The capacity of wooden handles to remain calm for extended periods is one of their most appealing features. You won’t have to worry about your pan’s wooden handles being too hot to handle because of this.
In any cookware, the handles are an essential aspect of the product. For our cookware, we’re looking for handles that are safe, comfortable, and beautiful. Different materials are used to make the handles. This is why many people ask: can I put a pan with a rubber handle in the oven, and why do pans have metal handles?
You’ll need to conduct some homework before purchasing cookware. Being familiar with various pots and pans and their components will allow you to predict how they perform.
Don’t worry about getting burned when holding the wooden handles. This is perfect for those who enjoy stirring their food while it cooks in their frying pan by flipping it over.
Wooden handles are the best since they keep their cool for a long time. In this case, the pan’s handle can be used to lift the pan during cooking—people who are used to flipping food while cooking would love this appliance.
You don’t have to be apprehensive about touching the wooden handles when cooking because they remain cold enough to handle. In addition, those wooden handles make it simple to turn your food over.
In addition, wooden handles are commonly found on pans and pots because they are easier to grip. Wooden handles are used by several home cooks who want to ensure the comfort of their hands.
Why Does a Metal Saucepan Have a Wooden Handle?
To avoid injury, the handles on the saucepans should not be constructed of metal, which is a good conductor of heat. As a result, metal pans are equipped with wooden handles as an additional layer of heat protection.
Metal is a superior thermal conductor. Therefore, to avoid a potentially lethal situation, the handles of the saucepans should not be constructed of metal. A person trying to grasp a metal handle could drop the pot or get a painful burn.
- Nevertheless, handles made of wood are popular since they are simpler to hold. Several home cooks utilize wooden handles to ensure the safety and comfort of their hands while cooking.
- Wood is a poor conductor of heat, whereas metal is a better conductor of heat. As a result, wood can significantly lower the temperature of your handle. Many of them feature wooden handles to avoid burning the hands when handling hot metal pans, skillets, and pots.
- Compared to metals, wood and plastic have a far lower heat conductivity. As a result, they take longer to heat up, and they don’t transfer heat to your hand as rapidly as a metal handle would.
- It’s safe to touch the wooden handles while cooking because they’re still cool. In addition, the hardwood handles make it a breeze to flip your meal.
- Most cast iron pans, however, do not have distinct handles. A heated pan’s handle can burn your hand if you don’t have an oven mitt or other insulator between you and it.
Are Pans with Wooden Handles Oven Safe?
Wooden handles generate harmful explosive vapors at higher temperatures, so this is not considered oven safe. Because these gases can cause an explosion within your oven, you should never use wooden handles in a range.
However, there are certain drawbacks to wooden handles as well. The wooden handle prevents the pan from being used in the oven because it is not heat-resistant.
One-piece metal castings are standard in metal cookware. However, even cast iron can grow dangerously hot on the burner if it is not protected from the heat.
On stovetops, wooden grips on metal objects insulate users from heat and make them more accessible and safer to use. While some wood handles contain volatile polymers that are rapidly ignited, others have a thick structure that prevents them from combusting as quickly.
Using metal pans with wooden handles on the cooktop is fine. However, using them in the oven is not. Cooking pot handles are made with an insulating spacer to keep your hands safe from the heat.
When placed in an oven, the wooden grip loses its protective properties, and the wood shrinks consequently due to the evaporation of moisture. As the food cooks, the wood releases combustible gases and imparts an off-flavor to the dish.
For example, metal skillets with wooden handles are not oven-safe cookware. In a closed oven, wood won’t catch fire until it reaches 800ºF, but wood presents a different fire hazard at lower temperatures.
As the temperature rises, wood releases flammable vapors, which can spontaneously catch fire at any moment. Moreover, wooden handles on a metal pan may crack when heated to baking temperatures, making it dangerous to hold.
What is the Best Material for a Pan Handle?
There are a plethora of materials used in making panhandles: silicon, wood, plastic, and metal. Each material has its plus and minuses—so it is best to get every pan with different handle material.
Having the correct cookware in your kitchen not only saves you time and effort but also ensures that you receive the best results when attempting a new dish. As well, having a wide variety of cookware means you’re not tied to a single way of preparation.
- Silicon handles have a lower heat conduction rate than metal or wood handles, allowing them to remain cool for a more extended period. As a result, silicon handles are comfortable to use. To the same extent, take into consideration that silicon handles might melt when exposed to extreme heat.
- Steel, stainless steel, carbon steel, or iron handles are all options for metal handles. To top it all off, the heat resistance of each of these materials is exceptionally excellent. That implies that you can cook them in the oven with no problem, and no worries about melting the handles or bursting pans are necessary.
- Metal handles can be made of copper, aluminum, cast iron, or stainless steel. Stainless steel handles are the best of the three metal handle options because they take longer to heat up than the other two.
With that stated, if you don’t know how to use your cookware correctly, you won’t use any amount of it. Therefore, it is imperative to conduct thorough research into cookware and discover how the various components affect its performance.
