Pastry brush wanted

[Bruce Burger]

This sounds like a simple question, but it's stumped me. Do you have a pastry brush that is really dishwasher-safe? I have one that has survived perhaps a hundred dishwasher washings but is finally getting old, and it has no identifiable brand markings. I've tried 2 new ones, one of which is supposedly dishwasher-safe, but they both lose lots of hairs every time I use them.

I'm looking for a brush that's about an inch wide, but it can be a little more or less.

Any recommendations? The challenge is not just to find one, but to find one that I can order on the web (or phone, of course). Thanks in advance!

Bruce

[lorea]

Have you tried the silicone bristle ones? I haven't tried them myself, but I'm sure they'd stand up well to the dishwasher. Not sure about how they would perform though.

[JAZ]

I've tried the silicone brush; I love it for brushing oil on my stovetop grill. I haven't used it as much for pastry, but it seems to work fine. The nice thing about it is that it doesn't absorb anything, so it's a breeze to clean up.

Check it out here: Silibrush

[Bruce Burger]

The Sili Brush looks good. Have you run it through the dishwasher?

By the way, I'm looking for a brush to baste meat, brush oil on a waffle iron, brush milk on pastry, etc., etc. -- not just for pastry. I haven't found any characteristics of a brush that make it better suited to one or another of those applications.

[nightscotsman]

I've tried the silicone brush; I love it for brushing oil on my stovetop grill. I haven't used it as much for pastry, but it seems to work fine. The nice thing about it is that it doesn't absorb anything, so it's a breeze to clean up.

Check it out here: Silibrush

I'm afraid this link doesn't work for me. I get something about "TravelZoo top travel deals"?

[Bruce Burger]

Through google I found the manufacturer's page for this product:

Sili Brush

It sounded so good that I've already ordered one. We'll see...

[nightscotsman]

Thanks for the new link. That's a strange looking device. Please let us know how it works for you.

[lorea]

I've also seen these cheesy looking silicone ones that are about the price of traditional pastry brushes: Better Brush

The bristles are very soft, without the ball-tipped ends. I'd be a little worried about the plastic handles melting in a hot situation though.

I've been tempted to get either the Sili Brush or the Better Brush...please let us know how your new brush works out for you!

[Bruce Burger]

I've now used my Sili Brush a few times to brush oil on a waffle iron. I'd rate its performance as fair. It has only about a dozen pieces of silicon, so it takes longer than a regular pastry brush to get the oil on. On the other hand, I don't have to pick stray hairs off the waffle iron afterward.

I haven't yet used it for anything else, but I'm guessing it might perform somewhat better for brushing milk on pie crust or sauce on meat. Just a guess. I'll report when I try it.

It did fine in the dishwasher and, from the looks of it, I expect it to last for a long time.

Bruce

[Anna N]

Glad you brought this thread back up, Bruce. I just bought a pack of two of these brushes and I am very impressed. While I have not yet used them on pastry, they are ideal for spreading the oil in hot and cold pans and I love that they come so CLEAN! While I always kept two sets of the hairy ones, one for pastry and one for other things, I never felt comfortable that they were not harbouring nasties.

[formerly grueldelux]

Coincidently, the new (July + August) Cook's Illustrated has a bit on pastry brushes. They were down on the silicone ones. The "clear winner" was the OXO Good Grips, which has natural bristles and is dishwasher safe.

[beans]

I've now used my Sili Brush a few times to brush oil on a waffle iron. I'd rate its performance as fair. It has only about a dozen pieces of silicon, so it takes longer than a regular pastry brush to get the oil on. On the other hand, I don't have to pick stray hairs off the waffle iron afterward.

I haven't yet used it for anything else, but I'm guessing it might perform somewhat better for brushing milk on pie crust or sauce on meat. Just a guess. I'll report when I try it.

It did fine in the dishwasher and, from the looks of it, I expect it to last for a long time.

Bruce

I bought one of those, entirely on impulse, from Sur La Table last week. I marvelled at the lack of stray hairs (doh!) and ease of cleaning. I haven't used it yet but anticipate I will soon for some fresh fruit tartlets with a glazing coat of jam/jelly. Despite I fell in love with the whole concpet, it may be a bit clumsy for such a task.

[mktye]

I've now used my Sili Brush a few times to brush oil on a waffle iron. I'd rate its performance as fair.

I bought one of those, entirely on impulse, from Sur La Table...

Ditto, ditto and ditto. I think they work better with a thicker liquid.

(But the little boing-y silicon bristles sure are fun to play with -- almost as fun as the silicone cannele molds! )