Editing Spoon (section)

==Types and uses==
{{See also|List of types of spoons}}
[[File:English sterling silver tableware spoons.jpg|thumb|A selection of Georgian-Victorian English sterling silver tableware spoons (c.&nbsp;1790{{snd}}c.&nbsp;1850)]]
Spoons are used primarily for eating [[liquid]] or semi-liquid foods, such as [[soup]], [[stew]] or [[ice cream]], and very small or powdery solid items which cannot be easily lifted with a [[fork]], such as [[rice]], [[sugar]], [[cereal]]s and [[Pea|green peas]]. In [[Southeast Asia]], spoons are the primary utensil used for eating; forks are used to push foods such as rice onto the spoon as well as their western usage for piercing the food.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.satayusa.com/southchina.htm|title=South China Seas Culture & Cuisine|website=www.satayusa.com}}</ref><ref>{{cite web| url = http://uktv.co.uk/food/item/aid/534144| title = UKTV Food: Recipes: Southeast Asian cuisine}}</ref>

Spoons are also widely used in cooking and serving. In baking, [[batter (cooking)|batter]] is usually thin enough to pour or drop from a spoon;<ref>{{Cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=N4QnyPCAdzUC&q=batter+is+usually+thin+enough+to+pour+or+drop+from+a+spoon&pg=PA4027|title=Savory Baking: 75 Warm and Inspiring Recipes for Crisp, Savory Baking|last=Cech|first=Mary|date=2013-05-14|publisher=Chronicle Books|isbn=9781452100234|language=en}}</ref> a mixture of such consistency is sometimes called "drop batter".<ref>{{Cite book|url=https://archive.org/details/schoolkitchente00lincgoog|page=[https://archive.org/details/schoolkitchente00lincgoog/page/n262 242]|quote=batter is usually thin enough to pour or drop from a spoon called drop batter.|title=The School Kitchen Textbook: Lessons in Cooking and Domestic Science for the Use of Elementary Schools|last=Lincoln|first=Mary Johnson|date=1915|publisher=Little, Brown|language=en}}</ref> Rolled dough dropped from a spoon to a cookie sheet can be made into [[rock cake]]s and other [[cookie]]s, while [[johnnycake]] may be prepared by dropping spoonfuls of cornmeal onto a hot greased griddle.

A spoon is similarly useful in processing [[Fruit preserves|jelly]], [[sugar]] and [[syrup]]. A test sample of jelly taken from a boiling mass may be allowed to slip from a spoon in a sheet, in a step called "sheeting". At the "crack" stage, syrup from [[boiling]] sugar may be dripped from a spoon, causing it to break with a snap when chilled. When boiled to 240&nbsp;°F. and poured from a spoon, sugar forms a filament, or "thread". Hot syrup is said to "pearl" when it forms such a long thread without breaking when dropped from a spoon.

Used for stirring, a spoon is passed through a substance with a continued circular movement for the purpose of mixing, blending, dissolving, cooling, or preventing sticking of the ingredients. Mixed drinks may be "[[muddler|muddled]]" by working a spoon to crush and mix ingredients such as mint and sugar on the bottom of a glass or mixer. Spoons are employed for mixing certain kinds of powder into water to make a sweet or nutritious drink.<!--need more specifics; this is a strange sentence-->
A spoon may also be employed to toss ingredients by mixing them lightly until they are well coated with a dressing.

For storage, spoons and knives were sometimes placed in paired ''[[decorative boxes|knife boxes]]'', which were often ornate wooden containers with sloping tops, used especially during the 18th century. On the table, an ornamental utensil called a ''[[nef (napkin holder)|nef]]'', shaped like a ship, might hold a napkin, knife and spoon.

<gallery>
File:18-03-25-Küchenutensil-DSCF1429.jpg|Spoon with a special tip for kiwifruits or melons
File:18-03-25-Küchenutensil-DSCF1431.jpg|Spoons for salad
File:Spoonful of cereal.jpg|Cold [[breakfast cereal]] held in a [[dessert spoon]]
File:Soup Spoon.jpg|[[Stainless steel]] bouillon spoon
</gallery>