Cooking Green For Earth Day 2012

It’s always a good idea to consider the environment when shopping, but with Earth Day on Sunday, it’s especially important. We’re always looking for cool, new eco-friendly products to add to ChefTools.com – you like them, we like selling them, and they’re good for the planet. We typically consider 4 factors before labeling a product “green”: 

Waste: This includes whether the product is recyclable or biodegradable (breaks down completely within 1 year), and whether a product is manufactured as efficiently as possible.  

Renewability: Quite simply, what’s the product made out of? From bamboo to recycled plastic and paper, there are many ways to make products with a net zero drain on the planet’s resources.

Pollution: Sometimes it’s tough, but we can and do offer products that are made, shipped to us, and shipped to you, with minimal pollution. Consider this: we almost exclusively use FedEx as our shipping carrier; FedEx has committed to greening its operation. It has over 400 electric or hybrid vehicles for shipping, and has upgraded routes and airplanes to conserve gas and cut emissions – the company estimates that it saved 300,000 gallons of gas and cut 3,000 metric tons of emissions. 

Toxicity: Whether you’re gluten free or weary of BPAs, we strive to offer products that won’t impart unwanted chemicals or substances into your cooking.

We offer many “green” products at ChefTools.com, but there are a few that deserve special recognition. 

Scanpan:  This Danish company makes exceptional nonstick cookware. But the No. 1 reason their products are so green? They last forever. You won’t end up throwing these pans away in a year – or a month – because the nonstick finish has worn off. The cooking surface is made of super strong nonstick ceramic titanium, a PFOA-free cooking surface that's literally impossible to destry. The pan will never blister or interact with food, and is safe to use in the oven up to 500 F and with metal utensils. The body of the pan is made of recycled aluminum, which means no strip mining. Buying a Scanpan is an investment in your kitchen that will pay off by reducing future waste.

 

MU Kitchen: MU Kitchen’s line of stylish bamboo dish towels are made out of bamboo fiber, a naturally bacteria resistant and renewable resource. But why is bamboo so renewable? It’s an exceptionally strong wood that grows like grass. You can grow, harvest, and regrow entire forests within months. And, these towels are more absorbent and dry quicker than most towels  MU uses no pesticides on its bamboo, and uses non-azo dyes.

Architec: The first thing you’ll notice about these kitchen bowls is how stylish they are. These bowls are made of 98%-recycled materials – and, they’re made in the USA, cutting pollution emitted during shipping. A commitment to environmental awareness extends to all of Architec’s products, too.  If it’s not made of recycled material, Architec uses bamboo and cork, two sustainable resources.

Architec Mixing Bowl Set

On Earth Day 2012, we encourage our customers to consider buying products that are eco-friendly – whether it’s a long-lasting Scanpan, or a tool that helps you be greener at home – like a compost pale. Shop in our Green Tools department for more great eco-friendly housewares and cooking tools.

NEW Scanpan Cookware At "Try Me" Prices

The 2-piece CSX (top) and CTX fry pan set.

We’re rolling out a bunch of new pans and sets by Scanpan this week – but even better, most of the pans are at “try me” prices. That means you can get a $210 CSX Series fry pan for just $99.95 (no sales tax (except Washington state residents) and free shipping, too!). There are some other great deals on these excellent pans, but it’s for a limited time only. 

A little background on Scanpan: hand forged in Denmark (hence the name Scanpan, as in Scandinavian Pan), Scanpan makes some of the most durable and environmentally friendly pans in the world. The Classic Series pans are great for home cooks; perfect for frequent sautéing, braising, and frying. The Classic Series pans feature a layer of ceramic-titanium nonstick coating, which means there are no harmful chemicals on there; plus, the chemical-free nonstick layer is tough, able to stand up to scrapes from metal utensils. 

At the top of the Scanpan line, you’ll find the CSX and CTX Series pans. CSX pans feature 4 layers of super-conductive aluminum; the stainless steel cooking surface seals and protects the aluminum, while allowing the pan to heat evenly with no heat pockets. 

CTX pans use the same aluminum layering method for excellent heat distribution, but feature a non-toxic, PFOA-free nonstick cooking surface (much like the Classic Series pans). A set of 2 (pictured above) CTX and CSX pans is on sale for a limited time, so you can try both and figure out which one best suits your needs (you'll find that both do!).

In other words, Scanpan manufactures its products with two goals in mind: to be kind to the environment (both the Earth’s and yours), and to provide an exceptional cooking surface. 

So hurry over to our Scanpan Department and get 50% or more off new Scanpan pans – anytime you see a price highlighted in red, it’s a “try me.”