That author seems to be talking specifically about crap/disposable non-stick cookware. Generally something under $50 per pan using a fragile and very thin coating. Usually a thin aluminum pan too, leading to premature warping even when used without excessive heat. A better and more robust pan will take much more abuse, won't have to be replaced regularly and can also be cleaned more vigorously should it be required.

Here's a good point from the article:

Don't use PAM. It most definitely builds up on your pans and makes them look bad. It's near impossible to get off once it builds up thick enough too. Don't ask me how I know - and it's not because *I* use PAM (I don't).

He didn't mention it, but I also hear that the self-clean mode of an oven is great for baking pizza - though you have to disable the door lock so you can get to the pizza when it's done. I haven't disabled the lock on mine, so right now I'm using my BBQ which can get up to over 600 in the winter and over 700 more quickly in the summer.

Sorry to bring this thread back up, but I had to thank you for this simple yet so accurate suggestion.

I had been cooking with the iron skillet like I have with every other pan, cooking on high or medium or whatever when the recipe called for it. But now, on a burner that goes from 1 to 9, all I do is treat 5 as high and I'm set every time! I haven't had a single instance of burnt food sticking to the pan, and I now thoroughly enjoy cooking with cast iron.

Again, thanks so much for the suggestion. Another win for the empeg board!

We (SWMBO and I) have a couple of All-Clad frying pans, not the coated non-stick models, but the 3-ply laminated stainless steel ones.

Yesterday SWMBO did her inadvertent best to kill the 12" ($100+ ) pan by leaving it on the lit gas stove for 45 minutes with nothing in it but a tablespoon of corn oil while we went to the neighboring town of Chapala. The pan did not delaminate (a real possibility with abusive overheating) but the oil residue is literally vulcanized to the bottom of the pan in a layer that appears to be just a few molecules thick, and nothing I have tried has removed it. I am making steady but very slow progress with one of those 3-M scrubber sponges, but at the current rate of progress it will be hours of work, and then no real certainty that the pan will be usable. All-Clad recommends against the use of harsh cleaning solutions and absolutely forbids things like steel wool or metal scouring pads.

All-Clad had no useful advice when I e-mailed them.

Any suggestions?

tanstaafl.

Maybe you just leave it be and see if the pan still works. It probably does.

Meanwhile, a scientist sorts out how to properly season a cast-iron pan. Huzzah.

Fascinating. That makes a hell of a lot of sense.

Great article! Thanks for sharing it, I'll have to go get some flaxseed oil now. I like that the author ran into the exact same thing I did (and the reason I started this thread): EVERYone seemed to say something different, and everyone was certain their way was the only way.

Doug, have you tried Barkeeper's Friend? Can you get that where you are? That's been my savior when it comes to stainless steel, though I'm not sure it's a match for your extreme case. But I'm kind of thinking along the same lines as Dan: I'm wondering what harm it actually did.

If anyone does the flaxseed oil technique please reply back with your experiences. I have been hesistant to take the jump with the oil being so expensive.

I found a Lodge frying pan at a garage sale for $2 a few years ago. I've found that just using lots of oil the first few times you use it works fine. I don't think my pan is properly "seasoned" but hey it works so far and it's reasonably non stick. I am still on the lookout for a Wagner skillet though..

There is no apparent physical damage to the pan, but I'm concerned that the burnt-on oil will make the pan so sticky that it will be unusable.

Barkeepers Friend is recommended on the All-Clad website, but I've never heard of it before and certainly haven't seen it here. Okay, Amazon has it, I just ordered some. I'll pay more in shipping and duty than the cost of the product.

Wish me luck...

tanstaafl.

Barkeeper's Friend can sometimes seem a little like magic. I've had what I thought were bad stains on my cookware, and that product always gets it clean.

My regular cleaning process is merely water and dish soap, but every once and a while I break out the Barkeeper's Friend and my stainless steel pots and pans look like new.

I second this. I don't know what the abrasive is in this, but the stuff works like a charm. If you can't find it down there, I'll send you a container of it.

Not necessary. Amazon is sending me a bottle of it, but thank you for the offer.

tanstaafl.

How abrasive is the abrasive? Can you use it on, say... polished enamel appliances?