Cookware comprises of cooking vessels or food preparation containers commonly found in the kitchen, typically made of materials that do not melt easily. Types include utensils, such as frying pans, saucepans, pressure cooker, chip pans, roasting pans, etc. intended for use on stoves or range cook-tops. Connoisseurs recommend it is best to refrain from using aluminum or plastic-coated nonstick utensils, because vessels made of these materials dent easily, causing uneven cooking. Furthermore, if the stove heats unequally, such utensils develop hot spots causing certain areas to burn.
Traditionally in many cultures across the world, unglazed pottery or earthenware was used in cooking daily food. The use of these materials is still prevalent. Given its natural makeup, earthenware is the ideal cookware, as food prepared in these vessels retains its natural flavor. Each type of cookware affects the flavor of the food prepared in it. For this reason, one needs variety in cooking utensils to achieve optimal results. There are a variety of utensils available in the markets, such as cast-iron utensils, stainless-steel vessels, glass utensils, aluminum and Teflon-coated nonstick pans etc.
Food prepared in dissimilar cookware tastes different. For instance, meat tastes delicious when cooked a long time in a cast-iron pot, but loses its scrumptious flavor when prepared in stainless-steel vessels. No cooking pan has as many uses as the cast-iron skillet. Truly there is no replacing this champion. Master-chefs across the world deem it as the most valuable and resourceful tool in the kitchen as it is indispensable for quality cooking. Typically, a cast iron skillet cooks and bakes ten to fifteen minutes faster than other utensils.
Quintessentially, cast iron pots have the flavor of nostalgia for the way we eat today. Cast iron skillets are used for sautéing, steeping, roasting, baking, deep frying, refrying and braising. They are the ultimate in weighty cooking utensils and no steam ever escapes the heavy lid. Cast-iron skillets are composed of about three percent carbon alloy, which allows them to handle very high temperatures and exude a slight amount of iron into the food, providing a shade of dietary iron.
