I bought the advertising hype-non stick frypan

I haven't found the ceramic pans to be very durable in the mid-term. None of them even made it to the long-term point of 2 yrs use. I've tried 4 different types and found them inferior to the classic Teflon finish on Circulon pans.

T-fal makes a good finish but has begun cheapening out on the bottom of their larger fry/stewing pans. Not as thick as before so they warp - they warp evenly, bowing upwards from the center - but two of them now have done this. If you buy the higher-priced T-fal Pro or Titanium the bottoms are thicker and don't warp.

I believe the experiments showing toxic fumes from non-stick pans used a technique that no sensible cook would ever do - the pans were heated empty (which you should NEVER do with any pan!) until they reached a temp of over 575 degrees.

I have a Kenmore/Whirlpool stove with a PowerPlus 15K burner. It would take at least 10-15 minutes on high heat to get a pan that hot. I would never, ever treat any pan that way, regardless of type. I love to cook and have done extremely complicated gourmet recipes. I have pans in multiples (two 12" skillets, three 10" skillets, etc.), tons of kitchen equipment including sous vide and specialized baking pans.

All non-stick eventually wears out. Good non-stick, like Circulon, will last at least 6+ years with minimal care. I use it because it cleans easily, and takes less oil/fat.
 
(Sigh)....... Being a gourmet, vegan chef, I have advised, in here, what a serious cook needs to turn out perfect dishes, every time, many times. Take ten?........

Get yourself a professional-grade, stainless steel skillet, and learn how to use it. "Non-stick" is all about proper cooking oil, proper cooking oil temperatures. Learn how to flip and toss.

This is my main skillet/saute pan. It's about ten years old, and has never been washed with soap, or scrubbed with harsh abrasives:

15917484089216053037488116764585.jpg

Forget the chemically-coated pans. They are all garbage, no matter how many glowing reviews you read about them. A professional chef/cook is not going to come within ten feet of those abominations, unless he/she is being paid big bucks for an endorsement.

As a cheaper alternative, carbon steel skillets are a standard in the biz, but being less costly, they also demand more time from you when it comes to the learning curve of proper use. They used to go for about ten bucks, US. I've seen them at the restaurant supply outlet I use, for around $15 USD.
 
Last edited:
My son, The Cook, says cast iron is the best investment. I never had food stick, whatever pan I used. Use a little oil, a little spray, nothing sticks. I've been using my husband's ex-wife's frying pans going on 40 years. Nothing special about the pans either, some are aluminum, some are enamel. I don't know. Something about having hot pans before adding oil or something. Don't think about it anymore. Just use a little oil or spray too. Throw the food in, keep moving it around until it's done and there you are.
 
Judycat said:
My son, The Cook, says cast iron is the best investment. I never had food stick, whatever pan I used. Use a little oil, a little spray, nothing sticks. I've been using my husband's ex-wife's frying pans going on 40 years. Nothing special about the pans either, some are aluminum, some are enamel. I don't know. Something about having hot pans before adding oil or something. Don't think about it anymore. Just use a little oil or spray too. Throw the food in, keep moving it around until it's done and there you are.
Click to expand...
If you have wrists and arms of iron, then, yeah, cast iron skillets are great. Most people will not be able to flip using cast iron. Great cookware, definitely, but a bad choice for most folks. To my credit, climbing trees and using chainsaws, my arms and wrists can handle flipping, using cast iron. Not recommended for the masses. Yeah, I know, spatulas can be used. Cool......
 
RadishRose said:
Not trying to stir or flip before the food is ready to be moved is also key. Let it release by itself instead of trying to scrape it up.
Click to expand...
Have to disagree. Once you reach the critical, lightly smoking, stage, with a high-temp oil, you start flipping as soon as the food hits the pan. It'll get a great, uniform browning, sealing in flavor and tenderness, and then the time is right to let things cook for prolonged times, on each side. To throw something into a perfectly prepped skillet and let it sit, for even ten seconds, initially, is to get yourself into sticking situations.
My experience and advice is based on vegan cooking, for the last twenty-seven years. Even with meat dishes, I've never heard of foods "releasing" if they're allowed to sit, after they're first placed in a skillet.
Everyone's results may vary, I guess, although I don't understand how.
Oh yeah, watch any cooking show on TV with a chef running the show. Invariably: Throw in your food, flip a few times, let it cook. No releasing ever seen. Things may be different for things like fried chicken, and other dishes that may not be good for flipping, but I'm not into that scene. Also, with those meat dishes, you're dealing with a heavy oil layer in the pan, and you're not going to be flipping, there.
 
Last edited:
Camper6 said:
Well here it is. No stick frypan. I made an omellete today.View attachment 109008
Click to expand...
The "eggs" they spin around in their skillet are rubber. Look very closely. I bought two Cuisinart pans from Bed Bath & Beyond year or so ago and literally everything sticks like Super Glue to them. I brought out an old cheapy this morning from storage that is warped and funky looking and made three scrambled eggs that all but floated on the surface. It is my eggs pan until doomsday now.
 
Last edited:
treeguy64 said:
Have to disagree. Once you reach the critical, lightly smoking, stage, with a high-temp oil, you start flipping as soon as the food hits the pan. It'll get a great, uniform browning, sealing in flavor and tenderness, and then the time is right to let things cook for prolonged times, on each side. To throw something into a perfectly prepped skillet and let it sit, for even ten seconds, initially, is to get yourself into sticking situations.
My experience and advice is based on vegan cooking, for the last twenty-seven years. Even with meat dishes, I've never heard of foods "releasing" if they're allowed to sit, after they're first placed in a skillet.
Everyone's results may vary, I guess, although I don't understand how.
Oh yeah, watch any cooking show on TV with a chef running the show. Invariably: Throw in your food, flip a few times, let it cook. No releasing ever seen. Things may be different for things like fried chicken, and other dishes that may not be good for flipping, but I'm not into that scene. Also, with those meat dishes, you're dealing with a heavy oil layer in the pan, and you're not going to be flipping, there.
Click to expand...
Yes, I forgot you're vegan. I was thinking mainly meat. I only fip once, works for me. Maybe I use too little oil or too hot a pan?

Another bad thing about really wonderful cast iron, is that it scratches glass cooktops unless you're verrrry careful.
 
RadishRose said:
Yes, I forgot you're vegan. I was thinking mainly meat. I only fip once, works for me. Maybe I use too little oil or too hot a pan?

Another bad thing about really wonderful cast iron, is that it scratches glass cooktops unless you're verrrry careful.
Click to expand...
No, I think you're doing everything right. For meat dishes, where we're talking large pieces, like chicken, chops, fish fillets, etc., your oil depth is too deep for pan flipping, so a spatula is used. In thinking about it, I seem to recall the releasing phenomenon you cited, earlier. That was with large pieces in deeper oil.
 
I just followed my normal procedure with making an omelette. What I like to do is let one side cook well and then flip it over for the other side. I like it crunchy.

I tried this one because it's a bit larger than my ordinary one. I'm surprised at the number of responses. Plenty of cooks on this forum.

Eggs are the bread and butter of cooks.
 
Camper6 said:
I just followed my normal procedure with making an omelette. What I like to do is let one side cook well and then flip it over for the other side. I like it crunchy.

I tried this one because it's a bit larger than my ordinary one. I'm surprised at the number of responses. Plenty of cooks on this forum.

Eggs are the bread and butter of cooks.
Click to expand...
Not vegan ones!
 
That looks like the "Red Copper" pan or a similar ceramic type. I read that you have to season it before use with oil in a hot oven.
And you have to baby non-stick pans to keep them non stick for a couple of years. No abrasive scrubbing & nylon tools are best.
I looked at some You Tube videos on preventing sticking in a stainless steel pan. First heat up the pan, then add oil or butter.
To clean it, first scrub with a nylon brush, then add "Bar Keeper's Friend," let it sit in a wet pan for 5 minutes. It forms a paste. Then scrub the pan with something like the "Scrub Daddy" or similar plastic sponge. It cleans without scratching. Then use dish soap to get rid of all the "Bar Keeper's Friend" because it smells terrible.
 
It's a Gotham and I find out now that there is a class action lawsuit against the company because it doesn't perform as advertised.
The claim is that it can be used without butter or oil in their advertising.
Apparently they work for awhile and then start sticking.
The one I showed in the picture? I had a heck of a time getting the burned part off when I washed it. And they advertise that you can't scratch it. I wouldn't even think of using anything sharp on a fry pan.
 

You must log in or register to reply here.

Back
Top