Clay pots vs Steel vs Taste - Is this common where you're from?

[nochefschoice]

Here in this land, clay pots are like a whole standard. While we've got a ton of steel saucepans and you know the whole cooking arsenal, clay pots are pretty common in probably every house that's got a family. Single bachelors homes - I don't think so if they don't cook.

 

The reason why it's so popular is because cooking in a clay pot kind of gives a different flavour to the food.

 

I'm really curious, how do you cook? Do you use a clay pot where you're from?

[liuzhou]

17 minutes ago, nochefschoice said:

Do you use a clay pot where you're from?

 

Often

[haresfur]

Clay pot cooking is pretty niche where I live but I use a few variations. I would be interested to hear what type of pots and what type of cooking you do.

 

I have a lidded terracotta pot that I made and generally used like a romertopf - you soak the pot and then put in a cold oven and ramp up to steam/roast the food. I have also used it on the stovetop but it has a crack that I haven't sealed yet (you can boil milk in it and it might seal the crack if it isn't too bad).

 

I use my La Chamba earthenware pot that makes beans I prefer to the faster pressure cooker method I use. I also have one of their open pans that makes decent Spanish rice in the oven. Probably similar to the Mexican bean pots Rancho Gordo sells, except for the shape.

 

I have a glazed stoneware bean pot that sometimes comes into service for baked beans but is usually used to store dog biscuits. Since it is not porous, the main difference from steel is heat retention.

 

My tagine is not earthenware so not the same as traditional ones. It is an industrial high spodumene clay designed to handle stovetop cooking with minimal porosity. There are a few potters who hand-throw high-spodumene flameware but you have to know what you are doing. There are also potters around, particularly in the southwest US who make functional micaceous pots like some of the Pueblo pottery. The mica helps avoid thermal shock. Not that the Pueblo pots, aren't functional, but they command a pretty high price from collectors.

 

Have a small sand pot I picked up in Thailand that can easily take stovetop. Not sure exactly how they are fired. Glazed on the inside. I don't use it that much but it worked out really well in the gas barbie to get a bit of smokey flavour into eggplant by putting woodchips and herbs on the flame.

 

I don't think the terracotta tortilla warmer I made quite counts as cooking but gets a fair bit of use. Sometimes I soak it first, but usually just put a dampened cloth inside and microwave it.

 

Oh, and I have some small terracotta pots with no lid glazed on the inside that were used to sell a brand of hummus. Mainly eye-catching, I guess. I do think they are cool and use them as small baking dishes sometimes.

[liuzhou]

I have a few

 

 

 

 

Different pots; different functions.

 

 

 

 

[KennethT]

9 hours ago, nochefschoice said:

Here in this land, clay pots are like a whole standard. While we've got a ton of steel saucepans and you know the whole cooking arsenal, clay pots are pretty common in probably every house that's got a family. Single bachelors homes - I don't think so if they don't cook.

 

The reason why it's so popular is because cooking in a clay pot kind of gives a different flavour to the food.

 

I'm really curious, how do you cook? Do you use a clay pot where you're from?

Where are you from?  Many cultures use clay pots, so I'm curious.

[nochefschoice]

2 hours ago, KennethT said:

Where are you from?  Many cultures use clay pots, so I'm curious.

 

Oooh where am I from indeed. *smiles. Let's say I am sometimes in the Middle-east, and sometimes in Asia, and there's probability I might travel to Africa, but a spice so globally renown has my countries old name in it. And is often often associated with it. Would love to have you guess where.