PSA on Made In 5 qt. saucepan

[caseydog]

I once read that one should add salt to water only after it had started boiling. It was never said why, but as an innocent I just believed it and is what I started doing. Have now read that by adding the salt before the water boils allows it to settle on the bottom - this is what could possibly cause some pitting to occur.

I've dumped salt in my SS boiling pot, and had it sink to the bottom hundreds of times without pitting.

CD

 

[dragnlaw]

They never said it WOULD happen, merely that it could happen. I've done lots of acidy stuff in mine as well and never have had a problem.
But all the stainless steel companies seem to say the same thing. Not that it will - but it could!

Like I say - I've never had any issues... so please don't shoot the messenger who's just passing on what's been said.

 

[caseydog]

They never said it WOULD happen, merely that it could happen. I've done lots of acidy stuff in mine as well and never have had a problem.
But all the stainless steel companies seem to say the same thing. Not that it will - but it could!

Like I say - I've never had any issues... so please don't shoot the messenger who's just passing on what's been said.

Not shooting the messenger. I was just surprised to hear SS pan manufacturers say that pitting can happen. The main selling point of SS cookware is its ability to hold up to things other cookware can't.

But, Elon's Cybertrucks are rusting, so maybe SS isn't all it is cracked up to be.

CD

 

[taxlady]

The instructions that came with my 29 year old Lagostina, stainless steel pots say not to add salt to water until it boils. That surprised me. Sometimes I do it that way, other times I just chuck the salt in the water and there is no pitting on those Lagostina pots. I don't remember if they wrote the reason for that.

 

[dragnlaw]

Unfortunately too many instructions never give a "why" just the "don'ts".

 

[jennyema]

I’ve added salt to my cooking water in SS cookware maybe 5 million times in my life without pitting.

I always add salt at the beginning.

 

[pictonguy]

Can salt effect stainless steel with pitting? Yes it can, it's science.

Has to do with the chloride which is in salt, braking down the chromium oxide layer that protects stainless.

I suspect every manufacturer of anything that is stainless will know this from their research department with employees well informed of those facts and I also suspect when it comes to guarantees it would be negligent not to inform people of this fact which also qualifies as an argument for pitting.

Basically, yeah, it can happen but like most people here I've never experienced that with my own stainless but it's also true in all the professional kitchens I've worked as well.

I still think as a consumer there's a need to push the limits when it comes to them, the manufacturers using that excuse when it does happen, it's just not good business which I suspect "made in" will find out if they continue to push this line of reasoning, it's a small world now and everyone can be informed in a click of the mouse, it's just not worth it, and them making an exception is probably a good thing in the long run.

Could/would an expensive car manufacturer and I'm saying expensive as it relates to the pricing of "made in" as it relates to SS pans in general. Would Mercedes tell a customer that the stainless steel pin that connects and holds the actual piston to the connecting rod in the engine was pitted and the cause of the engine failure and unfortunately pitting can happen and is considered normal wear and tear and the engine failure is therefore not covered, yeah, I don't thinks so, lol.