In association with the Serious Cook range, Lotus Rock cookware is now sold in South Africa in all Woolworths’ stores. Items currently sold include a 30cm Frying Pan, an 8″ Stir Wok, 14″ Stir Wok, and a 28cm Grill Pan.
hi
Thanks for your answers. Perhaps I was too vague regarding the ‘fluoride’ question. It is not used directly, but as part of the chemical makeup of non-stick coatings, in compounds like PTFE, PFOA or PFOS.
So does your coating use any of those chemicals? I asked the question the way I did because fluoride is common to all three compounds above, but the industry may be using other compounds with it in that I don’t know about, but you should
Regarding the bases, I will go and have another look. As regards ‘not flat’, it did not feel like a regular concave shape, but rather that the base had small irregular indentations (say about 1 inchi diameter), as it it had been warped by high heat. I will have another look.
Dear Ian,
Thanks once again for your information and questions. Lotus Rock cookware doesn’t contain PTFE, PFOA or PFOS, so it doesn’t contain fluoride either. Lotus Rock has a quite unique and highly innovative coating, in contrast to most other non-stick coatings which have PTFE in them for the non-stick release, Lotus Rock has a natural, durable non-stick release. Whitford does have a lot of very good non-stick coatings, these are all either with PTFE or with ceramic sol-gel technology, however none have the same properties as the Lotus Rock non-stick coating.
I see my question about Fluoride in the coatings was deleted without answer. I assume that means that the answer was yes.
Anyway I went to look at the items at Woolworths. They had the large wok, the griddle and the pan. The Wok base did not appear to be flat, and neither was the base of the pan. Both of these had the handles rivited on, although I suppose in the case of the long handle it was only the connector between the handle and the item that was actually riveted.. the wooden handle is connected in some other way.
The handle on the first griddle I looked at was loose, which was not encouraging, as I could not see any screws to tighten… I tried tightening the hanging hook but don’t know if that helped.
So I came away disappointed and did not purchase any items, like I had been planning to. Bases should be thick and absolutely flat … if they’re already not flat at time of purchase, they will certainly warp more over time.
Dear Ian,
First your comment about Fluoride was not deleted, we just hadn’t got round to replying to you yet. All comments must be approved by our administrator before they can be put on the website, that is why you didn’t see it immediately after you posted it. The answer to your question is that no, there is no fluoride in the Lotus Rock coating. We have never been asked this question before, why are you concerned about this? From my own knowledge Fluoride is a substance which is put in most drinking water all over the world, it is even recommended for use by the WHO, so perhaps you can inform us why you are concerned about this.
Second, regarding the stir wok, you write “The Wok base did not appear to be flat, and neither was the base of the pan.” For a full explanation about this, please read this blog post titled Stable Concave Design: http://lotusrock.com/stable-concave-design/ . The base of the Lotus Rock pans that you are saw in the store have been designed not to be flat on purpose, they have a special concave design at the base in order to stop warping. As is explained in that blog post, if the pan has a completely flat base then it is more likely to warp.
Third, regarding the handles. All the handles for those Lotus Rock pans are riveted so they are attached to the pan more securely then if they were welded. Although with welded handles you might be able to screw them back in if they get loose, this may have to be done a lot, which can be considered a bit of a hassle for a consumer which would like to use the pan every day. Later, you go on to write “I tried tightening the hanging hook but don’t know if that helped”, you are right if the handle is loose then this will help. Even if with that particular grill pan, the handle was loose, I am sure that the other items are not. Lotus Rock grill pans are also sold elsewhere in the world, and we have not received any complaints about the wooden handle attached to them being permanently too loose for proper and safe usage.
Lastly, you write “Bases should be thick”, Lotus Rock cookware has a 2.0mm heavy-gauge steel substrate, with a thick ceramic interior on top of that. The only pans in the market place that have a thicker base than Lotus Rock are cast-iron, and although cast iron pans have some signifciant advantages for cooking many people consider them to be too heavy because the base and sides of the pans are so thick.
Thank you Ian for your information and interesting comments. I hope I have replied in full to all of your queries about the Lotus Rock pans, however if you have any further questions then please do contact us again.
hi
Thanks for your answers. Perhaps I was too vague regarding the ‘fluoride’ question. It is not used directly, but as part of the chemical makeup of non-stick coatings, in compounds like PTFE, PFOA or PFOS.
So does your coating use any of those chemicals? I asked the question the way I did because fluoride is common to all three compounds above, but the industry may be using other compounds with it in that I don’t know about, but you should
Regarding the bases, I will go and have another look. As regards ‘not flat’, it did not feel like a regular concave shape, but rather that the base had small irregular indentations (say about 1 inchi diameter), as it it had been warped by high heat. I will have another look.
Another manufacturer pointed me to their coating supplier’s web site, which has a lot of useful info about non-stick coatings.
http://www.whitfordww.com/housewares/cookware.html
Thanks, Ian
Dear Ian,
Thanks once again for your information and questions. Lotus Rock cookware doesn’t contain PTFE, PFOA or PFOS, so it doesn’t contain fluoride either. Lotus Rock has a quite unique and highly innovative coating, in contrast to most other non-stick coatings which have PTFE in them for the non-stick release, Lotus Rock has a natural, durable non-stick release. Whitford does have a lot of very good non-stick coatings, these are all either with PTFE or with ceramic sol-gel technology, however none have the same properties as the Lotus Rock non-stick coating.
Thanks,
hi
I see my question about Fluoride in the coatings was deleted without answer. I assume that means that the answer was yes.
Anyway I went to look at the items at Woolworths. They had the large wok, the griddle and the pan. The Wok base did not appear to be flat, and neither was the base of the pan. Both of these had the handles rivited on, although I suppose in the case of the long handle it was only the connector between the handle and the item that was actually riveted.. the wooden handle is connected in some other way.
The handle on the first griddle I looked at was loose, which was not encouraging, as I could not see any screws to tighten… I tried tightening the hanging hook but don’t know if that helped.
So I came away disappointed and did not purchase any items, like I had been planning to. Bases should be thick and absolutely flat … if they’re already not flat at time of purchase, they will certainly warp more over time.
It’s a pity …
Dear Ian,
First your comment about Fluoride was not deleted, we just hadn’t got round to replying to you yet. All comments must be approved by our administrator before they can be put on the website, that is why you didn’t see it immediately after you posted it. The answer to your question is that no, there is no fluoride in the Lotus Rock coating. We have never been asked this question before, why are you concerned about this? From my own knowledge Fluoride is a substance which is put in most drinking water all over the world, it is even recommended for use by the WHO, so perhaps you can inform us why you are concerned about this.
Second, regarding the stir wok, you write “The Wok base did not appear to be flat, and neither was the base of the pan.” For a full explanation about this, please read this blog post titled Stable Concave Design: http://lotusrock.com/stable-concave-design/ . The base of the Lotus Rock pans that you are saw in the store have been designed not to be flat on purpose, they have a special concave design at the base in order to stop warping. As is explained in that blog post, if the pan has a completely flat base then it is more likely to warp.
Third, regarding the handles. All the handles for those Lotus Rock pans are riveted so they are attached to the pan more securely then if they were welded. Although with welded handles you might be able to screw them back in if they get loose, this may have to be done a lot, which can be considered a bit of a hassle for a consumer which would like to use the pan every day. Later, you go on to write “I tried tightening the hanging hook but don’t know if that helped”, you are right if the handle is loose then this will help. Even if with that particular grill pan, the handle was loose, I am sure that the other items are not. Lotus Rock grill pans are also sold elsewhere in the world, and we have not received any complaints about the wooden handle attached to them being permanently too loose for proper and safe usage.
Lastly, you write “Bases should be thick”, Lotus Rock cookware has a 2.0mm heavy-gauge steel substrate, with a thick ceramic interior on top of that. The only pans in the market place that have a thicker base than Lotus Rock are cast-iron, and although cast iron pans have some signifciant advantages for cooking many people consider them to be too heavy because the base and sides of the pans are so thick.
Thank you Ian for your information and interesting comments. I hope I have replied in full to all of your queries about the Lotus Rock pans, however if you have any further questions then please do contact us again.