Use a Canning Funnel to Neatly Serve Soups and Stews

I don’t present as someone overly concerned with plating or presentation, but I absolutely despise splatters on the side of my soup bowl, at least until I start eating my soup. Sure, one could “wipe them away,” but that can leave a trailing smear of soup, stew, or chilli, which is almost worse.

Maybe it’s because I have to take a lot of photos of soups and stews, but smears and splatters have been a constant source of annoyance for some time. And if you are like me — similarly annoyed by bowls with messy sides — I have a solution: Use a canning funnel.

[referenced id=”811990″ url=”https://www.lifehacker.com.au/2017/11/why-you-need-a-canning-funnel-even-if-you-dont-can/” thumb=”https://www.gizmodo.com.au/wp-content/uploads/sites/4/2017/11/16/aoepmkjrsoykp5yspu9o-300×169.png” title=”Why You Need A Canning Funnel, Even If You Don’t Can” excerpt=”Everyone should have a wide-mouth canning funnel. It is a bold proposition, I know. You don’t even can, probably. Certainly, I do not can. Moreover, I have no plans to can. I do not have a robust tomato crop to preserve, for one thing, and also I am nervous about…”]

I am not a canner but I like to put things in jars, and a canning funnel lets me get things inside those jars without any splatters, splashes, or dribbles — sowhy wouldn’t I extend that same courtesy to my bowls? Just place the funnel in the bowl, ladle soup/stew/chilli/etc. into the funnel, then pull the funnel away and let the soup/stew/chilli/etc. fall into the centre of the bowl without making a mess of the edges. Here, I have some pictures of chicken chilli to demonstrate the technique:

Step 1: Put the funnel in the bowl and the food in the funnel

Step 2: Remove the canning funnel by lifting it straight up

Step 3: Serve your food in a splatter-free bowl