All about pans

The difference between pans

Pans: everyone has them in their kitchen cupboard, but which pan do you use for what? What can you do with a sauté pan and what with a steamer pan? Here we explain the differences between pans.

Cooking pans

Most households have about three cooking pans in the house in different sizes. The saucepan is a deep pan so that it can hold enough liquid. A saucepan is used for cooking vegetables, rice or pasta, among other things.

Material
Most cooking pans are made of stainless steel, but they also come in copper, aluminum or sheet steel.

The bottom
That is a thick bottom that consists of three layers; two layers of stainless steel with a layer of aluminum in between. This ensures even heating of the entire pan, not just the bottom.

Cooking pans are often sold with a lid. The lid ensures that the heat stays in the pan and your food cooks faster, so you use less energy and your dishes become tastier.

Stew pan, Sauce pan, milk pan

These pans fall under the same heading. They are all small cooking pans with a long handle, but there is some difference between them.

Stewpan
A saucepan is made entirely of stainless steel. The purpose of a saucepan is to heat up something quickly and easily, think of sausages, soup or boiling an egg. The long handle allows you to easily pour out the liquid and at the same time you can use the handle to easily remove the pan from the heat.

Milk pan
A milk pan is a saucepan with a non-stick coating. This coating prevents the milk from sticking and makes the pan easier to clean. Often there is also a pouring spout (sometimes two) on a milk pan, so you don't spill while pouring.

Sauce pan
A sauce pan is often constructed of several layers of steel. These multiple layers distribute heat more evenly under the pan. Some sauce pans have a non-stick layer, this layer has the same effect as a milk pan.

More expensive sauce pans often have a conical shape, so you can easily reach it with the whisk.

Besides making sauces, a sauce pan is also suitable for melting chocolate, the chocolate will not stick to the pan just like the milk, in the case of a milk pan.

Baking pans

A frying pan is used for baking dishes or ingredients. For example, you bake pancakes in a frying pan. frying pan. These are often dishes that you prepare using butter or oil. A frying pan is an umbrella term for different pans. Which ones do you supplement your cooking pans with?

The frying pan Next to the frying pan, the frying pan is the most commonly used pan in the kitchen. In a frying pan you can fry various dishes. Meat, pancakes or baked potatoes. Frying pans are available in various sizes. Pans are available with and without non-stick coating. If you buy a pan with a good non-stick coating, you will need (almost) no grease.

A frying pan without non-stick coating is great for searing meat or crisping potatoes.

Sauté pan With a frying pan, there is a good chance that you will throw something next to it while frying. The high rim of the saute pan reduces the chance of this happening a lot.

Sauté pans are also suitable for simmering, but you will need a lid with them.

The difference between a sauté pan and a frying pan is in the rim. With a sauté pan, it slopes up slightly. A Casserole has a straight edge right away. .

Fish pan A fish pan is an oval-shaped pan that holds a whole fish. Some fish pans have a handle and others have two counter handles. The advantage of a pan with two counter handles is that it often fits in the oven, provided the handle is resistant to such temperatures.

Wok A wok pan is widely used in Oriental cooking. It is a semicircular hollow pan with a long handle. The pan is used to stir-fry vegetables, meat, fish with noodles or rice at a high temperature. Wok pans are made of aluminum, sheet steel or cast iron.

You can also steam, stew and fry in a wok pan.

Wadjan In terms of shape, the wadjan is similar to a wok pan, but instead of a long handle, it has two handles. A wadjan is made of a thick material and is especially suitable for stewing and simmering. The pan is mainly used in Indonesian cuisine and is also known by the names wadjang or wajan.

Grill pan/plates In a grill pan you sear meat, fish or vegetables at high temperature by raising them in the pan. This creates caramelized grill stripes. The elevations also allow excess fat to drain away. Many grill pans have a non-stick coating so you don't need to use butter or oil. If you do need to, you grease the product and not the pan. Grill pans come in a variety of materials from cast iron to steel.

Grill plates perform the same function as a grill pan, but more often have a larger grilling surface. They often have two handles and are easier to place in an oven or barbecue. Some grill plates have elevations on one side and are smooth on the other. This allows you to use the pan as a plancha as well.

Plancha With a plancha you do exactly the same as with a grill plate. The only difference is that there are no elevations on the plate. You also need (almost) no fat with a plancha. So you grill a lot healthier. The plancha is perfect for frying chicken satay, for example.

Crepe pan A crepe pan is a frying pan with a low rim. This allows you to easily turn wafer-thin crepes and slide pan. These pancake pans are available in different sizes. From a relatively small diameter to a large diameter of 30 cm.

Steamer A steam pan is a normal cooking pan with an extra pan in between. In the extra pan there are holes through which the steam from the boiling water in the lower pan passes. With this you steam vegetables and fish. The great advantage of steaming is that no flavor, vitamins and minerals are lost. It is also easy to steam vegetables "al dente." In this process, the vegetables retain a crisp texture.

Some steamers, such as those from Dann Cuisine, can also be used for rice. First you cook the rice in the bottom pan. Then you steam the rice for another half hour, developing a rich flavor. You often see this in Indonesian cuisine.

Paella pan This is a large round pan made especially for preparing paella. The pan is kept low so that there is not too much rice on top of each other, allowing you to finish cooking faster.

The bottom of a paella pan is quite thin. This is because while making the paella, a layer called socarrat must form. This is a caked (not burned) crispy layer that gives flavor to the paella.

Casseroles You buy a casserole mainly for preparing stew dishes. Casseroles are often made of cast iron; cast iron provides even heat distribution. The advantage of casseroles is that they are also suitable for the oven. It is a way of cooking where you mainly let time do its work.

Would you like more information or help choosing? Then we would like to refer you to the following article: Casserole buying help