silicone giving off an odd flavor...

[malarkey]

I have some silicone spatulas, some are Le Crueset, some are cheaper versions. I've noticed recently that a few of them are giving off a soapy plastic smell when I cook with them. It's fairly strong, and gives off a flavor as well that lasts awhile as I regrettably found out when using one to do a taste test of something I was making.

ok, this has to be bad, doesn't it? I'm on the verge of throwing them away. I initially thought it was just soap residue and that I hadn't washed them thoroughly, but I still get the odor/flavor after a rewash.

I did a search on Google looking for info, but nothing has really turned up. Has anyone else experienced this? These have worked fabulously for many years, it's only been recently this has started to happen. Does silicone 'break down' or 'offgas' after awhile??

[andiesenji]

I mentioned last year that I had purchased some egg poaching pods that transmitted a flavor that I did not like to the eggs. I stopped using them - mainly bought them as an interesting gadget.

I also bought one of the silicone roast lifter things that smelled funny when I roasted a turkey in it but didn't impart any flavor to the meat but I did not use it again.

I haven't noticed anything coming from my spatulas but I have no cheap ones.

[Lisa Shock]

Back in 2004, I think, I picked up a set of silicone bakeware at a discount store and discovered that it imparted an odd flavor to foods, so I tossed it.

I own 7 different spatulas from, different makers, and have not noticed any odor.

[baroness]

I've noticed that some of the matte-finish silicone seems to retain a soapy fragrance when washed in the dishwasher. I wash it all by hand now.

[malarkey]

I've noticed that some of the matte-finish silicone seems to retain a soapy fragrance when washed in the dishwasher. I wash it all by hand now.

←

hmm that's interesting. I always wash everything by hand because I don't have a dishwasher. And the stinkiest spatula is one of the Le Crueset, so not exactly one of the 'cheapies.' Really odd, I never expected this to happen (all silicone promos push it as "non reactive") and I haven't done anything out of the ordinary with them to push that tempurature limit.

Bottom line, I can't use these like this. They are going to throw themselves off the kitchen counter cliff into the garbage heap of death. On second thought, maybe I should take them down to City Kitchens and see if they've encountered this before...

[ray goud]

True silicone rubber (if 100 percent pure) is non-organic (contains no carbon). It should not react with anything in your normal cooking at temperatures up to about 600 F. Unfortunately many cooking appliances (gadgets) are not 100 percent and contain fillers, which the makers will probably never disclose. If the silicone is pure it should also be impermeable and not absorb anything from its environment, which it could release later. Apparently the silicone you have is less than pure, and one can check new items, somewhat unscientifically, by bending a portion about 180 degrees (completely over onto itself). If the bent portion lightens in color to the point of turning almost white, it isn't pure silicone. If it cracks, it DEFINITELY isn't silicone. Pure silicone does exist; it is sometimes used for permanent surgical implants, which is a testimony to its inertness. It doesn't matter how much it costs; I have a cheapo spatula which is PURE silicone, and I have seen (in the store) expensive stuff which is anything but pure silicone. As an aside, I have a piece of surgical silicone, certified to be pure, which passes the bend test with flying lack of color change.

Ray

[Tony Boulton]

iSi America sell some very good silicone tools. They use high quality silicone and a lot of their products have already passed HACCP standard tests.

[HungryC]

I had the EXACT same problem with silicone spatulas, spoon-tulas, slotted stirrers, etc. Mine were also LC brand--they proved impossible to clean properly. The dishwasher left a ton of greasy residue behind, as well as the salty-soapy-bleachy automatic dishwasher detergent taste. Tried washing by hand, and I wasn't able to remove oily residue/odor without a ridiculous amount of scrubbing & loads of soap. As I cook lots of strongly flavored things (ginger, garlic, chiles, etc), I didn't want smells/flavors to persist into baking (when those silicone spatulas are very good for scraping bowls). I got sick of the scrubbing and tossed 'em out. Don't know if the LC silicone is especially prone to this problem, but I haven't purchased any other silicone materials based on this bad experience. I went back to wood--it's easier to clean & doesn't seem to hold smells/flavors--and to a good ol' non-heat resistant rubber spatula for scraping bowls.