A Comprehensive Guide to Choosing Non-Toxic Cookware

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Cooking is that uniquely human invention that allows us to pack a lot of nutrition into a single meal.

Food is instrumental for our health and for said food to be healthy, we need to make sure that it is not compromised by very utilities we use to cook it.

We can choose from a wide variety of cookware today. And since you are here, you probably know that much of it may be contaminating your food.

Our aim with this article is to provide you with the best information and advice about how to choose the cookware which keeps you healthy!

Cookware that is safe

Enameled Iron & Steel

Enameled cookware is basically coating iron or steel cookware with powdered glass.

In other words, enameled cookware is one of the safest options out there.

Add to that that it is durable, easy to clean and food does not stick that much.

Make sure that you buy it from a reputable source so that it is not made with toxic metals such as lead.

It can get quite pricey as an 11-3/4-Inch Skillet or an Enameled Cast Iron Baking Dish can top $200.

If you want great, healthy cookware that will last you years to come, though, enameled cast iron is a way to go.

Glass cookware

The glass is probably the most natural and purest of all materials. Probably.

Glass is made by melting sand with minerals like soda ash and limestone, and the result is one of the most inert materials you can cook in. It does not leach toxins into your food, which makes glass cookware a safe pick.

That is true for simple white glass, though. The fancier glassware that is colored or “crystal” can contain lead, which is toxic.

The simpler options though are healthy, inexpensive and versatile. A Pyrex 5 Piece Bakeware can double as a storage container or can be used in the freezer.

Ceramic cookware

Ceramic cookware is, in its basic form, clay fired at very high heat.

Make sure that you buy from a reputable source so that it does not have lead in it. Xtrema is a good example. Ozeri makes ceramic-coated pans, which we cover below.

Since fired clay is very inert, good quality ceramic cookware is one of the healthier options out there.

Ceramic or ceramic coated

Ceramic cookware means that your pan or pot is made entirely from ceramic.

This option is more expensive than ceramic coated cookware but the quality is higher as well.

It should be noted, though, that ceramic cookware does not mean non-stick cookware.

Companies such as Xtrema are popular for their ceramic cookware.

Ceramic coated cookware is cookware that is made, in most cases, from aluminum, coated with a ceramic layer.

There are a number of benefits for choosing a “ceramic coated”:

generally non-stick.
cheaper;
no PTFE (Teflon) in the coating;
the aluminum base is a better heat conductor;
lighter;
the coating lasts longer if you use wooden tools and low to medium heat.

Choose a reputable manufacturer, though!

Ceramic coating may suggest non-toxic materials, however, some cheaper brands will add potentially hazardous additives such as lead or cadmium.

Go for reputable brands such as Ozeri, that use high-quality coatings such as German-made Greblon®.

Also, if the coating chips, the aluminum underneath is exposed, so it’s time for a new pan.

Cookware that is sort-of safe

Stainless Steel

Stainless steel is an alloy.

And an alloy means that there are various metals in its composition. Iron, carbon, chromium, and nickel are the main components.

A 2013 Oregon State study found that stainless steel leaches nickel and chromium into tomato sauce, most of all when the pot is new, and the amounts leveled off after about six uses. Iron leaches too. Chromium and iron are nutrients we need, but nickel is a problem for people with a nickel allergy, so if that’s you, don’t simmer acidic food in stainless steel for hours.

Chromium and nickel are considered to be a cause for allergic contact dermatitis.

That said, in general, steel is considered to be relatively inert and does not react that much with the food. And a durable, beautiful and inexpensive one too.

For most people, stainless steel is a good everyday choice.

Cast Iron

Cast iron cookware can be considered healthy. With a caveat, though.

Cast iron cookware is made out of iron.

And iron is good for you, right?

For most people, yes. Cooking in cast iron adds iron to food, especially acidic dishes like tomato sauce, and in trials, food cooked in iron pots raised hemoglobin in people who were low in iron. That’s a plus on a plant-based diet. The exception is anyone with hemochromatosis, an inherited condition where the body stores too much iron. If that’s you, choose enameled cast iron instead.

If you need a not-so-expensive cookware that you will use infrequently but will last, cast iron is a good way to go.

Lodge cast iron cookware is a good choice in terms of quality and price.

Cookware to avoid

Synthetic non-stick coatings

There is a lot to say about synthetic coatings such as Teflon.

And there is nothing much to say about them as well.

Traditional nonstick pans are coated with PTFE (Teflon). Overheated, especially when empty, they give off fumes that can cause flu-like symptoms. Making PTFE has also relied on PFAS ‘forever chemicals’. The older one, PFOA, is now classed as a human carcinogen, and its replacements are far less studied. So for us it’s ‘avoid if possible’.

And it is possible. And we avoid them.

Aluminum

Aluminum can harm the nervous system at high doses. A link with Alzheimer’s has been studied for decades and never proven, and the CDC’s toxic substances agency says very little aluminum gets into your body from cooking utensils. The exception is acidic food in bare aluminum: in German testing, a lemon marinade in aluminum camping cookware picked up more than Europe’s safe weekly limit. We skip bare aluminum pans. If you keep one, don’t use it for tomato sauce or for storing leftovers.

Copper

Copper is actually a mineral we need, but too much makes you sick, and bare copper leaches into acidic foods like tomatoes, vinegar and fruit. That’s why food safety rules ban unlined copper from touching acidic food. If you love copper pans, choose ones lined with stainless steel.