A consumer writes, worried that cooking a dish under their oven’s broiler, using a skillet, has released dangerous fumes into their home.
While we are confident that no poisons were emitted in this ten minute long exposure under the broiler, it is a cautionary tale.
It may look like cookware, but this cornbread pan is specially designed for oven use. Note the all metal, cast-iron construction
Unless the cookware has all metal construction, it should not be placed under a broiler. Many pieces of cookware with thermoset plastic handles can withstand 350 degree oven temperatures, but temperatures directly under a broiler are typically too high to safely expose anything other than metal to. The risk is not poisonous fumes but setting fire, or melting the handle itself.
There’s a reason that very few bakeware pieces are anything other than metal, and any handles or grips on bakeware are typically made using silicone which can handle very high temperatures without igniting or smoking.
The best advice is to use bakeware in the oven and cookware on top of the stove unless the cookware is solidly construction of ONLY metal.
