A Meat Mallet Belongs in Your Kitchen, Even if You Never Eat Meat

By Sarah Jampel

I never thought that I’d be encouraging people to buy meat mallets. I'm a vegetarian and, listen, I know what meat mallets are typically used for: pounding meat to an even thickness so that it cooks quickly. Typically, you’ll employ one when you want flat cutlets for dredging and frying, like for saltimbocca, picatta, milanese, katsu, schnitzel, or when you’re hammering tough cuts of meat, like flank or skirt steak, to make them more tender. So, yes, it's got lots of meaty applications.

But as I learned from Carla Lalli Music, who turned to a meat mallet to squash an army of just-fried plantains for her tostones in no time, the meat mallet is no one-trick pony.

Just think of what else it can do:

It's multipurpose. It's versatile. It's not sexy but it's useful. And it's not just for meat! Petition to call it a "kitchen mallet," please! Oh, and if you don't have a meat mallet but you need it right now? Bring out your rolling pin or your heaviest cast-iron skillet. Or grab an actual hammer, then add "meat mallet" of need-to-buy purchases, return the hammer to the toolbox, and tell no one.

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