Stainless steel produced the second best results whilst silver ranked lowest due to its strong metallic flavour. Laughlin described silver as not being at all pleasant for eating as it reacts badly to acids in fruits and sulphur in eggs.
For sweet foods, copper and zinc coated spoons are the best to use, though avoid cod with zinc spoons as Laughlin’s previous study revealed it to be a highly unpleasant mix.
The research was unveiled as part of the launch of the new The Cravings exhibition at the Science Museum which aims to show how flavour is not the only factor in how we experience taste. Other findings at the exhibition include research into which glassware improves the taste of cocktails, and what affect the colour of spoons have on taste.