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Archive for the ‘Skillets’ Category
Favorite To Cook With
My god mother is a phenomenal cook. She can make just about anything under the sun. Everything that she makes is free hand. Following a recipe is not her forte.
Her favorite pan to cook with is her skillet. For years she has cooked, fried and sauteed, stewed and souped, baked and chafed using her worn Stainless Steel skillet. The old pan is her partner, her trusted friend.
She believes, because the pan is so old, it’s fully ’seasoned’ and that’s what makes her meals so tasty & true. It’s not for me to suggest otherwise, but Stainless Steel doesn’t ’season’ as is required for cast iron ware for example.
I mean, I could on and explain:
Stainless Steel is non-porous, non-corrosive and not-toxic. There are no microscopic holes to ’season’ or fill with hardened fats. No matter how well a porous cast iron surface is ’seasoned’, it still retains a porous environment that harbors bacteria.
Stainless Steel is the most hygienic cooking surface on the market–it won’t peel, chip or erode; it won’t fume toxins, retain stain, harbor bacteria or emit metallic residues or tastes.
The best cooking utensils for sure, but my god mother has her own perspective worthy of my respect. And very true I confess; no matter my attention to ingredients, measures and recipes, I can’t replicate her simply delicious creations.
I’d love to be creative like her. I just don’t think it’s at the top of my DNA.
Cook healthy, eat honestly, and thrive.
Tools of the Trade
My dad appreciated quality craftsmanship and durability, especially in the tools he used. He taught the simple rules; for example, using the right tool for the job saves money, time and effort. It was a timeless lesson then, relearned several times in my youth as I tried to use a tool ill designed to perform the fix at hand.
There are good reasons for the wide variety of wrenches. Each wrench performs a specific fix better than another. This is by design. And so it is in the kitchen.
At our disposal are an array of cooking tools to use, each with an ideal purpose. I grew up watching both mom and dad as they cooked. They loved their Stainless Steel pots & pans. I inherited these utensils and still use them on occasion. Were mom and dad alive today, they’d truly appreciate the advances in Stainless design and performance.
But as dad would say, tried & true principles mature and remain:
- choose the right tool for the job
- care for your tools
- discern their unique value, precision and purpose
- learn, then teach with reverence and respect (for tool, and child).
With this notion in mind, care for and maintain your electric skillet and it will serve you for a lifetime. Stainless Steel is durable, resilient and unmatched for it’s ideal cooking surface and even heat distribution (no hot spots or scorch rings).
Follow manufacturer recommended use and care. Use a Stainless Steel polish to rejuvenate the outer mirrored beauty and inner satin finish. Avoid using sharp hand utensils on the cooking surface (wood is best for many earth-friendly reasons). Clean your skillet with warm, soapy water without abrasive pads, cleaners or cleansers (avoid bleach or salting the cooking surface directly–salt naturally ‘pits’ the satin surface of Stainless Steel which doesn’t effect performance but looks unappealing). The electrical controller will deteriorate over time (generally warranted for five years) and can be easily replaced. Most controllers last 10 to 20 years.
…a few thoughts on tools, as good today as they were 50 years ago. Cook healthy, eat honestly, and thrive
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