The Difference In Baking

• Both silicone and nonstick bake ware will give you great food if used properly. The differences between them in baking might simply be your preference, or whichever might be easier for the item you're making. For example, silicone bake ware is flexible, so it's easier to remove items like cakes that need to be turned out upside down. A silicone baking mat still requires the use of a cookie sheet underneath during baking, but your cookies should pop right off when done. Cookies might stick or even break during removal from a nonstick pan, despite the name. If you slide the silicone baking mat off of the cookie sheet used for support during baking, the cooking process will stop and the cookies can begin to cool. Sometimes, when cookies are left on a nonstick baking sheet after being pulled from the oven, the heat still held in the metal continues to cook the cookies and they can become over-baked.

The Difference In Clean Up

• Since silicone does not need to be sprayed, greased, or sprinkled with flour to prevent sticking, clean up is considerably easier. Standard dish soap and hot water should do the job. With nonstick items, even though you may use an oil, spray or flour to prevent sticking, the residue is often baked on, requiring scrubbing, scraping, and soaking to remove the buildup. Both are dishwasher safe. However, both types of item should always be properly washed, sanitized, and dried before putting away. Also, a nonstick cookie sheet may absorb food odors and stain over time; silicone sheets don't have this problem.

Price and Availability

• Both silicone and nonstick items can be found in grocery stores, department stores, kitchen specialty stores and online. Nonstick metal bake-ware items tend to be a little cheaper than their silicone counterparts, but not by much. For example, a nonstick baking sheet might range from $6 to $20, while a silicone baking mat ranges from $9 to $21. Nonstick cookie sheets also tend to be sold in packs of different sizes, whereas silicone baking mats are more commonly sold singly. Silicone items come in many colors, so you can incorporate them into your kitchen decor.

The Difference In Food Safety

• The chemical used in bonding the nonstick agent to the pan, perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA), has caused concerns for years. The Environmental Protection Agency has requested that the companies using this adhesive find an alternative by 2015. However, if nonstick bake ware is used within the proper suggested temperature ranges, the likelihood of destroying the nonstick coating and releasing harmful gases is slim. If you do see that the coating is breaking down on your bake ware, throw the item away and replace it immediately. The risks aren't worth your health. Silicone, on the other hand, does not have any coating to worry about.