Using and Caring for Silicone Mats

After using silicone mats for almost a year I have grown more and more fond of these little miracle mats. Nothing sticks to them so I can skip the oil/grease/cooking spray step making my meals healthier and less messy. In addition to the conventional recipes for which I use silicone mats, like pizza (even the stray cheese doesn't stick), granola (no more scrubbing baked on honey from my pan), or roasting vegetables (you don't have to worry about fragile food like asparagus falling apart); I have found a use for silicone mats in the freezer. I also have a couple of bonus tips about cleaning and storing silicone mats.

Homemade Granola

Using Silicone Mats in the Freezer
I have discovered silicone mats are great to use when flash freezing moist foods. I love to freeze bananas for chocolate and banana "ice cream", and strawberries for almond milk strawberry shakes. The problem I have with freezing fruit, especially bananas, is that the fruit sticks to the pan making it hard to remove once frozen. When I freeze the fruit on a silicone mat the fruit slides off easily with a flat spatula.

Drying Silicone Mats
Silicone mats wash up very easily. Since nothing sticks to the mat, it is just a quick wash and rinse. The more difficult job it drying the mats. The mats have a tacky feel and a towel doesn't slide easily over the mat. I don't have a drying rack in my kitchen since I use a dishwasher and they don't prop well on the counter to air dry. After a quick soapy wash and rinse, I shake off as much water as I can and then hang them over the oven door handle. If your oven is still warm from cooking they will dry even faster. If I am drying two at a time, I rotate their position after a little while so the overlapped part dries completely. Hanging the mats this way causes them to dry quickly and thoroughly.

Storing Silicone Mats
After the mats are completely dry, I just roll my two mats together and stick them in my utensil drawer. They stay rolled nicely since they are slightly tacky as long as they have a somewhat confined spot in a drawer.

Purchasing
Once only found in restaurant supply stores, silicone mats are now readily available at most stores selling kitchen supplies for an average good price of $14.99, as well as a little cheaper online. I have seen them at Bed Bath and Beyond, Target, and Meijer. I'm sure they can be found in several other stores as well. The most common size for sale (half size) fits a standard home-sized jelly roll pan or cookie sheet.

Do you use a silicone mat? Do you have other tips about how you use or care for them? 

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