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What is best thickness for stainless steel cookware?

Views: 403 Author: China CHANGWEN Cookware Publish Time: 07/08/2022 Origin: https://www.cookwarecw.com

Stainless steel, which was invented in 1913 by Englishman Harry Brearley, has certainly made its mark in kitchens worldwide in recent decades. It has been proven to be an incredibly popular and reliable material both at home and in restaurants and food industries. There are many different types of stainless steel cookware products on the market these days, with varying levels of quality of course. You should also consider the pan’s thickness and weight when making a choice, as well as the different layers and coatings paired with the stainless steel cookware. Here we will take a look into how to best identify a top quality stainless steel pan. We’ve done the research to provide you with some key pointers that will help guide you towards the right product. Once you’re equipped and ready to go, there’s a lot of fun to have in the kitchen!

DIFFERENT TYPES OF STAINLESS STEEL

One of the first things to know is that there are different types of stainless steel. Stainless steel is an alloy made up of various metals which, when combined, are stronger and more durable. You may have come across labels such as 18/0, 18/8, 18/10 without having a clue what they represent. These labels represent the balance of chromium and nickel contained in the stainless steel. CRISTEL pans are made of the best quality 18/10 stainless steel.

The name is explained by the metal’s contents: 18% chrome which gives the steel its rust-resistance and 10% nickel which considerably improves the material’s taste neutrality. This 18/10 stainless steel reacts minimally with food, meaning there is no interference from the cookware with your food preparation, and meaning all nutritional value, flavors and colors go untarnished.

When it comes to choosing the right stainless steel pan, another important consideration is the thickness of the pan itself. Thickness is directly linked to the performance of the cookware. The general rule of thumb is “the thicker the better”. Lower-end stainless steel cookware is generally only 0.5mm thickness, and you’d be looking at around 5mm for a high quality pot or pan that is most conducive to even heat distribution .

What’s more, weight is often a good indication of the quality of a pot or pan as it shows more materials were used, which is hence more costly to the manufacturer. Thicker, heavier pans are also less susceptible to dints and damage, which means they’ll stand the test of time.

LAYERS AND COATING IN STAINLESS-STEEL COOKWARE

When it comes to choosing stainless steel cookware, you should also consider the different layers (plies) and coatings that are used in combination with the hardy alloy. You will often hear about 3-ply, 5-ply and even 7-ply cookware. 3-ply refers to three layers comprised of a layer of copper or aluminum sandwiched between stainless steel, whereas 5-ply contains two extra interior layers of a heat-conducive metal. The less common 7-ply contains four additional layers of conductive metal between the non-reactive metal exteriors. Each of these layered systems for cookware ensures even cooking and heat distribution and are compatible with all heat sources (including induction cookers).

Often stainless steel cookware is also available with the option of a non-stick coating. This is useful for cooking fish, eggs, pancakes and other such delicate dishes that have a tendency to stick to the pan. CRISTEL uses the Exceliss non-stick coating for certain products, and it is entirely PFOA free. PFOA is a man-made chemical that is sometimes used in the manufacture of non-stick cooking products. It is not good for the environment nor the human body. Rest assured, CRISTEL has your health and safety at heart.

Stainless steel cookware sets and individual pots and pans purchased at the Bargain-Marts may or may not actually be bargains. Sure you will know the price you paid for the product, and how that price compares to the other Marts in town, but did you get a deal? The only way to know the value of your stainless steel cookware set’s purchase is to know the basics of cookware language. You need to know how to translate this language to quality in the pot or pan.

Sometimes the Marts due in fact have very good deals on quality cookware products. This may not always follow the brand name rules that at first come to mind. Most brand name products have different product lines, and these lines usually are of different level of quality. The good news is if you buy brand name products, even the low-cost lines, you will be getting a product that is normally much better quality than that of the better or the best of the non-brand name cookware. The brand name producers do not want you to associate their name with low-quality products. If this association happens you will not be a repeat buyer of that brand. If you go into a store or even a website and the manufacturers’ name is not readily seen or advertised, the buyer should be cautious. Manufacturers of quality products want the consumers to know their names.

Now let get started on some cookware terms and the very basic knowledge you will need to know. As I mentioned above, we will begin with thickness of a pot or pan and the terms used. Metal thickness can be stated in inches (thousandths), millimeters, or gauge. Since many manufactures are now in Europe, they sell to Europe as well to the USA; those brands will be rated in MM or millimeters. Do not let metric measurements scare you; 1.0 MM is 0.0394 inches thick, a 0.5 MM is one half that thick or 0.0197 inches thick and 2.0 MM is twice that thickness or 0.0787 inches thick. The higher the MM rating the thicker the utensil will be. The next term for thickness is called gauge. Gauge can be hard to understand. The measurement in gauge works the reverse of normal thinking. The larger the number of gauge, the resulting material thinner. A 16 gauge material is 1.3 MM thick, an 8 gauge material is 3.25 MM thick and a 4 gauge material is 5.18 MM thick.

We have now talked about all three measurement systems, inches thick in thousandths, millimeters and in gauge we will see where these units are used. If you are buying aluminum cookware or cast aluminum cookware the thickness will be in gauge. Most stamped aluminum cookware in the mass market is 10 gauge on frying pans and a thinner 12 gauge on saucepans. Better quality aluminum cookware would use a heavier 8 gauge on frying pans and 10 gauge on other pieces. Cast aluminum cookware is equivalent to 6 gauge. Consumers are moving up to more durable frying pans in recent years – either 6 gauge or a very heavy 4 gauge. Bargain basement lightweight fry pans with “generic” non-stick coatings are usually 12 gauge or 14 gauge. It is too thin to provide any length of time in service. The first time the heat is high under these fry pans the bottoms could warp, the contents burn or both. If you are buying stainless steel cookware, the measurement of thickness will be in millimeters (if the manufacturer is in the USA, it may be listed in thousandths of an inch). The standard for top-of-range stainless steel cookware is 0.6 MM. Premium department store brands will have stainless steel cookware in the range of 0.7 MM to 1.0 MM thick. Low end stainless steel cookware is generally 0.5 MM thick. If you have the choice between two pots: one is 2.59 MM thick (0.102 inches or 10 gauge) and the second is 5.18 MM thick (0.204 inches or 4 gauge), the best pot for even heat distribution is the 5.18 MM pot.

If you look at the bottom of your stainless steel cookware or your aluminum cookware, you can see discolored, almost black shaded areas on the surface. If the pot does not set flat due to being warped, the likely cause is the utensil has had too much heat applied for thickness. Once the utensil is warped it will never be able to transfer heat uniformly.

For personally opinion, to choose 0.5mm thickness of stainless steel cookware is good enough, for more about What is best thickness for stainless steel cookware?, you can pay a visit to CHANGWEN COOKWAE China at https://www.cookwarecw.com/about-us.html for more info.