Knowledge Base > Char Nolan - Ask Me Anything (Office Hours)

Ask Me Anything (Office Hours)

Char Nolan - Ask Me Anything (Office Hours)

This event was on Tuesday, May 30, 2023 at 11:00 am Pacific, 2:00 pm Eastern

Join Chef Char Nolan in her virtual office as she welcomes all of your questions. This event was created for you and we encourage you to ask anything – from cooking techniques to cou… Read More.

Recorded

Question:

Can you recommend a stainless steel pan that is perhaps more contemporary and lighter in weight?

— Linda Kolberg

Answer:

That's one of the downsides of using stainless steel. They are a heavy pan, but they're a healthier pan for you to use. Uh, staying away from aluminum is important. If you read some of Dr. Barnard's work on, uh, why we should not use aluminum, uh, that reinforces the benefit of using a stainless steel pan. I also find that using a stainless steel pan, uh, lets you regulate the heat of whatever it is that you're making. It works perfectly for the no oil saute. So back to this pan. This pan is not gigantic and I weighed and it weighed 14 ounces. So it's pretty easy to pick up with one hand. And if you are doing an assignment, but a heavy pan is something that you don't enjoy using, I would get a smaller pan and divide your, the quantity of your food in half, and do two rounds of the no oil saute. And then at the end bring them together. You wouldn't wanna crowd the base of this pan together because when mushrooms are covered, uh, when they cover one another and they're not exposed to direct heat rather than saute, they will steam. Remember that mushrooms are about 98% water. So my suggestion is get to a store, try them out, ask questions, and, uh, something small like this, uh, works perfectly. And that would be my recommendation. I can't recommend any brands because, uh, these days, but I did mention the last time that I have a, um, 42 year old set of ware stainless steel pots that my mother gave to me as a wedding present. And they are still going strong, just like my marriage.
Char Nolan

Char Nolan

Chef Instructor

@char_nolan