Saturday 4 June 2005

Pic of the day: I have a frying pan and I'm not afraid to use it!

...into the frying pan

I would have called this entry "Out of the frying pan" but decided against it because of the serious context of the previous entries. I've had no more symptoms since Thursday. Today I went to town, looked at the people, and bought a frying pan. Also a little healthy food, yogurt and veggies.

The old frying pan hasn't been used in years. It was at least 25 years old, and probably cheap back when I bought it. (I had an entry-level job in the state, which was only marginally more than a disability pension, and had student loans. No rich relatives to mooch off either. But at least the frying pan was bought new, not at a flea market like most of my furniture.) The reason I stopped using it wasn't that it was warped; some of my best friends are warped. No, the problem was that it stuck desperately to whatever piece of food was put in it. I despaired of ever getting it clean again, and just stopped using it. When you make food only for yourself, and small portions at that, you're not willing to spend a quarter of an hour cleaning one frying pan afterwards.

Enter the atomic age frying pan, Scandic Induction Titan. "Stainless steel fry pan, 3 non stick layers Titan Plasma Spray, reinforced coating base, impact bonded capsuled base. Homogeneous heat distribution, non- deforming thermal base. healthy fat-free frying. Easy to clean." Well, that's what it says on the cardboard that partially covered it. I thought titanium oxide was used to make white paint, so I'm not sure how 3 layers of titanium plasma spray becomes pitch black, but it works. After frying some carbs of varying complexity, they slid right off the pan as if they had hovered just above the surface all the time.

The antigravity does not extend to lifting the thing, though. It is pretty massive, much more so than the aluminum pan I used (or rather did not use) before. It takes some extra time getting hot, but not excessively so, and it stays hot for a while after I turn off the heat. But yes, the heat is distributed evenly, and with the non-sticky bottom it is pretty hassle-free. I only need to stir the fry from time to time so all parts get their chance at the heat. No need for frantic and fruitless attempts to keep the food from burning into the hot spots. Definitely a case of technological progress. (Although a couple decades later than most of you got it, I suspect. Oh well.)

In a time where you pay your bills over the Internet, it really makes no sense to burn your food into your frying pan and scrape it out with harsh implements. Perhaps I will eat more non-yogurt food from now on. Healthy fat-free frying!