In recent years there has been quite a buzz around “green” nonstick cookware. These new generations of cookware sets have appeared on the market since it was first discovered that harmful chemicals were present in cheaper nonstick coatings. Today we are going to have a look at on of the more popular green cookware sets – the Ozeri Green Earth Frying Pan Set.
Product Features:
Ozeri is a bit of a newcomer to the world of nonstick cookware, but that doesn’t mean we shouldn’t give them the benefit of the doubt, as this 3 piece pan set has quite a few features for the price. This particular set of pans has been on the market for over 2 years now, and has gained many favorable reviews since its release.
The set is comprised of 3 pans in total, and you get a 8″, a 10″ and a 12″ pan. In terms of looks, these pans really stand out. The lime green exterior is quite bright and unique, and helps to showcase that they are a green kind of product. The handles coated with silicone, and are quite comfy in your hands. There is no mention of ergonomics in the handle design, but we found them quite easy to work with when cooking. The base of the handle is stainless steel, and the handle is riveted on the pan which is a nice touch. Generally riveted handles are only found on higher end cookware, so points go to Ozeri for implementing this feature on a more affordable set. According to the instruction manual, these pans are oven safe up to 480F which is good to know.
The coating is the really big feature on this set of pans. Ozeri have implemented a coating designed in Germany called Greblon. This particular coating is free of PFOA and PTFE, so it is environmentally safe and was one of the first coatings to emerge that avoided using some of the harsh chemicals used in cheaper nonstick coatings. The nonstick coating is ceramic based, and is scratch resistant.
Something else you notice straight away when you look at the pans is the strange textured cooking surface. This cooking surface supposedly aids the nonstick and cooking performance by creating small air pockets beneath the food. It sounds good in theory, but we will have to see how it actually performs before we can give a full verdict. Ozeri also have versions of these pans with the smooth cooking surface available.
The pans themselves are made out of hard anodized aluminum. This is the most common material used in the manufacture of mid range nonstick pans, and has always given a good cooking performance in past reviews. These pans can be used on all the main types of stoves. We should also mention that these can be used on inductions stoves too, as they have magnetized bases. This is a nice additional extra, as most affordable sets are not induction friendly.
Like most nonstick cooking sets, you should avoid using metal utensils when cooking with these. The coating may claim to be tough and scratch friendly, but metal will likely damage the coating over the long term.
This pan set does not come with lids, but you can buy them as optional extras. Each lid normally retails under $20, so you should set aside an extra $50 or so if you plan on purchasing the matching lids. The lids are made out of tempered glass, and are oven safe up to 390F. They have a steam release valve built in, and the transparent lid helps you to keep an eye on your food without loosing valuable moisture.
We’ve discussed some of the features of this cookware set, now lets put it to the test. For all the tests we used the medium sized 10″ pan. To begin with we seasoned the cookware with a teaspoon of olive oil. The first test we like to do is the egg test, which involves frying an egg and then doing a batch of scrambled egg afterwards. This is a good basic test to see how well the nonstick coating works.
The pan heated up very quickly, and we cracked open our egg to see what would happen. The egg sizzled away nicely, and after a minute or two we flipped it over to cook the other side. The nonostick cermaic coating was so slippery that we had a hard time getting the egg onto the spatula at first! The egg came out very nicely, and seemed to be cooked very evenly. We had no problems with sliding the egg out when it was done, and the nonstick coating seemed to be doing it’s job. Next up we poured in some scrambled egg batter, and proceeded to mix it about. The egg didn’t take long to cook at all, and there was no sign of any sticking at all when we moved the scrambled egg around the pan. Like the fried egg, the scrambled egg took no effort to get out of the pan. These first two test went quite well, so we decided to test out a pancake. After giving the pan a quick wipe, we poured in our batter and waited for the results. The pancake was bubbling away in not time, and like the fried egg, it was no hassle getting it to flip over. The pancake was a lovely golden brown all over, and there were no signs of hot spots on the cooking surface. Once it was done, it slid out with no problems.
We tested out these pans for a little over a month, and so far everything has worked as intended. The nonstick coating is free of scratches, and still functions as new. They were also very simple to clean. Like most nonstick sets, a wipe with a paper towel is all that is needed to get them clean.
Ozeri have done a really good job with this three piece set.The three different sizes will allow you to make most kinds of pan food with ease. You can buy each pan individually, but the set seems like the best value for money. We’re still not sure if the textured cookware surface really provides that much benefit to be honest, but the heat and nonstick performance is certainly very good, so maybe there is some truth to the claimed benefits. The Ozeri Green Earth nonstick pans come with a one year warranty.
Pros:
- Fresh and funky design
- PFOA and PTFE free
- Oven safe to 480F
- Comfy handle
- Work on induction stoves
- Great nonstick performance
Cons:
- Matching lids are optional extras
Summary:
This is a nice little nonstick pan set, and the performance is very good. With a retail price of under $200, Ozeri have certainly made a good affordable pan set. At the time of writing this 3 piece set was on sale on Amazon, so you can click here to check if it is still on sale.
| Our Rating: |
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| 4 |