I have read that the fork was invented during the American Colonies period. Before that, it was knife and spoon. But Europe got forks first, so the fork replaced the spoon. In the USA, you couldn't stab something with a spoon, so you'd hold the food with the back of the spoon while you cut it, then switch hands to scoop the food on to the spoon.
This book, I think: https://www.amazon.com/Illustrated-Histories-Everyday-Inventions-Overlooked/dp/1732512647