Damaged/Melted Rice Cooker Paddle? (health issues, cheap, replacement, dangers)

[ericjustin2]

I use an arroz rice cooker to cook rice. As many of you know, it comes with a white paddle. Thus you use it to get rice and then put it on your plate. I also sometimes cook steak and use a pan to cook it. The thing is i did not have a spatula when i started making steak as i rarely ate steak nor fried foods. I do have a spoon spatula though but i almost rarely use it. Its like a black spatula and the ones that is a spatula but its very cheap probably like 1 or 2 dollars. Only used it whenever i steamed pasta in a pot and get the pasta into a plate etc. And because i got lazy, i did not buy a spatula... the ones you used to flip over steak and eggs etc.



I did noticed that the rice cooker paddle... its white in color as most of you know. Well its very rotten damaged. Like imagine your white wall gets rusted and destroyed in certain area. I had used this to flip over steak and eggs when using my pan to make it. I guess you could say like it melted in the bottom end area.



First off, does that mean i should immediately throw the white paddle away? Its like it gotten damaged in that area like it got melted and rotten etc. Because i did not notice it earlier but i just noticed it now. The thing is i have two of these white paddles from old rice cooker. And back then when i didn't make any steak, im pretty close to certain there was no damage to it. So is it dangerous to even use this paddle now for scooping up the rice from rice cooker or not?



I will be buying a spatula soon and thus use it to flip over steak and say eggs when i use it on the pan. But has anyone here ever used the white paddle from the rice cooker to flip over eggs or steak? Because i didn't have that spatula so i thought, hey i could use this rice cooker white paddle for it.



Also for those of you who use a rice cooker, if you don't have the white paddle, what do you use in replacement? No issues just using like a spoon spatula right? I also like to say that these spatulas that i get where im located, they are very cheap like 1-2 dollars only. But at the time, I thought well i could just use this instead and i don't have to head to the store to get one so i just used it ever since. Then i noticed its like the plastic is getting destroyed from the rice white paddle. The white paddle from rice cooker is made from plastic right? I just want to make sure but i assume most are made of it.


Is there any health concern like poisoning etc because i ate the steak and eggs and done this few times while using the rice cooker paddle as the spatula?

[ericjustin2]

Also there would been no issues if i had just used a black plastic spatula to flip over the steak as oppose to a regular spatula right? Yes i know that sound like a dumb question. Or say using it with my fork... that would still be no problems? What about if you use your fork in place of a spatula?


Also there should be no issues with my pan right? I took a look at the pan and there are like scratches on it if i take my finger and touch it. It is a no stick pan though. But i assume anything melted would not do damage to the pan right?


However, i should immediately throw away those rice cooker paddles? Because i dont know if using these are health hazard because i just noticed this after making steak and eggs earlier. And yes when im making steak and eggs, im pushing that rice cooker spatula right on the middle of the pan etc.

[TabulaRasa]

1. A plastic rice paddle designed to serve rice from a rice cooker is not designed to withstand the heat of cooking a steak in a skillet. You've ruined the plastic paddle by using it as a turner to flip a steak. Toss it.

2. Pick up a plastic or bamboo rice paddle to replace the ruined one. Asian grocery store, or, if you don't have any access to that, shop online.

3. Pick up an appropriate spatula/turner for use for stovetop cooking.

[Parnassia]

This really isn't difficult. If you are concerned about the plastic, use bamboo or hardwood utensils. I prefer wood. They won't scratch non-stick surfaces. Many kitchen utensils are now made from silicon that can handle temperatures up to 420F. I have a few silicon utensils but prefer not to use them in higher heats. Wood works just fine unless you let it sit in water too often or too long. Eventually it can split or warp, but chemically it doesn't change.

[ericjustin2]

Hi there thanks for the response. That idea never crossed my mind that you cannot use it to cook a steak in a pan. Because i thought hey i could just use this rice cooker paddle etc. Okay i will throw it away.


The thing is i do not think they have a rice paddle where im located though. I will check. So if thats the case, using a spoon spatula is fine right? Like for example if you google black spatula. Such as you could use that to get soup in your bowl or pasta. There is nothing wrong with that using to get the rice from rice cooker right?


I have a black spoon spatula already. I use it very rarely as its only used when i steam pasta. But many times i get lazy and don't use it and just pour the pasta from the pot to my bowl etc. But are there any health issues because i ate steak and eggs with it? Did the plastic paddle melt on the food? Is getting those 1-2 dollar spatulas fine for turning over steak and eggs etc? Also i have did this last time with my fork and even a knife. Like imagine you use fork and knife to cut and eat your steak. But is there dangers of that though? I will get a spatula for turning steak and eggs over but want to know if there were issues with fork/knife.

[Hedgehog_Mom]

You will be fine. The plastic didn't mix with the steak or egg, it just melted.

Spatulas that are meant to be used in pans will not melt in the pan, at least if you're just turning food. If you leave the spatula in the pan while the pan is on, the edges may start to melt.

You can use any kind of utensil to get the rice out of the cooker. If the cooker is nonstick, use a plastic utensil. Also, if your skillet is nonstick, don't turn steak with a knife or fork or you'll scratch up the nonstick coating.

[Jkgourmet]

I use a fork or tongs to flip a steak. Both are probably available at a dollar store, as well as your rice spatula (which Ean easily be replaced with a spoon.)

[greatblueheron]

Spend a bit more and get quality utensils that are NOT plastic!

[oregonwoodsmoke]

You can carefully use any utensil made to be used with non-stick pans. But carefully. The non-stick finish in rice cookers is nowhere as tough as the non-stick finish on a frying pan.

If you can't buy another rice paddle, a silicon spatula or spoon would be the most gentle.

[Zoisite]

Plastic, rubber and silicon are toxic, cheap and designed to melt or burn and become ruined quickly and easily upon repeated contact with heat. They can burn, melt, become mis-shapen and weak or otherwise deteriorate and crumble far too easily from heat and will ruin other cookware or heating elements.

You can't go wrong with wood and stainless steel and if you look after them properly they will last your lifetime.

I always use only wood utensils on all non-stick surfaces or enameled or glass ware that are used for cooking food, never metal, plastic, rubber or silicon utensils.

On stainless steel and cast iron cook ware I use both stainless steel and wood utensils.

I do not use plastic, rubber or silicon to handle very hot food either - I only use wood or stainless steel. And I never put plastic, rubber or silicon utensils into boiling liquids or into a dishwasher.

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