Why food sticks to the pan and how can we prevent it?

Imagine yourself making an omelet using a stainless steel pan. Mostly you will end up making scrambled egg instead of the omelet as the egg will get stuck to the pan and you will poke it several times with ladle.

Stainless steel pots and pans are incredibly durable and versatile. But then while making foods like eggs and fish half of it will get stuck to the pan because of which many people avoid stainless steel pans. There should be a way around. Before suggesting what to do let us understand why food sticks to the pan. This will help in finding the perfect solution.

Why does food stick to stainless steel pans?

Food sticks to the pan due to chemical bonds that occur between the food and the material of the pan. Though these bonds are going to be weak like van der Waals forces that is enough to cause the stickiness. Especially Protein-rich foods are particularly prone to sticking as the proteins can form complexes with metal atoms, such as iron, in the pan.

Then, How do seasoning the pans reduce the chance of food sticking to the surface

The surface of these pans though they look smooth, they aren’t actually. If you look through a microscope you would be able to see those small pores. So when we add oil, it will fill up these pores and levels the pan. Hot oil is needed as cold oil being more viscous would not spread like hot oil and fill the gaps.

Also when the oil in the pan gets hot enough a steaming effect occurs. This is because the hot oil quickly sears the outside of the food and causes water to be released from the food. This layer of steam will prevent food from coming in direct contact with the pan. If the oil is not hot enough, the steam effect will not occur In addition very hot oil will react with the metal atoms of the pan and form a coating called a patina. This leaves few free metal atoms to react with the food. This coating can easily be removed by detergents and every time we reuse the pan, we will have to apply again. In the case of pans made of cast-iron, the patina becomes more permanent.

How to stop food from sticking to you pan ?

1. Make sure the surface of the pan is clean

2. Always add oil to hot pan as this will heat up the oil quickly, and oil being oil less viscous when hot, you will only need less oil to cover the pan

3. Never transfer food from refrigerator directly to the pan as the food surface has water, it will lower the temperature of the pan and lead to sticking

4. Do not add too much food into the pan. Crowding lowers the temperature of the pan due to the moisture released from food and will lead to food getting stuck to the pan and releases moisture into the pan.

How to season a stainless steel pan

1. Place your pan on the stove and then add to the pan spoon full of oil

2. Swirl the oil around the surface of the pan

3. Allow the oil to smoke well

4. Now turn off the burner and allow the pan to rest

5. Repeat this 2 more times and your pan is ready

6. After use just wash the pan in running water. If you use detergent you will have to do seasoning before the next use again as detergent disrupts the bond formed between the oil and the pan.

Hope you are now clear with ‘Pan Science’.

Do share in the comment any doubts from your day-to-day life. I will find the science facts behind that and will share with you the solution to overcome it. Looking forward to your comments.