http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/11376032/

Its going to be a real bummer going back to sticking pans.

well i'm not doing it unless people start dropping dead left and right from using teflon. i'm getting brand new circulon this month and i'm thrilled to death.

we did read though that to prolong life and prevent peeling, that those types of pans should not go into the dishwasher. my aunt bought me a non stick chef's review i think, pan, from smart and final and it is a dream to wash by hand, takes about 45 seconds, so i don't think it'll be a problem to keep them out of the dishwasher, that is, until they start getting old. i guess long and short, i really don't worry about carcinogens too much because it relates to too many things. i got bigger fish to fry

I think the teflon pans you get nowadays have the teflon impregnated into the surface.

One thing you're not supposed to do is heat a non-stick pan beyond a certain temperature because it will outgas. If you own any birds they're likely to die and humans will get pretty sick with flu like symptoms. I know the birds die at a lower temperature than the humans get sick.

I do need to get a non-no-stick pan (that sounds funny) for cooking things that need to stick so you have something to deglaze.

Cast Iron. Heats nicely, deglazes well, sears meat well, can go right from the stove top to the oven, and if you take care to season it well (Lodge brand comes pre-seasoned nowadays) and keep it lightly coated with oil it will be all but non-stick.

If something sticks to the pan I just soak it in water (no soap) and then use a stiff brush to get it off, again, no soap. Dry it right away and lightly coat it with oil and you're good to go! I think bacon just tastes better out of a cast iron pan.

I have a nice Circulon non-stick skillet that I rarely use these days and two Calphalon pieces that are non-stick including an omlette pan that I love. Calphalon doesn't identify their non-stick surface as using teflon, but I'm assuming it does.

The Calphalon hard-anodized cookware (not-non-stick) I have is also very nice and has never been particulary problematic with food sticking to it.

Now, if you want to talk nice not-non-stick, lets talk All-Clad stainless, and Le Creuset.

circulon is about as good as i can get cost wise. there is a coupon for the set at costco this month. can't wait to get my hands on it we have cast iron pans, but i'm not paticularly good with them so my husband mostly uses them on our camping trips.he is the designated cast iron cooker because i wreck everything in cast iron. he says i mess with the food too much

the pan from smart and final is so no stick that i couldn't even swirl the eggs to spread them out, the whole of the eggs just whirled around in the pan. that's the best non stick i've had my hands on yet

we used to try and keep parakeets, but they always died. then we read that about the pans, we thought maybe that was why. we always lived in apartments then so proximity to the kitchen would have been a problem. kept a parakeet at work, took it home for the weekend, poor little thing had a seizure and died. we didn't get birds anymore after that.

is Creuset the enamel pans?

The teflon is not the carcinogenic agent. The bad stuff is perfluorooctanoic acid, which is used to make the teflon. So cooking with a teflon pan will not raise the cancer risk, but working in the factory that makes the teflon may.

The manufactures will have to install more safety equipment to keep the perfluorooctanoic acid away from their employees.

And then all that crap gets into the water supply too. I thought I read that virtually everyone has it in their blood now.

All my cooking is in cast iron. Funny, I am so used to them that I feel so awkward cooking in anything else over at friends houses. I went to visit my aunt in california last summer and did quite a bit of cooking at her house (she does not cook). I swore to myself that I would bring a couple of my cast's with me next time. I currently own 5 skillet pans, circular griddle, large 2 sided reversible griddle/grill, and a deep dutch oven/pan thingy. (I do have 3 stainless/non-coated pots for bioling things)

I can cook omlets/eggs without them sticking. Just use a paper towel to wipe them out when done. Other things can be more messy, but not a huge issue. A minute or two with hot water and a plastic scrubber (no soap) and they are clean. Dry em off throw them back on the burner for 30 seconds and lightly coat with a pastery bush with that lovely left over grease from sausage, bacon or whatever. There is a bit of a learning curve involved.....I swear, after you break them in, there is nothing better .

I just LOVE my pans

I always end up rusting them.

I would be soo upset if mine were to rust.....

RIP Nancy's pans

Secret to some good cookware at decent prices that I discovered recently (actually I can't take credit, I was pointed to it by a friend) is Amazon.com's overstock/clearance/discount are on their site. I picked up a 12 quart Calphalon hard anodized stockpot (BIG) for about $60 if I remeber correctly, and it's normally $140+. They still have a bunch of Calphalon stuff from a line that was recently discontinued on clearance, check it out:

http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/t...6624867-8815035

Also, for a solid alternative to Henckel and Wuthsof kives, I picked up a Calphalon Contemporary 15 piece set on eBay for about $100, and it's great. It might not last 30 years, I might have to replace it in 10-15, but the whole set cost me less than a single Wuthsof Trident Chef's Knife, so I can't complain.

Edited to add: Amazon also has quite a few pices of Lodge Cast Iron cookware on clearance as well.

Now I just need Le Cruset to discontinue some of their stuff.

Interesting reading all this today, we just got rid our circulon pans this week and switched to good stainless steel pans. My wife is paranoid about all this stuff, and I just think there is no point taking chances with little kids in the house.

Chefs don't cook with stickless pans.

They also don't have to do the dishes!