Included with our Gift Box and one-off Dessert Box, our gelateria-grade ice cream scoops make it much easier to create a tightly-packed ball of Instagrammable ice cream for putting into a cone, bowl or on top of a dessert.

We’ve picked our ice cream scoops carefully, looking for one that is easy to grip, has a good-sized, rounded head for scooping with and a sharp edge for digging into a frozen tub of authentic gelato – as well as a single-piece construction that makes it easy to clean to wash and dry by hand. However, there are a few maintenance tips that you need to know in order to make the most out of your scoop.

Why you shouldn’t put your ice cream scoop into the dishwasher

There are a couple of reasons why it’s a bad idea to put an ice cream scoop in the dishwasher. Firstly, ice cream scoops are made of aluminium, which reacts badly to the detergent commonly used in a dishwasher. This can oxidise the aluminium during the wash, causing it to blacken and become tarnished.

The second reason is that a gelateria scoop is hollow and contains a conductive fluid inside. This conducts the heat from your hand when you hold it and warms the scoop, melting the ice cream slightly and making it easier to shape into balls. However, because the fluid is designed to work at room temperate, it can solidify when exposed to too much heat, such as in a dishwasher.

Rather than put it in the dishwasher and risk ruining it, you should instead wash and dry it by hand using warm water once you’ve finished scooping. 

Should I avoid all contact with water?

Your ice cream scoop is fine to be in contact with water, as long as it isn’t boiling; in fact, resting it in a glass of warm water before scooping will help it to melt gelato more effectively. However, you should avoid placing it in extreme temperatures – either too hot or too cold – as this may affect its efficiency.

What should I do if I accidentally put my scoop in the dishwasher?

While your scoop won’t look particularly nice once it’s been through a dishwasher, the tarnish is a result of oxidisation and isn’t harmful. It is sometimes possible to remove the oxidisation with lemon, vinegar and/or oxalic acid, although this isn’t always a permanent fix.

However, there is a good chance that the conductive fluid inside your scoop will no longer work as it should; if that is the case, then it is probably better to buy a replacement.