Cooking For Engineers Forum Index Cooking For Engineers
Analytical cooking discussed.
 
 FAQFAQ   SearchSearch   MemberlistMemberlist   UsergroupsUsergroups   RegisterRegister 
 ProfileProfile   Log in to check your private messagesLog in to check your private messages   Log inLog in 

Silicone cookware

 
Post new topic   Reply to topic    Cooking For Engineers Forum Index -> Tools, Equipment, and Gadgets
View previous topic :: View next topic  
Author Message
GregorDV
Guest





PostPosted: Mon Nov 07, 2005 10:57 pm    Post subject: Silicone cookware Reply with quote

Does anybody have experience with soft, floppy, silicone cookware? I saw some for cheap, and was *this* close to picking some up just to play with. It looks intriguing just from a novelty perspective, and the salesman was touting its never, never, never sticks properties.

It was very similar to this line:
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00009A9WZ/002-3813126-0512814?v=glance&n=284507&s=kitchen&v=glance
Back to top
Jules



Joined: 12 May 2005
Posts: 4

PostPosted: Wed Nov 09, 2005 11:18 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

I don't have any "shaped" silicone cookware, but I do have a Silpat, which is a flat silicone pad that fits a cookie sheet or a jellyroll pan. It completely eliminates the chance of baked goods getting scorched on the bottom before the whole thing is cooked.


Back to top
View user's profile Send private message
ktexp2



Joined: 03 Nov 2005
Posts: 34

PostPosted: Fri Nov 11, 2005 1:34 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

Is the Silpat thingie better than the air-filled pans and cookie sheets? I love love things, but they're expensive. I rather have somethi8ng I can move from pan to pan.
Back to top
View user's profile Send private message
rexmo
Guest





PostPosted: Fri Nov 11, 2005 5:58 pm    Post subject: I'm pretty happy with my Hole-E-Smokes mats Reply with quote

Slotted-perf silcone mats for throwing delicate stuff on the grill. Great to make casingless sausage hold together until it takes a set. Good to 650*F or so, I seem to recall.
Back to top
sweet june



Joined: 07 Aug 2005
Posts: 3
Location: Jerz

PostPosted: Sat Nov 26, 2005 6:04 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

yeah-- muffins, cupcakes, quickbreads, soap, bath bombs, bath melts, etc-- all release easily and in good form.

i still like to use metal pans for some of my edibles, though. crispy spots, mmm.
Back to top
View user's profile Send private message
A Kitchen Enthusiast
Guest





PostPosted: Sat Dec 10, 2005 1:15 am    Post subject: Silicone's Da Bomb Reply with quote

I have replaced almost all of my metal bakeware with silicone. This stuff is great! You don't get exactly the same browning as with metal, but I think it's just as crispy. I love the muffins without the muffin cups - they're crispy around the bottom, and you can deform the pan around them to get them out. I also bake all our bread in silicone loaf pans. This is great, because there again, you can bend the pan to get the bread out, so no more lost corners.

Another advantage is that I have no fewer than 8 pieces of it crammed into a little corner of a cabinet.

Three caveats: the larger (9x5) loaf pans will deform a little at the sides if they're full, so you get a more squat, wider loaf, and I wouldn't get the bundt pan for the same reason. It might deform when it's full, leading to a deformed cake (gasp!) The last caveat is you need a good, sturdy sheet pan to bake it on, because it's not meant to sit on the grates of the oven (and it would be hard to put there anyway - slosh!)

But like I said, I love the stuff for baking. Easy to use, release, and clean. Speaking of easy to clean, I even have sili oven mitts, because you can rinse stuff off, or put them in the dishwasher!
Back to top
Kimm



Joined: 29 Dec 2005
Posts: 5
Location: N. Augusta, SC, USA

PostPosted: Thu Dec 29, 2005 8:55 am    Post subject: Re: Silicone cookware Reply with quote

GregorDV wrote:
Does anybody have experience with soft, floppy, silicone cookware? I saw some for cheap, and was *this* close to picking some up just to play with. It looks intriguing just from a novelty perspective, and the salesman was touting its never, never, never sticks properties.

It was very similar to this line:
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00009A9WZ/002-3813126-0512814?v=glance&n=284507&s=kitchen&v=glance


FYI; I tried the mini silicone loaf pans that I picked up at a dollar store. I used them to bake some brownies, which turned out great! They smelled the house up of plastic the first time, but the brownies were fine, didn't affect their taste or smell. Now I am hunting the dollar stores for more silicone pans! I didn't have any guidelines for the baking times, but I haven't burned anything in them to date. If anyone knows about any specific guidelines that suggests a change in bake times for silicone pans, please post...my pans didn't come with any instructions. Thanks!
Back to top
View user's profile Send private message
GaryProtein



Joined: 26 Oct 2005
Posts: 535

PostPosted: Tue Jan 03, 2006 5:34 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

Use caution especially when removing silicone cookware from the oven. A pizza type paddle is often necessary to support the bottom of the vessel when it has a large or heavy cake, muffins or anything that is not fairly rigid. Cakes can crack as the silicone flexes, and you don't even want to know what can happen to a heavy New York Style cheese cake if you don't support the bottom well.
Back to top
View user's profile Send private message
Grant
Guest





PostPosted: Sun Feb 19, 2006 10:58 am    Post subject: Sillicone Reply with quote

Cooks illustrated just listed the best baking pans on their mag and said the silicon stuff isn't good for anything and to avoid it. Just thought I'd pass it on.
Back to top
Jules



Joined: 12 May 2005
Posts: 4

PostPosted: Mon Feb 20, 2006 10:16 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

I would take any information in Cook's Illustrated with a massive grain of salt. I have never found them to be reliable.
Back to top
View user's profile Send private message
grantmasterflash



Joined: 19 Feb 2006
Posts: 10

PostPosted: Wed Feb 22, 2006 3:15 am    Post subject: Reply with quote

Jules wrote:
I would take any information in Cook's Illustrated with a massive grain of salt. I have never found them to be reliable.


They're the only thing I've every found reliable. How can you fault cooking the same thing 150 times and making minor adjustments until you get it right? Seems like the engineers way of cooking to me.
Back to top
View user's profile Send private message
geonuc



Joined: 28 Feb 2006
Posts: 5
Location: Atlanta

PostPosted: Tue Feb 28, 2006 10:10 pm    Post subject: Reply with quote

Jules wrote:
I would take any information in Cook's Illustrated with a massive grain of salt. I have never found them to be reliable.

I think they're a good source for cookware tests. Their recipes sometimes are lacking, though.
Back to top
View user's profile Send private message
pearlspauline@yahoo.com
Guest





PostPosted: Tue May 02, 2006 1:13 am    Post subject: Re: Silicone's Da Bomb Reply with quote

A Kitchen Enthusiast wrote:
I have replaced almost all of my metal bakeware with silicone. This stuff is great! You don't get exactly the same browning as with metal, but I think it's just as crispy. I love the muffins without the muffin cups - they're crispy around the bottom, and you can deform the pan around them to get them out. I also bake all our bread in silicone loaf pans. This is great, because there again, you can bend the pan to get the bread out, so no more lost corners.

Another advantage is that I have no fewer than 8 pieces of it crammed into a little corner of a cabinet.

Three caveats: the larger (9x5) loaf pans will deform a little at the sides if they're full, so you get a more squat, wider loaf, and I wouldn't get the bundt pan for the same reason. It might deform when it's full, leading to a deformed cake (gasp!) The last caveat is you need a good, sturdy sheet pan to bake it on, because it's not meant to sit on the grates of the oven (and it would be hard to put there anyway - slosh!)

But like I said, I love the stuff for baking. Easy to use, release, and clean. Speaking of easy to clean, I even have sili oven mitts, because you can rinse stuff off, or put them in the dishwasher!


Thanks! Smile Wink I bought my shaped pans without any instructions available, and will now be able to use them! Your information is clear and enthusiastic. I looked on the net and this was the best coverage I found.
Kudos!
Back to top
John
Guest





PostPosted: Wed May 31, 2006 3:45 am    Post subject: Cooks Illustrated and Silicone Reply with quote

geonuc wrote:
Jules wrote:
I would take any information in Cook's Illustrated with a massive grain of salt. I have never found them to be reliable.

I think they're a good source for cookware tests. Their recipes sometimes are lacking, though.


I've actually been very pleased with both their cookware recommendations AND their recipes. Their baking cookbook is one of the best learning tools for truly understanding the "why" of baking processes (not as much fun nor as scientific as Alton Brown's baking book, but much more extensive). All three of my "everyday" bread recipes and most of my favorite cookie recipes are from CI's books or mags. I don't agree with everything they say, and they sure do use alot of fat, but I always find them to be worth a look.

On the topic of silicone, CI's point is that the best browning (a crucial part of some baked goods) comes from dark metal pans, and you just can't get that from a silicone pan - at least until someone adds metal filings to the silicone....
Back to top
Display posts from previous:   
Post new topic   Reply to topic    Cooking For Engineers Forum Index -> Tools, Equipment, and Gadgets All times are GMT
Page 1 of 1

 
Jump to:  
You can post new topics in this forum
You can reply to topics in this forum
You cannot edit your posts in this forum
You cannot delete your posts in this forum
You cannot vote in polls in this forum


Powered by phpBB © 2001, 2005 phpBB Group