How to choose a pan for pancakes

2024 Author: James Gerald | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-17 14:00

The world record for baking pancakes was set by the British in 1994. They managed to fry a specimen weighing eight hundred kilograms and fifteen meters in diameter. So far, no one has outstripped the British in terms of weight indicators, but in terms of quantitative indicators … Here we make them every year at the end of February - beginning of March. And all because when Shrovetide is mentioned, every second Russian hostess "enters the cycle" - to knead, fry, feed - and is in this state for a week. The continuity of the process is ensured by high-quality tools. In our case, a frying pan. What criteria should it meet?

Non-stick

Our grandmothers preferred cast iron. Why? Rather due to strength and durability than other performance characteristics. In order for the process of frying anything not to turn into a scraping procedure, cast-iron pans had to be carefully prepared for use: new dishes should be washed in soapy water, calcined with salt (and then with oil - to achieve the formation of a protective film), and only then she had some non-stick properties. However, the alloy had and still has one undoubted advantage - low thermal conductivity. Heating up slowly and maintaining a high temperature for a long time, it allows you to achieve the effect of a Russian stove.

Modern housewives give the palm to pans with a special coating - Teflon, which, by the way, has a rather interesting history of discovery. It, as usual, was completely random. A young research chemist at DuPont experimented with refrigerants for refrigerators, and the substance spontaneously polymerized into a white, paraffin-like powder that made things incredibly slippery. Wherever they tried to apply it: artificial joints, computer wires, roller coasters. And popularity came only in alliance with the usual items of kitchen utensils, which we eagerly use. And it is understandable why - the food does not burn, it is easy to clean, it serves for a relatively long time. Although there are problems with the latter if you use something other than wooden or polymer blades in contact with the surface.

Ceramics competed with Teflon. The main advantages claimed by manufacturers are safety and durability. We will return to the first quality later, but now we will delve into the argument in favor of the second. According to statistics, average cost Teflon cookware lasts no more than eighteen months, after which the non-stick layer begins to “wipe off”. Food sticks, more oil has to be added, which breaks the recipe. Those who advocate for ceramics argue that the service life of this coating is longer. But they omit one "but" - its dependence on the temperature difference. For example, heating and then quenching under running water can quickly "kill" such a frying pan. But you can turn the pancakes over anything - there will be no scratches.

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Weight, size, thickness

The optimal size of the "pancake" pan is 20-26 centimeters in diameter. And the filling is easy to wrap, and it is convenient to turn the pancakes themselves. However, this is a matter of taste: someone prefers to bake them small and lush, and someone flat and huge. Having decided on the size, pay attention to the thickness of the bottom and walls - the uniformity and speed of heating depends on it. Here, cast iron comes first. And by the way, numerous polls confirm that, having experimented with different coatings, most housewives end up returning to the proven "grandmother's" pans, explaining this by the fact that pancakes are "lively" and "beautifully colored" on them, whatever that means … Although it is worth recalling that baking pancakes is a long process and requires multiple lifting of the pan (when tossing / turning over, for example), and the weight of this object is felt to the full. So lovers of an alloy of iron and carbon will need much more effort to perform the same actions than those who advocate using cookware from other materials.

Security

Now it's time to get back to the issue of health protection. Any article on the Internet about Teflon pans contains a formidable warning: "Harmful!" Why? In most cases, the answer will be limited to an obscure explanation: "Dangerous substances get into food." How, when? Looking for details, you can find out that at high temperatures (from 200 ° C and above) Teflon begins to decompose into volatile substances that are extremely toxic. So it is recommended to cook in such a dish on low or medium heat, without overheating the material. But how do you know by eye that the heating is sufficient? But just for this, heat-sensitive indicators were invented - red circles in the center of the pans. And if you follow the rules of operation, then you have nothing to fear. True, there is an opinion that the quality and harmlessness of the coating also depends on the price, but links to any studies confirming this statement are usually not given. So, most likely, in this case, we are dealing exclusively with advertising gimmicks of manufacturers of premium goods.

As for pans made of other materials, there is a fierce struggle between them for the title of the most environmentally friendly. Today ceramics is the leader. Harmlessness is its main strong point. The description of the advantages is replete with scientific terms: "PFOA is not used - perfluorooctanoic acid", "there are no heavy metals in the composition - cadmium, lead, mercury." In addition, consultants will certainly inform you that the main components of the coating are earth, sand and stone. How much more natural! I just want to add the traditional one: "No living creature was harmed during the production of ceramic pans …"

As for my taste, there is not much difference between modern materials. Pros and cons in equal amounts. And it would be most correct to base the choice on your own feelings about the convenience or inconvenience of operation. For example, I never understood how my mother-in-law could easily handle a cast iron frying pan without a handle. A special grip with a long-forgotten name is also attached to it - a chapel. But nevertheless, her pancakes turn out to be very tasty, and you can watch the process of their preparation for hours, wondering: "and how this heavy metal circle does not slip out of this strange thing with a wooden handle." So, whatever one may say, it turns out that the choice of a frying pan is a purely individual matter. And not everything here depends on the modernity or safety of the materials used. Look for your own and bake with pleasure!

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