I don’t present as someone overly concerned with plating or presentation, but I absolutely despise splatters on the side of my soup bowl, at least until I start eating my soup. Sure, one could “wipe them away,” but that can leave a trailing smear of soup, stew, or chili, which is almost worse.
Maybe it’s because I have to take a lot of photos of soups and stews, but smears and splatters have been a constant source of annoyance for some time. And if you are like me—similarly annoyed by bowls with messy sides—I have a solution: Use a canning funnel.
I am not a canner but I like to put things in jars, and a canning funnel lets me get things inside those jars without any splatters, splashes, or dribbles—sowhy wouldn’t I extend that same courtesy to my bowls? Just place the funnel in the bowl, ladle soup/stew/chili/etc. into the funnel, then pull the funnel away and let the soup/stew/chili/etc. fall into the center of the bowl without making a mess of the edges. Here, I have some pictures of chicken chili to demonstrate the technique:
Step 1: Put the funnel in the bowl and the food in the funnel
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Step 2: Remove the canning funnel by lifting it straight up
Step 3: Serve your food in a splatter-free bowl
