Maintaining Non stick Cookware

HI all,

Hope all of you are doing great! I am Jithiks,(Krithika) from Glen Allen, Virginia.
I do a lot of cooking, south indian, north indian, american, italian and chinese.
My kids love all types of food (only vegetarian).

I have a few tips/suggestions for using Non stick items for cooking.

1. Always wash the items with warm soap water before the first use. Wipe it with a soft cotton cloth and start using.
2. Keep the heat to medium or low always. Because high heat damages the cookware.
3. When using the non stick tava for dosas and rotis/chapathis, please keep 2 tavas separately for dosas and chapathis. When you make chapathis, the tava tends to get heat much faster and the next time you make the dosas, it may not come out perfect.
4. Never use the non stick pots and pans for making sambar,vetra kozhambu and rasam often. The tartaric acid in the tamarind makes the coating wear off very soon.
5. Always wash the non stick items after it has cooled down. Once you wash it, wipe it clean with a cotton cloth. If you leave it to dry like the other utensils, it tends to form rust .
6. Try to use less oil and cover it with lid (wherever applicable) so that it gets cooked sooner.
7. Change the non stick cookware as soon as you see the coating wear off or any other signs of discoloration inside.
8. Never leave the non stick vessel with water for a long time. This also damages the coating.

If you follow these steps, definitely the non stick cookware lasts for abt 18 months or so, keeping in mind you use them everyday. If you use them occassionally, i am sure it would last for more duration.

These are really useful for making indian curries, pastas, noodles, more kozhambu, small quantity of rasams,kootus, for seasoning etc.

For making sambar,rasam, vetra kozhambu, milagu kozhambu etc I use the aluminum Kadai i got from India.

Any more doubts or clarification, you can ask me.

Thanks,
Jithiks

 

Re: Non Stick Items For Cooking

Hi,:wave

This is Jithiks (Krithika) once again. I wanted to add a couple more things for maintaining the Non Stick cookware. These are in addition to the suggestions that I already provided when I started this thread.

- Always use wooden spoons or plastic spoons (heat resistant) that are specially marked for use on heat.
- Do not wash the non stick items in the dishwasher. Please always wash them by hand and wipe them dry immediately.
- Some brands do mention that they are dishwasher safe, but it is always better to hand wash so that they last longer.:thumbsup

Hopefully these tips will be useful for all .

Thanks,
Jithiks

 

Re: Non Stick Items For Cooking

Hi,

I am surprised why nobody is responding to this thread? Is it because I am a new member or is no one interested in this topic?

Thanks
Jithiks

 

Re: Maintating Non stick Cookware

Hi Vandhana,

Thanks a lot !

Jithiks

 

Dear Chithra,

Thanks for your comments. Which brand do we get in Chennai? Please let me know so that I can get them during my next trip.
Do you mean the Omega nonstick cookware by Prestige? Last time, when I went to chennai, i got a big Omega non stick Kadai , but I use it only to make sweets like Sarakarai Pongal, Kesari, payasams and Halwas.

Regards,
Jithiks (Krithika)

 

Dear Priya,

Thanks for your comments! Sure, let me know the brand for nonstick kadai.

Jithiks (Krithika)