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But why take the chance? Just buy a metal spatula next time and there’s nothing to worry about if it turns out to be true
by hamhock666 2y ago
But why take the chance? Just buy a metal spatula next time and there’s nothing to worry about if it turns out to be true
- lxgr 2y agoOnly if you don't care about not ruining your non-stick pans (or don't use any).
- bell-cot 2y agoThe non-stick pans that release all sorts of concerning-at-even-1ppb fluorine compounds?
- afh1 2y agoWhat do you cook on?
- lxgr 2y agoYep, these, because anything else completely ruins the fun in cooking for me, as I really don't enjoy cleaning dishes longer than I've spent cooking.
- mtalantikite 2y agoTry out carbon steel if you haven't. Season it once and it's essentially non-stick -- all I do is give mine a light rinse for a few seconds and then towel dry.
- zeroonetwothree 2y agoCarbon steel is not nonstick without adding oil. Also you can’t use it with acidic foods. I actually prefer stainless steel most of the time, the sticking is more of a feature for many foods since it promotes browning. (But I do use basically every type of pan for different things)
- mtalantikite 2y agoOh interesting, that's a point I hadn't considered -- do people really cook in non-stick pans without any sort of oil? I've never owned one so genuinely didn't realize people did that. My Mediterranean family brought me up to use olive oil liberally! And also true re: acidic foods -- I've got a couple stainless, but mainly use my enameled cast iron or clay (tagine) for tomato based dishes.
- lxgr 2y ago> do people really cook in non-stick pans without any sort of oil? Definitely! As much as I generally love it, e.g. pancakes with olive oil sound like a dubious idea, taste-wise. Regarding frying things in olive oil, I was also under the impression that it's not particularly heat-stable and unhealthy substances can start forming at relatively low temperatures?
- mtalantikite 2y agoOh lol, yeah, I wouldn't use olive oil on pancakes. That's definitely a butter situation. As for high heat with olive oil, I'm not sure about it being unhealthy or not. I just found this overview [1], and it seems like there isn't great evidence. I again hadn't considered it, since it's something my ancestors have done for thousands of years. Sample size of one family, but my grandmother lived to her 90s and my great-aunt is still walking around Paris in her mid-90s! [1] https://www.seriouseats.com/cooking-with-olive-oil-faq-safety-flavor https://www.seriouseats.com/cooking-with-olive-oil-faq-safet...
- theultdev 2y agometal spatulas scrape. there's non-stick dishes to worry about. and I thought of the sunny episode when I read your comment. "just in case is as good a reason as any to believe in something", whether it's monkey paws, throwing salt over your shoulder, knocking on wood, etc.
- archagon 2y agoAt the very least, there’s about a 100% chance of microplastics getting into your food when using these things under heat. You can argue about the risks all day, but I imagine most people would want to avoid this bioaccumulation if possible.
- accrual 2y agoThis is my take as well. Can I avoid microplastics? No. Can I make simple household decisions that minimize my intake? Yes. Stainless pots and pans, stainless or wooden tools, stainless silverware, ceramic plates and bowls. Yes, it takes slightly longer to clean some stuff up, but at least I'm not eating as much plastic/PTFE.
- kelipso 2y agoSeriously lol, the effort vs risk ratio is insanely in favor of getting rid getting rid of plastic spatulas. Though, it should be pretty obvious even before this study that plastic, heat, and ingesting the result do not go together.
- ndriscoll 2y agoMetal spatulas are also just better. Plastic or silicone ones are like safety scissors, so of course you need non-stick pans. I don't run into sticking with cast iron and a metal spatula.
- crabbone 2y agoYou are using them for the wrong purpose... Plastic spatulas are useful for sauces, batter, anything of that consistency. Of course, if you are already holding it in your hand and you need to flip a pancake, there's nothing wrong with it... Similarly, there are plenty of different metal spatulas for different purposes, like decorating cakes or cooking on one big stove-top (as opposed to individual burners, that's something you see in the restaurant kitchens more often than in private use). And, again, you don't have to use any specific one for any specific task. My mom never had a spatula and did everything with a single chef knife she had, and it still worked for her.
- DowagerDave 2y agoyou're only focusing on the immediate, literal replacement cost though; what if (and there are as credible papers as this one, stating so) using a metal spatula on my teflon pan causes it to get into my food and that's what will kill me? Or various metals are an even bigger health risk? >> should be pretty obvious even before this study that plastic, heat, and ingesting the result do not go together. I don't think this is true.
- kelipso 2y agoIf you are using teflon pans, then metal spatulas are probably worse for you. But you should not be using teflon pans on the first place! Also wood spatulas exist as a very good replacement for plastic spatulas for teflon pans anyway.
- teractiveodular 2y agoMetal spatulas cause damage to frying pans. How do I know which is worse, the plastic melting off my black spatula or the non-stick coating scraping off my frying pan? I suppose I could go cast iron, but I'm sure I can find a study saying those are terrible too.
- steelbrain 2y agoYou don't have to get cast-iron necessarily. Try carbon-steel. My mother doesn't like cast iron because of the maintenance required, and we don't use non-stick for the alleged health issues. Got a bunch of carbon-steel cookware and she loves it.
- ronyeh 2y agoDon’t you need to season carbon steel cookware? Or do you perform a quick season on the cooktop right before frying / searing? In that case, you could also use stainless steel cookware, which is even less maintenance than carbon steel.
- bayindirh 2y agoYes, you need to. I have a couple from IKEA and they come with seasoning directions inside. Stainless steel is very foolproof actually, but at the end of the day, we mostly prefer silicone/wood utensils in the house, except a couple of items.
- zeroonetwothree 2y agoCarbon steel has the same maintenance requirements as cast iron. I do like it better because of weight though.
- hnfong 2y agoThe lighter weight makes maintenance much easier in practice.
- tourmalinetaco 2y ago
- bayindirh 2y agoWhy not wood?
- therealdrag0 2y agoI can’t believe how many people are commenting like metal is the only option when wood and silicon are perfectly plentiful and cheap.