Week
of September 7, 2008
Season
Your Pans for Non Stick Cooking
Nothing is more frustrating than trying to cook
a delicious meal and having it stick to the bottom
of the pan. A well season or cured pan will make
cooking more fun, easier to clean and create better
tasting food. There is a saying in the restaurant
business; Hot pan . Cold oil. Meaning never put
the oil in a cold pan and then heat it up. By
heating the pan first and then adding the oil,
then immediately the food, you.ll have much less
sticking. Furthermore if you season the pan when
you first purchase it, you will have even better
results.
How
to Cure by Type:
Stainless
Steel
Unfortunately stainless steel cannot be seasoned
because of the hardness of the metal. A matter
of fact I don.t know of a single restaurant which
uses stainless steel pan. They are great for storing
food because the food won.t react with the metal,
but horrible for cooking. My advice is just stay
away from them altogether.
Aluminum
First wash the pan with soup and water using a
sponge or cloth (no steel sponge). Rinse and dry
thoroughly. Heat the pan until hot then add two
ounces of oil to the pan. Carefully swirl the
pan so the oil coats every part of the pan. Let
the pan cool. Remove the oil and repeat the process
one more time. From this point on, never use soap
again. Wash with warm water and dry with a paper
towel. If some food does stick us a little salt
with oil and a paper towel to remove it.
Teflon
and other non stick surfaces
Non stick technology has come a long way over
the years and there are dozens of infomercials
to prove it. But the truth is even non stick pans
will eventually stick. Follow the steps for seasoning
aluminum pans and your non stick pans will last
longer and perform better. Remember after the
first time, never wash with soup again.
Cast
iron and woks
For cast iron and wok.s the process is similar,
but because of the nature of the metal you.ll
heat the pans to a much higher temperature. Fist
wash the pan with soup and water then dry thoroughly.
Heat the pan up until it is very hot. Add two
ounces of oil and swirl to coat all sides. Let
cool and remove excess oil. Heat the pan up again
until it begins to smoke. Add more oil and repeat
the process until you.ve done this three times.
Never wash again and always store you pans at
any angle or by hanging so they won.t rust.
By
taking the time to properly season you pans, you
will enjoy cooking much more and increase the
life of your investment. I recommend spending
a little extra money and buying good quality pans
and take care of them, in the long run you.ll
be much happier. Another tip is to never buy pans
with plastic or wooden handles because you can.t
place them in the oven. As you increase you cooking
skills you.ll find many recipes start on the burner
then move to the oven. By having an all metal
pan this transition is flawless.
