Cast Iron, Aluminum, or stainless steel?

[SondraRose]

Carbon steel, well-seasoned.

 

[geogentry]

It is a myth that cooking in an aluminum pot leaches metal into your food.

Actually it depends on what you cook in your aluminum pot.  Highly acidic foods will erode the aluminum a small amount.  Over time they will become pitted, I have see it in too many commercial kitchens to believe it is a myth.  That metal that gets eroded goes into the food.  It just really depends on what your cooking.

 

[geogentry]

Yes.  The oxide coating protects it.

Evidence would suggest you are mistaken.

a study conducted at UCSC conducted under the supervision of  Mr. Raman Afshar. With aid from Dr. John Rowland and Prof.Pradip Mascharak 

Conclusions/Discussion 
Collectively, the results show that aluminum does dissolve in acidic foods and heating accelerates the process of dissolution. Therefore, precautions must be taken when acidic foods are cooked in aluminum foil, pots, pans and utensils. Ingestion of dissolved aluminum could lead to brain disorders.

 

[La Tortuga]

Evidence would suggest you are mistaken.

a study conducted at UCSC conducted under the supervision of  Mr. Raman Afshar. With aid from Dr. John Rowland and Prof.Pradip Mascharak 

Conclusions/Discussion 
Collectively, the results show that aluminum does dissolve in acidic foods and heating accelerates the process of dissolution. Therefore, precautions must be taken when acidic foods are cooked in aluminum foil, pots, pans and utensils. Ingestion of dissolved aluminum could lead to brain disorders.

WOW!  That explains a lot!

 

[Sleep]

 Ingestion of dissolved aluminum could lead to brain disorders.

Houston we have a problem.....
     what was the question??? Lol

 

[highdesertranger]

I will attest that acidic food eats and pits aluminum. I ruined an aluminum dutch oven roaster that way and is the main reason I no longer use aluminum pots and pans. also aluminum fry pans suck. highdesertranger

 

[wagoneer]

I applaud you HDS being so sensitive to cookware.

 

[highdesertranger]

hey Adrian who is that young guy in you avatar. LOL. highdesertranger

 

[geogentry]

Back on topic

I use a stainless steel pot, a steel (not stainless) frying pan and I have a rather huge cast iron frying pan that doesn't see much use right now but am sure it will see a lot of use once I am a Nomad.  I don't use aluminum to cook in or non stick.  Non stick tends to flake off after a while and I hate when something always sticks in a bunch of little tiny spots.  I read that the Teflon that flakes off is not healthy but have never seen anything that proves that.

And HDR nice move on the pan.  Best I have ever heard of seasoning a pan.

 

[akrvbob]

Copper

My mom fell for those infomercials about copper pots and has been using them for about a year. They are fantastic!!!!! I’ll replace all mine with them.

 

[geogentry]

Copper

My mom fell for those infomercials about copper pots and has been using them for about a year. They are fantastic!!!!! I’ll replace all mine with them.

How do you keep them clean?  I had a couple when I was decades younger and they were the devil to keep clean.  But they do work so well and if they are shined up they sure dont need a cupboard to keep them.

 

[ecuadordean]

Aluminum pots but not pans..... Large aluminum pots are used everywhere for cooking in large quanity.

 

[akrvbob]

Nothing sticks to the copper and they are as perfectly clean as the day she bought them a year ago.

http://amzn.to/2j9WJ0Z

 

[johnny b]

Bob, there is no copper in or on that pan....only copper color, as per the faq on the Copper Chef page.

"3. Is the Copper Chef™ Round Pan actual copper? Will the coating peel?
The Copper Chef Round Pan is aluminum with copper-colored Cerami Tech™ Non-Stick Coating that will not chip or peel.

4. What is the Copper Chef™ Round Pan made of?
The Copper Chef Round Pan is aluminum with Cerami Tech™ Non-Stick Coating and a stainless steel induction plate."

https://www.copperchef.com/10-inch-round-fry-pan.html

Real copper cookware costs a fortune.

All 'non stick' coatings these days have to be free of PTFE & PFOA so ceramic is the new standard. Not sure who came up with the copper color thing but it seems to be a marketing success....
and of course my copper colored, non stick fry pan is called 'Gotham Steel'...go figure...it should at least have a Batman symbol! 

 

[geogentry]

Real copper cookware costs a fortune.

Yes it is a bit pricey - 

https://www.williams-sonoma.com/pro...ccookware-copper|copper-cookware-sets&isx=0.0

But it is very much worth it - depending n what your trying to do.  It is however a bugger to keep them as shiny at they look when they are new.

But for me way way beyond anything I can afford any more.  So it's cast iron and steel for me.  

 

[KroFlite]

I'm not sure where the idea that "all 'non stick' coatings these days have to be free of PTFE & PFOA so ceramic is the new standard." came from, but it's not the case. PTFE (Teflon and it's many other trade names) is still, by far, the standard of non-stick cookware. The only health concern from using Teflon is breathing the fumes from badly overheated cookwear.

It will last a long time if treated properly-I only use silicone and wooden utensils with it. Most people don't treat it properly-take a look at the Teflon pots and pans in any thrift shop to see the proof of that.

 

[B and C]

I am a big fan of the ceramic coated pans/skillets.  I have used a small (~7") one almost everyday for cooking breakfast for the last two years.  It has held up really well and I don't foresee replacing it anytime soon.  I only use wooden utensils or silicone tools too (mostly).  I do use a fork to turn sausage patties though so the grease doesn't go flying and the few slips I have had have not damaged it either (poke all the way through).  I use a paper towel to sop up the grease at the end making cleanup a breeze and the grease easily disposed of in the trash and/or fire.  Actually, I use a paper towel to pre clean all the cookware.

The teflon pans I used to use always ended up bubbling and flaking over a short time...  Those flakes can't be good for you.

I need to find a small ceramic pot to put a can of whatever in to reheat or when I make chili.  I use a stainless steel one now, but it is harder to clean than the ceramic pan.

My $0.02 worth

Brian

 

[waldenbound]

How to clean real copper:
Salt and lemon juice, then scrub like the dickens. Wipe clean.

 

[MrNoodly]

I renounced the religion of Cast Ironism decades ago. I have a 10" stainless frying pan that doesn't get used much because I seldom need something that large. Most of my cooking is in a 3 qt. stainless sauce pan or an 8" non-stick aluminum sauté pan.

 

[MrNoodly]

...badly overheated cookwear. 

Yeah, there are a lot of people who seem to believe "blow torch" is the only heat setting.