If you’ve ever walked into an Indian kitchen and seen five different spatulas hanging on the wall, you might have wondered why. Why does anyone need that many? Can’t one good spatula do everything?
The short answer is no. Not even close. One spatula doesn’t work for everything.
Indian cooking involves wildly different techniques, often in the same meal. You’re flipping delicate dosas on a hot tawa, stirring thick curries in a kadai, deep frying pakoras in bubbling oil, and serving rice without breaking the grains. Each of these needs a different tool because the heat is different, the cookware is different, and what you’re trying to do with the food is completely different.
Using the wrong spatula isn’t just inconvenient. It can tear your dosa, scratch your non-stick pan, burn your hand on hot oil, or turn your fluffy rice into mush. The right tool makes cooking easier, safer, and gives you better results.
Indian kitchens have figured this out over generations. Different regions have their own names for these tools, but the logic behind them is the same. Each spatula or spoon is designed for a specific job, and once you understand what that job is, you’ll know exactly which one to reach for.
Let’s talk about why Indian cooking needs multiple spatulas, what each one does, and how to choose the right material for your cookware and cooking style.
Why Indian Cooking Needs Different Spatulas
Before we get into specific tools, let’s understand why one spatula can’t handle everything in Indian cooking.
- Tawa cooking versus kadai cooking. A tawa is flat and gets extremely hot. You need something thin and flat that can slide under a dosa or roti without tearing it. A kadai is curved and deep. You need something that can reach into the curves, scrape the bottom, and stir without splashing hot oil everywhere. Same kitchen, totally different tools needed.
- High heat oil frying. Indian cooking uses a lot of oil at high temperatures. You need tools that can handle that heat without melting, warping, or transferring heat to your hand. You also need slotted tools that let oil drain off so your fried food isn’t greasy.
- Non-stick versus iron cookware. If you’re using non-stick pans, metal spatulas will scratch the coating. You need wood or silicone. But if you’re using cast iron or regular steel cookware, metal spatulas work great and often work better because they can scrape and handle high heat without any issues.
- Delicate foods versus heavy foods. Flipping a paper-thin dosa requires a completely different spatula than stirring a thick dal or moving around chunks of potato in a curry. Delicate foods need thin, wide spatulas that support without breaking. Heavy foods need sturdy spoons that can move weight around without bending.
- Serving versus cooking. Some tools are meant for cooking, where you’re stirring, flipping, and dealing with high heat. Others are specifically for serving, where you want to preserve the shape and texture of what you’ve already cooked. Using a cooking spoon to serve rice will break the grains. Using a serving spoon to stir curry won’t reach the bottom properly.
This is why Indian kitchens have multiple tools. It’s not excess or tradition for tradition’s sake. It’s practical design based on actual cooking needs.
Common Spatulas and Spoons Used in Indian Kitchens
Let’s go through the main tools you’ll see in most Indian kitchens, what they’re called, and exactly what they’re used for.
Turner Spatula (Palta, Ulathna, Dosa Karandi)
Primary Use
This is your everyday flipper. You use it for rotis, parathas, uttapam, cutlets, tikkis, and basically anything that needs to be turned over on a tawa or in a flat pan. It’s also great for scraping the bottom of the cookware to make sure nothing sticks or burns.
Ideal Material
Stainless steel for regular tawas and iron cookware. Nylon or silicone for non-stick pans. Wood works too but can get stained and needs more maintenance.
Why This Shape Works
The palta has a flat edge and a slight angle. That flat edge is crucial because it lets you slide under rotis or parathas without tearing them. The slight angle gives you leverage to flip without using too much wrist strength. Some paltas have slots or holes to let steam escape, which helps prevent soggy rotis.
Common Dishes
Rotis, parathas, dosas, uttapam, potato tikkis, cutlets, any flatbread or pancake-style dish.
Wooden Spatula or Cooking Spoon
Primary Use
This is for stirring curries, sautéing vegetables, cooking dal, and basically any dish where you’re stirring in a pot or kadai. It’s gentle on non-stick cookware and doesn’t conduct heat, so it stays cool even when you’re cooking at high temperatures.
Ideal Material
Hardwood like neem, teak, or beech. Bamboo is also popular now. Avoid softwoods that splinter or absorb too much moisture.
Why This Shape Works
The rounded or slightly flat edge gets into the curves of a kadai and reaches the bottom without scratching. Wood doesn’t react with acidic foods like tomato or tamarind, which can happen with some metals. It also has natural antibacterial properties, especially neem wood, which is why Indian kitchens have traditionally preferred wooden spoons.
Common Dishes
Curries, dal, sambhar, rasam, vegetable stir-fries, anything that needs stirring or sautéing in a pot or kadai.
Slotted Spatula or Skimmer (Jalli Karandi or Jhara)
Primary Use
This is for deep frying. You use it to lift pakoras, puris, bondas, vadas, or any fried food out of hot oil while leaving the oil behind. The slots or holes let the oil drain back into the kadai so your fried food isn’t sitting in a puddle of grease.
Ideal Material
Stainless steel or brass. The handle should be long and preferably wooden or heat-resistant because you’re working over very hot oil and you don’t want heat transferring to your hand.
Why This Shape Works
The bowl shape holds multiple pieces of fried food at once. The slots are big enough to drain oil quickly but small enough that food doesn’t fall through. The long handle keeps your hand away from splattering oil. Some have a flat edge on one side so you can also use them to press down on puris to help them puff up.
Common Dishes
Pakoras, samosas, puris, bhajis, vadas, boondi, any deep-fried snack or dish.
Deep Ladle (Kuzhi Karandi)
Primary Use
This is for serving gravies, sambhar, rasam, dal, or any liquid-based dish. The deep bowl holds a good amount of liquid, and the long handle keeps your hand away from hot pots. Some versions are also used for cooking, especially in South Indian kitchens where they’re used to stir and serve sambhar.
Ideal Material
Traditionally made from coconut shell attached to a wooden handle, which is still common in South India. Modern versions are stainless steel. Coconut shell is naturally heat-resistant and doesn’t conduct heat to the handle.
Why This Shape Works
The deep bowl prevents spilling when you’re transferring liquid from pot to plate. The curved shape fits into the curves of a pot and scoops from the bottom easily. When made from coconut shell, it’s lightweight despite holding a lot of liquid, which makes serving easier.
Common Dishes
Sambhar, rasam, dal, any curry or gravy-based dish, soups, stews.
Rice Serving Spoon
Primary Use
This is specifically for serving cooked rice without breaking the grains. It has a flat, wide surface that scoops rice gently and a slight curve that releases it onto the plate without clumping.
Ideal Material
Wood or stainless steel with a smooth, rounded edge. Avoid anything with sharp edges that could cut through the rice grains.
Why This Shape Works
Rice grains, especially basmati, are delicate when cooked. A regular spoon or ladle would press down and break them, turning fluffy rice into mush. The rice serving spoon is designed to go under the rice and lift it gently, keeping the grains separate and intact.
Common Dishes
Any cooked rice, biryani, pulao, lemon rice, curd rice.
Basting Spoon or Brush
Primary Use
This is for applying ghee or oil to rotis, parathas, dosas, or any flatbread while it’s cooking or after it’s done. You can also use it to baste tandoori items or grilled foods with marinade.
Ideal Material
Silicone brushes are most common now because they’re heat-resistant and easy to clean. Traditional versions were just bunches of clean cloth or even feathers. Steel spoons with small bowls also work for drizzling ghee.
Why This Shape Works
A brush distributes oil or ghee evenly in a thin layer, which is what you want on flatbreads. Too much ghee makes them greasy. Too little makes them dry. The brush gives you control. For drizzling, a small ladle lets you pour in controlled amounts without dumping too much at once.
Common Dishes
Rotis, parathas, dosas, naan, tandoori preparations, grilled items.
Materials Used and Why They Matter
The material of your spatula or spoon isn’t just about preference. It affects safety, durability, and whether you’ll ruin your cookware or your food.
Stainless steel
Stainless steel is the workhorse of Indian kitchens. It can handle high heat without warping, doesn’t react with acidic foods, and lasts forever if you take care of it. Use steel for frying, for regular tawas and kadais, and for any cooking that involves high heat and oil. Don’t use it on non-stick cookware because it will scratch the coating.
Wood
Wood is traditional for good reasons. It doesn’t conduct heat, so wooden handles stay cool even when the other end is in boiling curry. It doesn’t scratch non-stick surfaces. It’s naturally antibacterial, especially neem wood. And it doesn’t react with acidic foods. The downsides are that wood can stain, absorb odors if not properly maintained, and crack if it dries out. But a well-maintained wooden spatula can last years and is gentle on all types of cookware.
Silicone
Silicone is the modern solution for non-stick cookware. It’s heat-resistant up to very high temperatures, flexible, doesn’t scratch anything, and is easy to clean. It’s great for non-stick pans, baking, and any situation where you want the flexibility of plastic without the melting risk. The downside is that it’s not as sturdy as wood or steel, so it’s not great for heavy stirring or scraping stuck-on food from cast iron.
Coconut shell
Coconut shell is traditional in South India, especially for ladles. It’s naturally heat-resistant, lightweight, and sustainable. It doesn’t transfer heat to the handle and has a smooth surface that doesn’t react with food. It’s mostly used for serving rather than cooking because it’s not as durable under constant high heat.
The right material depends on what you’re cooking and what cookware you’re using. For non-stick, go wood or silicone. For cast iron or regular steel, steel spatulas are fine and often better. For high-heat frying, steel with a wooden or heat-resistant handle is safest.
Which Tools Need Wooden Handles and Why
Some cooking tools should always have wooden or heat-resistant handles. This isn’t about tradition. It’s about safety.
Jalli karandi (slotted spatula). You’re using this over bubbling hot oil. If the handle is metal and conducts heat, you’ll burn your hand. A wooden handle stays cool no matter how long you’re frying.
Basting spoons and brushes. These often sit on the edge of a hot tawa or are used over direct flame. Metal handles get too hot to hold. Wooden handles or silicone grips are essential.
Deep ladles used for serving hot gravies. You’re repeatedly dipping this into boiling sambhar or curry. If the handle conducts heat, it becomes uncomfortable or unsafe to hold. Wooden handles or coconut shell ladles solve this completely.
Long frying spatulas. Anything used in deep frying should have a handle that doesn’t conduct heat. The combination of hot oil, steam, and prolonged cooking means metal handles become dangerously hot.
The logic is simple. Heat travels through metal. It doesn’t travel well through wood. If you’re working with high heat for extended periods, you want a barrier between that heat and your hand. Wooden handles provide that barrier without adding bulk or weight.
Traditional Versus Modern Indian Kitchens
Indian kitchens used to be full of brass, copper, iron, and wood. Brass ladles, copper pots, iron tawas, wooden spoons. These materials were chosen because they worked with the cooking techniques and fuel sources available at the time.
Now, with gas stoves, induction cooktops, and non-stick cookware, kitchens are shifting to stainless steel and silicone. These modern materials have advantages. They’re easier to clean, don’t need as much maintenance, and work with new types of cookware.
But here’s what interesting. Some traditional tools still outperform modern ones for specific tasks.
Wooden spatulas are still better than silicone for heavy stirring because they’re sturdier and don’t bend. Coconut shell ladles are still preferred in many South Indian homes because they’re lighter and more comfortable for serving large quantities. Cast iron tawas still make better dosas than non-stick because they distribute heat more evenly and can handle higher temperatures.
The shift to modern tools is about convenience, not always about better performance. A steel spatula is easier to clean than a wooden one, so people choose steel. But for stirring a thick curry or working with non-stick, wood still works better.
The best Indian kitchens today have a mix. Steel for frying and high heat. Wood or silicone for non-stick and gentle stirring. Traditional tools where they still make sense. Modern tools where they’re genuinely better.
You don’t need to choose between traditional and modern. You choose the right tool for the job, whether that tool is 500 years old in design or brand new.
Indian Cooking Is Technique-Driven
Here’s what all of this comes down to. Indian cooking isn’t one technique. It’s dozens of techniques used in the same meal.
You’re toasting spices dry, then frying them in oil. You’re making delicate crepes on a flat tawa and thick curries in a deep kadai. You’re deep frying snacks and steaming idlis. You’re serving fluffy rice and liquid sambhar.
Each technique needs the right tool because using the wrong one makes the job harder, less safe, or gives you worse results.
A dosa spatula won’t work for stirring curry. A curry spoon won’t work for flipping dosas. A slotted spatula perfect for frying pakoras is useless for serving rice. They’re not interchangeable because the jobs aren’t interchangeable.
This isn’t about having a fancy kitchen with every possible gadget. It’s about having the right tools for what you actually cook. If you make dosas regularly, you need a dosa spatula. If you fry a lot, you need a good jalli karandi. If you cook with non-stick, you need wooden or silicone spatulas.
Figure out what you cook most often, understand what each dish needs, and get the right tools for those dishes. That’s how you build a functional Indian kitchen, not by buying every spatula you see but by choosing the ones that match your cooking.
Some Questions
What is the most commonly used spatula in Indian cooking
The most commonly used spatula is the flat turner known as palta or ulathna. It is used for rotis, parathas, shallow frying, and scraping food from pans.
Why does Indian cooking require multiple spatulas
Indian cooking involves very different techniques such as high heat frying, delicate dosa making, and long gravy cooking. Each technique needs a specific shape and material to avoid breaking food or damaging cookware.
What is a dosa spatula and why is it different
A dosa spatula is wide, thin, and flat. It is designed to slide under thin dosas without tearing them and works best on iron or cast iron tawas.
Why are wooden spatulas commonly used in Indian kitchens
Wooden spatulas do not scratch non-stick cookware, do not conduct heat, and are safe for long stirring of curries. Traditional woods like neem also have natural antibacterial properties.
What is a jalli karandi or jhara used for
A jalli karandi is used to remove fried foods like pakoras, puris, and boondi from hot oil. The perforations allow excess oil to drain quickly.
Which spatulas should have wooden handles
Tools used near high heat or oil splatter benefit from wooden handles. This includes jalli karandi, deep ladles, and basting spoons, as wood prevents heat transfer to the hand.
Is stainless steel safe for Indian cooking
Yes. Stainless steel is ideal for high heat cooking, deep frying, and serving gravies. It does not react with food and is easy to clean.
Are silicone spatulas suitable for Indian cooking
Silicone spatulas are suitable for non-stick cookware and low to medium heat cooking. They are especially useful for scraping batters and mixing sauces but not ideal for direct flame or deep frying.
What is a kuzhi karandi used for
A kuzhi karandi is a deep ladle used for serving sambar, rasam, curries, and rice dishes. It can be made of stainless steel or coconut shell.
Why are coconut shell ladles still used in South India
Coconut shell ladles are eco friendly, non reactive, and traditional. They are commonly used for serving gravies and are believed to preserve the natural taste of food.
One Spatula Does Not Fit All
The next time someone asks why you need so many spatulas, you’ll know exactly what to say. Because Indian cooking demands it. Because each tool serves a specific purpose. Because using the right spatula makes cooking easier, safer, and gives you better food.
That dosa spatula isn’t optional if you want perfect dosas. That wooden spoon isn’t traditional decoration. It’s the best tool for stirring curry without scratching your pan. That slotted spatula isn’t extra. It’s essential for frying food that’s crispy, not greasy.
Indian cooking figured out centuries ago that different jobs need different tools. Modern kitchens are finally catching up to that wisdom. The tools might look different now, the materials might have changed, but the principle stays the same.
Right tool, right job, better food.
That’s all there is to it.
