Plate, bowl, paper plastic ceramic or maybe wood?
What is your favorite size, style, shape and type of dish when you sup?
It occurred to me this morning as I ate my breakfast that I am really partial to a specific size and shape of bowl very much like these (link to google image search showing bowls)
They are (I think) 10 ounce bowls, about 4 inches across and maybe 3 or 3 and 1/2 deep. They just seem to be the right size for anything, ice cream, noodles, a side dish of leafy greens, maybe a little too large for pasta/macaroni or potato salad if you fill it completely, and of course a two egg scramble with onions and some little smokies sausages.
Oh and soup, they are just right for cream of tomato soup and grilled cheese sandwich. Other types of soup also, of course.
I like big bowls (for individual eating). We have six of these. They have a 7 inch diameter, and are deep. They’re great for breakfast cereal, soup, salad, etc. I use them every day. Cheap on eBay.
I have always used plastic. Some have been Tupperware, when I was rich enough to buy them. I don’t have a favorite, but Walmart sells plates and bowls for 50 cents. Some get scratched up from the knife, but its no problem to replace them.
I am down to one large bowl that I use for soup, pasta and other meals most every day. Used to have two, but one broke. It’s a 9 or 10 inch bowl, not sure if it was meant for salads, but it’s just right. It even has a little accidental nick in the rim that turns out to be perfect for holding a spoon.
Whenever I try to replace it, the bowls I find are either a little too small (soup sloshes over the rim) or way too big. I’ve tried ordering online only to find they can’t be shipped to my area.
Must be careful with this last bowl, or I may starve.
I have a blue cereal bowl I’ve been using since 1989. I got it before I went off to grad school, and it was the only bowl I had. I just washed it after each use. Now it’s in the rotation, and I’m usually the only one who uses it.
I have some random plates, cups, and saucers I bought at TJ Maxx over the years whenever I spotted one. Very pretty white porcelain with gold rims and realistic-vintage butterflies, dragonflies, bees and beetles here and there (a knockoff of some expensive pattern, English maybe). Everything tastes better on my pretty china…For soup, cereal, and chili, I have two big thick heavy cups with handles - basically white with a yellow and orange vaguely Italian design. I got them from the dollar store and while they aren’t beautiful, they are very useful and I use them for bowls for anything liquid-y…The dollar tree has every changing china patterns and basic white or blue or green. I have a small set of sunflower plates and matching coffee mugs from there.
I have a big plastic bowl and a large square plate I got from target for probably $2 each many years ago. Anything that needs a bowl can go in the bowl and anything that needs a plate can go on the plate. I like to reuse them over and over, and my wife hates it and always throws them in the sink (and then complains about all the dishes).
Dude, I have one bowl.
It looks like a huge rounded coffee cup (for somebody who needs a 40oz.latte…). It’s heavy, but the handle makes carrying it easy.
Night before last I made The Big Salad in it, last night I had lentil soup in it, and right now it’s a Super-Size cereal bowl (“Serving size”? Pfft…)
eta: I do try not to annoy the wife by washing it after every use, then drying it and putting it in the cupboard (in its own special spot, of course).
I have a set of large melamine ramen bowls. They get used for pretty much every soup, salad, or rice dish in the house because of the volume they hold, the low heat transfer, and light weight.
I know they are not 100% ideal as any plastic can run the risk of transfer (and damn well I never microwave them) but the ease of use and weight (and cost) trump my older hopes of getting some amazing stoneware or ceramic bowls in the size range.
I’ve a large heavy glass tumbler that I prefer to use for my morning iced cold brew coffee and my ice water at supper time. Otherwise, I don’t tend to exclusively use any one particular plate or bowl or mug or dish.
I love this message board.
This is my bowl. There are many like it but this one is mine.
My bowl is my best friend. It is my life. I must master it as I must master my life.
My bowl, without me, is useless. Without my bowl, I am useless. I must hold my bowl firmly. I must eat straighter than my enemy who is … the food contained within the bowl.
I’ve gotten in the habit lately of using bowls more than plates, but I don’t have a special one. I have four of the Schumacher dragon design ones from Williams Sonoma which are gorgeous and a good size for ice cream, soup, and small salads. Got an additional four that are plain white porcelain but bigger and are perfect for pasta which can slop over the sides in a smaller bowl.
Tea and coffee taste best out of a nice, heavy mug. A disposable takeout cup just isn’t as satisfying. I prefer glass to plastic for cold drinks.
I don’t have any, but I can still remember the spun aluminum tumblers that a family friend used to serve us Kool-Aid in when I was really little. Loved them
I eat nearly everything that requires crockery for serving out of one of two Japanese ceramic bowls - a large ramen bowl and a small rice bowl. Standard western dishes, even a baked dinner, are just piled in a bowl like donburi with the starch on the bottom.
A few years ago, I bought a few pho-sized white china bowls at the nearby Asian grocery store. These bowls have become the favorites of everyone in the household. Perfect for pasta, soups, etc. I had to go back and get more as they’re in constant use.
No. I do have a favourite fork and knife, though.
These cups? I might have a couple left at my mom’s house, or this kind.
I am living in a studio flat in my barn, my husband is off at our house in western NY so I use the same bowl all the time [and have 1 plate for if I am doing something that needs space to be cut.] I picked up a pair of melamine bowls, with chopsticks and such, I rarely nuke stuff even when I am alone - I am quite good at making soup in the single serve, for 2 people or a vat suitable for a party =)
I also restrict my cookware - I have a La Creuset saucepan/skillet combo and a dutch oven, and a minimal set of bakeware for my air fryer/mini convection oven. I also have 2 favorite drinking vessels, one for coffee, one for tea, and an oversized water bottle.
I have a pared down cookware set but too many dishes, glasses, cups, and cutlery. I have very few visitors and dinner parties aren’t going to happen, so who am I fooling.
The two things that get used most here are the Fiestaware pasta bowls:
And the big square Certified International Vintage Rooster plates:
