all I want to do is broil a damned cauliflower gratin, why is this hard

December 26, 2018 9:57 PM

I want a pan in which to bake, then broil casseroles; such as cauliflower cheese, butternut squash gratin, etc. Please help me figure out what material is safe to broil in and easy to clean up, and how to identify it in the store.

On the rare occasions on which I've broiled them until now (ie to brown the top) I have been using the 9x13 Pyrexes in which I've baked them, which I now learn has been an unsafe practice all this time. Ok. So I want to get something that's about that size and shape, but right and safe for the purpose.

I saw some beautiful stainless steel round pans with handles and lids at TJ Maxx, made by Calphalon and All-Clad. Those pans could go from the stovetop to baking to broiling, which would be awesome, but my experience is that stainless is hard to clean, and that I wouldn't be able to use a metal utensils to dish stuff out of them because they'd scratch. Plus I'd really prefer oval or rectangle. So I think they're not what I want. (?)

I saw lots of ceramic dishes of various sizes and makers, again at TJ Maxx. There were a few ceramic Creuset, a bit pricey, but labeled "broiler safe" so that was reassuring. There were other glazed ceramic vessels, one of perfect size and shape that was labeled "oven and microwave safe" but didn't mention the broiler specifically and didn't mention a temperature limit. Should I assume those are not broiler safe?

I would love an enameled cast iron dish for this but I haven't seen one in a rectangular or oval shape that would work for shallow gratins. (I don't want individual dishes. I want something about 3 qt.)

Am I overthinking this? Should I just get the $12 ceramic Made in Portugal one that didn't mention the broiler speifically? I really really do not want exploding cookware in my oven.

What do you broil in? Do you love it? Is it easy to clean broiled on gunk off it? Help.

posted by fingersandtoes to Home & Garden (20 answers total)

Best answer: I would go with corning ware - here are some casserole dishes rated safe for the broiler. It should be fairly similar to using Pyrex - light weight, easy to clean.
posted by metahawk at 10:10 PM on December 26, 2018 [4 favorites]

Best answer: I was also going to suggest CorningWare; we use French White casseroles for this purpose. But we only broil in it briefly, say to brown cheese. I'm not certain it'd be safe to broil a fish in it. Looking at Wikipedia it appears that CorningWare describes several different materials. The classic Corningware with the cornflower blue pattern is a glass like Pyrex and I believe is both broiler and stovetop safe. Our French White is stoneware / ceramic, is not stovetop safe, and may not be fully broiler safe.

I will say this for CorningWare, it's remarkably easy to clean even when stuff gets thoroughly burnt on.

Cooks Illustrated has an answer to your question in this paywalled link. Their top recommendation is a porcelan dish. Number two is this stoneware dish.
posted by Nelson at 12:14 AM on December 27, 2018 [2 favorites]

I was going to suggest Corningware too. They last forever, so I picked most of mine up in thrift stores. I roast cauliflower in them all the time.
posted by embrangled at 1:04 AM on December 27, 2018 [1 favorite]

Falcon enamelware? I got some for Christmas, yeah! I haven't tried them yet, but I already have a couple of single portion small trays that I put under the broiler all the time, with no problem
posted by mumimor at 3:50 AM on December 27, 2018

Best answer: This was gifted to me a few years ago and it works very well for the types of dishes you're making. I think the key is the polished/mirror finish. It's not non-stick the way teflon is, but a quick soak loosens any sticky bits and it cleans up very well. I also use metal utensils with it (TBH it didn't occur to me that metal might scratch it- I've not had any issues).
posted by dogmom at 5:33 AM on December 27, 2018

If you did want to go with the stainless pans, it’s easier to clean them if you line them before broiling with aluminum foil.

I don’t know about the brand you named, maybe there’s some kind of coating on their pans? but I’ve always used metal and wooden cooking utensils with stainless steel, haven’t yet noticed scratches (which of course isn’t to say they aren’t there).
posted by cotton dress sock at 5:58 AM on December 27, 2018

I was given a glazed stoneware baking dish like this from Pampered Chef a few years ago and it does what you're looking for. (I'm normally not a fan of Pampered Chef because of MLM, but whatever.) I would definitely stay away from glass under the broiler, but if you're just browning a casserole after baking, I would think any glazed ceramic or stoneware would be okay for five minutes or so. Or consider using a cast iron pan.
posted by slogger at 6:01 AM on December 27, 2018

Best answer: I would love an enameled cast iron dish for this but I haven't seen one in a rectangular or oval shape that would work for shallow gratins. (I don't want individual dishes. I want something about 3 qt.)

I had a look and Le Creuset don't seem to be currently manufacturing them, but I have a large enameled cast iron au gratin dish from them. I don't know if it's quite 3 qt but I make standard recipes of the type you listed in it all the time and they fit perfectly. Maybe have a look on eBay? It's endlessly useful and beautiful.
posted by HotToddy at 6:09 AM on December 27, 2018

The large oval French White Corningware is my favorite for shallow kinds of gratins; Barkeeper's Friend will remove any burned-on stuff around the edges.

For deeper ones, I generally use a glass casserole dish. It's not as pretty as the Corningware or a proper gratin dish, but it does the job and is sturdy and also cleans up fine with BF.
posted by Lyn Never at 7:02 AM on December 27, 2018

Glass is not so great for broiling because you can get extreme temperature differentials which are kind of glass’s kryptonite. The best thing would be stoneware or metal. Stoneware, even if it breaks, does not peoduce the billions of pieces of a “Pyrex” (note: no longer borosilicate) pan that shatters (as one of ours did once).

As for scratching a stainless pan, who cares? I use SOS pads on our stainless popcorn popper and stock pots when they get heavy staining and they get a brushed surface. If someone complains when they dip out a helping of food, they are not invited to return!
posted by Gilgamesh's Chauffeur at 7:26 AM on December 27, 2018

I use a stoneware dish for baking casseroles and broiling as well, and it works great. Super easy to clean up after.
posted by msbubbaclees at 7:42 AM on December 27, 2018

I use both All Clad stainless steel roasting pans and Le Creuset enameled casserole dishes. Don't worry about stainless steel getting scratched up or being difficult to clean - let it soak in hot soapy water as soon as you can for 10ish minutes, dump the water out and sprinkle Barkeepers Friend on it, and scrub. Okay, I guess that sounds like a lot of work but honestly it isn't.

Le Creuset is much prettier for serving and a little easier to clean, but I always worry about breaking it.
posted by joan_holloway at 8:08 AM on December 27, 2018

Response by poster: for anyone keeping score at home: I stopped by the Corningware outlet today and the French White dishes - so beautifully proportioned, so perfect looking - specifically say "no broiler" on the underside.

Then I stopped by TJ Maxx again and picked out a beautiful Creuset ceramic gratin dish like this. While I was waiting in line with it, thinking what a nice bargain I'd found, I read the reviews, which if you follow the link above, are mostly impassioned denunciations of the dish, including tragic photos of cracked dishes, angry stories of ruined roasts, etc. I put it back.

The search continues. I hope to find an enameled cast iron one. Someday.
posted by fingersandtoes at 8:37 PM on December 27, 2018 [1 favorite]

the blue flower corning ware and the white pyroceram are both broiler safe. Both are made from the same pyroceram material while the French White is made from stoneware. So next time you are near the Corningware outlet, take another look around.
posted by metahawk at 11:49 PM on December 27, 2018

Response by poster: Sadly all the dishes they had which were made from those fantastic and broiler-safe materials are -- mysteriously -- very deep. Wouldn't work for a gratin at all. Not even a lasagna. I'm not sure what they make them for. I have one, I only use it for microwaving big vegetables.
posted by fingersandtoes at 7:32 AM on December 28, 2018

I would love an enameled cast iron dish for this but I haven't seen one in a rectangular or oval shape that would work for shallow gratins. (I don't want individual dishes. I want something about 3 qt.)

Is this too deep?
posted by TORunner at 9:32 AM on December 28, 2018

Response by poster: Yes unfortunately. The dishes I need this for are all veg based which means they need to be shallow in order to not get soggy at the bottom. Things like cauliflower cheese or squash gratin throw off a lot of water, and in a deep pan like that where there's a lot of depth per evaporating surface, you get puddles. Plus it's way more food than I prepare at once.

It's ok. I think what I need is an enameled cast iron gratin pan, and I'm becoming reconciled to paying what it's going to take. I see a few I could get for ~$60, which is more than I had hoped for, but I'd rather pay it once than acquire more not-quite-it items.
posted by fingersandtoes at 11:40 AM on December 28, 2018

Are you near an Aldi (US)? Starting Jan 2 they'll have (my store will have/some stores will have) an enameled cast iron brazier for $20, and it's not the perfect shallowness but for $20 it's pretty good.
posted by Lyn Never at 7:04 PM on December 28, 2018

Response by poster: I went with hottoddy's suggestion and have ebay'ed a vintage Dutch cast iron gratin pan, in a color that shouldn't clash with my existing things and which seems common enough that I could get more like it if I need to. Paid about what I wanted to pay, including shipping, so that was good. Now to muster the discipline to actually make gratins! Thanks all, God bless us every one, etc.
posted by fingersandtoes at 1:34 PM on December 29, 2018

Yay!
posted by HotToddy at 3:51 PM on December 29, 2018