• Dawn
• Wednesday 11 March 2020

A Brutal Honesty of My Obsession with The German Pan

Growing up, I was never fond of cooking and hated baking. I would only love eating, especially my ma’s home-made meals. Standing by the kitchen, whenever the aroma tickled my nostrils, I’ll be there, like a vulture! Fast forward, far away from home, I have definitely mastered some of ma’s dishes. Because stubborn as a mule, much to the chagrin of ma, no recipes, I wouldn’t ask for any, I remembered just from memories and as long as my taste buds don’t fail me. Therefore, this article is dedicated to her, whose birthday happens to be today, TAH DAH, Happy Birthday Ma!

From years of observing ma’s cooking demonstrations, photographic memories of her in front of a crowd of eager beavers of housewives, me peering from behind them, between any gap I could find, I can still remember. Oh that lovely smell of curry, cha-siew pork, and spicy O-tah mackerel wrapped in banana leaf! Hmm, I’m making myself hungry. So, the self-confessed greedy gut me, would eventually need to learn how to cook my favourite, ma’s delicious recipes.

Being Asian, stove-top cooking was my norm, because the thought of standing near the oven under our fine sunny weather is enough to make me perspire! But boy was I wrong, after 4 years in Dublin, I’m beginning to like the oven better, keeps me warm in winter and what’s more, don’t actually need to stand around, wait a minute, you mean there’s a timer?! In fact, Woll and oven have forged a unique friendship like no other. “Where have you been all this while?”, you might wonder, don’t ask me, no idea, I don’t know either. Not until I met my 24cm Diamond Lite Woll Sauté Pan! Yes, I am obsessed, it was love at first sight, where else, at The Kitchen Whisk of course!

“Why Woll?” should be the right question to ask me instead. If you are looking for reasons to purchase one, bang on, we are on the same page with 7 reasons. Looking for reviews, I am NOT sorry but you’ll be disappointed, this is just my personal experience with Wolly after one year.

1. Look ma, removable handles! I know, other fancy pans do that too, but I am an ardent Woll fan, remember?! Rivets! That’s my answer. Don’t even get me started, some pans have rivets showing on the inside of the pan where handles are joined. Did you not notice food could get stuck on them and accumulates over time? The OCD in me would have me arm with a brush like the ones from OXO, clean and pick at it till I’m completely satisfied. And needless to say, Woll is oven safe, without the handles (only for those removable ones), from stove to oven, upto 250 °C.
2. 5 carats…I mean 5 layers of diamond hard base coating. I could wear that like a ring on my finger! So thick some might even say it takes twice the time to heat up compared to thinner non-stick pans. What? 2 mins vs. 1? The fact that heat spreads evenly well on the Woll is nuff said (talk to the pan)! Can’t spare another minute waiting for it to heat up? Wait for the hand washing bit, funny how people spend hours on their mobile devices but not on a pan.
3. Dishwasher safe? Yes. Hang on, this page isn’t for those who can’t live a minute without their dishwashers, never mind a day! With the recent virus still looming in the air, you do know you have to hand wash your hands, right? Can’t put those hands in the dishwasher, can you? Nah nah nah nah. A little Tender Loving Care to ALL cookware will go a loooooong way. I hand wash Woll with warm soapy water, immediately after every use, well after dinner, when it’s cooled down. It’s non-stick, there isn’t much to clean anyway. Love the environment? Then please, tissue off excess oil before washing, don't clog the drainage by just washing them down the sink.
4. Woll pans are cut-resistant and can handle abrasion. You are not serious? Completely. That means you could use metal utensils, and I DO use metal utensils, but silicone and wooden ones are still recommended. We have a wide selection of utensils by the way. Look again, R-E-S-I-S-T-A-N-T, not cut-proof! Don’t go testing, poking and probing with sharp instruments like a knife, and using your whole bodyweight. Common sense, not to mention dollars and cents. Even if the pan isn’t damage, you could easily sever ties with the warranty.
5. The best part, 25 years manufacturer’s warranty. People, is that not enough?! Blah, blah, blah, some pans come with A Century’s Warranty, heard that one before. When you do get to a 100 years later, don’t need to tell me. Depending on at what age you bought that pan, and I am sure you probably might live that long, the warranty would have outlive you though. But in any case, whey-hey, congrats, you got yourself a family heirloom.
6. Woll pans are PFOA free. What in the world is that?? It is a mouthful! Perfluorooctanoic acid. In other words, you don’t even know what is that. You can Google that later, but basically, an industrial chemical found in stain-resistant carpets, water resistant materials and any products that resist heat, oil, stains, grease and water, and yes, even non-stick cookware too. But since 2013, manufacturers of such cookware must abide to international health and safety standards. Again, knowledge is important but don’t have to make a big hoo-hah about it. Chemicals have long been found in our daily general products such as soaps, detergents and beauty products, okay, don’t take showers, don’t put on make-up then, go wild and be freeeee.
7. Smoke-free kitchen, yep! This is the one thing that gets me, I hate the smell on my clothes and around the kitchen. What I noticed during cooking, the Woll didn’t produce much smoke, even with the same oil I would use on other pans. Instead, I not only enjoy cooking with it, I love the dishes it produces, and a smoke-free kitchen. On that note, heat up the pan on your stove to the highest point for a min or two, turn down a notch, then add the oil. Use a high smoke point oil (between 220 °C to 260 °C), do not use olive oil for cooking with high heat such as searing meat or frying. Extra Virgin Olive Oil has a smoke point of 190 °C, can be used for gentle roasting only. I use sunflower oil for frying and olive oil for light roasting. Check the back label of the oil before using it.

Finally, do you need a lid? Not really. I got a MasterClass 24cm Glass Lid, heat resistant upto 200 °C, to go with it but I don't really use it during the cooking process, only to cover after cooking. It's an affordable alternative. The Woll Diamond Lite Range has excellent lightweight but weighted enough pans (comes in both induction and non-induction), as compared to heavy cast iron ones. It is the best of both worlds, cooks like a cast iron pan but works like a dream of other non-stick wonders. For me, the Sauté Pan is a good size pan especially when cooking stews, I could brown ingredients on the stove before transferring into the oven, all within one pan. Honestly, I love it, don't have to listen to me, it is for me to know and for you to find out.

Did I mention Ma got one too? Her Christmas present last year, it flew 16 hours from here! And you know what? She hasn't use it yet. Kitchen renovation was her excuse, typical! Woll pans are reasonable in price, your return on investment is the number of praises you might get, the fulfilling smiles on faces, so good, that tummies might even expand sideways too. At the end of the day folks, all good cooks and chefs might tell you, don't blame it on the pan. Don’t know about you but I am loyal enough to stick to my pan like a life-long partner. I’m not here to convince, you might just fall in love with one of our significant other pans. And if you wouldn’t mind, going to stick on some music like Dorondo’s Didn’t I (just to remind my forgetful self “Didn’t I tell you to turn off the fire?”) and spend some quality time with Woll XX

P.S. Mother's Day isn't too far away, consider one perhaps for the wife or mom?

From a staff member's kitchen confessions. This article is not intended to offend or provoke.

The Kitchen Whisk Team