The Water Seal
LifeTime® cookware forms a “water seal” which is maintained throughout the cooking process allowing for cooking meats, vegetables and fruits in their own juices, without adding water to the ingredients during cooking.
So, the water seal is the key to waterless or minimum-moisture cooking.
The water seal is maintained precisely throughout the cooking process by the specially engineered “fit-and-weight” of the cover.
The weighted covers fit snugly onto the shoulder of each pan and are designed to form a positive lock tight “water seal.” This causes the rising vapors to condense on the inside of the cover and create a soft, gentle mist-like moisture. This thin film of water formed between the cover and the pan is called the water seal.
This capability allows for sealing in the food’s natural flavor, vitamins, minerals and enzymes. The water seal also allows for maintaining a constant cooking temperature of 180 degree F, which is the pasteurizing temperature.
TO LEARN HOW TO FORM THE WATER SEAL IN PRACTICE:
Take any pan (a smaller one will go faster of course) and fill it with water 3/4 of its capacity. Cover with lid and put it on the stove. Turn the heat on, to the 1/3 of the highest power of the stove. So, if the stove dial goes from 1 to 9, turn it on 3, if the dial goes from 1 to 4, turn it between 1 and 2 and so on.
With the pan sitting on stove, try to rotate the lid. Not lift it, but rotate it only, while keeping it on the pan. You will see that is not quite possible. The lid will sit well on the pan, and you feel the friction between the metal of the lid and of the pan. Let the water heat. Try the lid again. Once you reach the optimal temperature, the lid starts floating and it can be easily rotated (not lifted but rotated) without any resistance. Now, play with the temperature to see what happens. Turn the heat high, lets say go from 3 to 5 or 6. Water will start boiling hard, and the lid starts to move, makes a noise and the water starts forming steam which is escaping. When this happens, it means that the cooking temperature is too high and you need to turn the heat down. Now, go all the way down, or even turn the heat off. Let it sit for few minutes and then try the lid again. You will notice the lid locked. If it didn’t lock yet, let it sit longer so you will experience the lock. When the lid starts to lock, it means the temperature is too low and you have to turn the heat up a little bit, until the water seal forms again. The optimal temperature for cooking is when the lid floats freely, without almost locking (temp too low) , and without steam forming and escaping (temp too high). So, without using a thermometer, you can easily adjust the temperature for the best cooking of the food, to preserve enzymes, vitamins, minerals and all other nutrients. Once the temperature is correct, the lid should not be lifted until the food is cooked. I recommend practicing with water before real food is used. Once this water seal is mastered, cooking your food with LifeTime® cookware becomes a breeze and a pleasure.
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