Little Gem Frying Pan and Saucepan

Asked on 26 Oct 2016 by JudithT

I have most of Delia's baking tins and liners which I love. I am now considering purchasing the Little Gem sauce pan and frying pan, but am somewhat deterred by the fact that they are aluminium and food will come into direct contact with it. I was wondering if they have been treated in some way, making them different to the aluminium pans we were told to discard in the past. I would love to get these pans so hope you can offer me some reassurance! Thank you in anticipation. Judith..

Lindsey, Food Editor replied

Hello Judith,

Highly acidic foods should not be cooked or stored in aluminium pans, but this is not a health issue, it is one of taste because aluminium can affect the flavour of highly acidic food.

The pans are pure aluminium and they are not treated.

We use the pans every day and we are very happy with them.

It’s worth noting that if you have an induction hob they will not work.

Kind regards

Lindsey

JudithT replied

Hello Lindsey,
Thank you for your prompt response and for the information re acidic foods. Does this mean that I would not be able to fry a tomato quartered at the same time as some bacon and egg or should I just avoid acidic fruits and keep the frypan for egg cooking only, i.e. omelettes, poached or fried eggs? I've just received Delia's latest email and she is using it to cook rice. I was really surprised at this as I thought that would stick to the pan - we live and learn! I looked on the Silverwood website and found very helpful information about their manufacture and how to look after them, so I will go ahead and purchase now.
Regards,
Judith

Lindsey, Food Editor replied

Hello Judith,

Frying something like a tomato is fine because it’s not in there very long.

We do lots of things in the frying pan including omelette, Yorkshire pudding and Clafoutis.

Best wishes

Lindsey