Kitchen Tips: Glass Vs. Metal Pans

Should I Use a Glass or Metal Pan? - as part of the expert series by GeoBeats. Hi, I am Oron Franco from the Private Chef NYC and today we are going to talk about the difference between glass pans and metal pans. Now, metal pans are definitely the more common pans, and the good thing about a metal pan is that it will heat up very very fast. So if you are doing anything like a cake or a pie or something with a crust or if you are doing brownies for example, definitely use a metal pan. It will brown the food faster. It will get you that crunch, you know, that edges that we love so much with brownies. Even when you are using a non-stick, be sure to spray it first to make certain that it will not stick, and that little bit of oil is going to heat up with the pan, kind of almost fry the food that you are cooking and give it even a better crust. When you are looking to buy a metal pan, try to get the really heavy cast iron ones that will conduct the heat the best. They take a little longer to cool off but you will definitely get a better result. Now when it comes to glass, glass is more isolated so it will not heat up as fast. One of the benefits of using glass is that it is very versatile. Now you can use this as a serving dish. It is a little nicer than this and you can get it in porcelain or clay or anything like that and it really looks nice on the table when you use it. Another good thing about glass, you can actually put this in the microwave whereas you cannot use any metal in a microwave. The only thing you should remember is this will not heat up as fast so this is better for maybe casseroles, custards. If you are making a soufflé for example, you are better off doing it in a glass pan or in a porcelain one. Because if you use a metal one, it might start to burn off the edges before the inside of your custard is actually ready. So those are the main differences between glass and metal. Happy cooking!