What is a Grapefruit Spoon (and Why Do You Need One)?

There’s nothing like sinking your teeth into the sweet, juicy flesh of a Pittman & Davis Rio Ruby™ Grapefruit. The sweetest, most delicious of all grapefruit varieties, our prize-winning Ruby Reds are unlike anything you’ve ever tasted in your local produce section. That’s because our family farmers don’t cut any corners when it comes to tending our trees, hand-inspecting each plump grapefruit for best possible quality, and carefully packing it and shipping it out within days of harvest so it arrives at your door as fresh and perfect as possible. It’s a great to look forward to every season, and one you can feel good about enjoying, too – our Rio Ruby™ Red Grapefruit are low in calories, excellent sources of fiber, vitamin C, and antioxidants, help regulate your blood sugar and keep you hydrated.

But they’re so delicious you may forget all that while you’re eating one. Our grapefruit can be added to your meal plan in a wide variety of delicious ways, but the simplest way to enjoy it is to slice the fruit in half, sprinkle the cut side with a little cinnamon (no sugar needed!), sink your grapefruit spoon into the flesh, and…

Wait…you’ve never heard of a grapefruit spoon?

What Is a Grapefruit Spoon?

While it’s true you can enjoy grapefruit without using a grapefruit spoon, it’s a lot easier when you have one of these clever little utensils on hand.

At first glance, grapefruit spoons look like ordinary teaspoons. Upon closer inspection, however, you’ll notice that the bowl of a grapefruit spoon has a slightly more pronounced tip and serrated teeth all around the edges. A grapefruit spoon is not to be confused with a grapefruit knife, which is used more for preparing the fruit to use in recipes and other applications than eating it fresh out of hand.

Like most flatware utensils, grapefruit spoons come in a variety of materials, from plastic to silver. Stainless steel is the most common as it is attractive, affordable, durable and resistant to rust.

Why Do You Need a Grapefruit Spoon?

The purpose of a grapefruit spoon is to make eating fresh grapefruit easier and more enjoyable. Using a regular teaspoon to pry the flesh from a grapefruit half can result in a mushy, drippy mess, torn up fruit, and possibly a stinging eye if you’re unlucky enough to get squirted. You also wind up wasting more of the grapefruit’s flesh.

Also, the dull edges of a regular teaspoon make it harder to separate the tangy-sweet flesh of the grapefruit from the bitter-tasting rind and membranes between the fruit segments. In fact, some people who love the flavor of grapefruit juice but dislike fresh grapefruit because they think its flavor too tart don’t realize that, by attempting to eat the fruit with a regular spoon, they’re getting more of the bitter pith and tough membranes than they would if they used a grapefruit spoon to enjoy the fruit. If they were to use a grapefruit spoon instead, they would get the taste of the firm, sweet red flesh unhindered.

How to Eat Grapefruit with a Grapefruit Spoon

Whether you want to prepare grapefruit for your own breakfast or treat someone special to a breakfast in bed that includes an elegant grapefruit half, you’ll need a grapefruit spoon. Here’s how to use it properly (and it’s so easy we almost blush to take the time to write it out):

1. Slice a plump, juicy grapefruit in half. Place the grapefruit half on a plate or in a cereal bowl (using a bowl will help keep the fruit stationary while you eat it), cut side up.
2. Push the grapefruit spoon into the flesh of the grapefruit, tip first, using the serrated edges to scoop the fruit away from the membranes and the rind.

That’s it!

You see? Using a grapefruit spoon is so easy, you’ll wish you’d gotten one years ago. You may even find yourself partaking of grapefruit more often!

Be sure to include a set of Grapefruit Spoons with your gift of Pittman & Davis Grapefruit.