Features That Make For The Best Utensil Jar To Keep On Your Countertop

On the kitchen countertops of avid foodies and home chefs, utensil jars — or utensil crocks — are ubiquitous. Jammed inside of them, in no particular order, you'll find items like tongs, butter brushes, spatulas, whisks, and tall cooking forks. It's likely that you even have a jar of cooking utensils near your stove. It's also likely that you don't really think about it until you try to pull out a spatula, and you also get the butter brush and cooking fork along with it. Or, in the worst case scenario, the whole thing just knocks over. That's when it's time to reassess your utensil organization system to see if there's something better.

Pro tip: There is something better, and it isn't limited to you buying another pretty utensil jar to go on your countertop, (though pretty is fun, too). Once you know what criteria you should be looking for when it's time to buy your next utensil crock, you have a better chance of finding one that not only holds all of your utensils, it will also stay upright during the cooking process.

Although many different kinds of utensil jars exist, the best ones have a few traits in common. They are both wide and tallish. They're also sturdy and steady on their feet. While these seem like separate factors, they do each have some common goals or outcomes in mind. That is, the design of the crock makes it easier to find the utensil you're looking for and keeps it upright no matter how many times you pull a cooking fork (or what have you) out of it.

You might keep a utensil jar by the stove for a couple of reasons. First, it allows you to keep all of your most important tools within easy reach while you're cooking. Second, it extends drawer space, an important consideration when you're working in a kitchen that doesn't have a lot of drawer space by the stove. When a utensil jar is tall, between 6 and 7 inches, and wide, about 6 inches in diameter, it can reduce or even eliminate the need for extra drawer space because the crock is big enough to hold the 15 or 20 utensils that are most often used. 

The height of the jar serves a second purpose, however. If the utensil jar is too short, the taller tools don't stand upright very well. A tall crock makes it easier to keep them organized. About 6 inches is ideal. This height is tall enough to keep the tools steady, but not so tall that shorter pieces get lost in the jar. Many of the butter brushes or collapsible whisks, which tend to be shorter than 6 inches long, fall into this category.

Finally, there is one more thing you should know about this utensil organizing hack. Sometimes, it's better to have more than one utensil jar on the countertop. Spoons and spatulas go into one jar. Tongs and tall forks go into another. Ladles and whisks occupy a third utensil crock. The benefit? You don't have to dig through the crock to find the type of tool that you need.

The wide jar does more than just banish kitchen utensil clutter. It keeps the jar on steady footing. The wider the base, the steadier it stands. This is worth mentioning because some of the utensil jars on the market sit on a swivel base, which allows them to spin like a lazy Susan. However, if the swivel mechanism doesn't sit directly on the counter, the crock tends to topple over. Blame this on the wobble, which can knock it off its feet that keep it raised slightly off the counter. 

One other feature that some, but not all, utensil crocks have is an internal divider, which allows you to keep the heads of your tools separate. It also permits you to place tools in the jars in specific categories. If you aren't so keen on keeping separate crocks for separate functions, this is a good alternative. On a related note, in some models, it's possible to remove the divider. This makes cleaning the jar easier because you can get to those hard-to-reach places.

Finally, many utensil jars are round in shape, but that's not your only option. Rectangular, square, and oval jars now exist. While these can look quite handsome standing near your stove, the oval ones do come with a drawback. The tapered shape usually only allows for tools with thin handles to be positioned there. Utensils with fat handles or hooked bottoms get stuck in the middle of the jar because it's the only place wide enough to accommodate them, so be mindful of that when you're making your selection.