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

What are the healthiest pots and pans to cook out of?

Ask Me Anything (Office Hours)

Char Nolan - Ask Me Anything (Office Hours)

Recorded

This event was on March 11, 2025

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 course-specific questions, to how to turn your cooking passion into profit or simply hearing the perspective of a professional chef, Chef Nolan is ready to answer them all.

View Event Details

Question

Jeanette LaRoda

What are the healthiest pots and pans to cook out of?

Answer

I'm gonna say that finding pans that fit your kitchen is almost like a treasure hunt because you have to find something that fits your kitchen space, something that fits your budget. And I always like to say start out by either going to a thrift shop and looking for a good stainless steel pan because for example, the mushroom assignment suggests heavily that you use a stainless steel pan, but you either go to a thrift shop or you could go to one of those discount places like Marshalls or whatever, uh, or you could borrow one from a friend to see if you like it. I still have my mother's stainless steel Paul Revere pans that I still use, the ones with the copper bottom. And they're still in fabulous shape and they are more than 75 years old. So I'm gonna show you. Whoops, I'm gonna show you one thing that I do like to use is this is a stainless steel pan. I've had this for about maybe 10 years. I have sauteed a lot of mushroom assignments in this pan, and I think that for after 10 years, it still looks rather good. It's still in really good condition. I'm able to clean it easily. And I think that this was probably the best budget purchase I have ever made. Some of you do know that I enjoy cooking with a pot a, a pan company by caraway. And I like them because they are coated with ceramic, but they have no microplastics in it. So caraway might be a way to go, but I still think that stainless steel gives you the confidence in developing some of your culinary skills. So start off small and then graduate to get more and more. And I think that, uh, caraway is having a sale right now, but don't quote me on that.

Char Nolan

Chef Instructor

Char Nolan is a serious crusader for plant-based education, armed with a degree in public health from Philadelphia’s Temple University. She teaches nutrition and plant-based cooking throughout Philadelphia, and in many underserved communities. Char holds a certificate in plant-based nutrition from eCornell and completed Rouxbe’s Plant-Based Professional Certification course in 2015. In 2019, Char completed post-graduate course work in social media marketing at the University of the Arts. When she is not cooking or teaching, she manages social media accounts for several plant-based influencers. Char prides herself on learning everything she knows about cooking from growing up in her grandparents’ Italian restaurant. Her favorite vegetables are Brussels sprouts and kale, of course. Char originally hails from Queens, NY, but has lived in Philadelphia most of her adult life. She is a former Peace Corps Volunteer.