How To Make Any Pan Non Stick

Ever since my non stick, Teflon coated baking pan let off noxious fumes that killed my budgie, Buddy, I've been very leery of using anything with a non stick coating. I switched over to cast iron pots and pans and have been very happy with them.
But some people can't accord a set of cast iron cookware, and/or don't want to have to worry about taking care of it and seasoning it so that it remains non stick. (It's not a big deal, seriously. Cast iron pans are SO worth every cent and every slight bit of extra work.)
But for whatever reason, some people don't have non stick pans at all, or some people would prefer not to use the unhealthy non stick pans that they have, and that's where this comes in.

My best friend B, taught me how to make any pan non stick, so that you can make your pancakes or your fritters or your eggs or your fried chicken, and not need to worry about it getting stuck to the pan.


I almost feel stupid posting this because it's so simple and easy, but until B told me about it, I'd never have even dreamed to do that.

Which is kind of funny, because she got the idea from me. Or rather, she thought she got the idea from me. You see, she saw me do something, and misunderstood what I was doing- and thought it was this.

What is this, you ask?

Well, if you have a regular frying pan that is not non stick, and you want to fry "sticky" things in it... Put some oil in the bottom of the frying pain, cut out a piece of parchment paper the size of the bottom of your frying pan, stick it inside, pour a little oil on top of the frying pain, and voila! Non stick!

If you don't feel like cutting, you can just put a whole large piece of parchment paper inside, and push it down so it fits inside.

Now how did B mistakenly think she got this idea from me? Well, she saw my recipe for homemade donuts, and since the dough is sticky, you pipe the donut shape onto squares of parchment paper, and then drop the parchment paper together with the donut into the hot oil, removing the parchment paper once the donut cooks enough to easily do so. Haha, not exactly what B thought I was doing, but I was glad to have inspired her, so she could inspire me in turn.

Now as for health- is it healthy? Well, parchment paper is coated with a light silicon spray. I haven't been able to find any negative information about silicon's uses healthwise, but who knows, one year they may discover that it is a problem. But in the meantime, I'm going to assume its safe, and definitely safer than Teflon, which is a proven health hazard.
P.S. Silicon also lets off noxious fumes if you put a silicon baking dish directly onto a heating element in an oven. Trust me. I know... Don't try that one at home!

By the way, you can reuse this parchment paper you use for frying, over and over again, until it becomes brittle.

Enjoy!

Do you have non stick pans? What are they made from? Are you looking to replace your Teflon pans with anything else? Had you ever heard of this trick before? Do you think this is a trick you'd try out?