A toasting fork is a long-handled

fork In cutlery or kitchenware, a fork (from la, furca ' pitchfork') is a utensil, now usually made of metal, whose long handle terminates in a head that branches into several narrow and often slightly curved tines with which one can spear foods ...

used to

brown Brown is a color. It can be considered a composite color, but it is mainly a darker shade of orange. In the CMYK color model used in printing or painting, brown is usually made by combining the colors orange and black. In the RGB color model use ...

and toast food such as bread, cheese, and apples by holding the pronged end in front of an open fire or other heat source. It can also be used to toast

marshmallow Marshmallow (, ) is a type of confectionery that is typically made from sugar, water and gelatin whipped to a solid-but-soft consistency. It is used as a filling in baking or normally molded into shapes and coated with corn starch. The sugar c ...

s, broil

hot dogs A hot dog (uncommonly spelled hotdog) is a food consisting of a grilled or steamed sausage served in the slit of a partially sliced bun. The term hot dog can refer to the sausage itself. The sausage used is a wiener ( Vienna sausage) or a f ...

, and heat hot dog buns over campfires.

Description

Toasting forks were traditionally made from metal such as

wrought iron Wrought iron is an iron alloy with a very low carbon content (less than 0.08%) in contrast to that of cast iron (2.1% to 4%). It is a semi-fused mass of iron with fibrous slag inclusions (up to 2% by weight), which give it a wood-like "grain" ...

brass Brass is an alloy of copper (Cu) and zinc (Zn), in proportions which can be varied to achieve different mechanical, electrical, and chemical properties. It is a substitutional alloy: atoms of the two constituents may replace each other wit ...

, or silver, and later from steel, but handles of wood or

ivory Ivory is a hard, white material from the tusks (traditionally from elephants) and teeth of animals, that consists mainly of dentine, one of the physical structures of teeth and tusks. The chemical structure of the teeth and tusks of mammals ...

might be used to prevent the heat of the fire being conducted to the hand. Food is pierced with the prongs of the fork and held over the fire until it turns brown. The toasting process requires care and attention to ensure that the item is evenly cooked and not burnt. Many toasting forks had a built-in suspension ring on one end, which allowed them to be hung when not in use. Some forks had telescopic handles which made them portable for travellers, and allowed the toast to be held closer to the fire without burning one's fingers. While most toasting forks were designed to be held by hand, some were designed into trivets or weighted bases, and could swivel like an angled desklamp over the fire. Collectors sometimes refer to this as the "lazy toaster".

History

An itinerant salesman in ragged clothes selling toasting for Wellcome V0020377

Britain

In England, toasting forks date back to at least the mid-16th century, with at least two forks extant from that era. They were typically used by those in the middle and upper strata of society. Toasting irons are compared to swords in the Shakespeare plays King John and Henry V Henry V may refer to: People * Henry V, Duke of Bavaria (died 1026) * Henry V, Holy Roman Emperor (1081/86–1125) * Henry V, Duke of Carinthia (died 1161) * Henry V, Count Palatine of the Rhine (c. 1173–1227) * Henry V, Count of Luxembourg (12 ...
, and a 17th-century wrought-iron toasting fork is held in the

Shakespeare Birthplace Trust The Shakespeare Birthplace Trust (SBT) is an independent registered educational charity based in Stratford-upon-Avon, Warwickshire, England, that came into existence in 1847 following the purchase of William Shakespeare's birthplace for preserv ...

collection. In the 18th century, toasting forks often had three staggered prongs, to hold the bread more firmly. Toasting cheese became vogue during the

Georgian era The Georgian era was a period in British history from 1714 to , named after the Hanoverian Kings George I, George II, George III and George IV. The definition of the Georgian era is often extended to include the relatively short reign of ...

, and toasting forks emerged with "peculiar brackets to hold a slice of cheese" as well as bread. Some Scottish forks with four prongs had intricate decorative detail, likely influenced by continental European smithcraft. Many inventors applied for

patent A patent is a type of intellectual property that gives its owner the legal right to exclude others from making, using, or selling an invention for a limited period of time in exchange for publishing an sufficiency of disclosure, enabling disclo ...

s for more sophisticated toasting forks from the 1790s onward. Scottish inventor James Watt, best known for the

Watt steam engine The Watt steam engine design became synonymous with steam engines, and it was many years before significantly new designs began to replace the basic Watt design. The first steam engines, introduced by Thomas Newcomen in 1712, were of the "at ...

, developed a retractable toasting fork. From 1809, Sir

Edward Thomason Sir Edward Thomason (c. 1769 – 29 May 1849) was a manufacturer and inventor in Birmingham knighted by King William IV. Life He was born around 1769 in Birmingham. His father Edward Thomason (1740 – 1793) was a manufacturer of buckles, an ...

of Birmingham invented several types of sliding toasting forks, including a popular one with collapsible prongs and slides encased within a japanned handle that drew into the mouth of a metal-plated snake head, which he regretted not patenting. Another Thomason invention was a telescopic fork that included a mechanism for brushing the hearth. Toasting forks were popular in the

Victorian era In the history of the United Kingdom and the British Empire, the Victorian era was the period of Queen Victoria's reign, from 20 June 1837 until her death on 22 January 1901. The era followed the Georgian period and preceded the Edward ...

, and are often mentioned in novels by

Charles Dickens Charles John Huffam Dickens (; 7 February 1812 – 9 June 1870) was an English writer and social critic. He created some of the world's best-known fictional characters and is regarded by many as the greatest novelist of the Victorian e ...

. In ''Oliver Twist'', the villain

Fagin Fagin is a fictional character and the secondary antagonist in Charles Dickens's 1838 novel ''Oliver Twist''. In the preface to the novel, he is described as a "receiver of stolen goods". He is the leader of a group of children (the Artful D ...

first appears standing in a dark room in front of a fire, holding a toasting fork, suggestive of his "devilish" nature. In ''

The Pickwick Papers ''The Posthumous Papers of the Pickwick Club'' (also known as ''The Pickwick Papers'') was Charles Dickens's first novel. Because of his success with '' Sketches by Boz'' published in 1836, Dickens was asked by the publisher Chapman & Hall to ...

'', the alcoholic non-conformist minister Mr. Stiggins first appears sitting in front of the fireplace in the parlour of the

public house A pub (short for public house) is a kind of drinking establishment which is licensed to serve alcoholic drinks for consumption on the premises. The term ''public house'' first appeared in the United Kingdom in late 17th century, and wa ...

, imbibing pineapple rum as he periodically checks his toasting fork to ascertain whether the toast is ready. According to ''The London Ritz Book of Afternoon Tea'', "Every careful Victorian furnished his son with a brass toasting fork and a silver muffin dish for afternoons in college rooms and later at the Club." In 1854, Chef

Alexis Benoit Soyer Alexis Benoît Soyer (4 February 18105 August 1858) was a French chef who became the most celebrated cook in Victorian England. He also tried to alleviate suffering of the Irish poor in the Great Irish Famine (1845–1849), and contributed a pe ...

gave a recipe/prescription for their proper use to produce toast in ''Shilling Cookery for the People''. Toasting forks of various sizes were advertised in the

Harrods Harrods Limited is a department store located on Brompton Road in Knightsbridge, London, England. It is currently owned by the state of Qatar via its sovereign wealth fund, the Qatar Investment Authority. The Harrods brand also applies to oth ...

1895 Catalogue, with prices ranging from threepence to one shilling and sixpence. They continued to be used into the 20th century, even as open hearths were replaced with wood- and coal-burning cookers and gas stoves in the home. Kassy using toasting fork in

North America

In 1620, Pilgrims from England had toasting forks and kettle forks with them when they landed at

Plymouth Colony Plymouth Colony (sometimes Plimouth) was, from 1620 to 1691, the first permanent English colony in New England and the second permanent English colony in North America, after the Jamestown Colony. It was first settled by the passengers on the ...

on the ''

Mayflower ''Mayflower'' was an English ship that transported a group of English families, known today as the Pilgrims, from England to the New World in 1620. After a grueling 10 weeks at sea, ''Mayflower'', with 102 passengers and a crew of about 30, r ...

'', but did not have table forks. While some British colonists in America used elaborate hearth toasters that could hold several pieces of bread, cooks of "more modest means" relied on toasting forks made of forged iron. Toasting forks continued to be an important utensil in the early American kitchen of the 1800s, when activity centered around the cooking fireplace. The ''

American Agriculturalist ''American Agriculturist'' was an agricultural publication for farm, home, and garden in the United States, published in English and German editions. Its subtitle varied over time: ''for the Farm, Garden, and Household'' (1869), ''for the Househo ...

'' magazine advised in November 1868 that the proper way to make toast at home was to use stale bread rather than fresh bread as was customary in hotels. The bread should be sliced "moderately thin", placed on a toasting fork, and held near the fire until it was warmed through. Only as a final step should the fork be brought nearer to the fire and turned light brown or deep golden yellow, before being buttered. The July 1877 issue of ''American Agriculturalist'' included instructions on how to make a home-made toasting fork out of "any refuse piece of tin" such as the bottom of a box of sardines, or the side of a can of fruit which had been flattened. The magazine advised cutting three triangular pieces and bending them up to form "prongs", and threading three wires through the holes and twisting them to form a handle.

Modern usage

Although the first electric toasters were patented between 1904 and 1909, the early models were manually operated, and still required users to monitor and observe whether the toast was "done". Toasting forks gradually declined in domestic use after the first automatic electric toasters appeared on the market as a luxury item in 1926, and electricity became more widely available in homes starting in the 1930s. In the United Kingdom, the use of toasting forks persisted in households with fireplaces, or electric heaters. Through the 1900s,

crumpets A crumpet () is a small griddle bread made from an unsweetened batter of water or milk, flour, and yeast, popular in the United Kingdom, Canada, New Zealand, South Africa and Australia. Crumpets are regionally known as pikelets, a name also ap ...

browned over an open fire using a toasting fork then drenched in butter were considered a midwinter delicacy in England. Today, toasting forks are often used around campfires, constructed out of simple materials, such as Y-shaped tree branches or wire coathangers. They are also sold as an accessory for woodburning stoves, and as a novelty item. In 2022, an article in '' The Telegraph'' pointed to the use of extendable marshmallow toasting forks purchased from

Amazon Amazon most often refers to: * Amazons, a tribe of female warriors in Greek mythology * Amazon rainforest, a rainforest covering most of the Amazon basin * Amazon River, in South America * Amazon (company), an American multinational technolog ...

, instead of a wooden stick, as an example of how "the middle class have ruined camping" by turning it into "

glamping Glamping is a portmanteau of "glamorous" and "camping", and describes a style of camping with amenities and, in some cases, resort-style services not usually associated with "traditional" camping. Glamping has become particularly popular with 2 ...

". In the UK, many cultural commentators insist that while electric toasters are fast and convenient, the "perfect" way to prepare toast is with "a toasting fork and a real fire".

Use by scientists

In the 19th century, a toasting fork was one of the many everyday objects which scientist

Michael Faraday Michael Faraday (; 22 September 1791 – 25 August 1867) was an English scientist who contributed to the study of electromagnetism and electrochemistry. His main discoveries include the principles underlying electromagnetic inductio ...

used during his lectures. In one demonstration, he built an electrical machine using a glass bottle supported by an inverted stool, with a tea canister on a tumbler as the conductor, and the toasting fork as the collector. In the 20th century, the great physicist G. I. Taylor experimented with a four-pronged toasting fork and found that, when it was waved so that the airflow was in the plane of the tines then they

sang Sang or SANG may refer to: Organizations *Saudi Arabian National Guard, Saudi Arabian military force Places *Sang, Kerman, a village in Kerman Province, Iran *Sang, Northern Region, a town in Mion District, Northern Region, Ghana * Sang, Seka, ...

much more loudly than when the airflow was perpendicular to the plane.

Collections

The

Victoria and Albert Museum The Victoria and Albert Museum (often abbreviated as the V&A) in London is the world's largest museum of applied arts, decorative arts and design, housing a permanent collection of over 2.27 million objects. It was founded in 1852 and ...

has a collection of toasting forks which was mostly curated by the wealthy antiquarian Louis Clarke.

Gallery

File:Clitheroe_museum_toasting_fork_8557.JPG, Toasting fork at Clitheroe Castle Museum in Lancashire, England File:Broaching_or_toasting_fork_MET_27379.jpg, Broaching or toasting fork (17th century), possibly Spanish, at

The Metropolitan Museum of Art The Metropolitan Museum of Art of New York City, colloquially "the Met", is the largest art museum in the Americas. Its permanent collection contains over two million works, divided among 17 curatorial departments. The main building at 1000 ...

, New York File:Anna_Aloisi,_Toasting_Fork,_c._1936,_NGA_22397.jpg, ''Toasting fork'' (c.1936) by Anna Aloisi, graphite on paper, at

National Gallery of Art The National Gallery of Art, and its attached Sculpture Garden, is a national art museum in Washington, D.C., United States, located on the National Mall, between 3rd and 9th Streets, at Constitution Avenue NW. Open to the public and free of ch ...

, Washington, D.C. File:Fagin by Kyd 1889.jpg,

wielding a toasting fork in ''

Oliver Twist ''Oliver Twist; or, The Parish Boy's Progress'', Charles Dickens's second novel, was published as a serial from 1837 to 1839, and as a three-volume book in 1838. Born in a workhouse, the orphan Oliver Twist is bound into apprenticeship with ...

'', illustrated by 'Kyd' in 1889

References

Notes

Citations

{{reflist, refs= {{cite news , url=https://books.google.com/books?id=HCgDAAAAMBAJ&dq=Toasting+fork&pg=PA53 , work=

Popular Science ''Popular Science'' (also known as ''PopSci'') is an American digital magazine carrying popular science content, which refers to articles for the general reader on science and technology subjects. ''Popular Science'' has won over 58 awards, incl ...

, date=September 1934 , page=53 , volume=125 , number=3 , title=Useful Articles Made From Coat Hangers , accessdate=September 28, 2022 {{citation , title=Toasting Forks , first1=Dorothy , last1=Burstyn , publisher=

Association of Small Collectors of Antique Silver (ASCAS) Association may refer to: * Club (organization), an association of two or more people united by a common interest or goal * Trade association, an organization founded and funded by businesses that operate in a specific industry * Voluntary associa ...

, number=137 , year=2010 , url=https://www.ascasonline.org/articoloOTTOB137.html {{cite web, url=http://www.futuremuseum.co.uk/collections/life-work/social-history/home-life/housekeeping/toasting-fork.aspx, title=Toasting Fork, publisher= Future Museum, accessdate=28 September 2022 {{Cite news , date=28 June 2018 , title=End of an era after 60 years of making crumpets at Tilley's , work=Gloucestershire Echo , url=https://www.proquest.com/docview/2061029162 , access-date=2022-10-04 , id={{ProQuest, 2061029162 , via=

ProQuest ProQuest LLC is an Ann Arbor, Michigan-based global information-content and technology company, founded in 1938 as University Microfilms by Eugene B. Power. ProQuest is known for its applications and information services for libraries, provid ...

{{cite web , last1=Jackson , first1=Victoria , title=Shakespeare in 100 Objects: Toasting Fork , url=https://www.shakespeare.org.uk/explore-shakespeare/blogs/shakespeare-100-objects-toasting-fork/ , publisher=

, access-date=28 September 2022 {{Cite book , title=Miller's Kitchenware , publisher=Miller's , year=2005 , isbn=9781845330712 , location=London , pages=16,211–212 {{Cite book , last=Perry , first=Evan , title=Collecting Antique Metalware , publisher=Doubleday , year=1974 , isbn=0-385-05197-2 , location=Garden City, New York , pages=34 {{Cite book , last=Maguire , first=Mary , title=Wirework , publisher=Lorenz Books , year=1996 , isbn=9781859671481 , location=New York , pages=62 , chapter=Toasting Fork {{Cite book , last=Marshall , first=Jo , title=Kitchenware , publisher= Chilton Book Co. , year=1976 , isbn=0-8019-6401-6 , location=London , pages=66 {{cite web , url=https://www.delightedcooking.com/what-is-a-toasting-fork.htm , title=What is a Toasting-Fork? , first1=Mary , last1=McMahon , date=September 19, 2022 , publisher=Delighted Cooking , accessdate=September 28, 2022 {{cite web , title=Toasting fork 1561 , url=https://www.metmuseum.org/art/collection/search/205054 , publisher=

, access-date=28 September 2022 {{cite web , last1=Pagett , first1=Hazel Morrison , date=March 4, 2018 , title=Toasting Fork: Toasting before Toasters as we know them today , url=https://moycullen.galwaycommunityheritage.org/content/topics/cooking-and-utensils/toasting-fork , accessdate=September 28, 2022 , work=Moycullen Heritage , publisher=Moycullen Historical Society Toasting fork patents
at

Google books Google Books (previously known as Google Book Search, Google Print, and by its code-name Project Ocean) is a service from Google Inc. that searches the full text of books and magazines that Google has scanned, converted to text using optical ...

{{cite news , first1=R.H. , last1=Jenkins , title=Camper's Toasting Fork Made From Twisted Wire , work=Popular Science , date=October 1937 , page=96 , volume=131 , number=4 , url=https://books.google.com/books?id=bSgDAAAAMBAJ&dq=Toasting+fork&pg=PA96 , accessdate=September 28, 2022 {{citation , title=Encyclopedia of Kitchen History , author=Mary Ellen Snodgrass , year=2004 , isbn=9781135455729 , publisher=Taylor & Francis , page=392 Soyer, Alexis Benoit. (1854)
A Shilling Cookery for the People
', "How to Toast Bread", New York:

George Routledge George Routledge (23 September 1812 – 13 December 1888) was a British book publisher and the founder of the publishing house Routledge. Early life He was born in Brampton, Cumberland on 23 September 1812. Career Routledge gained his early ...

. p. 165. {{citation , journal=

Nature Nature, in the broadest sense, is the physical world or universe. "Nature" can refer to the phenomena of the physical world, and also to life in general. The study of nature is a large, if not the only, part of science. Although humans ar ...

, author= G. I. Taylor , title=The Singing of Wires in a Wind , volume=113 , page=536 , doi=10.1038/113536b0 , date=12 April 1924, issue=2841 , bibcode=1924Natur.113..536T , s2cid=4067231 Toasting fork
''

The Free Dictionary ''The Free Dictionary'' is an American online dictionary and encyclopedia that aggregates information from various sources. Content The site cross-references the contents of ''The American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language'', the ' ...

'' {{citation , title=Toasting fork , year=2004 , number=M.25–1961 , url=https://collections.vam.ac.uk/item/O104398/toasting-fork-unknown/ , publisher=

External links

*WorkingWithIron NathOo Studios (26 April 2016
Blacksmithing Masterclass - Barbecue fork Hand Forging A Toasting Fork with bottle opener handle
Video via

YouTube YouTube is a global online video sharing and social media platform headquartered in San Bruno, California. It was launched on February 14, 2005, by Steve Chen, Chad Hurley, and Jawed Karim. It is owned by Google, and is the second most ...

Food preparation utensils Forks