Non-stick coated pans have been a wonderful convenience for forty years. They enable you to fry sticky foods such as eggs and make sauces and porridge without having to use industrial cleaner to remove burnt on food afterwards.

But there are drawbacks and inconveniences associated with their use. Here are some tips from my time in product development and as a shopkeeper which may help you get the most from your non stick pans and help you to keep them longer.

1) Use less heat

Non-stick is a relatively fragile coating and works best when applied to aluminium pans as the heat is insufficient to cause the coating to break down. Cast iron, stainless steel and mild steel generate so much heat, particularly when stir frying in a wok, that the temperature of the coating can reach critical and it can then start to disintegrate. So when using any of these pans it is best to use less heat and to start frying as soon as possible rather than pre heating the pan for too long.

2) Use the correct oil

Always use the correct oil. Some oils burn before you’ve even reached a high enough temperature for frying – olive oil and rapeseed oil are the main culprits. When the pan is preheated with olive oil and it starts to smoke the oil is burning and coating the non stick with a glaze of carbonised oil which is not non stick. The trend for spray olive oil makes things worse when the pan is pre heated as a fine mist of oil sprayed onto the hot pan immediately burns and forms an instant coating which is not non stick – ideal for burning your food. It has to be remembered that it is heat that causes sticking.

3) Cleaning

Carbon steel/blue steel frying pans without a non-stick coating need to be seasoned with oil but this does not apply to pans with a non-stick coating. All you need to do is wash your pan thoroughly in soap and water inside and out prior to putting it away. Unfortunately I’ve seen so many filthy pans that are covered in burnt on food. Non stick does not mean non burn. If you do burn food onto the surface try Lady Jane scourers which are non abrasive or in really bad cases try boiling up biological washing powder for half an hour and agitating with a stiff brush. The results can be amazing and might save you the cost of a new pan following a Friday night burn out. Putting your non-stick pan in the dishwasher should always be avoided whatever the manufacturer says. Dishwashers gradually erode the surface of whatever you put into them so a non-stick pan will begin to lose its slipperiness.

4) Don’t use metal tools

Don’t use metal tools – they destroy the surface. There is not a pan made that can withstand a prod from a fork or a cut from a knife and when your teenage son brings his friends back for a Friday night fry up keep your best pans under lock and key.
If friends offer to wash up don’t let them plunge the cutlery into your non stick pan to soak as the resulting damage to the surface can be worse than using a knife on it.

5) Eggs

Eggs straight from the fridge will stick immediately to the best non stick ever made so it’s much better to allow them to come to room temperature before use.

6) Eco friendly ceramic non-stick

The new eco friendly ceramic non-sticks are, in my opinion, superb but again it depends on the quality of the manufacturer as to how well they cope. You can still burn them with olive oil and still destroy them with excess heat but I must say after letting my teenage son loose on one of ours I was amazed how well it cleaned up even though it is not quite as pristine as it once was.

7) Non-stick versus uncoated

Finally – non stick versus uncoated? Well non stick will only degrade over time but offers great convenience. If you can look after a non-stick pan well it will give huge satisfaction but don’t expect to keep it for life. Other pans such as stainless steel will go on getting better but you will have to go through the agony of sticking before they improve with age.

Michael

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