Grrr... what is it with glass lids on small appliances and cookware these days?

[JerseyMike]

I live in an apartment and my kitchen doesn't have that much storage or counter space. I also happen to like gadgets so that creates a bit of a problem.

About a year or so ago, I decided that I HAD to have an electric wok. (I like stir fries.) I already have a stove top wok, but I want an electric one. I haven't bought one yet, because until now, the only ones that I've been able to find have a non-stick coating. (Farberware made a stainless steel electric wok when Farberware products were still made in the USA.) I don't like non-stick cookware (my omelette pan is the only piece of non-stick cookware that I own), but a non-stick wok makes absolutely no sense to me! The good news is that I finally found an electric wok that does not have a non-stick coating! The bad news? It has a glass lid! What is it with these cookware and small appliance manufacturers and current their passion for glass lids! (Washers, dishwashers and dryers are the only things that should have windows, IMHO!) Glass lids are an accident waiting to happen. The lid (and the appliance and/or piece of cookware) will be history the first time that the lid is dropped! (Oh, wait, I just answered my own question! It's known as built in obsolescence! Grrr.)

Mike

 

[gadgetgary]

It's known as built in obsolescence!

That is exactly the case with everything that is manufactured today. Nothing like the products of yesteryear........

Hang on to what you have....

 

[frigilux]

Mike--- Far be it from me to discourage anyone from getting a new toy, but you'll really, really hate your electric wok. They just don't have enough heating power to truly stir fry. I've tried three different models and they're all in a landfill somewhere. You're much better off with a wok on the stove, where you can really crank up the heat and the recovery after throwing in food is quick.

In fact.....I even got rid of my stove-top wok. I now use a deep, heavy, chef's pan. There's more 'floorspace' and the heat is more even and intense. It is, of course, NOT nonstick. I'm with you----I use nonstick pans only for very delicate operations.

Just my two cents on the subject. Oh, and I hate all the glass lids, too! BOOOOOO!!!

 

[JerseyMike]

Thanks!

That's interesting, Frigilux. You're the first person that's ever shared their electric wok experience, and there's nothing like the voice of experience as the saying goes. I like my stove top wok, but I wanted a new toy. (Given your experience and the fact that I only have a limited amount of storage space, I'm probably going to abandon the idea of an electric wok.) I'll have to try using a one of these deep chef's pans. (I was actually drooling over one at Bed, Bath and Beyond over the weekend.)

Thanks again.

Mike

 

[tomturbomatic]

Glass is cheaper than stainless steel which has skyrocketed in price, lets users see what is happening without lifting the lid, losing heat and wasting energy and, while allowing radiant heat to escape, is actually an insulator and might hold more heat than a metal cover. I am not saying I know this to be true, but maybe.

Speaking of woks, I saw a Cuisinart wok at BB&B. The bowl unlocked from the heavy square base so that it could go into the dishwasher. When I turned it over, it read 1800 watts. It was not 1600; it read 1800. I guess you need a good 20 amp 115 circuit for it. The electric ones really concentrate the heat at the bottom. I have a porcelanized cast iron pan with a ground flat bottom that I use on a powerful 6 inch element for stir-frying. Between the 1600 watt element on HIGH and the thick base of the cast iron pan, the temperature does not drop when food is added and nothing is bubbling in liquid when it is supposed to be frying in hot oil.

 

[Cybrvanr]

For a good wok, I found the best way to do it was go to Northern Tool (yes, a tool shop for cookware) and I bought one of those "cajun cookers" It's a high-power gas burner that connects right up to a barbeque grill propane tank. They also have a *3ft* diameter cast iron wok there that fits right on top! That is the ultimate combination for making stir-fry...including my favorite, Mongolian style!

I guess after realizing that people were buying cajun cookers and woks together that they included them into a nice kit now! The wok is smaller in the kit, but the burner is !!65,000BTU!!!

http://www.northerntool.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/product_6970_200317854_200317854

 

[toggleswitch]

Glass lids-

Wasn't crazy about them at first, but YAY when I first started cooking electrically to figure out where to set the heat, withough constatnly lifting the lid!

Never put them down flat on a surface when hot. The moisture and heat may form a vacuum-seal that will crack the glass when lifting.

Ditto on a glass smooth top range-top. Don't allow covers of any type/material to form a seal.

Treated carefully, the glass lids will have a long life and serve you well.

 

[tomturbomatic]

WOK BTUs

In one of the shelter magazines a few years back, they featured the dream kitchen remodel of a Chinese couple that had retired from their restaurant business. They let the younger generation take over the business, but they redid the kitchen in their home so that they could entertain guests and family with the cooking that had made their restaurant so well known. They had a commercial wok in an island. The burner for the wok had a huge BTU input that was more like what a water heater or furnace would have. What was interesting was that this burner was in a large (maybe 30 inches square) metal pan, several inches deep that had plumbing connections. The pan was filled with water before any cooking was started so that the water could absorb the heat that otherwise might ignite the building materials under it or the clothing of people near it and also to isolate the flareups when the wok is tipped into the flame while cooking. That was the only way that the building inspectors would allow the commercial wok to be installed in a residential kitchen.

 

[neptunebob]

It could be worse, my mother bought a slow cooker that has a PLASTIC lid!.

 

[appnut]

Well, I personally don't like glass lids on cookware. It's not the best element for me to be dealing with and I shy away from looking at stainless sets with glass lids. It's justnot a good idea for me. I am extremely careful and conscious of my every movement when I am dealing with my Visions cookware. I'll just stick with my old Revere set and my coil stove.

 

[gadgetgary]

I'll just stick with my old Revere set and my coil stove

And teach everyone Bob, do not pre-rinse...DO NOT PRE-RINSE~!

 

[frigilux]

Ah, coil stoves. I had NO intention of getting a glasstop electric when I bought my house a few years back. I use a lot of stockpots, etc., and I thought glasstops were for wussy 'weekend cooks'. And there's no denying that coils have faster and more powerful heating than do glasstops.

However..... Glasstops are just so damned easy to clean. I'm hooked! I have Frigidaire gas and electric convection ranges sitting side-by-side and I rarely EVER use the cooktop on the gas range. The only downside with a glasstop is you'll have to throw out any cookware that isn't absolutely flat across the bottom. Any warpage at all will cause poor cooking results. And your pan will spin in circles on the smooth glass.