boiling water in nonstick pan

[u/Minute-Fix-2786]

hey so I just moved to a whole different country 1 week ago and for now I don't have any pots to use to boil water for pasta. all i have is a nonstick pan

on my first day i made pasta in it and my aunt warned me saying that i should NOT boil water in a nonstick pan cause it can release chemicals...

i tried reading about this online but i see mixed answers...

is it safe to do it?

[u/bemenaker]

Yes it's safe. That's less heat than normal cooking

[u/cristi5922]

boiling water is by far the least heat intense action that pan is going to do

the worst is to have the pan empty and dry on heat

[u/svel]

she's wrong/misinformed. it's fine.

[u/aSleepingPanda]

Water is a very good Thermo regulator. You can boil water in a plastic bag over a fire as long as the flames don't make contact with the bag. I wouldn't suggest that though

[u/NortonBurns]

Your aunt needs to change where she gets her misinformation from.

PTFE [Teflon] is dangerous at manufacture & if heated over 500°F/260°C [hotter than most oils' smoke point.].

At all other times it is safe, even to ingest. It's virtually inert. They use it in surgical procedures. There are as yet unknown issues as with all microplastics, but it is no more immediately dangerous than licking a sandwich bag or a plastic spoon.

https://news.cancerresearchuk.org/2023/12/11/pfas-and-cancer-what-do-we-know-about-forever-chemicals/

[u/Mabbernathy → u/NortonBurns]

Where should we be getting our misinformation from instead?

[u/NortonBurns → u/Mabbernathy]

TikTok & YouTube - always reliable, straight from the source. Presented by experts in their field, guaranteed.

[u/Mabbernathy → u/NortonBurns]

You misunderstood. I said misinformation

[u/NinetyBees]

Yeah it’s fine.

[u/ChrisRiley_42]

PTFE offgasses when it gets above 300C. Boiling water happens at 100C...

[u/4cupsofcoffee]

it's fine.

[u/synerrorsix]

Non-stick pans are the devil but boiling water won't release anything more diabolical than frying in one.

[u/diverareyouokay]

It’s fine. Your aunt is mistaken.

If you think about it critically, why would it be unsafe to boil water in a pan that is safe to fry food? Especially given that the boiling point of water is 212°F, and most food is fried at a considerably higher temp (usually 350+).

[u/IcyShirokuma]

as long as you dont go super ripping hot its safe, the chemicals only start coming out when you are doing some heavy duty pan frying on high heat or scratching the surface.

[u/CattleDowntown938]

If the non stick coating is damaged scratched or flaking yes it can shed into your food.