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To give your pans the best chance of a long life in the kitchen, it's important you heat them correctly. Our Quality Manager Henrik Hansen explains how in this blog post.
Heating up pans isn't hard, but it's important to bear a few things in mind for the best results – with your food and in terms of the longevity of your kitchenware.
"Quality pans with an optimal base thickness are good at retaining heat, but it's important to heat the pan for a sufficient amount of time before adding food (approx. 2-3 minutes) so that the pan's sides also heat up. A pan that has been thoroughly heated through will hold its temperature better when you add meat or vegetables. Once the pan has been thoroughly heated, add your fat and continue cooking at a lower temperature (approx. 2/3 of the original heat)," is what Henrik Hansen, Quality Manager at SCANPAN has to say about heating pans.
Hansen continues:
"Turn the head down from full, so that the pan's temperature doesn't overheat while you prepare the food, or if you get distracted by your phone, for example. On an induction hob, this can be a matter of seconds if the pan is on full heat.”
Are you familiar with this problem? You've bought a pan with a nonstick coating, you use it for frying and the nonstick effect starts to deteriorate.
Henrik Hansen can also help avoid this issue:
"The reason the slip effect deteriorates, or even disappears completely, can be because you have subjected your pan, with e.g. oil, to overheating and other treatment that your nonstick pan is unable to withstand.
Overheating typically happens when oil or fats get too hot, not the pot or pan. If the oil gets too hot, it can burn and stick to the nonstick coating, which then deteriorates over time. If the oil is smoking then it's too hot," Hansen explains, repeating that:
"The key to correctly heating your pans is timing, as mentioned previously. If you choose to heat with high temperatures, only do so for a few minutes."
SCANPAN's nonstick cookware can handle temperatures higher than 95% of the fats used in the kitchen.
Correctly heating your pans is all about timing, so if you choose to heat using high temperatures, make sure it's only for a few minutes at a time.
There are many benefits to using induction as a heat source, including saving energy, reduced risk of burning yourself on the hob and faster temperature adjustment. Another benefit, but one which you have to be careful of when heating pans, is that induction hobs heat up kitchenware much faster than traditional hobs.
"You can heat a dry pan on high heat on an induction hob, but only for 2-3 minutes at a time. Then turn down the heat to 2/3 and add any oil or other fat, if required. If you 'overheat' for a long period of time, the fat will burn to the base of the pan and will, over time, destroy the coating, which becomes discoloured both inside and out," Hansen explains.
To give your pans an extra long life in the kitchen, and a long-lasting nonstick effect and easy cleaning, it's essential that you heat them correctly.
"It's also important to clean your pans by hand with soap and water. Dishwasher chemicals are too harsh on nonstick coatings," concludes Hansen; another simple tip, but good to know.
Read more about induction in general and cleaning your pots and pans.
