Friday, October 19, 2007 5:39 PM
Have you ditched non-stick pans?
A few years ago I stopped cooking with non-stick pans
after I found out that chemicals in the coating (called PFCs) are likely to
cause cancer and thyroid problems.
Now it’s up for debate whether the exposure you get just from cooking an
omelet on one of these pans can actually do you harm, but it’s a well-known
fact among veterinarians that inhaling fumes from a hot non-stick pan can be deadly to pet birds. I figure
if the fumes can kill a parrot within minutes they can’t be good for me and my
family. So, I ceased using them
altogether (inconveniently, I learned this info just after I’d received three spanking new All-Clad ones off of my wedding registry—and of course I’d used them once
or twice so it was too late to return).
Since
then I’ve learned how to cook on uncoated cast iron and stainless steel without my food adhering to the bottom like glue. It takes a little extra oil, obviously, but I figure that
ingesting more fat is better for me than inhaling or consuming chemicals. I
just learned that there’s a new line of non-stick pans out there called GreenPan that claims to have the
advantages of traditional non-stick pans without the harmful chemicals. I don’t plan to try them because I’m a
little skeptical (often when there’s a “green” invention that seems too good to
be true it turns out that the new, supposedly-safer technology is just as
harmful as what it’s replacing, though there’s no evidence that that’s the case
here), but also because I’ve grown so attached to my Le
Creuset cast iron frying pan that I no longer even miss the non-stick. And when I’ve interviewed professional
chefs in the past for magazine stories they’ve told me that uncoated cast iron
is hands-down their favorite type of pan.
Have you ditched non-stick? What type of pan is your favorite?
Posted by
Nest Celeste
Filed under: eco blog