Ceramic Cookware

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Does anyone use ceramic cookware? I jumped on the cast iron bandwagon but did not like the metallic taste and the black residue when cleaning it with a paper towel was disconcerting; not to mention the extra dosing of iron which is not good (for men...).

So I bought this cheap thing from China*Mart ($10).
http://www.walmart.com/ip/Mainstays-10-Non-Stick-Skillet-Red/25490695

It's amazing. It's like cooking on wet ice. The food slips off the pan, more so than Teflon-coated pans.

Not sure how healthy ceramics are, though, as lead and cadmium may be in the cheap Chinese products.
whistle.gif
 
They are newer so known issues will be less now..i have always liked cast iron but its good to reseason your pan every so often. I do wonder if we end up consuming anything bad from the iron pans..i hate non stick pans since teflon seems to come apart so easily. Does ceramic require delicate tools/handling? Does it scratch easily?
 
It's a shame no one can manage to create a steel alloy that wouldn't rust or degrade in any other fashion... you know like it wouldn't stain or anything.

It's also a pitty no one can manage to make glass so it can withstand cooktop temperatures. You know... like they would temper it or something and you could make cookware out of it.

Because if someone could invent either of these materials it would be easy to cook on something durable, scrubbable and inert if part of it was ingested. Not to mention the millons of other uses for these materials.

IMO ceramic coated metal cookware is for camping. What's the benefit over the above two options?
 
Originally Posted By: Rolla07
Does ceramic require delicate tools/handling? Does it scratch easily?


Just the outer coating, but this is a cheap $10 item, so no surprise. The cooking surface is just fine.
 
I had a Bialetti ceramic skillet that was super slick like you describe...when new. I only used it for eggs at low heat and was gentle when cleaning but it eventually went from non-stick to stick.

I used it maybe 4x per week, for months, it looked fine just not quite as shiny as new.

I'm thinking of trying one again because my stainless skillet is hard to clean.
 
We use iron and SS. If you have birds non stick is out, they emit poisons that will kill birds.
Wonder what that does to humans?
 
Originally Posted By: Trav
We use iron and SS. If you have birds non stick is out, they emit poisons that will kill birds.
Wonder what that does to humans?


Seems to be more with the telfon based pans...we lost our parakeets when we first were married years ago with a cheap pan.

Have a few calphalon pans now...no issues in the years I've had em'.


Biggest issue you are going to have with ceramic pans is that they chip......
 
Originally Posted By: dparm
Isn't the non-stick stuff being outlawed in the next year or two?


Not sure...thought is was a few coatings.

Didn't realize just how many non-stick coatings are out there....
eek.gif
 
Had one a while back...after a couple of weeks it wasn't. nonstick anymore. ..I recommend t-fal
 
The only thing I can imagine a quality cast iron pan adding to the food would be iron. A 1986 study (I don't remember who did it) showed that a correctly well seasoned cast iron skillet added very little iron to the food, while an incorrectly seasons cast iron skillet added more iron.

I think I'll just stick with my cast iron. Especially if the alternative is a $10 made in China pan from Wal-Mart.
 
Cheap ceramic cookware is likely cheap because of the following:

-Thin layer of ceramic coating
-coating is held on by glue, which if given enough heat may emit fumes and get into your food
-the metal can warp and release lots of lead.

You just need to do your research and KNOW your cookware limits. One good thing reputable middle-brand cookware products do is label the max temperature their pots/pans can go. This is a clear sign the cookware has a chemical or lead that may leach into your food (very small amounts regardless) if not used properly.

Stay away from teflon/caphalon/***on pots. It's not just the teflon/caphalon/etc. that's poisonous if ingested for a long time, but the glue that holds them together! The glue is much more toxic!

I have an 18/10 stainless steel frying pan that doesn't gouge when I scrap it with my metal spatula - that's how you know you have the right stuff.

Non-stick is ok to use, but again use it properly and never use metal cutlery on that stuff.

Even plastic spatulas, etc. have harsh chemicals the leach into the food at a basic cooking heat!!! So, stick with wood or silicon or stainless steel (but only on stainless steel cookware)
 
Originally Posted By: daves87rs
Originally Posted By: Trav
We use iron and SS. If you have birds non stick is out, they emit poisons that will kill birds.
Wonder what that does to humans?


Seems to be more with the telfon based pans...we lost our parakeets when we first were married years ago with a cheap pan.

Have a few calphalon pans now...no issues in the years I've had em'.


Biggest issue you are going to have with ceramic pans is that they chip......


Thanks thats good to know. Any idea if there is any sort of standard to look for?
I Googled but found nothing concrete.
 
What??? There is no "glue". The Teflon adheres directly to the aluminum, copper or stainless steel substrate. I used to do this for a living (not pans but laboratory specimens) so please explain.

And PTFE is one of the most body-inert substances on the planet. There is no metabolic pathway for absorption into the body. In no way is it poisonous in the bulk form. Please post a peer-reviewed study that shows otherwise.

Originally Posted By: accent2012
Stay away from teflon/caphalon/***on pots. It's not just the teflon/caphalon/etc. that's poisonous if ingested for a long time, but the glue that holds them together! The glue is much more toxic!
 
Originally Posted By: Trav
We use iron and SS. If you have birds non stick is out, they emit poisons that will kill birds.
Wonder what that does to humans?


Wow! I had better ditch non-stick pans. I have a 25 year old cockatiel and his entire life has been spent in a home that uses non-stick cookware. And, his cage was in the kitchen area for the first ten years of his life.

All I ever use to clean my NS and cast iron pans is a damp paper towel. Use only plastic or silicone utensils in them and they will last a LONG time. My non-sticks are ten years old and my cast iron is 25 years old.

Someone is always looking for a panacea. (Just stop using X, or start using Y and you will live forever, disease free.)
 
Originally Posted By: kschachn
What??? There is no "glue". The Teflon adheres directly to the aluminum, copper or stainless steel substrate. I used to do this for a living (not pans but laboratory specimens) so please explain.

And PTFE is one of the most body-inert substances on the planet. There is no metabolic pathway for absorption into the body. In no way is it poisonous in the bulk form. Please post a peer-reviewed study that shows otherwise.

Originally Posted By: accent2012
Stay away from teflon/caphalon/***on pots. It's not just the teflon/caphalon/etc. that's poisonous if ingested for a long time, but the glue that holds them together! The glue is much more toxic!



The point I was making was that cooking under high temps with these products can release who knows what into the food. It's not just the teflon/caphalon, but whatever is in the metal. Not all metals are equal as there are many grades out there - some have higher heavy metal content than others. Also, not everyone knows how to properly use these non-stick items properly, such as using metal utensils or scouring pads to clean them can lead to this stuff coming off rather quickly. Over time the coating wears off under normal use and is meant to be replaced. The next question which I don't know the answer to is how does the body get rid of this product if ingested? It is inert, but mass takes up space, so how does one get rid of it? Studies have shown that people who work with this stuff tend to have elevated levels of it in their blood stream. Also, the use of PTFE without PFOA is very recent and while PFOA free teflon is being sold in the USA, many manufacturers are likely selling the old stuff in other countries where regulations have yet to take place. There's more to it which is what I was trying to get at.

Regardless, improper use of these materials can make these unsafe to some degree, such as overheating the material. Also, comparing the use of teflon in a regulated/controlled environment, such as medical industry/lab work to an unregulated market such as cookware it's not really fair because these cookware manufacturers do not have to fully disclose their methods, ingredients they use and sources of their materials. I've seen $20 non-stick skillets warp in front of my eyes when exposed to medium heat on the stove. I've seen "stainless steel" sauce pans emit a strange smell when boiling water. Consumer products can be very dangerous and very difficult to hold the manufacturer liable.
 
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