Cast Iron, Stoneware, Steel???

joy · Joined: 24 Dec 2010 Posts: 92

We have my partner's grandmother's Griswold cast iron pans which we use for most of our cooking and are very attached to. We also can't afford to replace it. Obviously, it has been used with gluten products. We also have stoneware.

We've heard that they can be decontaminated by putting them in the self-clean cycle of an oven. What do you all think about this? Does the high heat break down the molecular structure of the gluten or something?

Obviously wood utensils have got to go. What about stainless steel? Is putting it in the dishwasher good enough?

On that note, is using our dishwasher that has had gluten in it in the past ok?

Thanks!

joy · Joined: 24 Dec 2010 Posts: 92

Oh yeah, what about plastic containers and tupperware?

katkavoski · Joined: 08 Jan 2009 Posts: 98

I have replaced basically everything besides the stainless steel pots. Actually, I kept the old stuff for my gluten eaters...they eat their pasta and bread, and my pots are off limits for them.
My things are labeled, or red (guess why Wink

), or red labeled....oh, boy. I have GF half of the kitchen strictly crumb-free. Surprisingly, my guys respect it, keep their stuff on their table avoiding CC. It is not so complicated due to me doing most of the cooking.
I do not know anything about stoneware, but non-stick Teflon pans are great source of CC. I do not share any wooden or plastic utensils with my gluten eaters either.

Deb · Posted: Wed Dec 29, 2010 8:11 pm Post subject:

joy · Joined: 24 Dec 2010 Posts: 92

Yeah. We don't use nonstick any more anyway, so that's not an issue. We have mostly stainless, so that sounds good.

The cast iron is really a big deal. They are family heirlooms, we love them, and buying the same quality new is out of the question.

I saw someone post about having found an msds for gluten that said it was destroyed at 450 C. That sounds ridiculously high. I searched for msds for gluten and didn't find one for wheat gluten that said how to destroy it (I found lots for corn gluten as used as a pesticide). I'm wondering if that was supposed to be 450 F or the msds was actually for corn?

People are saying that putting the pans through a self-clean oven cycle (very hot, but less than 450 C) would char the pans, burn out the old seasoning, destroy the gluten, and allow us to reseason them (which fills the pores with oil). It sounds reasonable to me. Do you all know anything about this?

Stoneware is basically the same as cast iron only it seems more porous to me.

I think we're leaning toward getting rid of all of our plastic containers.

katkavoski · Joined: 08 Jan 2009 Posts: 98

I took my diagnosis as a good excuse to get some new stuff for the kitchen...

aklap · Joined: 02 Oct 2004 Posts: 12530 Location: WI, USA

Just wanted to offer up another opinion on non-stick pots & pans – if there’s any cuts or scratches in the surface, replace it. It’s reported that Teflon is a porous surface and thus is not GF friendly. I have relaxed my views on non stick surfaces over time. As long as the coating does not have any cuts/scrapes/grooves - to harbor stuck gluten – and as long as it’s completely clean, I don't have a problem with it. I was doing a support group presentation and in March 2009, I sent off an email to a Tricia Thompson aka The Gluten Free Dietitian aka the author of The GF Nutrition Guide. Since she’s done several scientific studies, I thought she’d be a good one to ask about Teflon.

She agreed, if it's scratched, or starts to peel - pitch it. Teflon isn't good eats. Tricia wasn't aware of any studies on the subject, but finds it's hard to image teflon absorbing gluten or any food. Basing her opinion on what she's read - it's chemically inert, not porous and does not absorb food. She also said she's not a Teflon expert Wink

So, use your best judgement...

As for cast iron, I think I've heard of people having their pans sand blasted - thus stripping it's surface down to the bare metal.

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Al

“We cannot all do great things, but we can do small things with great love.” Mother Teresa

celiacmaine-iac · Joined: 19 Dec 2007 Posts: 2131 Location: Maine

I agree with Al about the non-stick. Here's what I did, FWIW. I did not replace any cookware or plastic storage-ware. I washed and rinsed everything thoroughly. I did replace cutting boards and wooden utensils. I also bought a toaster oven for dedicated GF use. I would absolutely replace anything porous like a pizza stone. I don't use cast iron because I also have hemochromatosis. However, in my NGF days before the hemochromatosis was discovered, I used cast-iron. By using it daily, it had become as smooth as the best stainless pans. The surfaces released like teflon. I personally wouldn't be too worried about it, but that is just my opinion. It's not based on any scientific evidence.

At the time I went GF they were still recommending ditching teflon pans. I didn't. I figured I would inevitably make mistakes at first, and that by the time I was getting it 100% right, the pans would be free of any residual gluten. I would recommend buying a new colander. Colanders are gluten traps. I am a fanatic about getting my dishes clean because I am germ phobic, and yet I will occasionally still see a sheen of the starch from pasta left on a colander. We only eat GF pasta here, so I don't worry about it now. One other thing I preach about here is replacing pot holders. How many times do pot holders touch a pizza crust, or get left on a floury surface? IMO, it would probably not even be possible to completely wash the gluten out of them. Also, replace your hand mixer, if you have one. Between the vents in them, and the holes that the beaters go into, I think it would be hard to know if they are safe.

If you are going to have a mixed GF/NGF household I would recommend you set aside a food prep area that is strictly GF, no exceptions. That has kept me safe even though my DH eats gluten foods at home. I only cook GF, so the limit of gluten foods in our house is the occasional NGF snacks and DH's bread. For a while we were doing NGF pizza, which we did successfully, but I developed a GF pizza recipe that is DH's pizza of choice now. Yay, me!

Whatever I did apparently worked for me, because within two weeks I was healthier than I had been in many, many years. Each person must ultimately use their own judgement about what's safe and what isn't.
_________________
Steph

joy · Joined: 24 Dec 2010 Posts: 92

Thanks for the heads up on the mixer! I didn't even think of that. You were just in time, since my partner was looking for a used stand mixer (we have a very old one that has seen loads of gluten). She managed to find one that was still in the box Smile

Everything about it is perfect, except it's in white and she wanted a fun color.

What do you think about new-ish potholders and dish cloths? Do you think it would be ok to just wash them on hot a few times and then store them in a decontaminated drawer?

We're dealing with the obvious stuff and are making a list so we can do everything else in one fell swoop.

I was rather proud of myself for realizing the dog poo bags are mostly old bread bags, and every time we take one out or put a new bag in the container that was contamination. We recycled them all today and are starting fresh.

We've stopped bringing gluten in the house. After we get the hang of being truly gluten free we'll decide whether it makes sense to try and reintroduce it to the house on a limited basis.

celiacmaine-iac · Joined: 19 Dec 2007 Posts: 2131 Location: Maine

I really would throw the pot holders out. Because of the batting inside, it is a good place for gluten to get into, and not come out easily with washing. I'd bet that if most people took their pot holders outside and beat them on a hard surface they would see flour residue come out of them.

I think the dish cloths should be fine with a good washing. You rinse dishes after washing anyway, so even if there were a trace of gluten on the cloths, it should come off the dishes when you rinse them.
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Steph

Home-Based-Mom · Joined: 12 Aug 2008 Posts: 697 Location: California

I have heard of others decontaminating the cast iron in self-cleaning ovens. The heat gets so high it incinerates everything, including gluten. You will probably have to re-season the pans, though. There are many web sites with instructions on how to do that.
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smalltownslackermom · Posted: Fri Dec 31, 2010 3:24 pm Post subject:

I would personally also be comfortable with running the cast-iron through the self cleaning cycle and then re-seasoning. I kept mine since I never used them for anything gluten-containing - mostly just for meats. I have never been able to get or keep a really good season on mine so that they were good enough for eggs or pancakes - that is really a mystery to me.
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son - high ttg - 4/09, pos. biopsy 5/09
self - negative bloodwork 5/09, pos. biopsy 11/09
sister - gf for ~3 years and is a new person
niece - positive ttg 2/10, foregoing biopsy

Deb · Posted: Sat Jan 01, 2011 8:38 am Post subject:

aklap · Joined: 02 Oct 2004 Posts: 12530 Location: WI, USA

celiacmaine-iac · Joined: 19 Dec 2007 Posts: 2131 Location: Maine

I wonder if it would be possible to do an experiment on teflon and cast iron that would give a true indication if there is a problem? I'm questioning if someone made an NGF, wheat flour gravy in either pan, then thoroughly washed rinsed and dried the pans, then made a GF item, if the GF item would show traces of CC if tested. I don't have any of the test strips (or is it sticks), and I really can't afford to buy them right now. Otherwise, I'd do it. It would be interesting to see what the results would be.

I'm all for doing everything necessary to stay safe, but over the past three years I've often wondered how many of the theories out there, such as CC from Teflon and cast-iron, have any definitive proof behind them. It could save newbies a lot of angst and expense if it could be proved that there is no basis to some of the theories.

It takes a long time to get even proven facts to be accepted. I still see posts and articles warning people about natural flavors, and yet they have been studied and proven safe in the US for quite a while now. I think it has been at least a year since that info was put out.
_________________
Steph