Advantages of electric frying pan?

I've never had an electric frying pan and was thinking about getting one before the holiday season.  I know we've got lots of great cooks on here and was wondering what the advantages are to an electric frying pan as opposed to a regular one.  I know they're bigger, but are there other good reasons to have one?   

Generally, electric frying pans have better temperature control than one you use on a stove.  They tend to stay more constant.

I've never heard of them.

I use an electric hob and I hate it much prefer a gas hob.


(off to google this now haha)

My-mother-had-an-electric-frying-pan,when-we-were-little-kids,lol.

The-advantage-is,you-can-set-the-temperature,in-degrees-like-you-set-your-oven,so-you-get-the-temperature-you-want,much-easier,than-trying-to-guess-with-an-electric-or-gas-burner.My-mother-also-fried-chicken-in-it,and-my-father-made-homemade-onion-rings-in-it,best-onion-rings,I-ever-ate,lol.

I use mine when cooking larger amounts of an item. For an example, when I am making stuffing for the holidays, I cook the peppers, onions, meat in it. To me the electric doesn't need as much babysitting as the stovetop pan.

Hey, thanks all!  I am now very much leaning toward getting one.  I thought it might be nice to free up a bit of burner space, as well.  My father-in-law used to make his fantastic gravy in an electric frying pan.

I want one now I think ill ask Blaine for one the sound great. Done a bit googling haha

Get one....you won't be sorry. I had one for years and have often thought about getting another one. Mine was an old West Bend....I don't know if they're still in business anymore. Mine went up to 475 degrees F.

In addition to the steadier temp of an electric frying pan and the fact that you don't have to babysit one like you do to a pan on the stove, it's also a nice addition to your kitchen. I used mine for some of those recipes that require an oven. You can do meatloaf and other loaf recipes (salmon loaf and tuna loaf), goulash, and chicken fricassee. I did chili in my electric pan! Roasted small pork loins in my pan. The last time I made liver and onions up at mom's, I used her electric frying pan to do the onions.

Mom always fried her chicken in hers (I swear by an old cast iron pan for frying chicken).

It's also really nice for summer meals that you might otherwise have to put into an oven; thereby not heating up your kitchen. Frees up stove burners when you're doing larger family meals, too.

So why don't I have one anymore? Well, largely, it's because it's just Rick and me for the most part and most electric pans are simply too big for two people, unless I'm cooking for the freezer.

I used to have an electric frying pan, and an electric Wok. I got rid of both.  I found it took up too much space to store an electric appliance than it did a simple frying pan, plus a simple frying pan can go in the dishwasher, electric appliances can't. My motto is if it isn't dishwasher friendly, it has no business being in my kitchen!  LOL

So far as the benefits of electric over a stove top kind?  Temperature control.  However, personally I would suggest that you invest your money in a set of good cast iron frying pans, or even second hand frying pans (which is better because they are already seasoned).  Nothing has an advantage over cooking in cast iron.
 

I had an electric wok; my parents gave it to me one year for Christmas. I loved that thing and used it for a lot more than just stir-fry. It got nice and hot. That might have been a West Bend product, too. It was a bugger to clean, though, because, you couldn't get the bottom of it wet. But I always got through it. I lost the cord to the wok in the move to this house. It was a shame because I really liked it. (Rick says I just like cooking gadgets. )

I loved my electric wok!  I cooked some really good meals in it.  I think I gave it away because of limited storage space. 

Winchester said:

So why don't I have one anymore? Well, largely, it's because it's just Rick and me for the most part and most electric pans are simply too big for two people, unless I'm cooking for the freezer.

Click to expand...

You can buy little ones.  I'm really aware of cooking for just one person and how much energy I use whenever I turn on the oven, and this is a great alternative.

i have had a george foreman grill, and a george foreman griddle............I use the griddle the same way I use a frying pan...i've done everything from my ground beef to my eggs on the griddle........and EVERYTHING on the grill, and the only beef(no pun intended) i ever had with electric cookers was cleaning.......the solution? heavy duty paper towel and plenty of dish soap. I sit them near the sink,  wet the towel and put soap directly  onto the cooled surface of the cooker....then scrub. Paper  towel is coarse enough to scrub it without scratching, and if you get the good stuff, you can rinse it a couple of times while you're washing the cooker. For a year I barely touched my stove except for roasts

I had a George Foreman grill, and it was a bear to clean!

I had the one with the dual top lids with temperature contols for each side.  The plates didn't come off, which made cleaning very difficult and messy. You had to do it right over the sink, and while the grill was way too hot to touch otherwise you couldn't get the cooked on stuff off of the grill.  And also the top lid hinge wasn't very big and didn't bevel, so the lid always sat at an angle meaning that the food at the front of the grill didn't touch the top of the grill.

This one is similar to the one I had, only mine didn't have the extra lids in the top. Just the  2 main lids, not bun warmers.


I now have a Hamilton Beach open face grill, which I love so much.  The grill removes from the base and can be submerged in water.  I use it frequently because of the easy clean up.

The trick to the foreman is to lay soaking wet paper towel in the foreman while it cools............the steam created helps loosen the mess

I want to get  proper electric frying pan, my eggs keep running off the edge of the foreman griddle, because it's designed to release fat..........so anything liquid can run off.........bad design for a griddle. electric frying pan is much more worth it

I love my electric fry pan.  I use it to cook meat or stir fry veggies.  I also steam cabbage in it.  The next best thing is I take it outside on my screen porch, plug it in and fry seafood.  That way, I don't smell up my house.  My pan is by a stainless steel one and it is round.
 

There is a model of the Hamilton Beach that I have that comes with a griddle.  I don't make pancakes and things that require a griddle, so I bought the one with just the grill element.  In hindsight I'm a bit regretful for not having gotten the griddle also because it can be used for tacos, crepes, grilled cheese, pizza etc.
 

Mani said:

You can buy little ones.  I'm really aware of cooking for just one person and how much energy I use whenever I turn on the oven, and this is a great alternative.

Click to expand...

Thanks, Mani! I really didn't know that. When I was looking for one for my mother a few years ago, I couldn't find anything small enough for one or two people. I'll have to start looking again. I really did like my electric frying pan and I know I'd use it often.

I have the large, round Foreman party grill and I use that thing so often it's not funny. One of my GFs had one and she used hers a lot, too; when I saw hers, I wanted one. It's great because I can do a large variety of foods at one time and it works beautifully when I want to do a grilled vegetable lasagna but don't want to go outside and heat the big grill. I also have the little sandwich grill, which came free with the party grill, and I like that when it's just me for dinner. Yeah, they are a bit of a bear to clean.

I'm going to start "window" shopping online tonight.