Why is Pure Clay (not any other clay), the Healthiest Material for making cookware?

Cooking in clay is not something that modern world has given us. This healthy way of cooking is so ancient that its roots go beyond recorded history. Until a century or so ago, clay cookware used to be the primary cooking utensil and nobody ever thought about changing it. People probably switched to metal and ceramic cookware when the manufacturers became more profit-centric and less health conscious, so they started using other materials for making cooking pots without ensuring that they were even appropriate for this purpose. As a result, these toxic materials have almost replaced clay cookware almost everywhere in the world. 

You can still find cookware made from clay in the market but they are far from being healthy. Conventional clay cookware is seldom made from primary clay and it is coated with chemical glazes and enamels for a finished and shiny look, as they try to imitate their metal counterparts. The most popular, ceramic clay is a composition of stoneware, porcelain or terracotta glazed with chemical colors and varnishes and they leach harmful toxins into food.

How is Pure Clay different?

Pure clay is primary clay harvested from un-farmed and non-industrialized lands, where it is found in the purest form – free from chemicals and other toxins. It has the natural property of being absolutely non-reactive, so unlike most metal and ceramic cookware, it doesn’t leach anything into food. To keep their natural properties intact, no chemicals are used in manufacturing pure clay pots and pans and also, they are not glazed.

When making, if a clay pot has to go through a mechanized process, using chemicals becomes a necessity, but there is no such problem with pure clay pots as they are handmade and extreme care is taken that no chemicals are used at any stage of manufacturing process. This is what makes them 100% non-toxic.

You can clearly tell the difference between a pure clay pot from any other pot by doing a simple alkaline baking soda test at home.  This tests if a cookware leaches while cooking. Baking soda is a alkaline substance just like almost 80% of the foods we eat, so if a pot is leaching something with baking soda, it will definitely react to food and make it toxic. Here’s how to do the test, get some baking soda ready and follow these steps:

1. Boil 2-3 cups of water in any pot, when it starts boiling add 2 tsp of baking soda, boil for 5 more minutes. Turn stove off.
2. Wait till cool enough to taste then taste the water (take a sip). If you taste metals, that’s what you’re eating! If water has a rubber/paint taste it’s the chemicals from enamel/glaze.

As a control, stir 2 tsp of baking soda to 1 glass of water and take a sip — you will taste just the baking soda.

Miriams Earthen Cookware’s pure-clay pots and pans are the only ones that pass this test and are 100% safe and non-toxic. If you are looking for a truly healthy clay cookware, then pure clay is your best option. Feel free to visit MEC Store and find a suitable pure-clay cookware for your kitchen.