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After the unfortunate incident in which my nonstick pan got burnt, leaving it discolored and smoky-smelling, I decided to replace it with a stainless steel saute pan. Not having used a stainless steel frying pan before, I was worried about food sticking to it. I found some online advice which recommended heating the pan to a hot temperature* and then letting it cool down somewhat before putting the oil and food in. This is supposed to reduce sticking.
My problem is that I don't know when the pan has cooled down enough. So far, every time I put the oil and food in, the pan still seems to be too hot, and the food starts making loud scary popping noises... at which point I put the lid on the pan, remove it from the burner, and wait for it to stop popping while hoping that the food isn't burning in the meantime.
The new pan browns things better than the nonstick did, though. And even when food starts to stick, usually I can just stir in a bit of water, and the stuck on parts dissolve away.
(*) - supposedly it is hot enough when water drops dance across the surface. And it is *so* cool watching little spheres of water sizzling and floating around in the pan!
My problem is that I don't know when the pan has cooled down enough. So far, every time I put the oil and food in, the pan still seems to be too hot, and the food starts making loud scary popping noises... at which point I put the lid on the pan, remove it from the burner, and wait for it to stop popping while hoping that the food isn't burning in the meantime.
The new pan browns things better than the nonstick did, though. And even when food starts to stick, usually I can just stir in a bit of water, and the stuck on parts dissolve away.
(*) - supposedly it is hot enough when water drops dance across the surface. And it is *so* cool watching little spheres of water sizzling and floating around in the pan!