Silicone valley

[jobsafety]

The other day at the local Pic-N-Save/Big Lots, I found a pretty good deal - a three-pack of silicone bakeware (muffin pan, cake pan, loaf pan) for a measly ten bucks. I was on the verge of buying it when my friend wondered aloud if silicone bakeware would leak chemicals into my foodstuffs, especially this cheap no-brand stuff. Is this paranoid, or

Comments

[smoochie]

it's VERY safe....

i have purchased some myself after doing extensive research on it....with the same questions....and pretty much had the overall, obvious answer :

"why would companies, from as basic as pic-n-save/big lots to as prestigious as crate and barrel sell products that they knew would blatantly make us sick ?"

and my answer was : "they wouldn't".

here is a link to get you started:

http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&ie=ISO-8859-1&q=are+silicone+bakeware+safe

(p.s. using a tad of "pam" helps prevent that little bit of sticking that occurs)

[webzombi]

I would think that the minuscule amounts that might leach (if at all) would most likely pose no particular hazard.

Nifty icon. Which reminds me that my Nat Shermans will prolly get me WAY before a silicone lined baking pan...

[kitarra]

Silicone is innert. That is why it is used in the body. What problems have arisen are usually the result of the silicone getting into the blood stream. And that is usually only in cases where there is a large ammount of it. People have injected it directly beneath the skin and it is perfectly safe.

I love my silicone pans. But you need to be carefull of the kind you get. When you pick up the actual plan, twist and ben it and look at the stress point. There should not be any white there. If there is, the filler material that was use was cheap and the pans won't last.

You should spray them lightly with pam or oil. But the stuff that comes out is wonderfull. I baked a cake in mine last night and the cake didn't get that awfull bump in the middle and was lovely and browned. Perfect.

[starcat_jewel]

From my partner, who knows much more about chemistry than I do:

Silicone-rubber bakeware is about as chemically inert as you're going to get. Long-term exposure to heat levels above 475° may result in breakdown of the rubber components; below that, there's no danger, and the thing would melt before you'd have any trouble with the silicone.

[webzombi]

Yes. Very often the foodstuff prepared in the pan would pose more of a health "risk" than the materials used in the composition of the actual pan.

[crossfire]

Since you've gotten good answers to the "is it safe" question, I'll chime in with some personal experience.

I love my silicone loaf pan. I make bread in it frequently, and it results in a lighter crust than my metal pans...which I actually prefer, especially on my white bread. What's especially brilliant about it is that nothing sticks to it--the loaves come right out--and it cools off almost immediately.