Most pots and pans look similar, but there are certain qualities to check for as you decide which to buy. There are plenty of brands and types of cookware in store, how to choose the right pots and pan for yourself?
Let's start with the most common coating available in Malaysia market.
- Stainless Steel
- Non-Stick
- Ceramic
Non-stick coating is made up from chemical compound called Polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE), With the teflon coating, the food doesn't stick to it!
Nonstick cookware can be much healthier than cooking with stainless steel cookware.
With non stick coating cookware, you can put no oil to little oil to cook food, is lot healthier than cooking with stainless steel. However, still advise not to skip all oil, food cook without any oil doesn't taste good and eating food cooked with proper amount of cooking oil is perfectly fine.
Most important, using non-stick cookware make life a lot easier , easy to cook, clean and maintain.
One of the disadvantage of non-stick coating is the durability and heat resistance ability, user who use non-stick take care the non-stick coating to pro-long the lifespan of the coating. For example, never be overheated the non-stick cookware, low or medium heat is recommended for cookware with Teflon™ nonstick coatings. Do not use metal spatula and avoid cook food with hard shell, which will scratch the coating. There are many more care tips available online.
Self experience, average 1-2 years need to get another new non-stick pans. Frequency of usage is 4-5 times a week.
Most Popular brand for non-stick cookware in Malaysia :
- Tefal (from France)
- Le Creuset (from France)
- La Gourmet Shogun
Others General Tips while choosing pots & pans
1st, you have to pick up the pan and feel it by your self, look for heavy-gauge materials, hinner-gauge materials spread and hold heat unevenly, and their bottoms are more likely to dent and warp. Ensure handle is sturdy, heatproof, and secure.
2nd, check on the material of the pots and pans, especially cookware with coating, make sure there are environmental friendly, safe to consume and PFOA free.
3rd, Check on the cookware base, ensure the pots and pans you looking are compatible with the cooking hob in your kitchen. There are varies type of cooking hob in the marketing, for instant like gas, infrared, hot plate, ceramic, induction and etc... Please check your cooking hob before proceed to buy new pots and pan.
Most common cases happened on induction hob, which shopper may not aware their cooking hob is induction and bought a non compatible pots and pans, at the end the pan not able to heat up by the induction hob.
Of course, as a consumer, we can get back the product to seller and exchange another one, but is kinda wasting your time. If you are not sure what type of cooking hob you using in your kitchen, no worries, just proceed to induction compatible pots and pans, because once its compatible with induction, it compatible to all kinds of hob.
4th, Ensure the size is enough for your family size. Here is some suggestion for picking sizes:
1-2 Pax : 24-26cm diameter
3-4 Pax : 28- 30cm diameter
4 Pax & Above : 30cm and above diameter
We hope we have provided you with information for an informed decision to purchase a wonderful best cookware set. Happy shopping!
Other related articles : Pros and Cons of Cookware Materials