pots, pans, and food containers: what's safe and what's not

polymoog

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from @Tidal: Ah, but flecks of steel and copper leeching into our food might be bad for us too.


teflon coated material is garbage. its a thin coating over an aluminum pan typically, so after you scratch the toxic fluoride coating off and ingest it, youre tainting your food with aluminum. never use any of that.

copper and stainless are safe. first, any copper leaching into your food would never hurt you since copper is compatible metal with the human body. theres almost no chance for stainless to even chip off during the cooking process. the only way it COULD react is if its a cheap stainless steel from china that wont stand up to acidity. youll know right away when you see rust stains if its bad.

melamine is garbage. never use it.

glass: 100% safe
ceramics: 100% safe.

any other metal not listed (cans, etc.) will have a BPA lining or a 'BPA free' lining. both are bad and should be avoided if possible.

no plastics are good since they are xenoestrogens which are estrogen mimicking compounds. the safest ones are 1, 2, and 5. if you have to use plastic, use those. the rest should never be used.
keep in mind that the water cooler jugs (those big, blue jugs) are #7 (sometimes #6) plastic. often, the water is sitting in there for hours in warm weather or in the trucks, with all of those chemical compounds leaching out into the water. DONT use it.

use parchment paper instead of aluminum foil when possible.
 

Tidal

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teflon coated material is garbage. its a thin coating over an aluminum pan typically, so after you scratch the toxic fluoride coating off and ingest it, youre tainting your food with aluminum. never use any of that..

Ah, but I only use plastic or wooden utensils to gently stir the food in the teflon saucepan to avoid scratching it off..:)

PS- Cans are a mystery to me, what are they made of?
I notice that some seem to be bare metal (aluminium?) on the inside which I hope isn't leeching into the contents, yet others have some kind of white lining (plastic?)
I emailed a big food manufacturer to ask why some are bare metal and some are white-lining but never got a reply.
 

billy t

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from @Tidal: Ah, but flecks of steel and copper leeching into our food might be bad for us too.


teflon coated material is garbage. its a thin coating over an aluminum pan typically, so after you scratch the toxic fluoride coating off and ingest it, youre tainting your food with aluminum. never use any of that.

copper and stainless are safe. first, any copper leaching into your food would never hurt you since copper is compatible metal with the human body. theres almost no chance for stainless to even chip off during the cooking process. the only way it COULD react is if its a cheap stainless steel from china that wont stand up to acidity. youll know right away when you see rust stains if its bad.

melamine is garbage. never use it.

glass: 100% safe
ceramics: 100% safe.

any other metal not listed (cans, etc.) will have a BPA lining or a 'BPA free' lining. both are bad and should be avoided if possible.

no plastics are good since they are xenoestrogens which are estrogen mimicking compounds. the safest ones are 1, 2, and 5. if you have to use plastic, use those. the rest should never be used.
keep in mind that the water cooler jugs (those big, blue jugs) are #7 (sometimes #6) plastic. often, the water is sitting in there for hours in warm weather or in the trucks, with all of those chemical compounds leaching out into the water. DONT use it.

use parchment paper instead of aluminum foil when possible.
Yeah, I only use stainless steel. Some chromium will come out but that has health benefits. Any small amounts of nickel are likely insignificant. Coppers fine too and actually a pretty cool material to cook with. Just don't see much copper cookware around these days. Some people do have excess copper but that is usually people who eat a lot of beans and grains.

It shocks me some of the non stick junk people so casually cook with. Like you just look at the coating and its completely stripped after like a year or so. Do they not question where all the coating is going? Shocking.

Don't get me started on cooking oils.
 
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Mr.Anderson

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What if you need to drink and you're far from home?
Surprise:

1619702953342.png
I had one of these too. 1 L coated with silver on the inside, so you can just fill it with river water, leave it sitting for some hours and the silver will kill the bacteria as if it were werewolves. Also the water will seep trough the clay leaving it cool even during the schorching 42ºC sun from where I live.
 

billy t

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What if you need to drink and you're far from home?
Surprise:

View attachment 55122
I had one of these too. 1 L coated with silver on the inside, so you can just fill it with river water, leave it sitting for some hours and the silver will kill the bacteria as if it were werewolves. Also the water will seep trough the clay leaving it cool even during the schorching 42ºC sun from where I live.
Where are you located man? Looks like you have access to some cool products.
 

Mr.Anderson

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Where are you located man? Looks like you have access to some cool products.
That's brazil, the terracota filter was a common household item in virtually every house up until 2005. The earthenware pans are becoming less common because they require a wood stove, I don't think gas or electric stoves work with them. Still you can find eathenware jars in restaurants where they serve your food on them.

1619720098855.png1619720122765.png1619720252421.png

These were meant both for ornamentation and practical use. I have two jars in my home that came from my wife's family. They used one to store water and they other one they used as a brazier to cook stuff over it. I'll buy some of those to my home when the opportunity arises.

Just checked. You can cook with these using a gas stove, it will take longer and more gas but you're virtually free of any kind of heavy metal contamination. The upside is that they are better at everything else, including storing and preserving the food for much more time so you don't have to transfer the food to another container unless you want to
 
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polymoog

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Ah, but I only use plastic or wooden utensils to gently stir the food in the teflon saucepan to avoid scratching it off..:)

PS- Cans are a mystery to me, what are they made of?
I notice that some seem to be bare metal (aluminium?) on the inside which I hope isn't leeching into the contents, yet others have some kind of white lining (plastic?)
I emailed a big food manufacturer to ask why some are bare metal and some are white-lining but never got a reply.
that coating WILL come off. dont worry.
cans are generally steel with a BPA lining in them. avoid them if you can.
 

Tidal

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..cans are generally steel with a BPA lining in them. avoid them if you can.

Thanks, I looked up BPA on the net but the problem is most food and drink is canned so it might be difficult to avoid-

 

polymoog

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Thanks, I looked up BPA on the net but the problem is most food and drink is canned so it might be difficult to avoid-
it IS difficult, but not impossible. you end up finding jarred food and drinks or eating fresh fruit and vegetables. youll also end up cooking and preparing your own food which is what everyone should be doing anyway. youll be hard pressed to find a food establishment that is truly concious about what and how they are preparing meals for you because money and profit are always factors.
 

John K

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For me the best pans are with a non-stick of titanium. But be carreful there are 2 types of pans.
Ones have aluminum and a non stick of titanium. Others have inox and a non-stick of titanium ( a better option).

Avoid aluminum in the kitchen..
 
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Maes17

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That's brazil, the terracota filter was a common household item in virtually every house up until 2005. The earthenware pans are becoming less common because they require a wood stove, I don't think gas or electric stoves work with them. Still you can find eathenware jars in restaurants where they serve your food on them.

View attachment 55155View attachment 55156View attachment 55157

These were meant both for ornamentation and practical use. I have two jars in my home that came from my wife's family. They used one to store water and they other one they used as a brazier to cook stuff over it. I'll buy some of those to my home when the opportunity arises.

Just checked. You can cook with these using a gas stove, it will take longer and more gas but you're virtually free of any kind of heavy metal contamination. The upside is that they are better at everything else, including storing and preserving the food for much more time so you don't have to transfer the food to another container unless you want to
Nice
 

Sunshine

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Yes, being a former chef, I've always been super picky about cooking vessels, knives, storage containers. I got two cast iron skillets and a Dutch oven as Christmas presents over the years, and plan on keeping them until I die. Best damn way to cook a steak, hotdogs, pork chops, chili or a stew! (If you're in the market, go for the Lodge pans. They're top-quality, made in USA, without being over-priced. All those fancy-schmancy "TV chef" product lines are, to my discerning eye, very rarely worth the money.)

No tomato-ey stuff in the iron pot though, so I do my "Grandma's simmer all-day red sauce" recipe in a ceramic coated cast-iron Dutch oven. Heavy as hell but it makes the best batch of homemade sauce or soup you ever had! (My husband says it was expensive, but he won't tell me exactly how much. Regardless, it was a worthwhile investment.)

I do use a good quality teflon non-stick pan (T-FAL) for my egg/crepe pan. The thing has lasted almost ten years, and not a scratch on it. Before I bought it, I tried a couple of the new "healthy/safe ceramic non-stick" pans out. They were NOT non-stick, and they went in the trash. I have never known a non-non-stick pan to work when making omelets or crepes. The stainless steel and aluminum pans we use in the restaurants are designed for high heat, but they'll stick like the dickens if you don't use oil or a ton of butter, and no one wants a greasy omelet.

For storage, I still use plastic (Rubbermaid--again quality is key!) for cold stuff and lunch-box items, but anything that gets reheated goes into tempered glass bowls with rubber lids, or my trusty Anchor-Hocking measuring cups (the 4-cup, 2-cup and 1-cup nest nicely together and take up minimal space in the cabinet.) Plus, once I split a case of mason jars with my brother-in-law (it cost like $17 for 24 pint jars, which was more than either of us needed) so I have a few of those left I use in the pantry. Ten years and counting--those things are the best!

I've found that it's better to spend the extra few bucks and get an item that you know will last, then to have to buy a cheap one over and over. The $10 pan won't cut it, the $50 pan is too much, so get the $25 pan in between. That kind of thing. Same for knives and utensils--you don't have to spend a lot, but you do have to spend wisely. (I once found an all-stainless steel Chinese cleaver with perfect balance in a dollar store. That was 16 years ago, and I still use it.)

The best all-around brands for domestic kitchen gear are OXO Good Grips, Zyliss, Nordicware, Wilton, Cuisinart and the brands I've already mentioned. Don't buy any thermometer unless it's a Taylor. (I am a minimalist, but on this, if you don't have one, you need one.) And for heaven's sake, and the sake of your food, don't buy/use Farberware.
 

polymoog

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The stainless steel and aluminum pans we use in the restaurants are designed for high heat, but they'll stick like the dickens if you don't use oil or a ton of butter, and no one wants a greasy omelet.
nothing wrong with a ton of butter. i usually add quite a bit of extra virgin coconut oil prior to heating to prevent them from sticking and as a supplement (in addition to turmeric and black pepper). i suppose ive been eating them that way for so long i am not aware that they are oily, but maybe its because i am making much larger omelettes than normal ( 7, 8 eggs at a time).
if there is residue left in the pan (i think lower heat helps prevent it), soaking the pan in warm water for an hour makes cleanup easy. ive found that regular sand and gravel swirled or rubbed on the pans will remove almost anything.
 

Maes17

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nothing wrong with a ton of butter. i usually add quite a bit of extra virgin coconut oil prior to heating to prevent them from sticking and as a supplement (in addition to turmeric and black pepper). i suppose ive been eating them that way for so long i am not aware that they are oily, but maybe its because i am making much larger omelettes than normal ( 7, 8 eggs at a time).
if there is residue left in the pan (i think lower heat helps prevent it), soaking the pan in warm water for an hour makes cleanup easy. ive found that regular sand and gravel swirled or rubbed on the pans will remove almost anything.
Regular sand and gravel work awesome on auto oil as well. I keep a bag in my work station and use it to help soak and act as a scrub when I’m cleaning up drip pans and the like
 

Maes17

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Joined
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Messages
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Yes, being a former chef, I've always been super picky about cooking vessels, knives, storage containers. I got two cast iron skillets and a Dutch oven as Christmas presents over the years, and plan on keeping them until I die. Best damn way to cook a steak, hotdogs, pork chops, chili or a stew! (If you're in the market, go for the Lodge pans. They're top-quality, made in USA, without being over-priced. All those fancy-schmancy "TV chef" product lines are, to my discerning eye, very rarely worth the money.)

No tomato-ey stuff in the iron pot though, so I do my "Grandma's simmer all-day red sauce" recipe in a ceramic coated cast-iron Dutch oven. Heavy as hell but it makes the best batch of homemade sauce or soup you ever had! (My husband says it was expensive, but he won't tell me exactly how much. Regardless, it was a worthwhile investment.)

I do use a good quality teflon non-stick pan (T-FAL) for my egg/crepe pan. The thing has lasted almost ten years, and not a scratch on it. Before I bought it, I tried a couple of the new "healthy/safe ceramic non-stick" pans out. They were NOT non-stick, and they went in the trash. I have never known a non-non-stick pan to work when making omelets or crepes. The stainless steel and aluminum pans we use in the restaurants are designed for high heat, but they'll stick like the dickens if you don't use oil or a ton of butter, and no one wants a greasy omelet.

For storage, I still use plastic (Rubbermaid--again quality is key!) for cold stuff and lunch-box items, but anything that gets reheated goes into tempered glass bowls with rubber lids, or my trusty Anchor-Hocking measuring cups (the 4-cup, 2-cup and 1-cup nest nicely together and take up minimal space in the cabinet.) Plus, once I split a case of mason jars with my brother-in-law (it cost like $17 for 24 pint jars, which was more than either of us needed) so I have a few of those left I use in the pantry. Ten years and counting--those things are the best!

I've found that it's better to spend the extra few bucks and get an item that you know will last, then to have to buy a cheap one over and over. The $10 pan won't cut it, the $50 pan is too much, so get the $25 pan in between. That kind of thing. Same for knives and utensils--you don't have to spend a lot, but you do have to spend wisely. (I once found an all-stainless steel Chinese cleaver with perfect balance in a dollar store. That was 16 years ago, and I still use it.)

The best all-around brands for domestic kitchen gear are OXO Good Grips, Zyliss, Nordicware, Wilton, Cuisinart and the brands I've already mentioned. Don't buy any thermometer unless it's a Taylor. (I am a minimalist, but on this, if you don't have one, you need one.) And for heaven's sake, and the sake of your food, don't buy/use Farberware.
I’m stealing this info
 
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