Have you ever noticed, even after cooking with the best ingredients, your meal often turns unhealthy? Even the safest cooking method doesn’t help. Healthy cooking relies on not only the best ingredients but also the choice of cookware.
A good cookware set makes a difference between a balanced meal and an ailing meal. Your meal can be poisonous if the cookware leaches any harmful substances. So, what are the safest materials used in the cookware?
Ceramic, nonstick, and stainless steel are considered safer than all. Choosing among the three is not as easy as they all are true kitchen workhorse. Here we will discuss the differences between ceramic cookware vs. nonstick cookware vs. stainless cookware.
Stainless steel is excellent for cooking food at high heat. Nonstick and ceramic, on the other hand, are easier to clean. The fact is, not all of them will work better for you. Each of them has its pros and cons.
Below we’ll compare them all. Keep reading.
Ceramic vs. Nonstick vs. Stainless Cookware
Ceramic Cookware
Ceramic cookware is consisting of a ceramic coating made from inorganic matter. It’s a unique coating of Nanocomposite polymeric substance. The microparticles of sand make it nonstick and harder than Teflon.
In other words, ceramic is a kind of heavy glass that has nonstick properties. The ceramic coating helps to distribute heat evenly. It can withstand cooking temperature up to 400oC as well as retains heat for longer.
Moreover, ceramic cookware heated up fast. It is environment friendly as there are no troublesome chemicals included in the ceramic. However, it cannot endure severe temperature changes.
In the worst cases, ceramic cookware can lose its nonstick properties due to this. It may also lose its appearance. Also, it is not meant for high heat so make sure you use it for low-heat cooking.
What Are the Advantages of Ceramic Cookware?
- Safe to Use: Ceramic coating is safe as it doesn’t contain any toxic chemicals. Also, the nonstick properties of ceramic cookware are better than most.
- Even-Heat Distribution: Ceramic cookware heats up fast and evenly. So, the cookware will hardly have any hot spots.
- Durable: Ceramic cookware lasts for a long if it is handled with care. Also, the ceramic coating is durable than Teflon.
- Affordable: Ceramic cookware comes at a lower price than stainless steel cookware.
- Ease of Cleaning: It is easy to clean the non-porous surface of ceramic cookware.
What Are the Drawbacks of Ceramic Cookware?
- Not for High Heat Cooking: Ceramic cookware is only meant for low to medium heat cooking. The ceramic coating can be damaged at high heat.
- Shorter Lifespan: Since ceramic is flimsier, it may break easily. Also, it cannot take abuses like stainless steel cookware.
- Not Meant for Metal Utensils: Metal utensils may ruin the delicate surface of ceramic cookware. You should use nylon or wooden utensils to keep the ceramic coating in great shape.
Nonstick Cookware
Nonstick cookware is greatly known for its cooking abilities. These days, nonstick cookware includes a Teflon coating, which is why it is also called Teflon cookware. This Teflon coating prevents food from sticking. Aluminum is the primary material used in most nonstick cookware. It makes them less expensive than stainless steel.
There are indeed some controversies regarding Teflon. But nonstick cookware has become safer with the improvement in technology. The best part of using nonstick pans is that you can cook food with little or no oil.
However, the drawback is you cannot cook the food long in high temperatures. At high temperatures, the nonstick coating starts to release toxic substances. Also, you cannot use them in ovens at high temperatures.
What Are the Advantages of Nonstick Cookware?
- Excellent Cooking Abilities: Nonstick cookware makes cooking and baking easier as food doesn’t stick to the surface. You can cook healthy food with little oil.
- Affordable: Nonstick cookware is cheaper than other cookware options. One can buy a decent nonstick set for less than $100.
- Ease of Cleaning: The nonstick cooking surface is easy to clean with any cleaner. But you need to clean it with soft sponges.
- Anti-breakage Protection: Nonstick cookware has anti-breakage protection. So it can withstand abuse.
What Are the Drawbacks of Nonstick Cookware?
- Less Durable: The Teflon coating is less durable as it starts to wear after a while.
- Not Designed for High-heat Cooking: When heated above 200-250oC, the nonstick coating starts to release toxic elements.
- Not Safe: Once the nonstick coating starts to wear, food may expose to metals and poisonous chemicals.
- Not Safe to Use with Metal Utensils: Nonstick coating can get damaged if you use metal utensils. So you’ll only need to use silicone or wooden tools.
Stainless Steel Cookware
Stainless steel is the most reliable material used in the cookware. Also, it is super classic, durable, and lightweight. This material belongs to a blend of different metals, including silicon, nickel, carbon, manganese, iron, and chromium.
Stainless steel cookware lasts for years as it is wear-resistant. It doesn’t require any special care. Besides, stainless steel is resistant to mechanical changes and oxidation. So you can clean it with metal sponges.
Stainless steel cookware comes with a single-layer and multi-layer bottom. Layered bottom boosts the cooking abilities of the cookware. Stainless steel heats up faster and is compatible with most cooking styles.
On top of that, polished stainless steel cookware adds glamour to the kitchen. It allows dishwashing, which makes cleaning easier. Even after long-lasting durability, stainless steel cookware comes at an affordable price.
However, stainless steel cookware doesn’t conduct heat well. It has poor nonstick properties compared to others. While exposed to high heat, it can easily discolor.
What Are the Advantages of Stainless Steel Cookware?
- Incredibly Durable: Stainless steel the most durable option for cookware. It is resistant to chipping and rusting. Also, this cookware comes with anti-dent, anti-breakage, and anti-scratch protection. So it lasts from generation to generation.
- Polished Appearance: Most people prefer stainless steel cookware due to its glossy outlook.
- Non-food Reactive: As there is no nonstick coating, it doesn’t react with acidic food. It makes the cookware safe to use.
- Low Maintenance: Stainless steel cookware requires low maintenance as it doesn’t rust. So you don’t need to do any seasoning. Also, there is no nonstick coating to worry about. Simple cleaning is all required.
- Preserve Food Taste: While cooking in stainless steel cookware, you’ll get the exact taste of your meal.
What Are the Drawbacks of Stainless Steel Cookware?
- Not Nonstick: Stainless steel cookware doesn’t contain any nonstick coating. So, the food will stick to the cooking surface.
- Poor Heat Conductor: Stainless steel is a poor heat conductor. That’s why multiple layers are used at the bottom.
- Tough to Clean: As stainless steel doesn’t contain a nonstick surface, it is strenuous to clean.
- Discoloration: This cookware can discolor while exposed to high heat.
Stainless Steel vs Nonstick vs Ceramic – Quick Comparison
| Features | Ceramic Cookware | Nonstick Cookware | Stainless Steel Cookware |
| Durability | It lasts for about five years. | It lasts for about one year. | It lasts more than ten years. |
| Heat preservation time | Long | Short | Long |
| Heating speed | Fast | Fast | Slow |
| Weight | It depends on the external coating. | Average | Heavy |
| Nonstick Properties | Nonstick | Nonstick | Not nonstick |
| Oil Requirement | Minimum | Little or no oil | Required |
| Versatility | Best suited for all cooking tops as well as ovens. | Best suited for short-term cooking | Best suited for braising and cooking |
| Ease of Maintenance | Manual cleaning with gentle care | Manual cleaning | Hassle-free maintenance |
| Price | A small set of 5-pieces comes at $70 | A small set of 5-pieces comes at $50 | A small set of 5-pieces comes at $100 |
Ceramic Cookware vs Non Stick Cookware
Speaking of ceramic vs Teflon, the type of nonstick coating makes the basic difference. Teflon refers to a class of plastics that is safe and less reactive at low to medium heat. But, the issue arises on very high heat.
Teflon tends to emit toxic chemicals once heated up to a specific temperature. The coating starts to wear off, and it mixes with food. Thus, it creates a significant risk of health. However, manufacturers nowadays don’t use plastic polymers in nonstick cookware.
Instead, they combine ceramic polymer with oxygen and silicone while manufacturing nonstick cookware. This combination is safer than Teflon. That’s the reason nonstick cookware has become a cheaper and excellent alternative.
However, ceramic cookware is free of PFOA, PTFE, cadmium, and lead. Most ceramic cookware uses a coating called Thermolon, which is made of natural minerals. So it doesn’t leach toxic elements into food as well as in the air.
Ceramic cookware retains heat longer than nonstick cookware. But the issue with ceramic vs nonstick cookware is their short lifespan. Both nonstick and ceramic coating can wear off after a while. In that case, you should change the cookware immediately.
All in all, when it comes to ceramic vs nonstick pans and pots, ceramic cookware is
- More durable
- Better heat resistant
- Safer to use
- Easier to clean
- Expensive
Which One to Choose?
Your choice should depend on the food you are cooking, cooking style, and budget.
Nonstick vs Stainless Steel Cookware
The main difference between nonstick and stainless steel cookware is, one is nonstick, while the other is not. The nonstick cooking surface is a great plus in nonstick cookware. But, the issue is, nonstick pans are not as durable as stainless steel cookware.
As you know, stainless steel comes with great built-quality, which gives it added strength. Also, there is no issue of leaching food in stainless steel cookware. Stainless steel pans are made with several layers of steel and metal. It makes the cookware more safe and stable.
Food cooked in stainless steel cookware is free from toxins. Also, you can cook food at high heat in a stainless steel pan. This is not the case while cooking in nonstick cookware.
In between stainless steel and nonstick cookware, stainless steel cookware is
- More strong and durable
- Better heat resistant
- Expensive
- Difficult to maintain
Which One to Choose?
It depends on your personal preference, cooking style, budget, and health concerns.
Ceramic vs Stainless Steel Cookware
The nonstick feature is also the difference between ceramic and stainless steel cookware. Ceramic cookware gives you ease of cooking as you can cook will little or no oil. Food doesn’t stick to the surface due to the nonstick surface.
But, you have to cook at low to medium flame to protect its nonstick coating. That’s not the case with stainless steel cookware. You can cook at high temperatures, but it requires more oil to cook.
Besides, stainless steel pans can withstand lots of abuse, which ceramic cookware cannot. However, stainless steel is not the right choice for beginner cooks due to the food sticking issue.
Comparing stainless steel and ceramic cookware, stainless steel cookware is,
- More durable
- Costly
- Difficult to clean
- Less time to heat
Which One to Choose?
Your choice will depend on your budget, style of cooking, and personal preference.
Ceramic vs Teflon vs Stainless Steel Cookware – Which One Is the True Winner?
Now that you’ve learned about the basic features of ceramic, nonstick, and stainless steel cookware. Below we’ll answer a few questions asked by you to help you make a decision.
Which one is safer?
When safety is a concern, you should go for stainless steel and ceramic cookware.
Which one is more durable?
Stainless steel cookware is more durable than the other two. Then ceramic cookware is moderately durable, and nonstick cookware is least durable.
Which one is cheaper?
Nonstick cookware is the cheapest, followed by ceramic and stainless steel cookware.
Which one offers better cooking quality?
As stainless steel and ceramic have excellent heat retention ability, both offer ease of cooking.
Which one is currently more popular?
Stainless steel is currently the most popular of all due to its durability and ease of maintenance. But, ceramic and nonstick ones are also on a steady rise.
Bottom Line
A quality cookware set can make your life easier and improve your cooking experience. Your choice of cookware will affect your food quality and taste. Thus, it poses a massive impact on your health.
While comparing ceramic vs. nonstick vs. stainless cookware, you need to decide how you intend to use it. If you need to cook many dishes every day, stainless steel is not the right choice. It isn’t easy to clean.
In that case, nonstick or ceramic is what you need. Both are less expensive, so they are a good choice for people with a limited budget. But, if you are looking for something to use for years, stainless steel is the best option.
All things considered, it’s all depends on your personal preference and cooking needs. We prefer to keep a set of three types at home. So you can use each according to your needs. But, keep in mind, health should be your main concern as health is wealth.
Hi, I’m Julia Mitchell and through this blog I want to put forward all my experiences and expertise to help you find the best kitchen items possible. I have been working in research and development of kitchen tools for the last three decades. Throughout my professional career I have come across various kitchen products and I use that experience to assist people in getting ideal kitchen items for their requirements. If you have any further doubt, you can email us and we will get in touch with you immediately.
