The invention relates to a kitchen utensil for use with a pan or other frying surface.

In practice when frying for instance meat or fish in a pan or on another frying surface the problem occurs that the piece of meat or fish does not cook uniformly. Certainly in the case of thick and particularly irregularly shaped pieces of meat or fish this results in a part of the piece being already cooked while another part is still raw. In the case of fish for instance the part at the tail will be thinner than the rest of the fish, whereby the tail is cooked sooner than the rest.

US 6 182 557 Bl discloses an auxiliary cooking surface with a plate that can be positioned on a frying surface or can be positioned at a distance from this surface. This provides a warming and a holding function.

WO 2013/048242 Al discloses a kitchen utensil according to the preamble of the claim. The utensil provides a means for uniform frying a piece of meat or fish with an irregular thickness.

An object of the invention is to obviate or at least reduce the above stated problem and to provide a kitchen utensil which enables a uniform cooking of a piece of meat or fish with an irregular thickness, and is relatively easy to use and/or manufacture.

This problem is obviated with the tiltable kitchen utensil according to the invention for use with a pan or other frying surface, the tiltable kitchen utensil comprising:

a plate for placing a piece of meat or fish thereon;

- at least one support configured for realizing a first state, wherein during use in the first state a lower edge of the plate rests on the frying surface such that the plate has a sloping position relative to the frying surface and a higher edge of the plate is in an elevated position relative to the frying surface and the piece of meat or fish can be placed wholly or partially on the plate for the purpose of uniform cooking of a piece of meat or fish, and the at least one support configured for realizing a second state wherein the plate is in an entirely elevated position relative to the frying surface, characterized by the at last one support being configured to enable tilting the plate between the first state and the second state.

By placing a piece of meat or fish wholly or partially on the sloping plate this piece is put at some distance from the frying surface or the bottom of the pan, whereby it cooks less quickly. A tail part of a piece of fish is for instance laid on the plate so that it cooks more slowly than the thicker part of the fish. The user of the kitchen utensil can hereby vary the heat distribution over the piece of meat or fish in effective manner. Uniform frying of a piece of meat or fish is hereby achieved. Frying and cooking are used as equivalents for the purpose of describing the invention.

By configuring the at least one support such that the plate is tiltable an effective and easy to use utensil is provided. The plate can be moved from the first state, in which the plate has a sloping position and a lower edge of the plate rests on the frying surface, to a second state in which the plate is horizontal and located at some distance from the frying surface. This second state serves to keep the piece of meat or fish warm. The plate preferably has a substantially horizontal position in the second state. In this embodiment the substantially horizontal position is substantially parallel to the frying surface during use.

By providing the at least one support means with a configuration that enables tilting the plate between the first state and the second state an effective and user-friendly utensil is provided. The piece of meat or fish can in the second state be elevated from the frying surface. This maintains the piece of meat or fish at a desired temperature. By tilting the plate towards the frying surface in the first state the plate is brought into a sloping position relative to the frying surface. This also enables positioning the piece of meat or fish partially on the plate and partially on the frying surface. This enables a uniform frying of a piece of meat or fish also in case of an irregularly shaped piece of meat or fish with a non-constant thickness. With the use of a tiltable kitchen utensil according to the present invention also pieces of meat or fish with an irregularly thickness can be uniformly cooked. As a further effect this may reduce the amount of food waste caused by overheating the piece of meat or fish.

By configuring the at least one support means to enable tilting the plate between the first and second states an easy to use tool is provided for a user when being confronted with a piece of meat or fish having a irregularly thickness. By repositioning the piece of meat or fish on the plate of the utensil the plate may tilt from the first into the second state or from the second state to the first state. In both states the at least one support rests on the frying surface. This provides the user with an easy to use tool to cook a piece of meat or fish with an irregularly thickness.

Furthermore, the utensil with the tiltable plate is easy to manufacture as the plate rests on the support. The support rests on the frying surface. As a further effect the utensil according to the invention can be used on any desired frying surface as it does not depend on hooks or other contact elements with an edge or other parts of a pan, barbecue or other cooking device.

A further effect of the relatively easy to use kitchen utensil according to the invention is the possibility to clean the utensil in a dish washer as it only comprises a plate and at least one support. The utensil is shaped such that it is easy to clean and enables automatic cleaning in a dishwasher. This increases the user-friendliness of the utensil. Use can be made of an additional layer, such as a Teflon layer that is provided on the surface of the plate.

In a possible embodiment the plate can be manufactured from a material which is heat- insulating, for example a synthetic and/or polymer material. The plate in this way serves substantially as storage plate or warming plate, since the piece of meat or fish present on the plate is heated only via the hot air. In an alternative embodiment the plate is manufactured from a material which conducts heat well, so that the plate serves as cooking plate, such as a metal material. In such embodiment a heat gradient is created over the plate due to the sloping position of the plate, i.e. the outer end of the plate located on the underside during use is warmest and the plate is increasingly cooler in the direction toward the upper side of the sloping plate. A user can hereby make optimum use of the gradient in preparing for instance the piece of meat and/or fish.

In addition to the above application for uniform cooking of food, the invention makes it possible to deliberately obtain a different degree of cooking over a piece of meat or fish, for instance for an interesting presentation of the food. It is possible here to envisage a transition from rare to well-done.

In a preferred embodiment according to the invention the kitchen utensil is a one-piece utensil comprising the plate and the at least one support.

By providing the kitchen utensil as an one-piece utensil an easy to use tool is provided. Separate parts do not get missing, for example. Tilting the plate in the one-piece utensil does not require moving the parts of the utensil relative to each other. This significantly reduces fouling of the utensil and contributes to the overall hygienic conditions in the kitchen.

Preferably, the one-piece utensil originates from one plate of material. By providing the utensil with all its parts from one plate of material an effective and efficient manufacturing process for the utensil according to the invention can be achieved. More preferably, the supports are bent from the plate of the utensil. This bending process further simplifies the manufacturing process of the utensil according to the invention. No joining operations such as welding and soldering are required to mount the utensil. This results in an easy to manufacture utensil. Furthermore, this enables providing one or more cuts in the plate such that after bending the desired support is achieved. In addition, this provides at least some of the desired openings in the plate. This renders the manufacturing process even further effective.

In a presently preferred embodiment of the kitchen utensil according to the invention the bends of the support have a bending radius in the range of 0.5 to 5.0 mm, preferably in the range of 1.0 to 3.0 mm, and most preferably about 2.0 mm. Such relatively gradually transition from the plate to the support of the utensil prevents fat, grease or other dirt collecting at an edge of the transition region. This further improves the hygienic conditions of the kitchen utensil.

In a preferred embodiment according to the present invention the kitchen utensil comprises three supports.

By providing three supports of which in use at least two rest on the frying surface a standalone kitchen utensil is provided that can be positioned stable on the frying surface in all states. In the first state this relates to the first edge of the plate and two of the supports resting, directly or indirectly, on the frying surface, and in the second state the utensil rests on the three supports directly or indirectly on the frying surface.

The use of three supports provides a stable utensil in both the first and second position. One of the supports is preferably positioned at or close to the high edge of the plate as determined in the first state when the plate is in a sloping position relative to the frying surface. The two other supports are preferably positioned closer to the lower edge side of the plate such that in a presently preferred embodiment the second state is rendered a stable state when the utensil is not in use. In the first state the utensil rests on two supports and the lower edge in the sloping position. In the second state the utensil rests on the three supports.

In a presently preferred embodiment at least one support is positioned at or close to the higher edge and a number of supports, preferably two supports, defines a pivot axis and are positioned at the lower edge side of a line of gravity parallel to the pivot axis and through the center of gravity of the plate.

The pivot axis or tilting axis defines the tilting movement of the plate and the utensil. By defining a line of gravity parallel to the pivot axis and through the center of gravity of the utensil a number of supports, preferably two, or alternatively an edge extending over a distance, can be positioned on the lower edge side of the line of gravity. This renders the second state with the substantial horizontal plate the stable state when positioned in or on a frying surface.. A tilting movement towards the first state can be made by repositioning the piece of meat or fish on the plate and thereby shifting the center of gravity of the combination of the utensil and the piece of meat or fish thereon. In fact, by (re)-positioning the piece of meat or fish the user can tilt the plate from the second state to the first state and/or visa versa. In case the plate has a circular or oval shape the line of gravity preferably lies over the center thereof. This may also apply to other shapes of the plate, such as a rectangular shape.

In a preferred embodiment of the kitchen utensil according to the invention the plate is provided with openings.

By providing a number of openings fat from the piece of meat or fish can drain away in the direction of the pan or other frying surface. Furthermore, by providing a desired pattern of openings a grill pattern can be obtained on the piece of meat or fish when the plate is used as cooking plate. It is possible here to provide a pattern on the looked piece of meat and fish.

The openings in the plate are moreover particularly advantageous when the plate serves as storage plate. A cooler surface is obtained due to the openings, whereby the piece of meat or fish simmers to lesser extent and uniform frying of the piece of meat or fish is thus achieved. In advantageous manner openings are at the same time provided with at least one groove or gutter to drain away the fat, and optionally collect the fat in a receptacle. This further increases the utility of the utensil according to the invention. In a currently preferred embodiment the kitchen utensil comprises a handgrip connected to the plate.

The handgrip for instance comprises a handle. The kitchen utensil according to the invention can for instance be shaped as a type of spatula, wherein the part which is used in the pan is provided with a support so that a kitchen utensil according to the invention is realized. An advantage hereof is that most people are familiar with the use of a spatula, whereby the invention can be applied in simple manner, wherein the advantages as described above are moreover gained.

In a currently preferred embodiment the handgrip is formed wholly or partially on or close to an outer end of the plate directed upward during use. The handgrip preferably fits here directly onto the plate. An advantage of this embodiment is that a relatively small kitchen utensil is hereby obtained, whereby it can be easily put away.

In a preferred embodiment of the kitchen utensil according to the invention the handgrip is adjustable.

Providing an adjustable handgrip enables the handgrip to be adapted to the wishes of the user. A plurality of kitchen utensils according to the invention can moreover hereby be stacked onto each other since the handgrip does not then form an obstruction. The handgrip is for instance removable or can be folded away.

The invention also relates to a frying surface, such as a pan or a frying plate, provided with a kitchen utensil according to the invention. The kitchen utensil is preferably positioned directly with the supports and/or edges on the frying surface.

A currently preferred embodiment according to the invention relates to a frying plate such as are used for instance in professional kitchens. The frying plate is for instance a griddle or a teppan as known from teppanyaki cuisine.

Such a frying plate usually comprises an anti-splash edge. In a further preferred embodiment the kitchen utensil is provided on or close to this edge.

The invention further relates to a method for manufacturing a kitchen utensil and the use of such a kitchen utensil as described above.

Such a method and such a use have the same advantages and effects as described above for the kitchen utensil.

The method preferably comprises the step of bending the supports from the plate of material.

As mentioned earlier this provides an easy manufacturing process of the kitchen utensil.

Preferably, cuts are made in a plate of material, thereby defining the shape of the supports, after which the supports are bent using the cuts. This does not only provide the supports from the plate of material it also provides at least some of the desired and optional openings in the plate of the utensil. This achieves a one-piece kitchen utensil that can be manufactured without requiring additional manufacturing steps and/or producing undesired waste material. This provides an effective and efficient manufacturing process.

When in use a user of the kitchen utensil provides a pan or other frying surface with the kitchen utensil. Next, the kitchen utensil is positioned in a first state wherein during use a lower edge of the plate rests on a frying surface such that a sloping position relative to the frying surface is achieved while a higher edge of the plate is an elevated position relative to the frying surface and a piece of meat or fish can be placed wholly or partially on the plate for the purpose of uniform frying of a piece of meat or fish. At least one support is configured for achieving a second state wherein the plate is in an entirely elevated position relative to the frying surface. This enables the user to fry the relative parts of a piece of meat or fish to achieve a substantial uniformly cooked piece of meat or fish, also in case of a piece of meat or fish having a irregularly thickness. The user can effectively achieve uniform cooking by varying the heat distribution over the piece of meat or fish to uniformly frying a piece of meat or fish. This increases the quality of the cooked pieces of meat or fish and, in addition, significantly reduces the amount of cooking waste.

Further advantages, features and details of the invention are elucidated on the basis of preferred embodiments thereof, wherein reference is made to the accompanying drawing, in which: figure 1 A-B shows a pan provided with a kitchen utensil according to the invention;

figure 2 A-C shows the utensil of figure 1 in different positions; and

figure 3 shows a further position of the utensil of figure 1.

A pan 2 (figure 1 A-B) is provided with a kitchen utensil 4. Utensil 4 is provided with a plate 6 with a lower edge 8 and an upper edge 10. In a first state (fig. IB) plate 6 is provided at a slope relative to frying surface 12 of pan 2. Lower edge 8 rests on the frying surface 12 of pan 2. Upper edge 10 is at an elevated position from frying surface 12.

In the illustrated embodiment in a second state (figure 1A) plate 6 is substantially parallel to frying surface 12 at a distance d of about 5 to 20 mm, preferably 8-15 mm, and most preferably about 12 mm. In the illustrated embodiment the angle a between plate 6 and frying surface 12 in the first state (figure IB) is in the range of 5-30°, preferably in the range of 10-20°, and most preferably about 16°. This provides the most optimal angle for creating the most optimal heat gradient for most types of meat or fish.

The piece of meat or fish 14 (figure 1) can be provided at distance d from frying surface 12 in a second state (figure 1A) or at least partially in contact with frying surface 12 of pan 2 in a first state (figure IB) with the piece of meat or fish 14 being partially positioned on an adjacent lower edge 8 of plate 6 and, optionally, partly directly on frying surface 12.

Plate 6 rests in the second state (figure 1A) on a number of supports 16 (for example two) that in a second state (figure 1A) preferably directly rest on frying surface 12. Some of the other supports 18 (for example one) are elevated from frying surface 12 in the first state (figure IB). In the illustrated embodiment support 16 comprises one upper edge support 18 that is elevated from frying surfaces 12 when tilting plate 6 from a substantially horizontal level to a sloping position and two center supports 20 that achieve plate 6 to be tiltable and are positioned more closely in the direction of lower edge 8.

In the illustrated embodiment utensil 4 is provided with a semi-circular shape 22 (figures

2A-C and 3). In the illustrated embodiment support 18 is provided adjacent or at upper edge 10. Utensil 4 has a center of gravity 24 with a center line 26. Supports 20 are positioned close to center line 26 at a small distance therefrom in the direction of lower edge 8 as seen from upper edge 10. This provides a stable position of utensil 4 in the second state wherein plate 6 is substantially horizontal.

In the illustrated embodiment plate 6 is provided with a number of openings 28 that together define a pattern 30 of openings 28. It will be understood that pattern 30 can be provided in a huge number of different types. Furthermore, a support 18 is provided from cut out 32 in one of the openings 28. Similarly, supports 20 are provided in cut outs of other openings 28 in plate 6. The bends that result in supports 18, 20 are provided at the bending radius 34 from plate 6. Optionally, a gripping edge or other grip can be provided on utensil 4 (not shown).

In the illustrated embodiment at least some of openings 28 are provided in a slot-type shape in downward sloping direction of plate 6. Additionally, or alternatively, openings can for instance be provided in transverse direction and/or can be formed as a pattern of holes, with holes having a round, square or other shape. It is also possible to provide openings 28 as grooves or channels, wherein for instance fat from meat 14 is drained via the groove or channel (not shown) and does not therefore drop through opening 28 onto frying surface 46. Undesirable splashing for instance can hereby be prevented.

Utensil 4, 30 can be provided in diverse sizes. It has been found that use can advantageously be made of widths of 10, 15, 25 and/or 30 cm for utensil 4. If desired, other dimensions can also be employed depending on the dimensions of frying surface 14 and/or meat 14. By providing a plurality of utensils 4 of differing dimensions an effective set of utensils can be obtained with which all usual pieces of meat 14 can be processed.

Utensil 4 can be manufactured from a stainless steel and/or ceramic material. Other materials are likewise possible. In the case stainless steel is used, utensil 4 can be formed in usual manner by cutting the shapes thereof and for instance bending or folding supports 18,20.

During the preparation of a piece of meat 14 utensil 4 is placed on frying surface 12. If the thickness of meat 14 varies over the surface, a user such as a chef in a restaurant can for instance place the thinner portion of meat 14 wholly or partially on plate 6. This prevents this part charring while the thicker part of meat 14 is not yet fully cooked. It is also possible for the user to place the whole piece of meat 14 on plate 6 in order to thereby have meat 14 cook slowly and/or keep it warm. It is possible here to take into account the distance between plate 6 and frying surface 12 in order to compensate possible differences in thickness in meat 14. Optionally, the length of the supports can be provided in an adjustable manner. Meat 14 can be chicken, beef, pork but may also be fish. It is also possible to use utensil 4 to prepare vegetables.

Openings 28 make it possible during use to drain for instance fat from meat 14 from plate 6 to frying surface 12. If desired, it is possible to provide a receptacle (not shown) on utensil 4 for the purpose of collecting fat drained through openings 28. Additionally or alternatively, openings 28 can form a type of grill pattern on meat 14.

An irregularly shaped piece of meat 14 is laid with the thin part on plate 6, wherein the thick part lies in the pan 2. Plate 6 lies in a sloping position (figure IB). After a while plate 6 is moved to a horizontal position (figure 1A). In this position the piece of meat is located some distance d from the frying surface so that it is kept warm, but continues to simmer to some extent. A higher horizontal position is possible in which the meat simmers to lesser extent since plate 6 is at a greater distance d from the frying surface.

It is noted that, in addition to the sloping position of figure IB, a second sloping position is possible in which there is a smaller angle between frying surface 12 and plate 6.

The invention is by no means limited to the above described preferred embodiments thereof. The rights sought are defined by the following claims, within the scope of which many modifications can be envisaged.