Cast Iron Pans versus Non-Stick Pans
The programme “What’s good for you” aired on Monday nights on Channel Nine (Australia) did a segment called “Are Teflon coated pans harmful?”
Anyone who has used non-stick pans will know that they don’t last and will need replacing especially if you use them regularly.
I even bought my pans from a catering shop hoping the commercial quality would last longer. It quickly came to light that it didn’t matter where you got it from or how much you paid for it, a non-stick pan would need to be replaced every couple of years.
On reading several articles about the wonders of a cast iron pan, I decided to buy one from the local camping shop for AUS$9.00. My theory was if it worked, great! If it didn’t, it was hardly going to break the bank. It was the best nine dollars I have ever spent, I now have a non-stick pan for life.
It will take you a little bit of time and patience to season it. There are many instructions that involve baking cast iron pans for two hours to season it. I simply cooked oily foods a few times in my pan and it built up a coating in no time.
Once seasoned the pan will develop a natural non-stick coating that allows you to cook at a high heat using metal utensils, even melting cheese escaping from an omelette will come off with ease.
November 6th, 2009 at 1:18 pm
My Mother has been using them for years. She never said anything about the non-stick qualities though, but now that I think about it, I never recall that she buttered or sprayed the pan specifically for that reason! She uses iron because it is durable, doesn’t warp (hot spots on heating coils or fast cooling from cold water,) it lasts forever, and most importantly- because it introduces an amount of iron that lessens the amount of supplements she has to take due to iron-poor blood and anemia. Thanks for posting this part, though- I live in the Amish region of Pennsylvania, USA… they’re everywhere here, new and used.