Cooking in the healthiest cookware is particularly important for healthy living because what we eat directly impacts our health. And the cookware plays a crucial role in deciding the health value of food. This is because the material of cookware can interact with food – a biochemical entity and modify its nutritional composition.
The innately reactive metals and chemical laden ceramics do exactly that and are known to contaminate your food by leaching toxins during cooking. These toxins accumulate in our body over time and become the cause of serious illnesses. Therefore, choosing an inert cooking material is imperative for cooking healthy.
MEC’s pure and primary clay that is obtained from 30 feet below top soil and lab tested is free from contaminants and cooks maintaining the integrity and health value of food. Eating healthy food regularly cleanses out the toxins accumulated in the body, boosts immune system, and allows the body to heal. As a result, MEC cooks confirm getting healthier and more energetic because of the fact that pure nutrition is provided to the body. Learn more about this pioneering earthen cookware brand and the healthy features of their pots and pans here.
Cooking healthy in MEC’s clay cookware is highly beneficial but it comes with some challenges because we are so used to cooking in metals. Let us find out what these challenges are and their easy solutions:
Challenges of cooking in MEC clay and their easy solutions
Mold or Mildew:
Mold grows on all-natural materials like stone, wood and in this case, clay when there is moisture and enough oxygen. Although mold occurring on clay pots is not toxic because it feeds off moisture from food. It stays only on the surface because there is insufficient oxygen in between the walls. You can prevent and clean it very easily:
Wash the pot thoroughly with water, scrub some vinegar or lemon juice throughout the walls of the pot, rinse with water, drain and wipe with cotton towel to dry it out. The key to prevent it is to make sure the pot stays completely dry between uses. You can do so by drying it out in the sun or on a stovetop at the lowest heat setting till the rim is warm to the touch.
Takes a few minutes longer to warm up:
MEC cooks your food on the lowest heat setting taking less time than conventional pots to cook your food completely. It takes a few minutes longer to warm up (a bit even longer when the pot is not fully seasoned) because it converts the generic heat from the stove/cooktop to the healthy far-infrared heat. This unique heat spreads throughout the pot, penetrates deep into food and cooks it from inside out taking a lot less time afterwards, so the overall cooking time stays the same or even less in some cases.
Cooks differently on different heat sources:
MEC pots cook best on gas stoves because the heat given to the pot is uniform, so these can be used directly over the flame. Using a diffuser is recommended when cooking for longer hours (like slow cooking beans for 4-5 hours). Some MEC cooks prefer to use an alternative gas burner for cooking in their clay pots.
When using an electric heat source, it is required to use a heat diffuser that converts the sporadic heat coming from the cooktop into uniform heat. This means cooking might be a bit slower in this case because of the diffuser. An important thing to keep in mind is to always cook on the lowest heat setting. You can go up to medium-low after 5 minutes, when the pot is at least half full of food.
Finding the right combination of heat, water, and oil:
MEC cooks with far infrared heat and becomes naturally non-stick once fully seasoned (used 5-6 times for water based recipes like lentils). The pots and pans have semi-porous walls that let excess water evaporate and ensure sufficient supply of oxygen during cooking. These features are amazing for healthy cooking, but they change the way you usually cook.
As explained above, you must cook on the lowest heat setting.
You need little to no oils so you can replace the oil in your recipe with water. Also, it is healthier to use oils (if any) on top when the food is almost done. This prevents the oil from breaking into unhealthy trans-fat, which is exactly what happens when you heat it directly by heating it first in your pot.
Cooking in a breathable pot means some water may precipitate out while cooking, especially when the pot is new. As the pot is used 5-6 times, the clay platelets come closer and form a tighter bond, so the precipitation is less to none. This means you might need to add slightly more water when the pot is new and you may reduce this amount when cooking in a fully seasoned pot.
An open mind and a good attitude goes a long way!
As it is always when trying something new, the right attitude can be a great friend. In our years of making and selling, we have come across many people who have a great attitude when starting this new journey and we have seen them reap great benefits quickly. A few, however, start off with doubts and second guesses and inevitably take much longer to learn thus loosing out on enjoying the unique benefits MEC can offer them. The right attitude can go a long way and it costs nothing!
Fear:
In rare cases, we have seen people who eagerly buy the pots, but then do not use them for fear that something could go wrong. An MEC pot does not ever shatter like glass or ceramic, so no need to fear that. The worst that MAY happen and only if exposed to high and uneven heat repeatedly is – it can crack. The crack first starts as a small one and slowly progresses over time. Most cracks can be fixed (see how), and pot used again. If not, MEC comes with an excellent warranty to help in these situations.
Hope this information helps you get more comfortable with cooking in the healthiest pots and makes your transition from unhealthy cookware to Miriam’s smooth and easy. Head over to our online store and order a clay pot today so you can reap the benefits of truly healthy cooking for years to come.
Why Choose Healthy Cookware? 