There are chefs who love their pans with a Teflon coating, others swear by stainless steel or cast iron. When it comes to cookware, many kitchen enthusiasts have very precise ideas, but mostly do not know why this is so or what the respective strengths and weaknesses of the materials are. Here we give you an overview of the most common (but also the most unusual) types of pots and pans.We’ll be covering following queries in this article we receive from our kitchen KM lovers.

1. Is ceramic cookware safer than stainless steel?
2. Is ceramic cookware better than nonstick?
3. Is non stick or stainless steel better?
4. Is ceramic better than Teflon?
5. Which material is good for cooking ?
6. What is best cookware material for health ?

So here are different types of cookware materials.

Stainless steel

First of all: stainless steel is the all-rounder among the materials and, when in doubt, never wrong. You can fry, cook or stew. With stainless steel, however, you are not certain that it will burn – the food can also adhere quite quickly and leave dark residues. With steel wool you can clean your cookware again in no time. Further advantages: You can heat stainless steel very high, very good when searing. It is also extremely robust. Stainless steel has a hard time getting scratches and if they are, they are irrelevant to the cooking process. The same applies to entire dents.

Cast iron

Heavier than stainless steel and even more robust. Not recommended for elderly or disabled people because their high weight makes them very bulky. However, they have a higher thermal conductivity than stainless steel and thanks to the thick walls they keep the heat longer than average. Perfect for searing or braising. Please do not use any detergent for maintenance. Hot water is enough. A certain patina on the bottom of the pan is part of it and protects it from rust. If you want to be sure, you can rub it extra thin with vegetable oil after use.

For cooks, for whom the raw cast iron is too unsafe, there are also models with an enamel coating. These do not need a protective patina.

Wrought iron

Wrought iron are usually just pans. In terms of weight and benefit, these are between stainless steel and cast iron. They are lighter in weight than cast iron but also require a certain patina to protect them from rust. Visually, they make a lot of things, but they are rather unsuitable for everyday cooking, even if this material is also excellent for roasting.

Enamel, ceramics, silargan

Basically, these three coatings are quite similar. One or more minerals are melted and drawn over a pan or pot body. With enamel and ceramics, white or even colored coatings can also be created, which visually enhances the pan. However, both materials are not completely scratch and shock resistant. Therefore, avoid heating cold-pressed oil in ceramic pans, the residues of which attack the non-stick effect. Enamel coatings are not really non-stick coatings, they primarily serve as protection.

Of all three mineral coatings, Silargan is the highest quality and most scratch-resistant. However, that has its price. Basically, however, it applies that ceramics, enamel or silargan can be heated to a very high temperature and thus provide good roasting results.

PTFE (non-stick) coating

Teflon, the dream of every amateur cook. Not only are they easy to clean and hard to burn, they are also unrivaled light thanks to their aluminum body. Basically there is nothing to be said against this type of cookware. But the sensationally good handling has two disadvantages: on the one hand, the layer is very scratch-prone (and must never be cleaned in the dishwasher). On the other hand, PTFE pans cannot be heated particularly high. Therefore not well suited for searing meat or vegetables.

It looks different with fish. Its fragile consistency likes the droplet surface of the non-stick coating. It is better not to be led by a wrong savings drive when buying. Especially with a PTFE coating, you get more from a high quality product than from a cheap model.

Copper

Copper is the Rolls Royce of cookware materials. In contrast to copper mixing bowls, the inside of pans and pots is lined with stainless steel or tin. This prevents a chemical reaction with the food. Copper has the best thermal conductivity of all materials. This means that the pot (or pan) gets hot very quickly and stores the heat for a long time, even after the cookware has long been on the dining table.

Clay & Stone

Cooking in a clay pot, who does that? Some! On the one hand there is the classic Roman pot for braising in the oven, on the other hand there are also clay pots that are well suited for the gas stove . However, the undersides are too uneven for electric cookers and ceramic hobs, which is why the heat would be distributed unevenly and cause the pot to tear apart. On induction cookers of course, a pot made of clay or stone will not work due to the lack of a ferromagnetic field. Pots made of soapstone are particularly beautiful, which, according to the manufacturer, should only be heated in the oven. The situation is different with a tagine, a Moroccan clay pot, which can also be used to prepare excellent stews. Depending on the model, this even works on ceramic hobs and induction hobs.