Matt,

You are right I have not finished or started my degree in METALLURGY or English and do not intend to, but enough with the pettiness. I am basing my experience on 20+ years in the restaurant industry and a lifetime of camping where I have seen aluminum pots and pan buckle and spring pinholes due to heat exposure.

From Owens post, I gather he was looking for a lightweight alternative to his recently defunct aluminum pot. For this, I stand by my original post.

I personally carry a cast iron skillet for cooking over the fire I believe the additional weight is worth it. Cast iron and stainless steel are slow to heat and cool but excellent at retaining heat, these are the best choices for long slow cooking. They are also good for braising or searing foods that are slow to overcook (for example, steak). Cast iron with or without enamel and most stainless steel especially without copper or aluminum cladding) are the least conductive materials. The thicker the conductive metal in the base, the fewer hot spots will occurs.

You can clean cast iron, stainless steel and titanium simply, by heating the empty utensil, then pouring in cool water; the steam will loosen any food particles, bring the water to a boil and wipe clean with a paper towel. This also lowers the "stickiness" of a pan. Doing this to aluminum will expose it to excess heat, and increasing the chances of warping and springing a hole. A little dish soap, on the outside of the pan before heating aids in the cleaning of f of the soot.

As Ken posted the, and I had thought about this earlier because I knew it would come back to haunt me. The link to Alzheimer is just like any other study; they expose rats to abnormal amounts of toxins to replicate long-term exposure. With that in mine, I should warn you titanium is corrosive when exposed to citric acid at hot temperatures. I believe it is at a rate of 0.000000006. So do not go and buy titanium and heat orange juice to a temperatures 140 'o in it for 20 years nonstop. If you are concerned about toxicity and cooking remember this, cooking in cast-iron cookware helps add iron into your food, especially good for old timers with "tired blood". The use of aluminum and other non-stick cooking utensils, such as Teflon will slowly release its coating as fumes into the air and your food. Aluminum salts are soluble in water and are easily assimilated into the system and accumulated into the brain and nervous system. Foods cooked in aluminum produce a chloride poison, which neutralizes digestive juices, and my lead to ulcers and acidosis.

Ryeman
May your Boots Dry Quickly

Posted by Ryeman on August 20, 1999 at 13:21