A colander (or cullender) is a kitchen utensil perforated with holes used to strain foods such as pasta or to rinse vegetables. The perforations of the colander allow liquid to drain through while retaining the solids inside. It is sometimes called a pasta strainer. A sieve, with much finer mesh, is also used for straining.
Description and history
Traditionally, colanders are made of a light metal, such as aluminium or thinly rolled stainless steel. Colanders are also made of plastic, silicone, ceramic, and enamelware.
The word colander comes from the Latin colum, meaning sieve.
Types
- Bowl- or cone-shaped – the usual colander
- Mated colander pot – a colander inside a cooking pot, allowing the food to drain as it is lifted out
Other uses
The colander in the form of a pasta strainer was adopted as the religious headgear of the satirical religion Pastafarianism, which worships the Flying Spaghetti Monster.
Colanders may be used during solar eclipses to project multiple small low-resolution images of a partial eclipse onto a flat surface for safe viewing.
See also
References
- ^ "colander". merriam-webster.com. Merriam-Webster. 2011. Retrieved 23 May 2022.
- "Colander". CooksInfo.com. 15 October 2010. Retrieved 30 November 2012.
- "Mated Colander Pot". justcooking.in. Retrieved 23 May 2022.
- "Pastafarian protester carries an icon of the Flying Spaghetti Monster at Piazza XXIV Maggio square in Milan, Italy, on June 2, 2012". Wikimedia Commons.
- "Annular Solar Eclipse Safety". NASA. 2023.
- Pearson, Ezzy (7 April 2024). "The best, safest ways to view a solar eclipse, from low-cost, simple options to expert astronomer techniques". BBC Sky at Night Magazine.
External links
Media related to Colanders at Wikimedia Commons
The dictionary definition of colander at Wiktionary- Colander vs Strainer
Categories
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