Customer Reviews

Tovolo Stainless-Steel Perforated Colander, Large

5 star:		(19)
4 star:		(7)
3 star:		(6)
2 star:		(3)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

I bought it because of a segment on America's Test Kitchen where they say that this type of colander is their favorite: finely perforated metal, rather than plastic or mesh.

The strainer works really well. It is great for rice, Israeli couscous and angel hair and aborio pasta.

There are a couple issues I have:
1) The inside is smooth and easy to clean. The outside feels like a microplane and it's just shredding my sponges.
2) The base right should also have slots of holes, because otherwise the bottom fills in with water...or...if you put the colander over the drain, the ring blocks the water outside the ring from going down the drain and then the sink fills up. Probably not a big deal for people with nice new stainless steel sinks, but I've got an old stained ceramic sink. It's also the sink we use for rinsing the floor mop and paint brushes...I don't like food coming in contact with the sink, and that includes strained food soaking in sitting water in the sink.

This colander works just as advertised. Drains perfectly, all stainless steel, well designed, easy to clean. One note of clarification, however: the 12.9" width includes the handles, so the colander itself is actually 10" wide.

I have had this in my sink every single day since it showed up in the mail. It is the most useful piece of equipment I have and so easy to wash!
The basket is sturdy enough for even heavy things like potatoes but has small enough holes that angel hair pasta does not shimmy through.
It is a beautiful piece!

I've had this now for about a month. One thing I noticed right away was it's stability in my dishpan and the lack of back splash when pouring boiling pasta into it. My old strainer was constantly burning me with back splash. This has almost none. I love it. Easy to store in a dutch oven and works as advertised. As far as durability time will tell but it seems well built.

I chose this colander because Cooks' Illustrated recommends it. I've had it for about six months now, but didn't start using it right away as I was in the middle of getting married and moving. By the time I did, it was too late to return it, or I certainly would have -- I wish I would have inspected it carefully in the first place.

PRO:
1) Yes, it drains exceptionally well, as others have described. In that way, it is far superior to any other colander I've had. Hence the two stars.

CONS:
1) Yes, the bottom stand traps water, which is annoying but not really a big deal. I put it halfway over the center drain in my sink, and that works well unless it slides to the middle when I pour pasta, etc., into it.

2) I'm not sure why others have described it as "sturdy." It's lighter than any other colander I've had -- though I don't suppose you want a colander to be heavy -- and the handles (and stand) are just pressed into the perforated metal of the bowl, not riveted or anything. They seem flimsy to me, and I expect they will snap off at some point, just hopefully not when I'm picking up a colander-full of hot pasta. As I recall, CI had trouble with the handles coming off in the dishwasher, so that's worth knowing (I always wash mine by hand).

3) The stand on mine was attached off-center, so the bowl part is always crooked -- also annoying, but again, not a big deal. But for the price, you would think they could get it straight.

4) Most irritatingly, mine has a double ring of light rust stains, about two inches wide, on the outside. It CAME that way.

5) This colander is made in China, so in my opinion, it ought to cost about half what it does, even at Amazon's price. But I suppose the origin explains the quality of the product.

I haven't had any trouble with the outside of it being excessively rough. However, I clean it with a plastic brush or a cotton dishcloth, both of which are a little hardier than sponges.

If you buy this product, examine it upon receipt and no doubt you will escape my disappointments. It's fantastic in design -- just shoddy in construction.

This colander has many more holes and therefore drains far better than others. The holes are small enough to keep even the smallest particles from slipping through and there are so many that bigger items drain quickly and fast. I love it.

Summer is all about produce and this great item is getting a workout while I wash beans and other garden bounty, but also helps me process things. When I zap tomatoes in the processor, I freeze the solids, but like to drain off some of the liquid for fresh juice. This nice colander sits perfectly inside my large 5 qt mixing bowl for that purpose.

It doubles as a course strainer since the holes are all over and relatively small and is super for capturing all the aromatics and bones you've boiled to make a stock, while allowing the stock itself to flow through to your bowl or large soup pot.

I really needed a strainer this size that was footed so it would sit securely in the sink, but also sit inside a bowl when I wanted to save the liquid and I'm delighted with this product. It is sturdy and well made. Highly recommended.

When the colander was pulled from the box, my husband said, "Is it used?" The colander is quite small for a 'large' I was expecting it to be bigger. Made in China. I should have purchased the cuter, larger colander from Pier One for the same price.

This is a nice item, but though it says LARGE, it is only 10" in diameter, not counting the handles. So, I would consider it to be more like a MEDIUM size. The holes are tiny, making it fine for thin pasta.

This is a well-built colander that should last for years. Lots of holes - EVEN ON THE BOTTOM - make this colander outperform every other colander out there. I bought the medium and large colanders and they nest together very neatly to take up a minimum of storage space. Highly Recommended!