Over the years, you have been very keen on what you eat; you have avoided foods that can cripple your health and embraced the foods that have boosted your health. And, for this, you deserve a great pat on your back!
However, there is something highly critical you have been overlooking - the materials making your cooking utensil.
Did you know that some modern cooking vessels emit harmful compounds when cooking? These emissions can lead to cancer, Alzheimer's, skin diseases, etc.
But don't panic!
In this article, we will go back in history and see the materials making the cookware that our foremothers and forefathers used.
Table of Contents
Iron
Iron is an essential mineral that promotes body development by forming blood cells. As a result, a lack of iron in the body can lead to adverse health concerns.
In most populations of the world today, you will find out that women and children are the people often struggling with iron deficiencies.
But did you know that besides investing in the right iron-rich foods, you can also get an iron top-up from an iron pot?
Studies show that food cooked in an iron kitchen tool has significantly higher iron content depending on the food's acidity, moisture, and cooking time.
Cooking in iron cookware can provide you with a daily iron intake of between 6 to 11 mg. Therefore, it is essential to use cookware made from iron in your meal preparation.
In contrast, today's cooking features Teflon-coated cookware, preferred by several people since it doesn't require seasoning like the traditional cookware and is easy to clean and store.
Other types of cookware used today include stainless steel pots, non-stick cookware, and wooden utensils. But, all these recently innovated utensils don't match the amazing results you can get from an iron, clay, or stone cooking vessel.
Wooden kitchenware, for example, will retain food content from a current cook and contaminate the next cook, which is against the FDA's food safety guidelines.
So, whether you want to deep fry your food or give your air fryer a break, you can never go wrong with an iron vessel!
Health benefits of iron utensils
The iron in these cooking vessels helps in:
● Red blood cells formation
● Treats and prevents anemia
● Reverses insomnia and treats restless leg syndrome
● Improving cognitive function and oxygen circulation to body organs
● Enhances immunity system
Cast iron
Cast iron is produced from smelting iron ore or pig iron or combining melted iron with other alloys. After this, the melted mixture is molded into cast iron cookware and allowed to harden.
Like a grill, you will need to season a cast iron pan or pot before using it to prepare the pan for the long cooking journey ahead.
By the way, a cast iron pan shares several features with grilla grills silverbac vs rec tec; the main difference being that a grill has a larger cooking space and digital controls.
Health benefits of cast iron utensils
● Nearly non-stick
● Doesn't contain a hazardous coating
● Require lesser oil when cooking
● Versatile; you can prepare a variety of recipes on it. Also, you can use several cooking techniques with this vessel, such as frying, baking, and roasting.
● Affordable
● Durable
● Retains heat which means that they can keep food warm for long
● Provides 18 mg daily iron intake, which is essential for treating and preventing anemia and other related deficiency related illnesses
Copper
Most people believe that copper and iron were the first metals that ancient people used, a thought we have no evidence to oppose.
Copper is a trace mineral and an essential nutrient for our bodies.
Our fore-parents stored water in copper pots to make it safe for drinking. Today, there is science supporting this wisdom!
Health benefits of copper cookware
● Water purification
● Antibacterial, antimicrobial, anticarcinogenic, antioxidant, and anti-inflammatory
● Eliminates germs, fungi, mold, bacteria, and algae from water
● Helps in removing pollutants in food and fluids
● Daily intake of 2 to 3 glasses of water stored in a copper vessel will provide you with the recommended copper intake while ensuring that most body organs and metabolic systems function correctly.
● Regulates thyroid gland function
● Promotes digestion, heart health, weight loss, wound healing, arthritis and inflamed joints healing, slow aging, and skin health.
Brass
Brass contains 70% copper and 30% zinc. This metal is yellowish mainly due to zinc content combined with the reddish color of copper.
Other notable features of this metal are that it is heat-conducting, non-magnetic, durable, and easy to handle.
In addition, brass is perfect for culinary utensils.
Health benefits of using brass utensils
● Using a brass utensil will help keep you from illnesses resulting from copper and zinc deficiencies.
● Brass utensils can be used to cook non-acidic foods
● It protects one from worm infestations, cough, and other respiratory illnesses.
● Improves immunity, boosts hemoglobin levels, prevents skin disease, and promotes bone strength
● Unlike many modern cooking pots,you will only lose around 7% of nutrients in the whole cooking process when cooking food in a brass vessel.
Tin Coating on Copper and Brass
As we have seen earlier, you can only use copper in cooking non-acidic foods. But this is very limiting, right?
On the other hand, copper is a good conductor of heat, making it suitable for cooking vessels. In addition, a copper utensil has several health benefits, as we have seen above.
That said, how will we strike a balance between the copper limitation I mentioned above and the several benefits copper brings to cooking? Tin coating is the solution!
But why are we discouraging cooking directly on copper for acidic and sour foods? Well, copper reacts with the organic acids in food, producing harmful compounds that can lead to food poisoning.
Therefore, ensure your copper or brass cookware is tin-coated before using the utensil. Also, you can repeat tin-coating on your cooking vessels every six to eight months.
Tin-coating on your brass cooking equipment will improve its conductivity, save fuel usage and protect it from corrosion. Also, regular re-tinning will ensure that food nutrients remain intact while preserving the flavor of your food.
Most modern copper or brass cookware comes coated with various non-reactive metals. However, you have to be cautious about the coating on a utensil before buying it to ensure its fit for cooking.
Examples of Traditional Utensils
Here are several types of kitchen equipment that were used in an old Indian kitchen:
Image source: Google Scholar
A. Brass mortar pestle used for crushing garlic, ginger, and nuts
B. A bronze vessel used to store water or vegetables
Image source: Google Scholar
C. Iron cooking pot
D. Copper pot for water storage
E. Bronze pot for meal preparation and storage
F. Brass ladle for serving fluids or solid foods
G. Flat iron spatula used in food preparation
Image source: Google Scholar
H. Iron griddle for roasting paratha and chapati
I. Iron fry pan for cooking vegetables
J. Ceramic cookware for food storage
Image source: Google Scholar
K. Clay pot for making lassi, butter, and curd
L. Iron bowl for storing a small amount of food in the kitchen
M. Iron pan for food preparations
Final Word
More and more people are becoming aware of the health benefits of traditional kitchen utensils. As a result, you will find conventional utensils in almost every home or restaurant kitchen.
And you don't have to be left behind either with this major cookware revolution.
In modern times, traditional utensils are widely available. And, unlike the ancient cooking vessels, today's traditional cookware features elegant designs and higher quality construction.
However, as we said earlier, always remember to examine the materials making your traditional utensil or other types of utensils. This way, you can always be sure that what you eat is not contaminated by a cooking vessel and that the nutrients are intact.
Resources
1. Cooking in the right kind of vessels can actually make you healthier
2. Which is the best utensil for cooking food? Must read if you want to stay healthy
3. Grandma’s way: Indians are switching back to cast-iron and earthen cookware
4. Indian Traditional Ayurvedic System of Medicine and Nutritional Supplementation
5. Brass utensils – The traditional cooking medium of India
6. What is Kalai (Tin Coating) ?
7. Health Benefits Of Traditional Kitchen Utensils Composed Of Brass, Copper And Iron Using In Kitchen