Copper pans have the most reactive cooking surface you can use. They react quickly to temperature changes and you will not find that you get hot spots with copper cookware. The copper surface conducts heat evenly; consequently, many professional cooks prefer using it over other cookware materials.
The Pros of Using Copper Pots and Pans
Copper looks opulent and impressive.
Copper is an excellent conductor of heat.
Copper reacts quickly to heat changes.
Copper is heavy, but not too heavy to handle with one hand.
The Cons of Using Copper Pots and Pans
Copper is more expensive than other types of cookware.
Copper cannot be washed in the dishwasher and must be hand washed and thoroughly dried to be free of spots.
Copper must be lined with stainless steel to have longevity. If it is lined with tin, the tin will wear away too quickly and the pan will corrode.
Copper requires a lot of effort to keep it shiny and it good condition.
Copper cookware gives you excellent control over the cooking of your food. In the same pan, you can braise a leg of lamb and then simmer a savory sauce by lowering the heat and the pan reacts quickly to the temperature changes. This feature makes cooking with copper quite pleasant. The chef is sure to get the results he or she sets out to achieve by merely adjusting the temperature of the burner; no other special attention is needed.
Copper reacts to the food cooked in the cookware, unless the pot is lined with tin or stainless steel. Tin wears out quickly and renders the pot unusable. So stainless steel, which lasts much longer, is preferable.
Despite its perfection as a cooking tool, copper cookware is still problematic to maintain, if you can afford to buy it in the first place. In order to maintain the shiny burnished look seen in images with shiny copper cookware hanging from pot hooks on TV and in print work, you must never allow the pot to sit in water. That means never place a copper pot in the dishwasher, only hand-wash and dry thoroughly. A dry pot must be polished periodically to keep the surface free of spots and shiny and buy the best quality copper cookware lined in stainless steel so you will get years of use from your cooking tools.
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