Disposable Splatter Screens

Abstract

A splatter screen useful for cooking is disclosed comprising a foil sheet with a pattern of openings through the foil sheet structured and arranged to allow gas vapor to pass through the openings while blocking splattered liquid droplets from passing through the openings. In one embodiment, the openings comprise slits through the foil that may be widened when the foil is pulled in an expansion direction in the plane of the foil to thereby expand the foil in the expansion direction. In another embodiment, the openings comprise flaps in the foil that are movable to positions out of the plane of the foil to thereby allow gas vapor to escape through the flaps while blocking splattered liquid droplets from passing through the foil. A method of minimizing splattering during cooking by positioning a splatter screen as described above over a cooking pan is also disclosed.

Description

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION

This application claims the benefit of U.S. Provisional Patent Application Ser. No. 61/180,959 filed May 26, 2009, which is incorporated herein by reference.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The present invention relates to splatter screens for use in cooking, and more particularly relates to disposable splatter screens made of perforated foil.

BACKGROUND INFORMATION

Splatter screens are used during cooking to minimize splattering, particularly when foods are being fried or cooked. However, conventional splatter screens are difficult to clean, may not be of the desired size, and can be relatively expensive.

The present invention has been developed in view of the foregoing and to remedy other deficiencies of the prior art.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

An aspect of the present invention is to provide a splatter screen useful for cooking comprising a foil sheet with a pattern of openings through the foil sheet structured and arranged to allow gas vapor to pass through the openings while blocking splattered liquid droplets from passing through the openings. In one embodiment, the openings comprise slits through the foil that may be widened when the foil is pulled in an expansion direction in the plane of the foil to thereby expand the foil in the expansion direction. In another embodiment, the openings comprise flaps in the foil that are movable to positions out of the plane of the foil to thereby allow gas vapor to escape through the flaps while blocking splattered liquid droplets from passing through the foil.

Another aspect of the present invention is to provide a method of minimizing splattering during cooking by positioning a splatter screen as described above over a cooking pan or pot.

These and other aspects of the present invention will be more apparent from the following description.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 illustrates an unexpanded foil splatter screen with a pattern of slits in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 illustrates the foil splatter screen of FIG. 1 after it has been expanded to open the slits.

FIG. 3 is a partially schematic illustration of a foil splatter screen roll dispenser in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 4 is a partially schematic illustration of a foil splatter screen sheet dispenser in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 5 is a close up view of a portion of a foil splatter screen having a pattern of flaps in accordance with another embodiment of the present invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

The present invention provides disposable splatter screens for use in cooking. The screens may be placed over frying pans, pots or the like in order to minimize oil, grease and liquid splattering that normally occurs while frying and cooking various types of foods. The disposable splatter screens comprise perforations or openings that are sized and arranged to reduce oil, grease and liquid splattering while allowing water vapor to escape.

FIGS. 1 and 2 illustrate a disposable splatter screen 10 made of expandable foil in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention. In FIG. 1, the foil 10 is shown in its non-expanded condition and includes thin slits 12 through its thickness. In FIG. 2, the foil 10 is shown in an expanded condition in which opposing edges of the foil have been pulled apart in order to expand the slits and provide a pattern of openings 14 through the foil to thereby form a perforated screen.

The splatter screens are made of relatively thin foil having a typical thickness of less than about 0.2 mm (0.008 inch), typically from about 0.006 to about 0.1 mm (0.0002 to 0.004 inch). In certain embodiments, the foil screens are made of metal such as aluminum, parchment paper, or any other suitable material that can withstand relatively high temperatures encountered during cooking. For example, the splatter screen may be made of standard gauge aluminum foil having a thickness of from about 0.02 to about 0.05 mm. In a particular embodiment, the aluminum foil may be a standard heavy duty gauge foil having a thickness of about 0.04 mm.

FIGS. 1 and 2 illustrate dimensions of the disposable splatter screen 10 in its non-expanded and expanded conditions, respectively. As shown in FIG. 1, the non-expanded screen 10 has a length L, an overall width W_T, and a perforated width W_P in the middle region in which the foil has been cut into a pattern of slits 12. The length L of the screen 10 is typically at least 10 cm long, for example, from about 20 to about 80 or 100 cm or longer. The overall width W_T of the screen 10 is typically from about 10 to about 80 cm, for example, from about 20 to about 50 cm. The perforated width W_P is typically from about 5 to about 50 cm, for example, from about 10 to 40 cm. Each side edge of the screen 10 includes a band of solid foil having a side width W_S. The side widths W_S typically range from 0 to about 5 cm, for example, from about 1 to about 3 cm.

The slits 12 may be formed in the foil by die cutting, laser cutting, or any other suitable forming technique. The length, spacing and pattern of the slits 12 may be selected in order to provide the desired opening sizes and ratio of opening surface area to foil material surface area when the foil is subsequently expanded. For example, each slit 12 may be from about 1 to about 15 mm long, typically from about 1.5 to about 8 or 10 mm long. The slits 12 may be spaced a distance of from about 1 to about 10 mm from each other, typically from about 1.5 to about 5 mm from each other.

In FIG. 2, the foil 10 has been expanded across its width by pulling the side bands apart, resulting in an expanded overall width EW_T. The resultant expanded central region of the foil has an expanded to a width EW_P and forms a perforated splatter screen. The expanded width EW_P typically ranges from about 10 to about 100 cm, for example, from about 20 to about 60 cm. In the expanded condition shown in FIG. 2, the length L and side widths W_S are typically the same as those of the non-expanded screen as shown in FIG. 1. While the length L of the expanded splatter screen is shown in FIG. 2 as being the same length as the non-expanded splatter screen shown in FIG. 2, it is to be understood that the length of the the expanded central region of the screen may be reduced slightly as a result of its width-wise expansion.

In the expanded condition, the perforated openings 14 of the disposable splatter screens of the present invention typically comprise from about 10 to about 80 percent of the surface area of the foil, with the remaining surface area comprising the solid foil material. For example, the perforated openings may comprise from about 20 to about 50 percent of the surface area. The width of each opening 14 typically ranges from about 0.1 to about 5 mm, for example, from about 0.2 to about 1 or 2 mm, as measured in the horizontal direction in FIG. 2.

In the embodiment shown in FIG. 3, the perforated foil may be provided in the form of a roll 20 that can be continuously dispensed and cut from a container 22.

In the alternative embodiment shown in FIG. 4, individual sheets of the expandable foil 30 may be provided as stacked sheets in a container 32 from which they can be individually removed. The individual foil sheets 30 may be flat, as shown in FIG. 4, or may alternatively be folded or rolled for dispensing from the container.

Although the disposable splatter screens shown in the foregoing figures are made of expandable foil, it is to be understood that the splatter screens of the present invention may alternatively be provided in the foam of foil having perforated openings without the necessity of pulling or otherwise expanding the foil. In this embodiment, a pattern of openings having any desired shape such as rectangular, round, etc. may be provided through the foil.

FIG. 5 illustrates a portion of a foil splatter screen 40 in accordance with a further embodiment of the present invention in which the openings 42 are in the form of flaps that allow water vapor to pass through while blocking splatters. In the embodiment shown, the flaps 42 are generally semi-circular, however, any other suitable flap shape or flap pattern may be used. For example, square, rectangular, triangular, etc. flap shapes may be used. The flaps 42 may be formed in the foil by die cutting, laser cutting, or any other suitable forming technique. The length, spacing and pattern of the flaps 42 may be selected in order to provide the desired degree of splatter control. For example, each flap 42 may be from about 1 to about 15 mm long, typically from about 1.5 to about 8 or 10 mm long, as measured in the vertical direction in FIG. 5. Each flap 42 may be from about 0.1 to about 10 mm wide, typically from about 1 to about 5 mm wide, as measured in the horizontal direction in FIG. 5. The flaps 42 may be spaced a distance of from about 1 to about 10 mm from each other, typically from about 1.5 to about 5 mm from each other. When the flaps are generally semicircular as shown in FIG. 5, they typically have radii of from about 0.5 to about 10 mm, for example, from about 1 to about 5 mm.

The disposable splatter screens of the present invention provide many advantages over conventional splatter screens. For example, the present screens avoid the necessity of cleaning reusable screens, may be cut or formed to the desired size depending upon the particular cooking need, and are relatively inexpensive. Furthermore, when the present disposable screens are made of a material such as aluminum foil, they can be recycled. In addition to use as splatter screens, the present disposable screens may be used for other purposes such as light duty colanders and strainers. Also, the foil screens may be used for grilling to allow smoke and drippings to pass through the foil, while supporting the food items being grilled and preventing certain types of small foods from falling through conventional grill gratings (such as chicken wings, shrimp, vegetables, fruit and the like) or certain types of delicate foods from falling apart while being grilled (such as fish and the like).

Whereas particular embodiments of this invention have been described above for purposes of illustration, it will be evident to those skilled in the art that numerous variations of the details of the present invention may be made without departing from the invention as defined in the appended claims.

Claims

1. A splatter screen useful for cooking comprising:

a foil sheet; and

a pattern of openings through the foil sheet structured and arranged to allow gas vapor to pass through the openings while blocking splattered liquid droplets from passing through the openings.

2. The splatter screen of claim 1, wherein the openings comprise slits through the foil.

3. The splatter screen of claim 2, wherein the slits have lengths of from about 1 to about 15 mm.

4. The splatter screen of claim 2, wherein each slit is spaced from about 1 to about 10 mm away from each adjacent slit.

5. The splatter screen of claim 2, wherein the slits widen when the foil is pulled in an expansion direction in a plane of the foil to thereby expand the foil in the expansion direction.

6. The splatter screen of claim 5, wherein the widened slits have widths of from about 0.1 to about 2 mm.

7. The splatter screen of claim 5, wherein the widened slits comprise from about 20 to about 50 percent of the surface area of the foil.

8. The splatter screen of claim 1, wherein the openings comprise flaps in the foil movable to positions out of the plane of the foil to thereby allow gas vapor to escape through the flaps while blocking splattered liquid droplets from passing through the foil.

9. The splatter screen of claim 8, wherein the flaps have lengths of from about 1 to about 15 mm.

10. The splatter screen of claim 8, wherein the flaps have widths of from about 0.1 to about 10 mm.

11. The splatter screen of claim 8, wherein the flaps are generally semicircular.

12. The splatter screen of claim 11, wherein the generally semicircular flaps have radii of from about 0.5 to about 10 mm.

13. The splatter screen of claim 1, wherein the foil has a thickness of from about 0.006 to about 0.1 mm.

14. The splatter screen of claim 1, wherein the foil comprises aluminum.

15. The splatter screen of claim 14, wherein the aluminum foil has a thickness of from about 0.02 to about 0.05 mm.

16. The splatter screen of claim 14, wherein the aluminum foil has a thickness of about 0.04 mm.

17. The splatter screen of claim 1, wherein the foil has an overall width of from about 10 to about 100 cm.

18. The splatter screen of claim 1, wherein the foil is expandable in a plane of the foil and has a width in an expanded condition that is at least 5 percent wider than a width of the foil in a non-expanded condition.

19. The splatter screen of claim 18, wherein the width of the foil in an expanded condition is at least 20 percent wider than the width of the foil in a non-expanded condition.

20. A method of reducing splattering during cooking, the method comprising placing a foil splatter screen over a cooking pan or pot, wherein the foil splatter screen comprises:

a foil sheet; and

a pattern of openings through the foil sheet structured and arranged to allow gas vapor to pass through the openings while blocking splattered liquid droplets from passing through the openings.