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The grease that I am talking about is the butter or olive oil I will put on the bottom of my cookie sheet to bake baguettes or cookies, although lately I've begun using parchment paper (which burns). I have a glass pie dish I use to cook biscuits in and I butter that. It seems like the butter burns itself into the edges (fluted, of course) of the pie dish and leaves a burnt-on greasy look that I can't get off no matter what. Likewise, if I spill something on my burner, the bottom of the sauce pans and the frying pans get that same burnt grease look on the outside. It makes the cookware look filthy and unwashed, even though I know I've clean and washed the pans over and over, and scrubbed them, too. It's the outsides of the pans I'm worried about the most.
Quote:
Originally Posted by davebarnes
What do you plan to buy?
How much is not cheap?
What do you want in a set?
What do you really need/use?
I don't want to pay over $50, anything else is more than I can afford. I'm been looking at a used set (if I want to get the quality I want, then I'll have to buy used) of nonstick hard-anodized aluminum. I really have no idea if these will take high heat. I've only recently begun to cook over high heat to make scrambled eggs (a la Julia Child) and to sear meat, and I use high heat in my oven (around 500°) for the baguettes.
The reason I like this set is because it has three frying pans and three sauce pans, which is what I use the most. What I have now is one small sauce pan (1qt), one larger sauce pan (3qt), and a small frying pan (6"). The little frying pan is on its last legs, with the nonstick Teflon practically all gone and the handle falls off every other Tuesday. And as I've started cooking more, I realized I definitely needed a larger frying pan.
I am concerned about the nonstick. I'd like these pans to be able to go from the stove into the oven, but nonstick is all I see, and I don't think I can put a nonstick pan into the oven to cook. I know the nonstick wears off after a while, too. But this is the best deal I've seen for the money, so I'm willing to give on a few things.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Nor'Eastah
If people would just learn to SOAK their cookware and bakeware - not for hours, just 15-20 minutes or so - they would save themselves a ton or scraping, scouring and scratching...not to mention, wear and tear on an expensive pot.
I use nonstick foil for cooking chicken in a glaze in the oven. The last time I did this, the foil tore and hoisin sauce went all over the bottom of the pan. I soaked it for three days and couldn't even begin to rub it off. When I went to scrub it and try to lift this stuff up, I found I was scrubbing off the top layer of the pan! I was using a brillo pad when this happened. It could be a cheap pan, however.
And while I'm on here asking questions about cookware, maybe someone can answer me this: do all cookie sheets warp and twist while baking, or am I just getting cheap cookie sheets. And if so, where and how much do I have to pay to get a decent one that doesn't look like a pretzel when it comes out of the oven?
Thank you everyone, for your responses. My mother just cooks your basic hamburger, spaghetti, etc, and she never taught me to cook. At the ripe old age of 60, I only learned to really cook a year ago and I'm having a blast. But also noticing there's a lot to learn!
You could try picking up pieces as needed at Ross or Tuesday Morning type stores, they often have "orphans" If you or someone you know has a Costco membership - I think their branded cookware set is excellent.
Agree with PP's on soaking, reheating water, using SOS or brillo, and BarKeeps Friend (also Bon Ami)
I've gotten a lot more mileage from my cookie sheets by using parchment paper. If you have ones with rolled edges - I put mine back in the warm oven after cleaning to make sure that there is no water trapped in the rolled part.
The grease that I am talking about is the butter or olive oil I will put on the bottom of my cookie sheet to bake baguettes or cookies, although lately I've begun using parchment paper (which burns).
DId the set come with instructions? Do they have a website or customer support number? They would be the ones to ask.
Thanks, but I was looking at them on eBay. I do know the name of the manufacturer, though, now that I think about it, so I suppose I could just look at their web site. That's a big DUH on me, isn't it? I guess I should have been able to figure that one out for myself.
I have one and it's lasted almost 25 years. Does not burn, nothing sticks to it, cleans up easily. Reusable.
Thanks, I've actually been considering getting one of those. But I still have to put that on a cookie sheet though, don't I? Even if the mat is fine, the cookie sheet will still twist.
For my pots and pans if they start looking bad I fill them with water, add in capful or two of apple cider vinegar, heat it to boiling, then rinse out and scrub, everything comes right up.
Also when I'm done cooking I will put in some water in the pan and warm it up (not boiling) and then wash the pan, gets clean really easy
I love Dawn's Platinum Power Clean dishwashing detergent. In hot water it cleans AMAZINGLY quickly. We also use scrubby net to wash dishes with -- we don't have a dishwasher, so we wash everything by hand. Sign up for Joann Fabrics coupons, and buy scrubby net by the yard. It's with the nylon nets, and nylon net works too -- but it doesn't hold up as well. The bolt will say scrubby net.
Thanks, I've actually been considering getting one of those. But I still have to put that on a cookie sheet though, don't I? Even if the mat is fine, the cookie sheet will still twist.
A quality cookie sheet does not twist. What is the name/brand of the dishes you want?
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