Pancake ball pan

Pans are widely used kitchen utensils, known since antiquity, used for frying or stewing various types of dishes. They generally have universal uses, but some are intended for preparing specific meals. In the ethnographic collection of the National Museum in Szczecin, there is a pan used for frying racuchy (Polish pancakes). It has six round indentations and one heart-shaped indentation, into which the batter was poured after greasing the pan. Once the bottom of the pancakes was fried, they were flipped to brown evenly on the other side. Kitchen utensils of this type are known as æbleskiver pans, used for frying traditional Danish snacks that are most commonly eaten in Denmark during the Christmas season. The pan presented here has three wrought-iron legs, which allowed for frying over an open flame. The pan's plate is made of copper, which conducts heat very well, allowing for quick and even frying. However, copper is a material that reacts with certain foods, potentially producing harmful substances. To avoid this, the interior of copper utensils was coated with tin. This task, as well as the production of copperware itself, was traditionally carried out by craftsmen known as coppersmiths. Copper utensils, including pans, were and continue to be valued not only for their practicality but also for their aesthetic qualities, which is why they are not only functional objects but also often serve as interior decorations. Agnieszka Słowińska