Electric Skillets

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Wonderful episode!

Thanks Kevin!
I love how you make everything seem so fun. And if you're crazy for collecting, you certainly have a lot of company!
The electric skillet was such an indispensable part of our kitchen when I was growing up. I can't believe I don't currently have one! Actually, I can't say that. We have one that was a wedding present in 2002. However, it's never been taken out of the box. I do know that it has the non-stick coating. Rather than use it, and have the coating inevitably wear off, I might just leave that one brandy new in its box, and pick up a nice vintage one to actually use.
You've got me thinking back to some of the tasty things Mom and I used to make in the skillet. I'm remembering it being great for things that would simmer in a sauce of some sort.
You have one on the left side of a middle shelf, with a lid handle that sticks out over the side. That looks like the one I remember Mom having. I was hoping you were going to pull that one off the shelf. Now that I think about it, it may have had a broiler element in the lid. Is that possible, or am I mis-remembering?
And I wonder if you have a Hoover in your collection. I know they made skillets too.
Thank you again for this delightful episode, and for reminding me that I need an electric skillet!

Barry
 
I really enjoyed that episode.....

.....on electric skillets! My Mom had one of those early Sunbeams with the permanently attached control handle and the glass lid.
Her next one was another Sunbeam with the metal lid and the removable control.
Third and final one (which I now have) is a Farberware round skillet much like yours but without the fancy base.
The problem with both Sunbeams (and many others, I'm sure) is that the bottoms (outside) get crusted with baked on grease that is impossible to remove.
I could never understand how grease got baked on underneath the pan.
 
The grease got baked on the bottoms of these electric frying pans because they frequently weren’t thoroughly washed on the bottom and the slight coating of grease that remained after rinsing got cooked onto the surface the next time it was heated up and used.  

 

Allow this same process to repeat itself day in and day out and  you ended up with a baked on patina of the kind you didn’t want.  My Mom’s Presto was like this, but not too bad.  I washed the dishes then and tried to keep up with getting the grease off the bottom of the pan.  And I used to use an SOS pad on it at least once a week.

 

My Uncle Ray used to take Aunt Imogene’s frying pans out to his work bench periodically and go over the bottoms of them with the wire brush on his electric drill that he held in place with a vice so he could really give them a good going over and remove all the burned on grease.

 

Eddie
 
Cool Kevin!

Funny story; My parents recieved a Farberware skillet for their wedding. My dad took it hunting and poured cold water in it while it was still too hot. The heating element shrank away from the pan and it never heated right afterward. My mom complained until he replaced it with a new Sunbeam.
 
Yes, the skillet was the last piece washed and was slid into the dishwater that had a weakened detergent or soap solution so there was a skim of grease on the top. The grease attached itself to the outside of the skillet which was not washed as well as the inside. 

 

The instruction books were so interesting.  In the days before toaster ovens, you could invert a cake cooling rack in the bottom and cook a TV dinner at 420F.  Our Sunbeam high dome buffet model had these amazing instructions for cooking up to 4 TV dinners at once.  You put a cup of water in the pan and then stacked 4 TV dinners, alternating them wide and narrow at 90 degree angles then cooked each dinner for 10 minutes on the bottom in the boiling water, lifting them out and repositioning bottom to top until all were done. I am sorry that I did not thoroughly read the instruction book when I was a kid for fun ways to use the pan. I don't think we used it much after we got the electric range. Ours never got baked-on grease on the bottom.  It was placed in the sink and washed by itself  while everything else was in the dishwasher.

 

I have the Corning Ware Electromatic skillet and dutch oven. I use the dutch oven for matzo ball soup. I love it that the simmer setting is so marginal that when I add the dumplings, knaidlach, quennelles, balls and put the cover back on they poach for 20 minutes before little tiny bubbles start rising between them and they have grown to huge fluffy matzo balls. The secret to big fluffy dumplings is not let the water boil before the balls have fully risen.

 

I use the 1956 Sunbeam with the dial in the end of the handle once a year to fry potato latkes. The Farberware 12" buffet server was the star of a friend's party when I took it full of sweet and sour meatballs which it kept nice and warm all evening.

[this post was last edited: 6/10/2020-13:58]
 
Kevin, a great segment.  You writing on the board what the episode subject is, is reminiscent of the mystery guest signing in on What's My Line.  
 
Kevin,

We watched this video last night on the 50” TV in the living room last night.  Heretofore I’ve always watched the”Cavalcade of Food” videos on the Macbook or iPad, boy what a difference.  I really was able to enjoy this video even more than usual.  I just spoke into the Crapcast, I mean Comcast mote, “You Tube, Cavalcade of Food and bingo there you were!

 

Your Electric Skillet collection is magnificent and as always your video was excellent.  This was my husband David’s first exposure to “Cavalcade of Food” and he really was impressed.  He said, “Eddie we have to go there!”  

 

Thanks for providing these wonderful windows to our past, I’ll never cease to enjoy them. BTW, you’re lookin good my friend, not that don’t always, but did you drop a lb or two?  I know I’m always trying too, LOL.

 

Anyway keep up to great work!

 

Best,

Eddie
 
I have a Sunbeam version

I think its from the 80's as its a cream colour and has a brown line running around the lid. Its not been used for a long while now as I put it in the shed with the other things I stopped using, But I used to put it in the dishwasher and that got it nice and clean and grease free. Itsgetting on as the non stick is wearing off, I keep it incase the hob breaks or I don't have enough space as you can guarantee if I got rid of it I would need it.

Austin
 
Non-stick coating

We have one that was a shower or wedding gift, circa 2002. For whatever reason, we've never taken it out of the box. It has a non-stick coating on the cooking surface.
I remember hearing that these coatings, and specifically Teflon, released toxins into the air and food when heated.
Does that apply to all non-stick coatings, or only Teflon? I'd have to pull this pan out of storage to verify what type of coating it has.
I don't know if I should just use this pan and not worry about it, or look for an older one with just a stainless steel cooking surface.
I'd welcome any thoughts on the subject. Thanks!

Barry
 
Barry, Alarmists love to fear monger just about anything.

 

Sarah, I have Farberware electric frypans.  In 1976, I saw in an old appliance parts store, a square cast aluminum Farberware frypan, but it was not  intriguing enough to cause me to part with scarce money since I already had the two.
 
I'm definitely going to try it!
Whether it's the NIB one that we already have, or if I pick up a vintage one somewhere, (I do love vintage!) I have to try making something in an electric skillet.
Like I said earlier, it was an indispensable item in Mom's kitchen when I was growing up. And, like you said Sarah; somehow I just forgot about them. Kevin's video was the spark for me.
I'll have to look for some good electric skillet recipes for noobs.

Tom;
Amen to that! I don't even watch the "news" any more. Haven't in years. It's like they just want to see how much they can scare people any more.

Barry
 
My Mon had a early 60's GE square electric skillet with a removable thermostat.
My biggest memory of that was the setting up of the pan. It came out and was placed on the counter along with the 3 sided aluminum "fence" aka splash guard that was always used with the skillet. She always complained about how it took "SO" much time to set up and take down, as she had to wash the pan, and the splash guard everytime! It got very limited use as we got older... Greg

BTW: I have a great oil filled electric skillet a "kitchen nutrition" that Hans Craig gave me! Slow to heat up but is a steady heater after that!
 
Mom used to put our Sunbeam in the center of the kitchen table on top of spread out newspapers to catch splatters from the initial browning of whatever.  After the browning was completed and the food covered to finish cooking, the papers were removed and the skillet taken to the counter. That was not done with pancakes which were baked with the skillet on the counter or later, the free side of the GE's divided cooktop.
 
Glad to know there are so many electric skillet fans here!

Thanks for sharing your memories. Sounds like there were a lot of Sunbeam skillets in use over the years!
 
Growing up mom has a Presto Teflon electric skillet that was used almost daily, it was replaced in the late 90s with a 15” Presto with the deep sides we got mom for Christmas, it to got used heavily until we wore the Teflon coating off of it.

I have a Teflon Dominion skillet I use, as well as a Stainless Steel Hoover Tri-Pan that is fantastic.
I have a round RenaWare electric skillet too, don’t really cook in it but will use it on a buffet
 
I just stumbled across one that I forgot I had.
It was still in a box that hadn't been touched in probably ten years.
I'm guessing this one belonged to my grandmother.
It's a Sunbeam, but I can't find a model number. It's square, and somewhat smallish, with the control knob on the permanently attached handle. You plug an appliance cord into the end of the handle.
I don't know if it's too far gone to ever be used again. The cooking surface looks pretty badly pitted, and the outside is covered with years of baked on grease. Even the handle and the round knob on the lid are so greasy, it transferred onto my hands and required Boraxo to get it off.
When I took the lid off to see if the power cord was in there, (it was), I was surprised to find the original owner's manual in there as well.
I don't know if something like Carbon Off would work. I've never used it. But, there's still the matter of the pitted cooking surface.

Barry

Edit:
After glancing at the owner's manual, it's possible the pan is a model FP-10.[this post was last edited: 6/16/2020-20:39]

justjunque-2020061618180802531_1.jpg
 
I love electric skillets and use them frequently

I do, though, stay away from Teflon coatings - there is simply too much likely-hood of overheating in one.

Not to mention that that stuff scratches if you look at it funny.

The aluminium pans work, regardless of pitting. I've taken some very badly worn Sunbeam appliances from that era and found they work quite well.

First, the grease: I put them in the dishwasher with every single pots/pan load for seven or so washes. The built up grease and dirt and ick comes off in layers. Takes quite a few washes - usually, though, by seven times through, it's clean as a whistle.

I then polish everything up with an SOS or Brillo pad. Really bad scratches/surface pitting I take a brass wire wheel to (works fine in the electric drill) followed by progressively finer sanding. With power tools, we're talking just a few minutes.

 

As I can hear the moans from the fainting couches of several ladies, let me add: This is what I do when the sole alternative is to through the appliance away. Of course one wouldn't want to do this to gleaming or anodized aluminium.

 
 
Hey Panthera,

That's somewhat encouraging.
I don't think I would trust putting this particular pan in the dishwasher though. It says it can only be immersed up to the cooking guide on the handle; not the end of the handle where the cord plugs in.
I may be limited to scouring with steel wool in the sink. I know that's not going to touch the stuff on the underside though. It's really thick, and probably older than I am.
The sorry state of this pan makes me question if it in fact belonged to my grandmother, like I originally had thought.
She was always very meticulous about taking care of all of her household appliances. Usually, they were even stored in their original boxes.

Barry
 
Barry,

As long as you don’t submerge the end of the handle where the cord plugs or the control dial in you can soak this pan.  I’d avoid ammonia or anything highly alkaline like oven cleaner as this may turn the aluminum black or otherwise discolor it.  

 

I’d try filling a sink that is deep enough to submerge the crusted area completely with an water as hot as you can get it and add a healthy dose of detergent, preferably powdered and let that bad boy soak for several hours.  To be on the safe side just submerge to the base of the handle. This will probably soften that baked on grease build up enough so you can begin to remove it with a stainless steel scouring pad, like a Chore Boy.  You may have to do this a second or third time.  Then use SOS or Brillo for scour it to a nice shine, both inside and outside.  

 

If you are going to use if after this major cleaning, remember to thoroughly remove any film of oil/grease from the bottom of the pan EACH time you wash it and it will stay nice and shiny.

 

HTH,

Eddie
 
Hi Eddie,

Thank you so much.
I was thinking ammonia, because...grease. But I saw right on the bottle that it will darken aluminum. So that wasn't going to be an option.
Not to sound like an airhead, but...powdered detergent. Do you mean laundry detergent?
If so, all I have is original Tide. I do have a box of 20 Mule Team Borax, if that would do anything for it.

Barry
 

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