In this day and age when everyone is very concerned about being eco-friendly, people are looking for ways and means to “go green” in almost every aspect of their lives. An example of this is that we want to make sure how the food we eat, both plant and animal, is grown, how it is prepared and cooked and finally served on our table, in short, how it is treated and processed, are all ecologically “green”. . Having eco-friendly cookware is now a must for a very well-equipped kitchen.
Most modern kitchens today are still equipped with cookware that is made primarily from non-renewable resources, from metals mined from the bowels of the earth, ground and processed in energy-intensive ways. and are harmful to the environment. Pull out a cabinet drawer in any middle-class kitchen and you’ll find a well-used Teflon-coated frying pan. Eco-friendly cookware is yet to appear as part of the scene in many kitchens.
Many years ago, Teflon-coated cookware was all the rage for its much-touted non-stick qualities that allowed cooks to reduce, if not completely eliminate, cooking fats from their dishes. These days, cooking dinner more eco-friendly can take many forms, not just in the choice of ingredients for the dishes we’ll serve. People have become more conscious of buying eco-friendly cookware, of getting flat-bottomed pans that conduct heat more evenly and efficiently, allowing for a smaller flame and saving on energy costs; about choosing nonstick cookware made with alternative “greener” materials, as we still lean towards cooking with less fat. Opting for eco-friendly cookware can also mean choosing to buy second-hand pots and pans as part of our efforts to recycle and reuse household items and contribute to conservation efforts.
When trying to outfit your kitchen with eco-friendly cookware, it will be wise to go by the type or style of cooking you do and the dishes you serve when shopping for cookware. Instead of buying, a complete set of color-coordinated and designed pots and pans, some of which you end up unused and just cluttering up your kitchen cabinets. Get cast iron pots for long dishes and slow cookers. Purchase flat pans with copper bottoms for thin, delicate sauces. Get a few heavy nonstick aluminum pans in different sizes for quick frying and sautéing. In all of these, be sure to buy pots and pans that come with their own lids, as keeping the pot covered can help you shorten cooking time and lower your overall energy bill.
Tips for buying eco-friendly cookware:
• Buy individual pieces based on the type of food you prepare;
• Look for pots and pans made of cast iron, aluminum, or copper, as they are the best conductors of heat;
• Buy cookware made from recycled materials to conserve Earth’s natural metal resources;
• Choose pieces that are marked “oven safe” so you can use them on your stoves and ovens.