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A Good Electric Mill for Grains

Depending on what sort of quantities you're looking at, you could try some solar panels on a windmill.

May 10, 2010
GabrielKnight in Cookware

Is it safe to leave silicone utensils sitting in the pan during high heat cooking?

Funnily enough, I'm fairly sure I didn't know the answer, but thanks for the info!

For the last 20 years I've been cooking almost entirely with non-stick pans, but have very recently turned to cast iron, trying to achieve significantly higher temps to get restaurant style steaks.

Spoon rests are a good idea, but it's still something else to take up room and drips need cleaning off the counter / holder. If there is a utensil I can keep in the pan (like wooden spoons at low temp) it's just one less thing to think about.

800*F seems a very high temperature. Am I ever likely to accidently get above this without burning out the pan or making cooking a steak unworkable?

May 10, 2010
GabrielKnight in Cookware


By 'leave' I mean have the utensil sitting in the pan for 10 minutes at a time while the food cooks.

By 'silicone' I mean "high temperature silicone" from a reputable manufacturer

By 'utensils' I mean spatulas, spoons and the like.

By 'safe', I mean
a) It won't melt
b) It won't cause health / flavour problems

By 'high heat cooking' I mean
a) As hot as an oven can get (In the UK, 500°F, 260°C, Gas Mark 9)
b) Cast iron cookware, past the seasoning smoke point, but before the seasoning is cooked off, for very fast searing of steak.

May 10, 2010
GabrielKnight in Cookware

Why have a skillet when a saute pan does the job?

Knet is correct of course, but a saute pan can easily be used to shallow / medium fry too if desired. In fact it offers some advantages over a frying pan including higher sides to hold more oil, reducing splatter and maximising available cooking area by using square sides.

Which brings us back to the original question - Is there anything a frying pan can do better than a saute pan other than allow for easier flipping of food? Maybe 20% less cost, 20% less weight and 20% less room in the dishwasher? But so, so much less versatility!

If you run a restaurant or have a big family or a lot of money to spend, you'd presumably have both, but I think the OP was asking that if you were planning to spend £100s on a single copper pan, surely it would make more sense to buy the saute rather than the fryer.

In fact if I could afford two, I think I'd still go for 2x saute for maximum versatility.

May 10, 2010
GabrielKnight in Cookware

Le Creuset vs. Staub


May 01, 2010
GabrielKnight in Cookware

10 or 12 inch skillet?

Normal sized hobs with a 12" pan can be problematic but can be improved with slower preheating of cast iron as the material retains long term heat so well.

Apr 29, 2010
GabrielKnight in Cookware