Granite “Dream”: review of a domestic frying pan

I've been wanting to buy myself a frying pan for a very long time. Yes, not simple, but cast iron. I don’t know why, but I wanted something heavy, impressive, but with a small diameter - about 20-22. However, while I successfully (not) went to the store, but kept looking at pictures and choosing the right model and manufacturer, they gave me a frying pan. But (oh no!) it was not cast iron. Of course, she didn’t show her sadness, because, as they say, “a gift horse...”. Yes, I was quite a bit upset, but I still decided to treat the gift carefully and still “love” this particular option.

And now the main character is a granite frying pan Ø20 cm from the Russian manufacturer Mechta.

Main characteristics

After we met her, I realized that she was not as bad as it seemed to me at first glance. It looks quite nice and inspires confidence, but I paid more attention to the main characteristics.

Housing material

In general, when I hear “granite frying pan,” I think that it’s just a solid structure made of granite. But it turned out that this is just a coating, like, for example, a regular non-stick coating.

The base of this frying pan is cast high-quality food grade aluminum. Of course, I didn’t disassemble it or conduct any research, but the manufacturer assures that this is exactly the case.

Coating

Non-stick coating of the “Granite” series - God knows what it all means, but tactilely the inner surface of the frying pan is a little rough, as if there is a fine layer of sand. True, after washing the feeling disappeared - the result was a perfectly smooth surface. Perhaps this is some kind of protective layer before use, or maybe just dust that attacked the dishes somewhere else in the warehouse.

I had to read what this characteristic means. It turns out that the “Granite” series is a multilayer system reinforced with crystals of minerals (history is silent about which ones). These crystals play a special role - they act as a reinforcing link, resulting in a powerful monolithic structure. However, I also read that.

In general, I read a lot about different coatings and lately granite has become popular. It is particularly wear-resistant and has excellent non-stick properties (which I will have to check), and is designed for intensive use over a long period of time (we will also check this!).

By the way, the coverage is about 55 microns, which indicates that you can cook with a minimum amount of oil and not be afraid that something will burn.

Diameter

The diameter of my frying pan is 20 cm. This is what I wanted - small, compact. For example, for omelettes, frying, and even pancakes can be baked if no one is bothered by the height of the walls (personally, I’m not: if I want pancakes, I’ll bake them in a saucepan).

Wall thickness

Quite thick. I like the shape of the pan - very smooth. But I am an esthete - beauty in everything is important to me. And my dishes are no exception.

Pen

The shape is primitive, but comfortable to hold. At the same time, I was pleased that it was quite securely fastened, did not wobble, and did not slip in the hand. But it is not removable - perhaps this is important for some.

There is a hole in the handle through which you can hang dishes on a hook. But I don’t use this storage method, because for me it’s neither good nor bad - it just is.

Weight

Although the base of the pan is aluminum, it is quite heavy. Perhaps this was due to that same granite coating.

Peculiarities

Suitable for different types of slabs:

• glass-ceramic;
• gas;
• electric.

But it’s not suitable for induction – perhaps this is a minus for some. Dishwasher safe.

Subjective impression

So, externally, the granite frying pan from the domestic manufacturer Mechta is quite nice. I even liked the color - dark, with small specks of light shade. Indeed, it resembles granite.

It is comfortable to hold in your hand, the handle is quite ergonomic and comfortable.

Now practice. Of course, I tried cooking with it. And these were cutlets. Naturally, in the process I forgot to take a photo of my masterpiece so that you could evaluate it (not the dish, but the frying pan), but I came to the conclusion: frying with it is a pleasure. Nothing burns, but I added a little oil. There is no smell from the pan, although it is new. In the old dishes, the food stuck at first, then after frying it was easier to turn it over, but perhaps the coating there was no longer so reliable, but here the cutlets just slid - a significant relief from cooking.

There was no lid included, so I immediately bought this important addition to the dishes. She sat down like a glove. The manufacturer is also Russia.

Honestly, I didn’t expect such a result from this frying pan, so I already forgot about that cast iron dream of mine. Now I have another one - “Dream”!