10.5-inch handle that kept us safely away from the heat; a large, comfortable rubberized grip; and a medium-depth webbed basket that made it quick and easy to extract food of all sizes and shapes.
Everything We Tested
Recommended
- Basket: 1.5 stars out of 3.
- Safety: 2 stars out of 3.
- Cleanup: 3 stars out of 3.
- Comfort: 2.5 stars out of 3.
- Food Handling: 2.5 stars out of 3.
With a basket made from a single smooth spiral of thick wire, this beautiful, long-handled, well-balanced spider was easy to maneuver and clean and capable of handling fragile ravioli with care. But that elegance came at a price—the highest in our lineup. And while some cooks thought its lower profile allowed them to get up under food more easily, the shallow basket simply couldn’t hold fried chicken as securely or pick up as many fries or ravioli in a single pass.
- Basket: 3 stars out of 3.
- Safety: 2 stars out of 3.
- Cleanup: 2 stars out of 3.
- Comfort: 2 stars out of 3.
- Food Handling: 2.5 stars out of 3.
This spider quickly and easily scooped out large chicken pieces and held plenty of ravioli and fries. But with both the shortest handle and one of the shortest grips in our lineup, it felt slightly undersize, bringing us closer to the heat than we liked. It also got a slight downgrade for its mesh basket.
- Basket: 3 stars out of 3.
- Safety: 3 stars out of 3.
- Cleanup: 2 stars out of 3.
- Comfort: 3 stars out of 3.
- Food Handling: 2.5 stars out of 3.
The favorite of almost every cook who tried it, this lightweight spider was just shy of perfection. It had a long handle; a good-size, moderately deep basket; and—best of all—a long, comfortable, rubbery grip. Our only gripe: The basket is made with food-snagging wire mesh, making it a little harder on delicate foods and a bit more work to clean by hand.
Recommended with reservations
- Basket: 2.5 stars out of 3.
- Safety: 3 stars out of 3.
- Cleanup: 1.5 stars out of 3.
- Comfort: 1.5 stars out of 3.
- Food Handling: 2 stars out of 3.
This spider had a nice long handle, but its grip was the shortest in our lineup—even with special rubberized nubs to help us position our hands, it was uncomfortable to hold. Its large basket was shaped like a stocking cap—deep and pointed—meaning that we occasionally had to bang the spider against the plate in order to dislodge cooked food that got stuck in the narrow end. Finally, the basket’s wire mesh was the most unevenly woven and thus the hardest to clean.
Not Recommended
- Basket: 1.5 stars out of 3.
- Safety: 2 stars out of 3.
- Cleanup: 3 stars out of 3.
- Comfort: 1.5 stars out of 3.
- Food Handling: 2 stars out of 3.
Although this spider’s smooth metal spiral basket was easy to clean, its shallow depth made it less efficient to use, requiring an extra pass to remove all the fries and ravioli from the pot and forcing us to be extra-careful not to tip fried chicken pieces back into the oil. And as the heaviest spider in our lineup, sporting a short, thick handle, this model wasn’t very comfortable to use either.
- Basket: 1.5 stars out of 3.
- Safety: 3 stars out of 3.
- Cleanup: 3 stars out of 3.
- Comfort: 1 stars out of 3.
- Food Handling: 1 stars out of 3.
On paper, this spider seemed to have it all: a long handle and grip and a nice deep basket made from snag-proof, cleanup-friendly circles of wire. But that grip was made of slippery plastic that got even slicker after 5 minutes of deep frying, and that deep basket turned out to be too deep and too heavy, making the spider off-balance and tiring our arms when we had to remove several pieces of fried chicken. Finally, the basket had long, ¼-inch gaps in which fries and ravioli got stuck.
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The mission of America’s Test Kitchen Reviews is to find the best equipment and ingredients for the home cook through rigorous, hands-on testing.
Miye Bromberg
Miye is a senior editor for ATK Reviews. She covers booze, blades, and gadgets of questionable value.
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