Scoop (utensil)


In common usage, a scoop is any specialized spoon used to serve food.
In the technical terms used by the food service industry and in the retail and wholesale food utensil industries, there is a clear distinction between three types of scoop: the disher, which is used to measure a portion e.g. cookie dough, to make melon balls, and often to serve ice cream ; ice cream scoops, and the scoop which is used to measure or to transfer an unspecified amount of a bulk dry foodstuff such as rice, flour, or sugar.

Disher

Dishers are usually hemispherical like an ice cream scoop, while measuring scoops are usually cylindrical, and transfer scoops are usually shovel-shaped. Some dishers have mechanical levers which help expel the disher's contents. Traditionally dishers are sized by the number of scoops per quart but may also be sized by ounces, the diameter of the bowl, or the number of tab

Ice Cream Scoop

Some higher-end ice cream scoops have a thermally conductive liquid in the handle to help keep the ice cream from freezing to the scoop's metal.

Transfer Scoop

Transfer scoops are used to transfer bulk foods from large storage containers to smaller containers, and generally do not have any measurement markings, as their purpose is to transfer, and taking time to adjust the amount in a scoop would slow the transfer rate.

Other types of scoop utensils

The table below is the standard definition in the U.S. food industry, but actual capacity varies by manufacturer.
Handle ColorScoop Number

Typical UseU.S. Fluid Ounces

Spoon Equivalent

Metric

Diameter

48.0 236.63 ″
56.4 189.33 ″
65.3 1583″
8ice cream, jumbo cupcakes, mashed potatoes4.0 1182 ″
10Texas-size muffins, popovers3.2 952 ″
12Ice cream, Standard muffins2.7 802 or 2 ″
142.4712 ″
16Pancakes2.0 592 ″
20ice cream, giant cookies1.6 472 ″
24regular cupcakes, sorbet, mashed potatoes1.3 382″
30silver-dollar pancakes, candies1.1 331 ″
360.9427.81 ″
40mini muffins0.8 241 ″
50mini cupcakes, canapés0.64 19
60large cookies0.53 16
70cookies0.46 141
100chocolate truffles0.32 9