COOKWARE - what not to use and why

COOKWARE

The safest cookware you can use is properly seasoned cast iron.  It works on all cooking surfaces, including induction, and it's inexpensive.  Older pans, found on eBay and at garage sales, are thinner and lighter than new pans but most require serious cleaning and re-seasoning.  IMO it's a pain to create and maintain the seasoning so, once seasoned, I only use mine for things that require lots of fat. 

Field Company makes "vintage-style" cast iron - thinner and lighter - which arrives pre-seasoned.  I have the 8" size and I love it!  They're expensive, though. 

Enamel is also safe.  It's inert, it doesn't leach, and it's stick resistant (NOT stick-free).  It does wear off over time so don't use metal utensils (I use wood) and don't scrub too hard when you clean it, let it soak first.  Le Creuset and Staub are enamel on cast iron and made in France.  Chantal Copper Fusion is enamel over tri-ply-steel, made in Germany is no longer available. These three are the brands I use.  Le Creuset is light colored enamel which I prefer as it's easier to see the color of foods browning, and when the enamel is wearing thin.   All three brands sell ceramic baking dishes that are made in China and are NOT SAFE.

Enamel wearing away on the bottom of my 20-year-old white Le Creuset pot (compare the bottom - grey - to the white sides)  I hope to get another 5 years out of this pot

NOTE: Cooks Illustrated just released a review praising the Cuisinart Enamel Dutch Oven:

"This model costs a third of what our favorite Le Creuset Dutch oven does and performed almost as well. With a very similar design—low, straight sides and a broad, off-white cooking surface—it allowed us to easily move food, sear in fewer batches, and monitor browning. The trade-offs: The Cuisinart pot is 3 pounds heavier and has slightly smaller handles than the Le Creuset pot, and its rim chipped during abuse testing."

Some people claim that ceramic is the safest, but the most popular brand, Xtrema, has a red 'label' on the bottom that is very high in lead and will off-gas into the room when you use it.  It won't work on induction.  I wouldn't use it until they remove that label and the new label tests safe.

Glass is safe; but, like ceramic, it won't work on induction.

Titanium is safe but it's prohibitively expensive.  You can sometimes find used pieces on eBay. SaladMaster is a reliable brand.  The newest brands (I see them advertised on Facebook a lot) are not all they are hyped up to be.

DO NOT USE ANY NON-STICK COOKWARE!

Not even the newest brand, Hestan, 

which is also based on PTFE, the same polymer used in Teflon.

The worst cookware you can use is bare aluminum.  It will leach into everything you cook.
If you have an aluminum pressure canner DO NOT USE IT FOR COOKING!

In between is everything else:

Stainless steel can leach nickel.  The higher the nickel percentage, the more 'stainless' the steel. 18/10 is high, 18/0 is low.
We use 18/10 and don't worry about the nickel content.


Anodized aluminum, like Calphalon, is supposedly safe but if the finish rubs off it will leach aluminum into your food.  I got rid of all of ours.

Copper reacts with acid.  It needs to be lined or toxic amounts of copper can leach into food.  It's usually lined with tin, which wears over time and needs to be replaced.  Some high-end brands are lined with stainless, which can leach nickel.  Copper also needs care to look good (i.e. it tarnishes easily).

A note about cooking surfaces

Gas cooktops MUST be vented.  

According to a study done by Lawrence Berkley Lab:

"The Berkeley researchers concluded that 62 percent of households using gas burners without venting are routinely exposed to excessive levels of nitrogen dioxide, carbon monoxide and formaldehyde gases that can trigger respiratory problems and aggravate asthma and cardiovascular disease, especially in young children and older adults."

“If these pollution levels were outdoors, the state would be required by law to submit a plan for how to clean up the air,” Singer said. “But they are inside a home.”

Many people use gas because it's favored by restaurants and it makes them feel like a 'chef'.  Here is the best write up on why that reasoning is erroneous, and it's HILARIOUS.  Please read it.

I had gas cooktops most of my life. Then ... we moved to a house which had an electric Jenn Aire with a (useless) downdraft.  We intended to replace it with gas but the conversion was too expensive so I lived with it.  When the Jenn Aire finally died we put in a smooth top GE electric.  I hated that, too, so when we redid the kitchen we put in a Miele induction cooktop and ... I LOVED IT!  I will never cook on anything else, if I have a choice.   They are super responsive and a dream to clean.

BAKING

Most bakeware is non-stick.  DO NOT USE NON-STICK BAKEWARE! 

Some people say it's OK to use silicon bakeware, others disagree.

Clear Glass is OK (colored Pyrex is NOT OK).

Apilco and Pillivuyt plain white porcelain baking dishes are OK.  I would not use Chinese-made copies like HIC.  It might be OK - the Chinese invented high-heat-fired porcelain (which is why we call dishes 'china') - but why risk it?

Xtrema ceramic will be OK once they remove the red label.

I use aluminum half-sheet pans lined in either a silicon mat or parchment.  I cannot find a stainless half-sheet pan and that's the size I use the most!  I FOUND A STAINLESS 13 x 18" pan!  It's called a "Bun Pan".  It's not expensive - $28 in Jan 2026 - but shipping was half the price of the pan.  Thankfully, shipping for 4 was the same as shipping for 1.  I use 4 to make granola, so ordering 4 was a win-win for me.   This is such a useful pan - use it to roast veggies, make a roulade, or catch drips under a baking dish - buy 4 and share them with friends.

I found three sizes of stainless roasting pans at Golda's Kitchen.  Golda's Kitchen closed in 2020.  When I asked where they sourced the Catering Line Nuovo Optimum line of bakeware, they sent me to Adamo Import, but I have not found the pans on their site.  These pans were stainless steel and stick resistant.  If you know where they are sold, please let me know! 

Lehman's makes a stainless cookie sheet.

CLEANING

Even though I hate - HATE - washing dishes, I wash all our dishes by hand, and always have.  Even if the manufacturer states the product is dishwasher-safe, using a dishwasher will reduce the life of the pan and having to replace cookware reduces the amount of money available to spend on healthy food.

I also will not put any pan or dish away until it is as clean as when it was new (or as close as I can get it).  Keeping my pans clean also extends their life.  When I gave away my 20-year-old All Clad set because it wasn't induction compatible, it looked new.  I am still using the 30-year-old enamel bakeware that came with our toaster oven.  (Yes, our toaster oven is 30 years old!  It was made by Delonghi but I don't know if their current line is as well made.)

These are the cleaning products I use:

• For stainless and titanium - Bar Keeper's Friend
• For enamel - Bon Ami
• For porcelain and ceramic - Bon Ami
• For Chantal and Le Creuset - Chantal Cleaner or Le Creuset Cleaner  Le Creuset cleaner has a strong odor and I'm not sure it's healthy to inhale it so I only use it when Bon Ami doesn't work.
  

Because we have so much salt in our water from the water softener I always dry our pans after I clean them so the salt doesn't leave a deposit or eat through the finish.