When you buy a pot or a pan, you should consider carefully the type of use you want to make of it. Not all materials, in fact, are suitable for the same function!

Stainless steel, for example, has many advantages: it is durable, it is hygienic and easy to clean. It is particularly fit for boiling, while food tends to "stick" to the pot easily. It has low conductivity.
Aluminum is light and has high conductivity. It is suitable for all types of cooking, with the exception of frying. However it buckles, it is porous and it tends to stain light-colour sauces.
Teflon non-stick coatings allow you to cook without fats and do not stick to food. However, the coating is easily scratched. These types of coating are particularly suitable for the preparation of omelettes and sautés.
Ceramic, as a coating material for pots and pans, has lower non-stick properties and it is more fragile than an ordinary non-stick pan. On the other hand, it is healthier and it is ideal for golden brown and crisp cooking.
Tinned copper has high conductivity, it is hard-wearing and it does not stick, but it oxidizes easily. It is suitable for all types of cooking, but it is used primarily by "professionals", because of its high cost.
Iron is non-stick and thermostatic. It is used for cooking on a high flame and for frying, but it rusts easily.
Cast iron has good thermo-regulating capacity and it is non-stick. On the other hand, it is very heavy and fragile. It is ideal for stewing and casseroling.
Clay is fit for all heat sources, but it heats up slowly. It is ideal for cooking stews, on a low flame, but it is fragile and it absorbs odours.
Pyrex glass is not a good thermal conductor. It is used almost exclusively for cooking in a traditional oven or in a microwave. Excellent material when it comes to food, it is fragile and not very resistant to sudden temperature changes.

In the Bertazzoni family tradition, baking and roasting have always been considered as healthy alternatives to cooking on a burner. The baking, in fact, is excellent both to cook foods and to warm them up. For each type of use and for each type of food there is an ideal type of oven and an ideal cooking function/setting. Gas ovens, for example, are ideal for fish and roasting meat. Gas reaches a high temperature in a short time, which helps to seal the food, making it crispy outside, but keeping it juicy inside. Electric ovens, on the other hand, are ideal for mid-to low-temperature cooking, such as baking or recipes that require slow cooking, such as casseroles. Moreover, the non-convection mode is excellent for baking cakes, while the fan-assisted mode ensures an even heat distribution, for single and multi-level roasting and baking, without flavour crossover.

Steam ovens, designed for professional chefs, employ water vapour for fast and healthy cooking. Keep that seals in flavour and vitamins. Steam ovens are ideal for vegetables, fish, meat and they allow you not to use added fats. The quality of the food remains excellent, while you save on time and energy, up to 15-20%, compared to traditional baking. It is also ideal for the warming of food.
To finish with, microwave ovens, heat up very fast. In fact, the heat is produced without heating the oven and the pan, as is the case for traditional baking. Microwave ovens preserve the nutritional value of foods and produce a lower fat oxidation. It is not, however, suitable for reaching high temperatures or for cooking thick food. They are unsuitable, for example, for the preparation of cakes and roasts. They are ideal for the defrosting and for the warming up of food. Remember to use glass or porcelain pots and no lid.

The Bertazzoni family recipe book includes many easy ways of cooking vegetables in the oven. Here is a simple and tasty one:
put sliced tomatoes, aubergines, courgettes and onions (or leeks) into an oiled tray and cover them with a mixture of bread crumbs, garlic, parsley, basil, salt and oil. Bake at 180 ° C for about 20 minutes. Turn the grill on for the last 5 minutes. Enjoy your meal!

Human beings have eaten pasta for over 7,000 years and it is therefore very difficult to determine who invented it. The term pasta derives from the Greek πάστα and it means “dough”. One hundred years before Christ, Cicero and Horace already loved pasta, and, in A.D.1154, the Arab geographer Al-Idrin celebrated "a delicacy made of flour, in the shape of cords". It was called triyah, and it was manufactured in Palermo. Here is the first evidence of the existence of spaghetti nine hundred years ago!

In Italy, dry pasta - the one commonly on sale, not to be mistaken with handmade fresh pasta - is prepared only with durum wheat. According to the Italian law, it can be made exclusively with durum semolina or durum wheat and water. Durum wheat allows pasta to hold up to cooking, unlike soft wheat.

When you have to choose the right type of pasta, remember that smooth surface pasta is appreciated for its lightness, while the ridged type of pasta is usually preferred for its ability to retain the sauce.

A suggestion:

when you want to cook pasta, fill a large pan with salted water, so that pasta does not stick. If you find out at the very last moment that the pan you have chosen is too small and you can do nothing about it, you can always add a little oil to the cooking water!

When grilling pay attention to how long it takes to the food to become crusty. If it’s too slow your food is sweatting and evaporating is getting colder. The grilling function is also used just to color your food: the golden brown finish makes your dish look better and more tasteful... appearence matters also in cooking.

For your home cooking needs it might take some getting used to using a gas oven, however the difference in results in very noticeable.

When using a gas oven remember that the temperature rises very fast and that pre-heating the oven is a must. Observing those basic ground rules is definitely worth it, as the moist heat generated by natural and LP gas does wonders to the food.

During combustion humidity is released and envelopes the food, resulting in tender and juicy roasts or plump patisseries coming out of your gas oven.

The Bertazzoni obsession with precision engineering has optimized the gas oven to prevent the drying out of foods and can be depended on to give you tasty results every single time.

Here is a tip for a healthy alternative to deep frying. We call it “Roast Frying”.

Roast frying is very easy and applicable to low profile foods that are thin in shape, such as breadcrumb battered pork chops: just spray olive or frying oil all over the breadcrumb covered pork chops, preheat the oven to 430 F° (220° C) temperature and place the pork chops on a wire shelf or the roasting insert for the oven roasting pan. Then place the food on the wire shelf for 10 to 15 minutes. Wait until golden brown.

Your results will even be better when selecting the convection cooking mode. All Bertazzoni gas and electric ovens offer a convection cooking option as a standard feature. The resulting taste of the food might differ from traditional deep frying yet the flavors are plentiful and definitively healthier.

As an added bonus there is no oil splatter from the frying pan all over your kitchen counter and cooktop.