Kitchen Sleuth: What Is This Pan?

Even the good folks at my favorite kitchen shop are stumped by this pan that another customer found when cleaning out his mother's attic.

Does anyone know what it might be?

It's about three inches deep and looks like a standard skillet except for the raised center with a dozen or so small holes, perhaps for steaming?


The only markings are on the underside of the handle. It reads "Made in England". Just to the right is a small circle with the numeral "4".





There are some wear marks on the underside of the pan, as if it might fit into another pan like a double boiler.







So, my foodies, What Is This Pan?????


(c) Copyright 2006 Kitchen Parade
Alanna Kellogg
Alanna Kellogg

A Veggie Venture is home of "veggie evangelist" Alanna Kellogg and the famous asparagus-to-zucchini Alphabet of Vegetables.

Comments

  1. Hi Alanna,

    I asked mum and she said:
    "I have never seen one of these before but I would think that it was used as a steamer. You could boil potatoes underneath and use the steam to cook broccoli on the top."

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  2. AnonymousJuly 11, 2006

    It bakes like an oven, for instance to bake potatoes on the stove top without heating the whole house as heat comes up through the holes in center and dry roasts the food.Really works. I have one.

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  3. "Bakes like an oven" ... it seems so obvious now! Thanks so much, Cheryle. You get the "kitchen sleuth" award!!

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  4. So ... when I told the store folks what Cheryle said, the owner said, "Oh! It's a stove-top oven! My mother had one!" His mother's had no handle so he hadn't clicked.

    But ... when I do Google/MSN/Yahoo searches on stove-top oven, there are few references and then mostly in Mother Earth and camping circles. I did find two references on E-Bay, here and here.

    So I'm thinking they're really out of fashion or there's a name we haven't yet happened onto.

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  5. Cheryle -- Look at this on SlashFood! I'd love to say thanks in person, if you'd like to drop me an e-mail privately!

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  6. They used to sell these on infomercials late at night and early in the morning. They'd always make fried chicken without oil that turned extra crispy and cook a cake or brownies in the same pan. LoL

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  7. I have no idea what this kind of pan is for, but in our family we found one when going through my great aunt's belongings. Now it is "the pan of many holes" that gets passed from one unexpecting family member to another. Each time someone passes the pan, a poem is written about the pan and a new silly use is found....

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  8. The pan is from the early 70's and offered a unique way to cook with very little oil. Using just enough oil to fill the groove in the bottom you could cook some of the best "Fried Chicken" you have ever eaten. A dieter's delite.
    I would like to buy one, again.

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  9. My mother-in-law is a thrift store shopper and always find unique finds there. She found several of these pans and gave me one. She used this pan with top to slow cook chicken pieces, very delicious (moist tender and flavorful). I tried it~~~the best.

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  10. Found one of these in my kitchen hiding in a stack of seldom used pans. Had no idea what it was for nor where or how I got it. Googled "pan with raised center" and found this post. Thanks for the info. Still don't know where it came from, but at least now know what it is used for.

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  11. mine is only 2 inches deep and has 7 holes in the raised center is this the same thing and does anyone have a name yet

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  12. I have one of these skillets-I LOVE IT. I bought it at an auction yrs ago. Mine is about wore out. I would like to buy another. Do you know where I can buy one.

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  13. well anonymous i have one make me an offer hysped@gmail.com

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  14. AnonymousJune 10, 2018

    I have one that has a wire rack with a center hole that fits around the center - I am stumped by what it is

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    Replies
    1. It's a no-oil frying pan/air fryer frying pan - my mom had one in the 80's. you put a tablespoon of oil at the bottom then place your food around the funnel and it frys your food like a deep fryer !!!! its a air fryer of the 80's.LOL

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  15. Just found one at my mums house. I seem to remember it was some kind of air fryer, sold on the USP that you only need a tea spoon of oil.

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    Replies
    1. I have the same. is the best pan ever. you add only a bit of oil and you can bake cake in it or cook fried food more healthier way. taste delicious.

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  17. Ken K i drove truck in the 80s. I hauled the first and maybe only load of these pans from JFK airport to Chicago. I had extra cases on so I tried to sell them but found few takers. Nobody liked the hole in the middle. My mother did use hers.

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Thank you for taking a moment to write! I read each and every comment, for each and every recipe, whether a current recipe or a long-ago favorite. If you have a specific question, it's nearly always answered quick-quick. ~ Alanna