Silicone?

[mercy589]

I'm going to try and figure out how to post a poll. I'm curious as to what you think of silicone bakewear. Post a response too if you'd like.

[spmamma]

I had some but recently gave it away to Goodwill in an attempt to declutter my kitchen. I used it once or twice but stopped because it made me nervous... I think it emitted a slight odor and all I could think of was chemicals in my baked goods. Maybe I had cheap stuff?

[SugarAndSun]

I bought one 6-muffin thing, but have never gotten the nerve up to use it. (If you want to try it, pm me. I'll let mine go for very little.)

[imatulip]

it just doesnt' seem right.

[mamadelbosque]

I try to avoid heating any and all plastics and plastic-like-things, especially when in contact with my food... everything leaches something when you heat it up - cast iron leaches iron, steel leaches steel, aluminum aluminum, etc... why risk eating silicon??

[miss_sonja]

I found that stuff still sticks, but is harder to get out. I still have to spray the pans. The better quality ones (i.e. my nice French loaf pan that has side 'struts' to support it) are nice, the cheaper ones, icky.

love love love my Pampered chef silicone spatula/spoonula set. Those were worth every penny I paid (oh, wait, they were a free with purchase thing). Best kitchen tools I have.

[cristeen]

I love my silicone bakeware, and my silicone spatulas are my most used kitchen tool. The only time I've had a problem with it was when I did not heed the warning about heating it above 450. At 525, it filled the house with acrid smoke.

[Rebecca]

Originally Posted by spmamma

I had some but recently gave it away to Goodwill in an attempt to declutter my kitchen. I used it once or twice but stopped because it made me nervous... I think it emitted a slight odor and all I could think of was chemicals in my baked goods. Maybe I had cheap stuff?

I had the same problem. I used them each a couple times hoping the chem smell would burn off. It was a strong, acrid chemical odor and I threw away any food that was cooked in it, strong enough that I opened the windows and turned on the fan. Called and emailed the company and they swear they'd never heard that complaint before and offered to replace my bakeware with new stuff. I said 'no thank you' and just threw it all out.:

eta: and I was doing normal baking at 325-375, not broiling hot 500 degree temps... :

[DevaMajka]

I love mine! Never had a problem with it, though I do use oil when recipe instruction say to. I basically love them for the fact that I don't have to waste foil to bake on (my cookie sheets are funky).
I have cookie sheets (cheap ones) and I use them for just about every baking thing I do.

I did one google search, and it said that silicone was inert. I'm not sure about what they add to it, but I'd take silicone over teflon ANY day!!

[HappiLeigh]

It sticks horribly, and cooking spray makes strange stains that are hard to scrub off. It is flimsy, so it is difficult to hold while taking in or out of the oven (I end up sticking a metal cookie sheet underneath for support--how lame!!). And it's just odd; I like my traditional cookware.

[the_lissa]

My silicone never sticks. I thought that was the one of the main selling points.

[Pariah]

I love it. It doesn't stick, and all of mine says (and my research has said) that it is safe/non-leaching up to 500 degrees. No weird chemical smells, either.

[Ruthla]

I have 2 silicone muffin pans (for a total of 12 muffin cups) and a bundt pan. I always use them on a baking sheet for support taking them in and out of the oven.

I've never had a problem with stuff sticking- even if something does stick, I can bend the pan off the baked item to get it off fairly easily.

I'm not 100% comfortable with the concept of silicone- I was when I bought it but then I've read some more stuff about it that gives me pause. My plan at this point is to continue using what I've already purchased but not buy any more.

I use a lot of parchment paper on my cookie sheets- they were once "non stick coated" but then they accidentally wound up in the oven during a self-clean cycle. They can no longer be used without aluminum foil or parchment paper if I'm baking something directly on the sheets, but are fine for supporting silicone bakeware.

[TeaghansMama]

i have a couple of silicone mats for baking sheets and some muffin cups
i love them
but i don't think i would use any pans
i put the silicone mats on my baking sheets everytime i use them and have never had any problem with odor when baking
they make it very, very easy to clean up and although i do use parchment paper occasionally i like the fact that the silicone mat is reusable
i originally used the muffin cups for dds lunch box to seperate food but just started using them for actual baking muffins and really like them
again, it's the reusable thing for me....

the silicone mats i use are from tupperware and the muffin cups are wilton, i think