In article >,
"Bertie Doe" > wrote:

> Thanks jt in fact I did read on Meyer Prestige that hard anodised compares
> well with s/steel for hardness.

A funny beast, the hard anodizing process. I HA'ed piece of aluminium
has a skin that is only 2 thousandths thick. That is machinist /
engineers language for saying that the skin is .002 inches think, or two
one-thousandths. For a scale, a human hair can range from .004 to .009
typically, with certain hairs on the body being as thick as .014. The
average of human head hair is roughly .006, so by comparison, the skin
of a hard anodized piece of aluminium is roughly one third the thickness
of a human hair. But this thickness is incredibly tough, able to
deflect the shock and friction that a steel utensil or knife can
inflict.

That skin is actually harder and tougher than stainless steel, ounce for
ounce. But with it only being .002, if that skin it penetrated, the
underlying aluminum is no stronger than regular aluminum.

The surface also smoothes out and bonds to become super smooth, and the
microscopic pours that aluminum normally have are seals, and that is
what makes HA somewhat naturally non-stick.

I favor these pans whenever I need a fond, or I am cooking with lots of
moisture, such as a dishes with wet broth or wine sauces. I avoid eggs
in these pans. Also, I use my smallest HA sauce pan for thickening
hollandaise and béarnaise sauces. I heat the pan over very low direct
heat, whisking continuously. As soon as I see signs of thickening, I
turn off the burner and keep whisking. As soon as I get the desired
thickness, I set the pan in a sink of cold water about 2 inches deep and
whisk while moving the pan about the water until the pan is cooled to
the touch. This trick can only be done with a thick, heavy pan. A thin
HA pan will not convey the heat properly to keep the heat even. Done
right, I have achieved consistent success in making the thickest,
smoothest, and not clumped egg sauces I have ever had.

jt