Calphalon Cookware Questions (regarding their need for TLC)

Cafe Society
1

In the year before Joan (my second wife) died, we bought a nice set of Calphalon cookware online. We never got an opportunity to use them (or even open the box they came in) before she died, so I brought them to Oregon with me when I transferred.

I have, of course, unboxed them since I moved into an apartment last year, and have used them pretty frequently. I have given them the TLC that the manufacturer recommends; i.e., I never turn up the heat under them above halfway (it’s an electric range, and what is it with not being able to find rental units with gas appliances in Portland? My range, my dryer, my heating unit, are all electric. Mind you, I’m grateful that I was able to get a unit with laundry equipment, I mean can you imagine if I had to go to a laundromat every week with a pocket full of quarters? But I digress), and I always hand wash them (although I draw the line at suspending them from a set of wind chimes to air-dry in a warm summer zephyr, but the manual says that’s optional anyway; I just use a dish towel).

But I was loading my dishwasher this morning, and I started wondering about the absolute necessity of this handling. I mean, I can see not exposing them to excessive heat; I know that metal can be thermally deformed. But the hand-washing stricture? That raises some questions for me.

What property/properties do Calphalon pots and pans possess that makes them special (beyond any cachet that the name carries)? How would the loss of that/those property/properties affect the cooking performance of the cookware? By what mechanism would the cookware being subjected to the vicissitudes of an automatic dishwasher cause it to lose that/those property/properties (such that the cooking performance would be compromised)?

I’m afraid the Calphalon FAQ page is a bit vague on these points. If it’s just to preserve the resale value of the stuff at an estate sale after I kick it, then into the Hotpoint HDA150X-66WA it all goes, and to hell with the finish!

But if someone can give me concrete information on how my culinary life will be ruined if some Cascade-contaminated water ever sullies the surface of these items, I’ll spare them the ordeal, and extend my humble thanks to you.

2

Which pots and pans do you have? Calphalon has a number of different ones. Stainless steel? Teflon? Ceramic coated?
FWIW, I’m guessing you have a set with a non-stick coating that they’re concerned will get damaged in the dishwasher.

3

We wash all our Calphalon non-stick by hand, and don’t use any metal utensils on them, but otherwise they get used most days. They’re coming up on 11 years old, and only one pan has been retired from use. That one was used literally every day for a few years.

4

Sorry, I didn’t retain the packaging. But they are non-stick, and on the bottom, they all say “Calphalon Classic.” Also “Nylon and wood utensils only” and “Hand wash only.”

What is the mechanism by which dishwasher water damages non-stick coating material? Were I to clean them all by hand, then run them through the dishwasher with no detergent pods, would that be safe?

5

I put a Calphalon non-stick saucepan in the dishwasher and, as I remember, the non-stick coating wasn’t damaged but the anodized coating was discolored.

6

Calphalon Classic is dishwasher safe.

7

Apparently only the stainless steel version; the nonstick version, not so much. I recall a warning about discoloration of the anodized aluminum exterior. About the nonstick food-adjacent interior my memory is vague, which is why I’d appreciate an explanation of the mechanism by which the dishwasher detergent harms the nonstick properties (should such a mechanism exist).

8

Calphalon Classic Hard-Anodized Nonstick is aluminum and dishwasher safe.

9

Same here, about the same time. I’ve replaced the non-stick frying pans that came in sets of two. (Wow! Look at the price! They were $55/set when I got them.) Not sure of the sequence, but we have two 12-inch and two 10-inch. They get a lot of use, but I think my cast-iron pans get used about the same. Anyway, these pans are always hand-washed.

My stainless steel Calphalon pots get more use than the Calphalon stainless steel pans. I usually wash them by hand since they’re so easy to clean; but occasionally they’ll go into the dishwasher.