We say possibility because there isn’t a consensus on the subject, but some consumers are concerned that these coatings may be harmful or toxic under certain conditions. So even if you’re careful and don’t abuse it, you can expect to replace a pan like this every couple years.Īnother potential issue with a coating like this one is the possibility of health risks. A coating like this one can easily be scratched off with a metal utensil, and as soon as that happens, this pan should be disposed of. The issue with any coating, but PTFE in particular, is that it’s not very durable. These coatings are marketed as non-stick because, like the name says, it’s difficult for anything to adhere to them, which makes cooking certain foods much easier. The inside of the pan is coated with PTFE (polytetrafluoroethylene), commonly referred to by its branded name Teflon. The pan pictured below is anodized on the outside, which helps with the durability. For this reason, aluminum cookware is always coated to provide a barrier between the metal and your food. The main issue with aluminum, and the reason that you never see bare aluminum cookware, is its reactivity with acid. It’s also the softest metal on our list, so it will scratch and dent pretty easily. It doesn’t retain heat particularly well though, so the temperature will fluctuate as food is added to a hot pan. Aluminum is lightweight, cheap and very good at distributing heat. Let’s talk about aluminum first, which is one of the most popular materials these days for a frying pan. By reacts, we mean that acidic foods will actually eat into the metal, which not only pits the surface of the cookware, but leeches some of that metal into whatever you’re cooking. We’re going to mention reactivity for each of these cookware metals-specifically the way in which the cookware reacts (or doesn’t react) with acidic foods. For cookware to work on an induction cooktop it must be comprised of, or contain, a ferromagnetic metal such as cast iron or stainless steel. Induction cooking is becoming more and more popular, and the induction-compatibility of your cookware is something to keep in mind if you currently have or are considering purchasing an induction range or countertop cooker. But we’ll talk about weight and material thickness more in another post. This is a bit harder to quantify, because heat capacity is a function of mass, which means that a thicker, heavier pan will retain heat longer. Heat RetentionĪnother important factor in choosing a cookware material is heat capacity, which is the material’s ability to retain heat. A hot spot occurs when the heat applied to the bottom of the pan isn’t properly distributed throughout the material, causing the area of the cooking surface directly above the heat source to be much hotter than the areas around it. Cookware that distributes heat effectively will cook more evenly, with fewer hot spots. One of the most important qualities of a cookware material is its ability distribute heat. When it comes to making a purchase, whether you're looking for premium cookware or are on more of a budget, here are some important factors to keep in mind: Heat Distribution We’ll go through them one by one, show some examples, and talk about the pros and cons of each. There are five different metals that are used to make pretty much all the cookware on the market. As a producer of cast iron cookware, we get a lot of questions about why cast iron is different than other cookware options out there, so we wanted to put together a guide for anyone looking to learn more about the pros and cons of different types of cookware.
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