Butcher's twine substitutes

Butcher's twine is cotton string. A ball of household string that says 100 percent cotton on the label, with no dye, wax or coating, is the same material.

Best for

tying roasts and tenderloins, trussing chicken and turkey, rolled and stuffed meats, bundling herbs for a bouquet garni

Texture

the same

Prep

Read the label first. Use it exactly as you would twine: tie a roast every 1 to 1 ½ inches, and snip and remove every piece before carving.

If the label is missing or lists polyester, nylon or a blend, do not use it; synthetic fibers melt in the oven. Thin cotton thread or embroidery floss is too fine and is usually dyed. Cotton chars if it touches a flame, so keep the ends short on a grill.

Plain floss is strong, made to go in the mouth, and in most bathrooms. It handles light tying jobs in the oven.

Best for

tying chicken or turkey legs together, closing a stuffed chicken breast or pork chop, bundling herbs, tying the neck skin of a bird shut

Texture

can leave thin cut lines in the surface

Prep

Use plain floss only: unwaxed, unflavored and uncoated. Double the strand for anything heavier than a chicken, and pull it snug without cinching, because a single thin strand cuts into meat as it cooks. Remove it before serving; it is hard to see, so count the ties.

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Never use mint, cinnamon, waxed or coated floss: the flavoring gets into the meat, and the wax or coating comes off on the food. Many flosses are nylon or another plastic, which softens and can melt at high heat: keep it for roasting at moderate oven heat, and do not use it on a grill, under a broiler or for searing in a hot pan. It is too thin to hold a heavy rolled roast in shape.

Pins a seam shut instead of tying around it, which is all most small stuffed and rolled meats need.

Best for

stuffed chicken breasts and pork chops, rolled cutlets, braciole and roulades, bacon-wrapped foods, closing the cavity of a stuffed bird

Texture

the same; small holes where the picks were

Prep

Soak wooden picks or skewers in water for 20 to 30 minutes before grilling or broiling so they do not burn. Weave each one through both edges of the seam like a pin, and space them about 1 inch apart. Count them going in and count them coming out.

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They cannot pull a roast into a tight, even cylinder, so they do not replace twine on a boned leg of lamb or a tenderloin. Colored or frilled party picks are not for cooking: the dye runs and the plastic frill melts. A forgotten pick is a choking hazard.

A strip of foil twisted into a rope holds its shape and tolerates any oven or grill heat.

Best for

holding a bird's legs together, banding a roast or a bacon-wrapped fillet, holding a stuffed pepper or cabbage roll closed, grilling, where string would burn

Texture

pale, soft strip under each band

Prep

Tear off a 12-inch length of foil, fold it lengthwise into a strip, twist it into a rope, wrap it around the legs or the roast and twist the two ends together to lock it.

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It cannot be knotted or pulled tight, so it holds things in place but does not compress a roast. The skin under the band stays pale. It must not go in a microwave.

For trussing a bird, the bird's own skin can do the holding, or the bird can be roasted untied.

Best for

roast chicken, roast turkey, Cornish hens and duck

Texture

the same, or slightly crisper around the thighs

Prep

Cut a 1-inch slit in the loose skin on each side of the cavity opening and push the end of the opposite drumstick through it, so the legs cross and hold each other. Fold the wing tips back and under the shoulders. Many turkeys come with a plastic or metal leg clamp that is oven-safe; leave it on.

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Only works on a whole bird with the skin intact near the cavity. An untrussed chicken also roasts well: the thighs cook a little faster with the legs loose, though the bird looks less tidy. Loose stuffing can fall out of an untied bird.

Cotton cheesecloth cut into strips and twisted makes a soft cotton cord, and a square of it makes a pouch for herbs.

Best for

bouquet garni and spice sachets, tying a bird's legs, wrapping a stuffed or rolled roast, holding a ham or galantine in shape

Texture

the same

Prep

Cut a strip 2 inches wide, twist it into a cord and knot it as you would string. For herbs, pile them on a square of cheesecloth, gather the corners and knot them together, or tie the neck with a strip.

Use 100 percent cotton cheesecloth, not a synthetic cleaning cloth. The cord is weaker than twine and stretches when wet, so it does not cinch a heavy roast tightly. Dampen it for the oven and keep it off open flame.

Most string in a household drawer is not cotton, and craft twine is not made for food.

Best for

nothing that goes in the oven

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Synthetic string melts onto the meat at roasting temperatures. Dyed string and yarn can bleed dye into the food. Jute, sisal and hemp twine shed fibers, scorch easily and are often treated with oils that are not food-grade. Non-food-grade string should not touch food that will be cooked.

They hold a raw roast together on the counter and fail as soon as they are heated.

Best for

nothing that is cooked

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Ordinary rubber bands melt or snap in the oven and leave residue and an off taste on the meat. Only silicone bands sold for cooking are heat-safe, and those carry a temperature limit on the package.