Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
I just recently purchased an old-school West Bend Electric Skillet and cannot express how much it's changed my life in the kitchen in terms of simplicity and clean up. No oven/stove top burners/pots and pans to clean and the one vessel type of cooking is great for people who work all day and want to cook something good+healthy minus all the work. The best $40 I've spent in a long time!
I used to have a vintage one, I loved to make steaks in it, because the temperature was just right. It quit working after a time and have not replaced it. You make me want another one, Kyle!
We have an expensive oil core version, and it doesn't cook any better than the inexpensive one my mother used for decades. For me, nothing fries chicken like an electric skillet.
You can make anything in an electric skillet. Anything that boils, steams, frys or bakes.
The most versatile single appliance there is. I lived for six months with only a cooler and an electric skillet and a sink. Name it and I can tell you how I made it.
Between slow cooker, pressure cooker, Dutch oven and convection oven I wouldn't have any use for it.
It heats too slow. Still needs cleaning. And most important - it has non-stick coating. I don't cook in that toxic stuff anymore.
For quick meals I use my pressure cooker. For regular cooking Dutch oven. Other gadgets just collect the dust...
My busy friends use slow cooker - food cooks while they are at work and it's ready when they come home. No cooking after work needed.
However, those electric skillets have great reviews. Enjoy yours!
The dangers of non stick coatings are like radiation damage from your micro wave - great theory, but exactly ZERO empirical evidence. Concern about them is entertaining, but hobbling for serious cooks.
You are correct about the slow cooker and pressure vessel. Both perform well what the electric skillet takes hours to do.
But, there is still one question. Does your convection oven actually heat up faster than the electric skillet? I have a Jenn Air convection oven and I would estimate it takes 5 times as long to heat to temperature as the electric skillet.
We actually have a stainless steel electric wok that we use much as my mom used her electric skillet when I was growing up. It's very versatile, and cleans up in a snap. Heats up quickly, sears well, and though ti obviously works well for Asian dishes, it also works well for, well, pretty much anything you'd use an electric skillet for...deeper, though, which is great for various things.
I want one of these, too, for breaded cutlets and fish filets, and keeping the proper temperature for french fries.
That, IMO, is the real advantage of an electric skillet. I only use mine a couple of times each year, when I make potato latkes, and the consistency of the temperature of that electric skillet helps to make the latkes scrumptious.
I didn't even have to spend any money to get my Sunbeam electric skillet, as it came from the home of a deceased Great Aunt, who bought it in the early '50s. This sturdy old appliance is still working flawlessly after more than 60 years!
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.
Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
