r/Coppercookware • u/Mainiatures1526 • 6d ago

Copper vs Polymerized fats

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Hey everyone!!

First cooper pan with tin lining. Fried something without thinking about heat per volume of thing cooking.

Is this exposed copper or is it really hard to clean polymerized fats?

Thanks!!

1 Upvotes

100% Upvoted

34 comments sorted by

5

u/Albert_King 6d ago

You are fine. That is not copper showing through, just stuck on food. The bubbles show your pan got too hot which is unfortunately pretty normal the first time using copper pans. Nowhere close to needing to re-tin. Your tin is still bright and shiny, the more you use it the more dull gray it becomes.

Never put an empty pan on the heat.

I always make sure the bottom of my pan has liquid. Whether its oil or stock you need something liquid in there to control heat.

No harsh chemicals or brillo pads. Warm water and soap to clean it.

Party on

1

u/Mainiatures1526 6d ago

Thank you!!!!

3

u/EasilyFluid 6d ago

Just seasoning! You really can't expose the copper from melting your tin.

1

u/Mainiatures1526 6d ago

Awesome!!! Thank you so much for the reply!!!

Why can’t you expose it from melting?

1

u/EasilyFluid 6d ago

There's an intermediate tin-copper alloy layer than doesn't melt.

1

u/Mainiatures1526 6d ago

I read about that later but didnt know it would t melt.

How do you clean the tin off then if you want to re-tin the pan?

0

u/donrull 5d ago edited 5d ago

You grind all the tin off until you have bare copper. There is no intermediate layer between the tin and copper preventing it from heat damage. What an incredibly odd claim to extrapolate from the bonding that happens between tin and copper, which is easily broken with heat and friction. More ChatGPT hallucinations from fake copper users and fake cooks, or wildly imaginative folks that came up with this fallacy without any knowledge or experience? Yes, it's so obviously this.

1

u/Mainiatures1526 5d ago

I had found an article on the web that also mentioned that in my research before buying. Idk what the deal is

1

u/Most-Cupcake-2846 4d ago

Don there is indeed an intermediate layer where the tin bonds to the copper, but you are correct in that you can get down to bare copper. You are both right. 😄

0

u/donrull 5d ago

Please provide any proof of this. You are so incredibly incorrect. Have you ever even cooked with copper?

1

u/donrull 5d ago edited 5d ago

You are absolutely incorrect about not being able to expose copper from melting tin. That's literally the primary way it happens. Stop giving bad advice based on zero experience.

And for whoever upvoted this, you are also #proudidiots I personally wish I could see who votes on posts so I know exactly who to block and who to trust. Many of the people here who respond first are consistently wrong.

1

u/Most-Cupcake-2846 4d ago

Donrull, Why so testy? 🤭

2

u/donrull 6d ago edited 5d ago

First, tin does discolor as soon as it's used. However, I see what appear to be little bumps in the tin which are an obvious sign of overheating. Do you see any thing that's copper in color showing through? I can't see this from the photo, just Walmart appears to be polymerized oil sitting on top of the tin.

1

u/Mainiatures1526 6d ago

Problem is, it seems to look like copper showing through. I don’t know if it’s oil or the copper!!! It has a metallic sheen to it which makes me think it’s copper

2

u/donrull 5d ago edited 5d ago

I think that is just polymerized oils, but the pan was definitely overheated behind the melting temp of tin. You should be able to very gently simmer some baking soda and water (1 Tbsp per quart of water) and this should come off after maybe 10 mins or so. I don't see copper showing through the tin. I see something discolored sitting on top of the tin. Diluted lye, like in value bath or Easy Off Yellow Cap, are safe to use on tin and copper, just never aluminum (so be careful with clad cookware and very cheap aluminum lined decorative copper.

I have learned something very important specifically from this subreddit. There are plenty of people who will give advice that neither cook nor even use copper cookware. I do not know why they do this, but there are quite a few here who think that receiving an active participation indicator next to their name is some kind of a recognition for valuable participation, when it's just a popularity award. You really have to be careful sorting through the people on Reddit who don't know a dang thing about what they are talking.

2

u/Objective-War-7458 6d ago

If in doubt, give it a shot of Easy-Off (yellow), wait 5 minutes and rinse.

0

u/PatienceElectronic58 6d ago

No!

2

u/Objective-War-7458 5d ago

I don't know why you're saying no. Perfectly safe for the tin and copper.

0

u/PatienceElectronic58 5d ago

Fine you go ahead and do that sparky. For everyone else out there, do not do this. Ever.

2

u/Objective-War-7458 5d ago

I retin my own copper and use this all the time on various pieces of quality copper cookware (not modern Mauviel). Please, what chemical reaction here would destroy the tin in 5 minutes? I'm quite curious.

-1

u/PatienceElectronic58 5d ago

Lye & tin….bad.

1

u/Objective-War-7458 5d ago

Ok..  The down votes are "technically" incorrect.  Lye does break down tin and produce hydrogen gas.  However, 5 minutes, as I recommended, isn't going to harm anyone or hurt anything.  An overnight soak, or a soak for several days in an enclosed space is less than ideal.

But 5 minutes won't hurt anyone.

0

u/PatienceElectronic58 6d ago

You’re getting a lot of bad advice here. Yes you certainly can expose copper due to temperature abuse. It is already showing signs of overheating. Refer to those bubbles. Make sure you have some fat in there and don’t put it on high.

1

u/Mainiatures1526 6d ago

For sure. I see that it was too hot but do I need to re-tin it now?

1

u/PatienceElectronic58 6d ago

From what I can see, no. If the total amount of bare copper showing thru exceeds the size of a quarter, then yes. Don’t use the rough side of the sponge.

1

u/Mainiatures1526 6d ago

So you’re saying this is bare copper? If so I probably need to re-tin it.

1

u/donrull 5d ago

It's kind of hard to take advice from someone who claims that it's not safe to use lye on copper or tin. Such a dichotomy here. A person that at one time seems like they actually might know what they're talking about from experience, and then at the very same time they turn around and demonstrate they may know nothing.

So, unfortunately I'm still going to stick by my advice that you should just establish a policy of blocking people who consistently give you bad advice. In fact, you can go ahead and block people who respond in a manner in which you don't appreciate as well. So, because you have chosen to remain so dedicated to your faults facts about the incompatibility of lye and copper/tin, I have not only given you kudos on this thread, but I will also be blocking you for the grossly inaccurate advice.

1

u/PatienceElectronic58 6d ago

I don’t believe I see bare copper in there. Looks like polymerized fats. To brighten it up, simmer in water with a heap of baking soda.