frying pans

[jamie128]

Lately my food has been taking ages to fry, eggs, meat and so on. I always use a griddle pan to fry stuff as my frying pan wore out.

My question is this, will a fry pan cook faster than my griddle pan, or will it not make a difference? Im guessing yes because all of the meat will be in contact with the surface? But im not sure because what is the true point of a griddle pan if it takes ages to cook?

[Digger]

Presumably one of those electric hobs like this?

http://www.atappliances.com/cooking/hobs/built-in-...

Hateful things. I'm also guessing your pans don't sit flush on the hob as they might be slightly warped?

Can you afford to swap it out for an induction hob?

[jamie128]

I have a gas hob one year old so no i cant afford to replace it, the pan gets scolding hot i wasent sure if its because all of the meat isent touching the pan surface because the ridges are raised?

[Mobile Chicane]

If you have a gas hob, John Lewis do a perfectly good cast aluminium frying pan for £12 which will cook your food more effectively:

http://www.johnlewis.com/john-lewis-non-stick-alum...

[Sticks.]

A frying pan with a lid helps thicker pieces of meat cook through more quickly. Good for eggs too.

[sday12]

In my experience the cheapest frying pan possible, £4 from IKEA does the job for most quick fry jobs, cheap as they all degrade, get dirty quickly, don't waste your money. Get hot quick too.

Cast iron stuff for steaks/sauces etc, keep a heat well.

[j44esd]

sday12 said:

In my experience the cheapest frying pan possible, £4 from IKEA does the job for most quick fry jobs, cheap as they all degrade, get dirty quickly, don't waste your money. Get hot quick too.

Cast iron stuff for steaks/sauces etc, keep a heat well.

Disagree.

The single best thing I have done to improve my cooking has been to buy good quality cookware. A guaranteed even heat, and after 5 years in use it all still looks like new. Previously I would buy a cheap pan every year (or so it seemed).

Obviously YMMV

http://www.lecreuset.co.uk/Product/le-creuset-prod...

Link added, these were my choice, but I'm sure someone else will have other recommendations.

Edited by j44esd on Saturday 19th October 20:24

[sday12]

j44esd said:

sday12 said:

In my experience the cheapest frying pan possible, £4 from IKEA does the job for most quick fry jobs, cheap as they all degrade, get dirty quickly, don't waste your money. Get hot quick too.

Cast iron stuff for steaks/sauces etc, keep a heat well.

Disagree.

The single best thing I have done to improve my cooking has been to buy good quality cookware. A guaranteed even heat, and after 5 years in use it all still looks like new. Previously I would buy a cheap pan every year (or so it seemed).

Obviously YMMV

http://www.lecreuset.co.uk/Product/le-creuset-prod...

Link added, these were my choice, but I'm sure someone else will have other recommendations.

Edited by j44esd on Saturday 19th October 20:24

Yes, cast iron stuff for serious cooking, by why spend the gas heating up a solid bit if iron when you are frying an egg?

Thin cheap pan is ready in seconds.

[j44esd]

sday12 said:

Yes, cast iron stuff for serious cooking, by why spend the gas heating up a solid bit if iron when you are frying an egg?

Thin cheap pan is ready in seconds.

Sorry, my shoddy linking - I've got their non-stick frying pans, not the cast. The point being, that in my opinion, cheap cookware is a waste of money. Yours (and the OPs) mileage may vary - but why buy a cheap frying pan?

By your own admission cheap pans "get dirty and degrade quickly".

I'm merely suggesting that's indicative of the cheapness of the pan, and not that all pans will do this.

This was really brought home to me recently staying at a rental cottage for the FILs 70th - the "cheap frying pan" was so rubbish, I genuinely struggled to cook properly with it! The heat dispersal was all over the place, the non stick coating was peeling off and the handle got as hot as the pan.

Buy cheap, buy twice. In the case of a cheap frying pan; buy cheap, buy annually.

[mattdaniels]

jamie128 said:

Lately my food has been taking ages to fry, eggs, meat and so on. I always use a griddle pan to fry stuff as my frying pan wore out.

My question is this, will a fry pan cook faster than my griddle pan, or will it not make a difference? Im guessing yes because all of the meat will be in contact with the surface? But im not sure because what is the true point of a griddle pan if it takes ages to cook?

Yes, don't fry eggs in a griddle pan use a proper pan

[AlexC1981]

Sticks. said:

A frying pan with a lid helps thicker pieces of meat cook through more quickly. Good for eggs too.

My largest saucepan lid fits my small frying pan. Very handy, so I bought an enormous lid on ebay for my big frying pan.

[jamie128]

Thanks for the feedback everyone

Does anyone have an answer to why my meat is taking ages to cook though?

Is it the raised ridges? And so is it worth investing in a new pan

[calibrax]

jamie128 said:

Thanks for the feedback everyone

Does anyone have an answer to why my meat is taking ages to cook though?

Is it the raised ridges? And so is it worth investing in a new pan

Are you taking the meat straight from the fridge or letting it come to room temperature first? You should never cook a steak direct from the fridge...