Over the years, the iron pot market, which has been inherited for thousands of years in the mainland, has been impacted by the new product "non-stick pan".
Because the non-stick pan is very convenient to use, there is no need to "boil the pot" at all, even if it is a novice "little white", you can easily make a few dishes with the non-stick pan, and you don't have to worry about the phenomenon of "pasting the pot" at all.
But the reason why the non-stick pan is "non-sticky" is all due to that thick chemical coating, which actually has a lot of safety hazards in the eyes of many people.
Therefore, there are still many people who are willing to use iron pots, but the traditional iron pots have dissuaded a large number of people just by "boiling the pot".
In this regard, many people have a question, is the new iron pot "boiling" science or metaphysics? If it is really necessary, why don't manufacturers help open it in advance? Isn't this able to increase sales?
Why do iron pots need to be "boiled"?
Although most families now have a non-stick pan, there is a very strange phenomenon in this context, that is, almost all chefs in restaurants are very repulsive to non-stick pans.
No matter how non-stick pan manufacturers say, they always only love the traditional iron pot in the mainland, why is this?
This is because the chemical coating on the non-stick pan is very easy to fall off after high temperature and repeated use, which not only affects subsequent use, but also endangers human health, while the iron pan does not have to worry about this problem at all.
And the food fried in an iron pot is obviously more delicious, and you can easily get a variety of cooking methods such as "frying, cooking, boiling, stewing, stewing, etc." with just one iron pot.
It can be said that our traditional iron pot needs to carry out an additional "pot opening" ceremony, and it is "complete" non-stick pan in other aspects.
There is also a reason why the newly bought iron pot needs to be "boiled", and the process of boiling the pot is not as complicated as everyone thinks, for some experienced chefs, it takes less than half an hour to get an iron pot.
The approximate step is to wash the newly bought iron pot and put it on the fire until every part of the iron pot is blue or black, and then apply the oil treatment, and more detailed steps will be explained in the following chapters.
After the "boiling ceremony", the iron pot will not only have a longer service life, but the most important thing is that there will be almost no sticking to the pan when stir-frying.
In fact, the behavior of "boiling the pot" on the iron pot is not metaphysics, but relies on real scientific principles.
The most critical step of "boiling the pot" is actually when it is roasted on the fire, and a series of chemical reactions will occur on the surface of the iron pot in this process, thus forming a dense and protective oxide film on the surface of the iron pot.
This layer of oxide film is the key to ensure that the iron pan is not easy to rust and the stir-fry is not sticky, and the most important point is that unlike the coating of the new product "non-stick pan", this oxide film is completely non-toxic and harmless.
To put it bluntly, the behavior of boiling the iron pot is the same as the industrial "baking blue".
At the same time, because iron is a material that is very easy to rust, manufacturers usually coat a layer of industrial oil film on the surface of each iron pot when leaving the factory, which can not only prevent rust, but also improve the appearance of the iron pot.
However, these industrial oil films are inedible, so when boiling the pot, this layer of oil film can also be removed by the way.
At this time, some people will ask why the manufacturer does not open the iron pot in advance, which can not only prevent rust during storage and transportation, but also facilitate the majority of consumers.
This is obviously a win-win situation, why not do it?
Why does the "boiling ceremony" not come from the factory?
This is actually directly related to the cost of production, boiling the pot is not a complicated operation for consumers, the temperature of the gas stove at home can meet the needs of the pot, and the pot needs to be necessary materials for the kitchen.
However, if the iron pot manufacturing plant increases the ritual of "boiling the pot", it will not only have a lot of more processes, but also may increase a lot of labor, which will undoubtedly increase the manufacturing cost of the iron pot.
One of the most important reasons is that some companies have tried to sell "boiled" iron pots, which have proven to be not a wise choice.
In the past, Japanese brands liked to sell iron pots after "boiling", but the sales of this kind of iron pots are far higher than many brands that do not boil, and the high price is only one of the shortcomings.
The main reason for the low sales is that in the eyes of many people, the pot that has been opened is no longer a "new pot", after all, it has undergone steps such as fire roasting and oiling.
There is also the manufacturer can not guarantee that each iron pot is "boiling", their appearance is consistent, and the oxide layer obtained by "baking blue" is often uneven, which is also unacceptable to the public.
Therefore, before leaving the factory, it is the best choice to directly apply a layer of anti-rust industrial oil film, the cost is low and standardized, all iron pots are consistent in appearance and other aspects, and consumers will not have difficulty in choosing.
And this industrial oil film can not only prevent rust, but also reduce the loss caused by friction and bumps to the iron pot during transportation, which can be said to be a typical example of "spending a little money and doing a lot of things".
Since it is not wise for manufacturers to "boil" the iron pot in advance, it seems that consumers can only "boil" the new iron pot at home......
“六步开锅法”：铁锅寿命长不粘锅
After you buy a new iron pot, whether it is to prolong the service life of the pot or to be able to non-stick when cooking, it is best to spend more than half an hour boiling the pot before use.
What we have to do is to remove all the labels attached to the iron pot after making sure that there is no quality problem with it, and then clean the pot body with running hot water.
Then wipe the water inside and outside the pot with a rag, put the pot on the gas stove and dry it over medium-low heat, and then take a piece of raw fat pork (about the size of a palm) prepared in advance.
After the moisture on the surface of the iron pot is dried, turn the gas stove to medium-high heat, and use the raw fat pork as "soap", and constantly rotate and rub along the inner wall of the iron pot to ensure that nothing is missed.
After a few minutes, you can find that the surface of the pork is gradually darkening, and the "black lard" overflowing from the pot is increasing, at which point it is necessary to remove the blackened pork and clean the iron pot again.
After that, the blackened part of the pork surface is cut off with a knife and the above steps are repeated again until the pork no longer turns black.
Finally, the iron pot can be washed and dried, and then a layer of vegetable oil can be smeared on its inner wall, and the "boiling ceremony" of the new iron pot is completed.
With such a set of processes, even if it is less than 100 yuan of iron pot, it can be used to achieve the effect of "non-stick pan" that is often hundreds of dollars larger.
Speaking of which, although "boiling the pot" is an indispensable step for a new iron pot, the quality of the iron pot itself is the most important issue.
In recent years, CCTV's report on the "fatal iron pot" has made many people shy away from the various iron pots on the market, which is also one of the main reasons for the decline in iron pot sales.
How to choose a safe and reliable iron pot?
Since CCTV exposed the "poisonous iron pot" in 2023, consumers have only known about the hidden "greasy" of some unscrupulous manufacturers.
According to the exposure, some unscrupulous businesses use low-cost recycled waste iron drums, cut them to a fixed size, and soak them in a large amount of chemical solutions to make the paint on the surface of the iron drums fall off by themselves, and these chemical solutions are toxic and harmful.
After that, they will grind and polish these scrap iron blocks, and then press them into molds, and a "brand-new" iron pot is born.
After simple labeling and packaging, these iron pots that are "good quality and cheap" in the eyes of many people have flowed to the major consumer markets.
Although these iron pots are no different from ordinary iron pots in appearance, they are real "poisonous iron pots", and if everyone uses this kind of iron pot to cook every day, it is undoubtedly harmful and not beneficial!
Fortunately, after CCTV's exposure, the relevant departments have seized a large number of small workshops of "poisonous iron pots", but even so, everyone pays a lot of attention when buying iron pots.
When buying an iron pot, you must first see whether the brand is a trustworthy brand, and then see whether the standards implemented by the iron pot meet the industry norms stipulated by the state.
In terms of appearance, we have to choose a smooth surface, no sand hole, air eye, we can also use a hard object to gently knock the iron pot when buying, in general, the louder the sound, the greater the vibration amplitude of the iron pot quality is also better.
The most important thing is to believe in the eternal truth of "a penny for a penny", those iron pots that are significantly lower than the average price of the market, even if the sales staff say that it is out of the blue, everyone still tries to avoid it.
Goose stew in an iron pot
As a must-have kitchenware for many families, we must not be careless, after all, it is related to the health of the whole family.
In the end, do you use an iron pot or a "non-stick pot" for cooking? Which do you think makes the food more fragrant?