Grow Your Own Magazine

I've recently brought a stainless steel frying pan and everything sticks to it. Is it me or does this happen to all of them ? Any suggestions would be most appreciated.

Not being funny but the best thing is to give up on the stainless fry pan and buy one of those Tefal thermospot jobbies - they are just the best.

The good thing about the stainless steel pans though is that even though everything sticks, you can get them lovely and clean again easily!

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Happy Gardening,
Shirley

http://www.honeyjukes.co.uk

Can't agree more Shirley. I have recently bought one of they there tefal jobbies and nothing sticks to it

I also have a very old cast iron pan that I regularly coat with olive oil and then heat it up to almost burning (if you know what I mean) so I would suggest that you oil the pan before you put it away and see if that helps.

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A garden is a lovesome thing, God wot! (Thomas Edward Brown)

Due to the properties of most retail store stainless steel cookware food is going to stick to it unless you use some type of non stick spray. The benefit of using stainless steel though it is the most sanitary type cookware on the market, doesn't pick up the taste of Teflon, yet it is hard to cook out of! If you can find "Waterless, Greaseless cookware" It is a type of Stainless steel cookware that food does not want to stick to and it is real easy to use but it's not cheap! in the thousand pound range! They don't sell it in retail stores you have to attend a demonstration of it!

I have a couple of stainless steel frying pans - they're 'catering' ones (ie very thick bases) and I haven't had much of a sticking problem with them but I do find that with things like eggs, it really helps to use quite a lot more oil than you might be used to from non-stick type pans (which of course can be drained away before serving). I've had mine over ten years now and they still look like new, so worth perservering with yours, I think!

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http://thankyouforthedays.blogspot.com/

In the woods there grew a tree
And a fine fine tree was he

just a tip on the frying pan clean the pan thoroughly heat the pan realy hot but dry of oil when very hot take off heat put in a little oil and wipe out as dry as possible with kitchen paper you cant get it all out no matter how you try let it cool from then on you should have no trouble but never wash it in soapy water just plain water and wipe out with kitchen paper every time good luck acelandcaper

Gotta agree with Seahorse here, we've a couple of SS fry pans, thick bottoms (!) no sticking, maybe you've got the heat too high? Easy clean, like new at least 5 years old.

Had one of those fancy expensive non-stick jobbies, circulon - coating comes off - threw it away after about 4 years! SS rocks!

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Manda.

"Wouldn't it be nice
For maybe an hour
To not have a care."

Thanks for all the advice given, it was much appreciated.

Also don't fry at too high a temperature.

I think Polly F's advice is excellent.

When I moved into this house some 11 years ago - it also co-incided with a long service award where I worked - quite generous actually - £300!

I decided to spend the lot on cookware - from small pans, steamer, sauteurs etc. Yes it was stainless steel but as you might imagine - the highest up the range I could afford with that tidy bit of cash. The brand is Meyer - they're very heavy with polished outsides and satin insides. Sometimes stuff does stick but I cook with olive oil were oil/fat required and do find that this helps. I have also mainatined a wooden/plastic spoon/spatula regime since they were bought. Heavy handed use of metal tools will simply harm the cooking surface.

They clean up great and are as good as the day I bought them and guaranteed for 25 years - which will probably see me out of my cooking days and my man-child can inherit. He has also been very good when using them and keeps to the chosen tools!

I've never regretted spending such a huge amount on them as I've had my time of £20 quid sets. I still keep just one pan from the grotty set for boiling eggs and other tasks where a pan might get damaged from say acid if making chutney.