I dont have room for useless duplicates, silly gadgets, or junk. Our least favorite of all the rolling pins we tried, the Farberware Professional Nonstick Rolling Pin contender lost points for its clunky, hard-to-clean handles, underwhelming performance (uneven rolling, and it didn't seem especially non-stick), and a slew of alarming Amazon reviews which reported that it became waterlogged after washing and that the "nonstick" surface began to chip and peel after one or two uses. Thats important if youre making dozens of cookies or racing to flatten pie dough before the butter melts on a hot day. Other features: How easy will it be to store? Sources included articles from Cooks Illustrated (subscription required), The Splendid Table, Saveur, Remodelista, The Kitchn, Real Simple,and Serious Eats, and forums on eGullet and Food52 (among others). Traditionally, pins are turned from hardwood. We prioritized the handleless pins favored by experts, testing two dowel pins (with and without spacers), three basic tapered pins, three fancy hand-turned tapered pins, and the tapered silicone pin. It would be an impossible feat to review all of them, but you can assess any pin you come across based on the criteria weve set out. The basic device is so simple that small design tweaks can make a big difference. The main advantage of a handled pin is that it does a lot of the work for you, so we think the wider-diameter heavier version of this pin is a better choice. How often you should oil or buff your pin depends on how often you use it and the climate you live in; when the wood looks pale and feels rough like dry skin, its time to care for it. This was the one case where I felt like a pin hand-turned in the USA was designed for aesthetics and not function. As we tested, we assessed the pins on the following criteria: The hand-finished, 23-inchWhetstone Woodenware French Rolling Pin has all the pleasing features of a high-end rolling pin without the outrageous price tag (similar hand-turned pins cost $60-$100). For any tool to be awarded a bit of the limited space, it must be effective and versatile. French: Perhaps it's no surprise, then, that while American pins are frequently the style that bakers first encounter at home, all of our experts revealed that in their day-to-day work, they prefer to use handleless pinsotherwise known as French pins. The Tomnuk French Rolling Pin, our previous upgrade pick, would be a gorgeous addition to anyones kitchen. If all you ever roll out is forgiving yeasted dough for pizza or sticky buns, a wine bottle might be all you need (until you tire of digging through the recycling bin every time you bake). by Marguerite Preston, Lesley Stockton, Michael Sullivan, and Winnie Yang. Food & Wine is part of the Meredith Corporation Allrecipes Food Group. The bulk of a plain dowel pin can also come in handy when you want to make your rolling pin a multitasker, using it to crush nuts or spices or cookies for a press-in crust. The spacers did feel a little awkward, as it was hard to find a placement where they didnt interfere with your grip or make tracks in the dough. It should roll smoothly and turn easily to roll out a circle. Ideally, the length of either type of French pin should fall between 18 and 21 incheslarge enough, in other words, to cover a generous batch of dough without clumsy maneuvering. Heavy but not oppressively so, with a wonderful balance in the hand, it made rolling sugar cookie dough a delight, producing even sheets every time, and tackled discs of buttery pie dough without tearing or sticking. You can wash your pin with a soapy sponge if you need to, and then rinse it and wipe it dry. A generic set of spacers (essentially rubber bands of various thicknesses), which wont work on a tapered pin, can help novice bakers roll to a precise thickness and avoid making one section thinner than another. That said, if you make a lot of pies, it might be worth giving this option a chanceor, if you're a committed baker, getting both a tapered pin and the J.K. Adams dowel. Among those generous enough to share their opinions were: We also scoured the web, taking notes from culinary and consumer sites including Cooks Illustrated, Wirecutter, the BBC, as well as user reviews on Amazon and conversations on forums like Chowhound and Real Baking with Rose Levy Berenbaum. You've made the dough. There are no bells and whistles here: just a wonderfully simple, attractive, well-crafted made-in-America maple dowel that performs admirably over a range of baking tasks and has the elemental design and sturdy heft to serve you through a lifetime of kitchen work. . A slow cooker can can take your comfort food to the next level. Plus, its currently nearly $50, which is a lot more expensive than our top pick. Compared to some of the thin French pins weighing 1116 ounces, this 24-ounce dowel requires less strength to flatten dough. Heavy-handled pins do more of the work for you by providing more leverage but give you less of a tactile sense of the dough. Stubborn bits of dough can be scraped off with a bench scraper, but be careful not to gouge the wood. We preferred the simplicity of this pin to an over-designed model from Joseph Joseph that had its own screw-on spacers. Make sure whatever pin you are using is unfinished, or at least can hold a dusting of flour and have the grip to actually roll. Weight: Hefty pins require less strength to use than lighter ones, but they can dent or crack doughis there a happy medium? Our 10-year-old tester initially preferred a handled pin because it did most of the work for her, but after a few more tries she decide the dowel was better because it gave her a sense of contact with the dough. When most people think of a rolling pin, they conjure the image of a wooden one with two handles, but the experts we interviewed and novices we tested with agreed that a pin without handles gives a better sense of the dough and is a better tool if you are baking for hours. "I like the heft and the weight of it and the larger diameteralmost 3 inches," she explained. That said, if you are looking to treat yourself or someone you love to a special kitchen tool, this is a keeper that will more than prove its worth by turning out beautiful cookies, pies, tarts, and more for decades. Can the pin be cleaned easily? Weight and diameter are subjective: light, narrow pins are more agile, while heavier pins do more of the work for you. Steer clear of bells and whistles and don't feel like you have to spend a fortune. The 3 Best Rolling Pins, According to Our Editors. Properly handled, a solid wooden rolling pin will darken and patina beautifully, and last decades. American: Most rolling pins fall into two basic camps. We have picks for different preferences too. Only the Whetstone pin, with its 12-inch flat section, came close to flattening the dough as evenly. 
Subscribe now for unlimited access. She explains, When you roll away from your body using the tapered pin, you can roll the pin using the underside of your forearms, which relieves stress on your hands as compared to a handled pin. When rolling out large oblong or rectangular shapes, some bakers find that a tapered pin requires more finesse to make the surface perfectly evensometimes it causes subtle hills and valleys, particularly if the taper is too extreme. Although we think the Whetstone Woodenware French Rolling Pin will work best for most people, the JK Adams 19-inch Maple Rolling Dowelalso performed well. We think youre likely to do a lot more baking if you have a tool like this. In my home kitchen, Im a rigid minimalistliving in a Brooklyn apartment, I have to be. Wooden: Most wooden rolling pins are made from hardwoods like maple, cherry, or walnut. (Our top picks for performance and value were all maplewhich tends to be the least expensive of the bunch.) "When your hand is actually on the body of the pin, you can feel every little bump and discrepancy," says Stella Parks. Maneuverability: Does the pin turn smoothly when rolling out a circle? Read on to see how we tested, and what makes one pin better than another. The iconic, handled style that probably comes to mind when most people think of the toolthe kind you might remember your grandmother using, or encounter frequently at flea markets and estate salesis an American rolling pin (also sometimes called a baker's pin). Food and Wine presents a new network of food pros delivering the most cookable recipes and delicious ideas online. *At the time of publishing, the price was $26. While our 10-year-old said she didnt need the spacers, we noticed that the thickness of her cookie dough was perfectly consistent when she used them and fairly uneven when she didnt. All Rights Reserved. Its more agile than a handled pin, doesnt stick to the dough as much as cheaper models, has just enough heft to do some of the work for you without smashing fragile dough, and is one of the easiest to clean. French pins come in two types: straight (also called a dowel) and tapered. Does it feel comfortable in your hands? How does it feel in your hands? Turned on a vintage Powermatic 90 lathe and hand-finished in Indiana from Indiana Rock Maple, it arrives with care instructions and a little piece of fine sandpaper for keeping it perfectly smooth. It should feel smooth but not slick, be at least 18 inches long, and if it tapers, look for a very gentle arc or a seven-inch straight section in the middle. Weighing in at a substantial 1.6 pounds and stretching to a generous 19 inches, the J.K. Adams Dowel Rolling Pin made tackling large slabs of cookie dough a cinch, rolling and rerolling clean, and maintaining an even thickness (without straining our arms or requiring fussing) possible. What did we learn? Our journalists combine independent research with (occasionally) over-the-top testing to save people time, energy and money when making buying decisions. Last but not least, as Greenspan says, "it's pretty darn handsome to boot.". The French-made dowel-style Matfer Bourgeat Nylon Rolling Pin is crafted from cream-colored nylon and is the personal favorite of baking doyenne Dorie Greenspanand after a couple of days in the kitchen with it, we could see why. Although we still love the Tomnuk French Rolling Pin, weve removed it as a pick due to availability issues. Widely available and at a price point that feels accessible to even the most entry-level baker, this pin is an incredible value. 
Maple and beech, the most common hardwoods used for rolling pins, provide good value, durability, and a pleasing weight. Without prompting, each of our experts expressed that a handleless pin gives them the best sense of contact with the doughthat they can really feel the dough through the pin and know if it is level.
Aluminum pins can discolor eggy dough; neither metal nor glass hold flour well.
Ultimately, our major reservations with this pin came down to price: at more than $100 it's no small investment, and given the cost, doesn't offer 4 times the performance of the J.K. Adams pin. And it should be simple to clean and store. It can also be fitted with spacers like a dowel pin. If you are rolling a big rectangle or oval and quick pivoting doesnt matter, a dowel may work a tiny bit better than a tapered pin. Should you fall in love with the looks of one, or if you're lucky enough to be gifted one, just make sure it's as functional as it is eye-catching. It takes practice, precision, and creativity to produce prize-winning baked goods. The ideal length of a handleless pin is 18-22 inches. Pins made from thermally conductive materials such as marble, stainless steel, and glass are meant to be chilled (or in some cases filled with ice water) before using so that they wont warm buttery dough. We love the J.K. Adams Dowel Rolling Pin. A simple, sturdy pin is all anyone needsand properly cared for, should last through a lifetime of baking adventures. However, Parks points out that her mother makes gorgeous pies with a handled pin and feels awkward using the French styleultimately, the best pin is the one you like. Dusted with a little flour, the pin shouldnt stick to your dough. We had five kids, ages 2 to 8, test cooking tools and found that the best options are those that work well for adults too. Sounds easy enoughbut without a good rolling pin, the task might be more challenging than you think. In a pinch, you can use a wine bottle in place of a rolling pinindeed, many fine pies have been made this way. Never, ever, let it sit out wet. This pin is less expensive and more widely available than our top pick, so if you are on a budget or in a hurry to buy a rolling pin by tomorrow (since the Whetstone doesnt come with overnight shipping) it may be the best choice. The handles can take some of the effort out of the pressing and rolling action, especially for bakers who are new or unused to the task, but they also keep your hands at a bit of a remove, making it harder to gauge the thickness of the dough. Silicone is also a relatively bad conductor (and therefore also good at keeping your dough cool). When I set out to write a review of rolling pins, I began by reading every review I could find. Like a cast iron skillet, a rolling pin can become seasoned with use, but mineral oil gives you a head start and can compensate if you have to wash the wood with soap. Less expensive rolling pins may be perfectly functional tools, but this is a beautiful object to have in your kitchen that will last a lifetime with proper care. For all-around performance, sturdiness, and bang for your buck, we think you'd be hard-pressed to do any better. But its ideal for rolling oblong and rectangular shapes and can be fitted with spacers to help achieve precise thickness. On the other hand, heavier pins like the two-handled models from JK Adams (28 and 36 ounces) left dents in the dough when not in constant motion and felt a bit clunky to lift. Or, as Chang (who prefers tapered pins) explained to us, "I like the way a slender pin lets you feel the thickness of the dough because you are so close to it. Surface: Does the dough stick to the pin? Win-win! We tested this pin with and without spacersand liked it both ways. What sets apart a superior rolling pin? To narrow the field of contenders and zero in on the best multipurpose rolling pin, we went straight to the source: baking experts who put their trusty tools to use day-in and day-out. The Whetstone pin was just right. The Fletchers' Mill 20-Inch French Rolling Pin is beloved by a lot of the pro bakers we spoke with, and its simple lines and sleek finish are certainly appealing, especially when trying to work pastry into thin, delicate rounds. This is the same as the JK Adams Handled Pin 12 x 2, but a little thinner and lighter. Fussing with unscrewing the set and screwing back on the desired spacer was a hassle and we could imagine losing them in our kitchen. Derek Laughren, the test kitchen manager at Food52 when interviewed, used a basic wooden tapered pin like he had in culinary school. Stella Parks, a professional pastry chef who wrote the bookBrave Tart, covers pastries forSerious Eats and is known for down-to-earth explanations of the science and technique of pastry. Unlike those more basic rolling pins, it is already treated with mineral oil, so it is ready to use right away. And their moving parts, with their nooks and crevices, can be a challenge to keep clean. But ultimately, its lighter weight and more slender silhouette seem better suited to niche work with precise tasks and laminated doughs, whereas the dowel pins felt like all-purpose workhorses. It feels like a special object that you will want to care for well and keep forever. Marble pins are beautiful but heavy, making them hard to maneuver and causing some kinds of dough to crack. Crafted from solid wood, it is simple, sturdy, and a total bargain at about $6and for a basic rolling pin, you could do a lot worse. While function is the most important aspect of any kitchen tool, aesthetics make a difference in how you relate to it. A good pin shouldnt be so so heavy that it cracks a flaky piecrust, or so light that you have to lean your whole weight into it to get any work done. . It wont conduct the heat from your hands and melt buttery pastry. In search of a winner, we spent 18 hours in the kitchen with a half-dozen pins in a range of styles, rolling our way through piles of pie crusts and bowlfuls of sugar cookie dough. When little bits of dough occasionally stuck, I could brush them right off with my hand as opposed to struggling with a plastic bench scraper as I had with the others.
Subscribe now for unlimited access. She explains, When you roll away from your body using the tapered pin, you can roll the pin using the underside of your forearms, which relieves stress on your hands as compared to a handled pin. When rolling out large oblong or rectangular shapes, some bakers find that a tapered pin requires more finesse to make the surface perfectly evensometimes it causes subtle hills and valleys, particularly if the taper is too extreme. Although we think the Whetstone Woodenware French Rolling Pin will work best for most people, the JK Adams 19-inch Maple Rolling Dowelalso performed well. We think youre likely to do a lot more baking if you have a tool like this. In my home kitchen, Im a rigid minimalistliving in a Brooklyn apartment, I have to be. Wooden: Most wooden rolling pins are made from hardwoods like maple, cherry, or walnut. (Our top picks for performance and value were all maplewhich tends to be the least expensive of the bunch.) "When your hand is actually on the body of the pin, you can feel every little bump and discrepancy," says Stella Parks. Maneuverability: Does the pin turn smoothly when rolling out a circle? Read on to see how we tested, and what makes one pin better than another. The iconic, handled style that probably comes to mind when most people think of the toolthe kind you might remember your grandmother using, or encounter frequently at flea markets and estate salesis an American rolling pin (also sometimes called a baker's pin). Food and Wine presents a new network of food pros delivering the most cookable recipes and delicious ideas online. *At the time of publishing, the price was $26. While our 10-year-old said she didnt need the spacers, we noticed that the thickness of her cookie dough was perfectly consistent when she used them and fairly uneven when she didnt. All Rights Reserved. Its more agile than a handled pin, doesnt stick to the dough as much as cheaper models, has just enough heft to do some of the work for you without smashing fragile dough, and is one of the easiest to clean. French pins come in two types: straight (also called a dowel) and tapered. Does it feel comfortable in your hands? How does it feel in your hands? Turned on a vintage Powermatic 90 lathe and hand-finished in Indiana from Indiana Rock Maple, it arrives with care instructions and a little piece of fine sandpaper for keeping it perfectly smooth. It should feel smooth but not slick, be at least 18 inches long, and if it tapers, look for a very gentle arc or a seven-inch straight section in the middle. Weighing in at a substantial 1.6 pounds and stretching to a generous 19 inches, the J.K. Adams Dowel Rolling Pin made tackling large slabs of cookie dough a cinch, rolling and rerolling clean, and maintaining an even thickness (without straining our arms or requiring fussing) possible. What did we learn? Our journalists combine independent research with (occasionally) over-the-top testing to save people time, energy and money when making buying decisions. Last but not least, as Greenspan says, "it's pretty darn handsome to boot.". The French-made dowel-style Matfer Bourgeat Nylon Rolling Pin is crafted from cream-colored nylon and is the personal favorite of baking doyenne Dorie Greenspanand after a couple of days in the kitchen with it, we could see why. Although we still love the Tomnuk French Rolling Pin, weve removed it as a pick due to availability issues. Widely available and at a price point that feels accessible to even the most entry-level baker, this pin is an incredible value. Maple and beech, the most common hardwoods used for rolling pins, provide good value, durability, and a pleasing weight. Without prompting, each of our experts expressed that a handleless pin gives them the best sense of contact with the doughthat they can really feel the dough through the pin and know if it is level. Aluminum pins can discolor eggy dough; neither metal nor glass hold flour well.
Ultimately, our major reservations with this pin came down to price: at more than $100 it's no small investment, and given the cost, doesn't offer 4 times the performance of the J.K. Adams pin. And it should be simple to clean and store. It can also be fitted with spacers like a dowel pin. If you are rolling a big rectangle or oval and quick pivoting doesnt matter, a dowel may work a tiny bit better than a tapered pin. Should you fall in love with the looks of one, or if you're lucky enough to be gifted one, just make sure it's as functional as it is eye-catching. It takes practice, precision, and creativity to produce prize-winning baked goods. The ideal length of a handleless pin is 18-22 inches. Pins made from thermally conductive materials such as marble, stainless steel, and glass are meant to be chilled (or in some cases filled with ice water) before using so that they wont warm buttery dough. We love the J.K. Adams Dowel Rolling Pin. A simple, sturdy pin is all anyone needsand properly cared for, should last through a lifetime of baking adventures. However, Parks points out that her mother makes gorgeous pies with a handled pin and feels awkward using the French styleultimately, the best pin is the one you like. Dusted with a little flour, the pin shouldnt stick to your dough. We had five kids, ages 2 to 8, test cooking tools and found that the best options are those that work well for adults too. Sounds easy enoughbut without a good rolling pin, the task might be more challenging than you think. In a pinch, you can use a wine bottle in place of a rolling pinindeed, many fine pies have been made this way. Never, ever, let it sit out wet. This pin is less expensive and more widely available than our top pick, so if you are on a budget or in a hurry to buy a rolling pin by tomorrow (since the Whetstone doesnt come with overnight shipping) it may be the best choice. The handles can take some of the effort out of the pressing and rolling action, especially for bakers who are new or unused to the task, but they also keep your hands at a bit of a remove, making it harder to gauge the thickness of the dough. Silicone is also a relatively bad conductor (and therefore also good at keeping your dough cool). When I set out to write a review of rolling pins, I began by reading every review I could find. Like a cast iron skillet, a rolling pin can become seasoned with use, but mineral oil gives you a head start and can compensate if you have to wash the wood with soap. Less expensive rolling pins may be perfectly functional tools, but this is a beautiful object to have in your kitchen that will last a lifetime with proper care. For all-around performance, sturdiness, and bang for your buck, we think you'd be hard-pressed to do any better. But its ideal for rolling oblong and rectangular shapes and can be fitted with spacers to help achieve precise thickness. On the other hand, heavier pins like the two-handled models from JK Adams (28 and 36 ounces) left dents in the dough when not in constant motion and felt a bit clunky to lift. Or, as Chang (who prefers tapered pins) explained to us, "I like the way a slender pin lets you feel the thickness of the dough because you are so close to it. Surface: Does the dough stick to the pin? Win-win! We tested this pin with and without spacersand liked it both ways. What sets apart a superior rolling pin? To narrow the field of contenders and zero in on the best multipurpose rolling pin, we went straight to the source: baking experts who put their trusty tools to use day-in and day-out. The Whetstone pin was just right. The Fletchers' Mill 20-Inch French Rolling Pin is beloved by a lot of the pro bakers we spoke with, and its simple lines and sleek finish are certainly appealing, especially when trying to work pastry into thin, delicate rounds. This is the same as the JK Adams Handled Pin 12 x 2, but a little thinner and lighter. Fussing with unscrewing the set and screwing back on the desired spacer was a hassle and we could imagine losing them in our kitchen. Derek Laughren, the test kitchen manager at Food52 when interviewed, used a basic wooden tapered pin like he had in culinary school. Stella Parks, a professional pastry chef who wrote the bookBrave Tart, covers pastries forSerious Eats and is known for down-to-earth explanations of the science and technique of pastry. Unlike those more basic rolling pins, it is already treated with mineral oil, so it is ready to use right away. And their moving parts, with their nooks and crevices, can be a challenge to keep clean. But ultimately, its lighter weight and more slender silhouette seem better suited to niche work with precise tasks and laminated doughs, whereas the dowel pins felt like all-purpose workhorses. It feels like a special object that you will want to care for well and keep forever. Marble pins are beautiful but heavy, making them hard to maneuver and causing some kinds of dough to crack. Crafted from solid wood, it is simple, sturdy, and a total bargain at about $6and for a basic rolling pin, you could do a lot worse. While function is the most important aspect of any kitchen tool, aesthetics make a difference in how you relate to it. A good pin shouldnt be so so heavy that it cracks a flaky piecrust, or so light that you have to lean your whole weight into it to get any work done. . It wont conduct the heat from your hands and melt buttery pastry. In search of a winner, we spent 18 hours in the kitchen with a half-dozen pins in a range of styles, rolling our way through piles of pie crusts and bowlfuls of sugar cookie dough. When little bits of dough occasionally stuck, I could brush them right off with my hand as opposed to struggling with a plastic bench scraper as I had with the others.