The resulting scoops aren’t the fullest shapes, but they do remain intact. It’s cheap, unfussy, and everyone has one. When all else fails, the basic kitchen spoon, although certainly not ideal, has its merits.

I procured the most alluring from each category and tested them against the old kitchen standby: the large spoon. Lastly, there are design-focused options, which feature aesthetic choices like built-in scoop rests or oddly shaped scooping bowls to achieve superior performance. Then there are the no-frills classics, which rely on nostalgia and tried-and-true functional mechanisms. First, there are tech-oriented products, which flaunt ergonomics and gimmicks like self-heating handles to better facilitate a clean, uniform scoop. There are a few different strategies when it comes to selecting ice cream scoops. I proceeded to eat directly out of the carton, but I now had a mission: to find the perfect ice cream scoop. After waiting an excruciating six minutes for the ice cream to partially thaw, I reached for a scoop to dish up a shamelessly large bowl, only to realize – no ice cream scoop. One night, in a half-drunken flurry of excitement, I leaped off the couch and darted for the pint of vegan mint chip in the freezer. It’s summer, so naturally the bags of frozen edamame and homemade chicken stock in the freezer have been replaced with copious amounts of ice cream and sorbet.

Best ice cream scoop