Why is this demonization of Teflon aka PTFE? I mean yes PFOA and PFOS are pretty bad, but PTFE should be pretty safe if you don't overheat it. I mean I just purchased a non-stick cooking pan and it contained PTFE coating; should I be worried now?
I’m not telling you to cook differently or but a specific pan, but I don’t get it. I’ve had the same metal pans for about 15 years and they work as well as ever. Just about nothing sticks to them. I don’t need to worry about what might seep out of them into my air or dinner, they were extremely economical, I think they look nice, etc.
Why is there even a market for potentially harmful cookware? Was it driven by marketing or am I mistaken, and my pans aren’t any good?
> Why is there even a market for potentially harmful cookware? Was it driven by marketing or am I mistaken, and my pans aren’t any good?
Eggs. There's a reason almost all professional chefs, despite knowing more than anyone about how to season metal-based pans, use nonstick pans for eggs. (And sometimes fish.)
What am I missing out on? Something must make teflon/nonstick better than cast iron here, but I have never had any problems with eggs or fish in my heavy pans.
I can believe nonstick is X amount faster for Y different dishes. I am still easily able to cook crepes, omelettes and fried eggs perfectly with my well seasoned cast iron pans.
I'd note that nonstick pans are usually coated aluminum and so a fair amount lighter than cast iron pans. If I needed to produce a certain number of eggs per hour, that would be a big thing for me. But should society decide based on this?
It’s funny you would say that. A fried egg in one of these steel pans [1] is so much better that it is almost a different dish. The white gets a wonderful crispy texture. Pan seasoned by heat only. No oils. And it is non-stick after that.
If you're talking about carbon steel it takes a little more technique and especially more oil to use for things where you want a non-stick situation. It's not a ton of oil but there's definitely been a shift in the last couple decades and it just doesn't work with the infinitesimal amounts of fat a lot of people try to cook with now.
Where teflon nonstick is as foolproof as you can get, as long as the coating hasn't worn out things basically won't stick. It also makes cleanup very easy even for things where you don't specifically need nonstick, which is very practical for how a lot of people cook, especially people who don't particularly enjoy cooking. Can't really put carbon steel in the dishwasher either, which again people who enjoy cooking and maintain nice gear look down on, but is just a practical consideration that a lot of people weigh heavily so you can't ignore.
If you're talking about cast iron that's a different thing. A lot of overlap with teflon nonstick but some things aren't comfortable or practical in it so it's not a complete replacement.
I'm not specifically an expert on cookware or anything but I have like 20 years of professional cooking experience so not totally ignorant either.
Your pans are good, they’re actually bad for the industry because they have no death and the industry wants to sell you something “better and improved” every year.
Indeed. Over here every slightly larger supermarket has an aisle full with various Teflon cookware. Cast iron and stainless? Nowhere to be seen, you have to go to some specialty shop to find them. They last forever, so the market must be tiny compared to all the coated stuff that wears out in a few years.
If you have pet birds (or plan to get any), the vapors it releases will kill them horribly (slow death due to seizures). Humans don't absorb as much and have a lot more mass, so it's not acutely harmful unless overheated (used for searing or other high-heat processes). Even then it's not going to immediately kill you, just increase your risk of cancer significantly.
I think the issue is more in manufacturing and disposal not use. Don't overheat your pan and you are fine. The garments also used PFAS based coatings for water repellent coatings which are also bad.
Yes. i.e. 400-500F is much more likely to be harmful to health than 300F. This is why teflon pans are not a good choice for things like searing meat, where you really want the surface to be very hot. Of course, you can still do plenty of cooking at 300F.
Or just preheating oil — you can easily get a pan within that range in just a couple of minutes if you put oil on the bottom and turn the stove on high
That's correct, best used for more gentle cooking like eggs and fish that really stick and not high heat searing. Can withstand normal levels of heat but higher heat can degrade the PTFE coating and release harmful chemicals. Don't heat the pan too much with nothing in it.
Cooking in Teflon cookware been associated with liver cancer.
More generally, ingesting anything your body can’t break down doesn’t end well. It typically builds up and causes cancer. E.g. asbestos, silica lung, stomach cancer from chewing tobacco, etc.
It’s just overkill. I am not worrying too much about fluorine based plastics but I’d rather have it used sparingly for exotic use cases.
btw I’d recommend cast iron over non-stick for frying pans. Liberally used oils on heat treated pans work the same as nonstick coatings but require much less care. PTFE surfaces are more suitable for stew pans and rice cookers than pans.
I think this particular use case of PTFE makes it very prone to breaking up into small particles and ending up (quite permanently) in the environment and potentially in you. They're not very strong garments.
But this is true of most plastic fabrics, and plastic fabric is to blame for much of the microplastics in our lifestyles. Just throwing a nylon top into the dryer and you'll see all the lovely little plastic fabric particles making their way into your laundry.
Make sure you don’t scratch it, and don’t overheat it. There are studies that appear to show it might not be ideal even following that, but it’s not completely clear I think. It should be fine if you treat it correctly
