An Honest Review of the ‘Ultimate Fork’

When it comes to utensils we use at every meal, what makes one ‘the ultimate’? I will tell you of its powers

Oxford Languages defines the word “ultimate” as “the best achievable or imaginable of its kind”; the Cambridge dictionary says that it’s the “most extreme or important because either the original or final, or the best or worst.” So with that in mind, what is the ultimate version of a utensil you use every day, say, the humble fork? Would it be the highest achievement in dining tools? The most extreme, with infinite tines? The best, or the worst, and what do these qualifiers even mean when it comes to a fork?

These were the questions raised when a cooking tool called the Ultimate Fork, made by the company GreenPan, came into my possession. I recently became a fan of GreenPan, the “original” maker of nontoxic, nonstick cookware, because I was feeling overwhelmed by the vast array of nonstick options out there and was recommended the brand by a friend with unfussy and pragmatic taste (but who still likes things that look nice). I have been enjoying a number of its cookware offerings, including the Valencia Pro stainless-steel sauté pan and this lovely pan (made in collaboration with a celebrity who shall not be named but has also become something of a cooking influencer). While perusing GreenPan’s site, I spotted something called the Ultimate Fork, and immediately, I knew I had to have it.

When it comes to my favorite utensil, I, like Shoshanna from Girls, am partial to the spoon. “Why would you want cold metal prongs stabbing you in the tongue when instead you could have food delivered into your mouth on a cool, soft pillowy cloud?” Shoshanna asks Adam, who prefers the fork. And it’s true; somehow, my sink is constantly filled with spoons, with the number of forks used in my household on a daily basis trailing far behind. I think this is because my breakfast routine alone requires a minimum of three separate spoons, but we won’t get into that. All this being said, before meeting the Ultimate Fork, it would have been hard for me to imagine how a standard fork could be improved upon. You use it to stab things and then put those things into your mouth and eat them, and most forks seem to deliver in that respect. But I was enticed by the idea that a fork could do so much more, and into my cart it went.

When the Ultimate Fork arrived, I was impressed by its size and girth. The fork is not for casually replacing a normal-sized fork. At 11 inches long, it is roughly the size of a spatula, and perhaps because it is pretty big, it kind of feels like a medieval pitchfork. It’s made of a steel frame covered in flexible, nonstick silicone, making it adept at both stabbing and scraping. In fact, GreenPan promised that its “endlessly versatile 10-in-1 design means you can stir, mix, blend, mash, scrape, whisk, lift, scoop, shred, and flip,” so for the last three weeks, I’ve been on a mission to see what the Ultimate Fork can do that a regular-degular fork can not.

Here are some things I’ve done with the Ultimate Fork:

Twirling pasta in the pan

I made an absolutely divine shrimp scampi. Wait — pause — just look at it:

Hilary Pollack

While incorporating the cooked pasta into the delectable, garlicky, butter, white-wine sauce, I felt the urge to twirl it, as one might with any long noodle. As you may know, you should not use a regular metal fork to twirl pasta in a nonstick pan, lest you damage the pan’s coated surface. However, because the Ultimate Fork is coated in flexible silicone, you may twirl away. Fun!

Stirring soft scrambled eggs

Soft scrambled eggs must be treated with great care for the best results. First, you must whisk the eggs a bit in a bowl before putting them in a pan. I historically used a regular fork for this, but the Ultimate Fork is also very capable of achieving well-mixed eggs — I’m not sure about “better,” but whatever. A standard spatula requires certain precise motions to stir them to the proper consistent, fluffy texture, but an Ultimate Fork’s tines dragged through the eggs a few times results in quick and even cooking.

Stabbing olives

Sometimes, you may wish to stab three or four olives at the same time, whether for a martini or just because, like me, you really enjoy a nice, briny olive. A regular-sized fork can only handle two. The Ultimate Fork will bring you several (actual number varies depending on size of olives).

Hilary Pollack

Scooping up a slice of quiche

I got quite ambitious about hosting an Easter brunch this year after being reminded by my colleague Francky’s piece about Easter decor that it is, in fact, the cutest holiday if we’re strictly considering aesthetics. With this in mind, I prepared a really over-the-top spread for my friends, including but not limited to two quiches, a Swedish princess cake, a pink coconut cake, a 3.7-pound Snake River Farms Kurobuta ham, 24 deviled eggs, and a bunch of other stuff that was really delicious but I won’t bore you with, although I will make you, dear reader, look at this photo.

Hilary Pollack

The potato leek quiche was an exemplary take on the savory-pie category, and I found that the Ultimate Fork was very helpful in getting under a slice and lifting it to a waiting plate.

Scraping cake batter and frosting off the side of a bowl

I wanted to make a pink coconut cake for almost three years (it’s a long story) and finally made one for said Easter, which was very fulfilling. I made a recipe from a (deservedly) canceled celebrity chef who is known for using lots of sugar and butter in her recipes, and I must report, the cake was fabulous! I used the Ultimate Fork’s edge for scraping cake batter and frosting out of their respective bowls as needed, and, of course, tasting them, tempting fate by eating some of the batter even though it contained raw eggs.

Holding down a ham while you carve it

Something I realized after acquiring my aforementioned large, decadent centerpiece ham is that I would need to carve it and I do not own a carving fork. This briefly felt like a real emergency until I remembered that I did own the Ultimate Fork, and while I did accidentally carve into the fork itself with my very sharp serrated knife (oops!), it held the ham in place with an impressive grip considering that carving is not one of its stated purposes. And since it’s made with food-grade silicone, if someone accidentally ate a piece of the fork, it’s no big deal (hopefully?).

Scooping up a slice of leftover cake

There was a lot of Swedish princess cake and coconut cake left over from brunch, which I slowly chipped away at in two-bite increments over the next three days (I just threw away the final, pathetic-looking crumb detritus this morning) like God intended. When there were still cohesive slices remaining to serve, the Ultimate Fork served as a highly competent lifting tool, as GreenPan promised, and as I’d experienced with the quiche.

Hilary Pollack

Things I have not yet done with the Ultimate Fork:

Let’s revisit the 10 tasks the Ultimate Fork allegedly performs: “stir, mix, blend, mash, scrape, whisk, lift, scoop, shred, and flip.” I can attest to it stirring, but I don’t really see how that is much different than mixing or blending — let’s be honest! Whisking also feels quite stirring-adjacent, but I’ll grant that it’s a little bit different because of the aeration factor. I have not yet used it to mash, but it can certainly scrape. It can also definitely lift and scoop, although, again, those seem like similar functions, and I am sure that if I wished to flip something, it would oblige. I have not yet used it to shred, but that sounds fun, and they forgot to mention that it can also twirl.

So, the Ultimate Fork is, at the very least, a very useful five-in-one utensil. It’s also on sale right now for 32% off thanks to GreenPan’s Earth Day sale, so you can grab one for less than 20 bucks. And if you want to feel even better about getting one, for the month of April, GreenPan is planting a tree for every order placed on its website. Cute!

I think it’s fair to say that as far as definitions go, the Ultimate Fork represents a step towards the fork’s ultimate form, and I recommend adding one to your arsenal if you want an extreme performance fork.

The Ultimate Fork is available at GreenPan.