The Best Oven Mitts

These oven mitts kept our hands comfortably cool and in control when holding hot equipment or reaching into a hot oven. When compressed, they were the thickest of the models with a silicone exterior. The silicone is heavily textured for better grip, and because it flexed with our hands, we could easily pinch thin cookie sheets and small handles or knobs. The fabric lining moved around inside the mitts at times during use, but it stayed put better than the linings of other models. The mitts can be machine-washed, but they have to be laid flat to dry. The silicone became permanently stained.

With exteriors of thick, red fabric striped with silicone, this set performed reliably. Although another fabric model appeared to be as padded as this set, this pair was slightly thicker when compressed. When we flexed our hands while wearing these mitts, the lining stayed put, but testers noted that their thicker design made them a bit bulkier and blunter at the fingertips than our favorite model. And even though these mitts were thicker than our winner when compressed, we couldn't grip a hot cast-iron skillet for quite as long.

These thin and flexible silicone mitts kept our hands comfortable and felt relatively nimble, particularly when we were carrying thin or lightweight bakeware. However, when working with heavier hot items, our hands sometimes felt a bit warmer (but not hot enough to cause alarm) than they did in the top silicone mitt. We also noticed that the fabric lining often moved around and bunched up inside the mitts as we were using them. Because their exteriors are made mostly of silicone, we could wash off debris or grease by hand, but we recommend a thorough machine washing as needed.

These cotton-lined silicone mitts provided great heat protection, but we had to sacrifice some dexterity. At times, the cotton liner moved around inside the mitt while we were using it, and the rigid silicone shell didn’t flex with our hands as we grasped items and got in our way. Some testers felt that the placement of the thumb (below the fingers instead of next to them) made using these mitts a bit less intuitive than using lobster claw–shaped models. We liked that the mitts can be easily taken apart and cleaned—the silicone shell is dishwasher-safe, and the cotton liner can be machine-washed and machine-dried, but the seam on the liner came loose after just three laundry cycles.

These were the biggest, widest, bulkiest mitts in our lineup. Testers with small and average-size hands noted that they felt clumsy and imprecise. They fit on larger hands better, though one tester still described these mitts as “cavernous.” Unfortunately, in the more rigorous (though realistic) temperature tests we devised for this review, these mitts didn’t protect our hands from the heat as well as other models did. We had to release the hot cast-iron skillet handle after only 10 seconds, which isn’t enough time to carry a hot item through a kitchen. A magnet sewn into a tab near the top of the oven mitt allowed us to hang the oven mitt on the refrigerator for easy access, but the magnet came loose in the washing machine.

These gloves come in two sizes, so testers were more likely to find a pair that fit snugly on their hands. Testers using the small size noted that their hands felt nimble and were able to work precisely. Unfortunately, these gloves didn’t offer adequate protection. When we pinched the hot knob atop a Dutch oven lid, heat raced through the material to our hands. Aramid is generally quite protective, but the gloves’ open weave allowed heat to penetrate. We’re hopeful that a future version of these gloves will offer better protection because we loved that they fit tightly and gave us full control over each of our fingers.

Although they look like the other gloves in our lineup, this model is available in only one size, and testers with smaller hands noted that it was too large. Excess fabric flopped around at our fingertips and impeded what would otherwise have been a precise grip. The gloves were protective when we were handling thin, lightweight equipment but provided insufficient protection when we were handling heavier items that resulted in more compression.

We were intrigued by this design—two pocketed pot holders connected by a swath of fabric. We liked that we could push our fingers into the corners of the pockets and get a secure grip on items. However, that swath of fabric was a nuisance: It drooped between our hands and forced us to choose between keeping our hands tethered together or allowing it to dangle from one hand. Worst of all, the mitt’s fabric was thin when compressed and didn’t offer adequate heat protection during real-life applications.

Like the other double mitt we tested, the swath of fabric connecting the two ends was often more annoying than helpful. The mitt’s fabric allowed us to comfortably grip the skillet’s handle for just 6 seconds—nowhere near long enough to ensure safety.