#AskTamara
Q: What is carbon steel?
A: The following XRF readings are all of the metals detected when testing the Morakniv “Made In Sweden” knife (pictured here), which is marked “Carbon Steel”. While I have not tested a lot of carbon steel items, these readings are likely typical for carbon steel.
- Chromium (Cr): 2,094 +/- 301 ppm
- Iron (Fe): 991,300 +/- 1,800 ppm
- Magnesium (Mn): 4,103 +/- 585 ppm
This item was non-detect for lead (Pb), mercury (Hg), cadmium (Cd), arsenic (As) and any other metals. The only metals detected with the XRF were the three noted above.
The primary ways in which this (carbon steel) differs from stainless steel in that in the carbon steel there is no nickel and the chromium level is significantly lower than what might find in stainless steel.
I bought this knife for my children to have a carving knife. They were selling them at a Trackers event, with their recommendation that they were the best first knife for a kid to use for carving and wilderness survival (supervised of course!)
Here’s an affiliate* link to this knife on Amazon.
As always, please let me know if you have any questions!
Tamara Rubin
#LeadSafeMama
*If you purchase something after clicking on one of my affiliate links I may receive a small percentage of what you spend at no extra cost to you. Thank you for supporting my advocacy work in this way!
Tamara what are your thoughts on carbon steel cookware over cast iron like the lodge carbon steel?
Hi Nicole!
I have tested some carbon steel items and not found any toxicant concerns. I don’t have an opinion from a functional standpoint (as I have not used them), but I will ask my husband what he thinks – because he is a metals guy.
Tamara
Have you tested any carbon steel pan/wok made in France for brands like De buyer, Mauviel? Since this is lighter than cast iron and i would like to seek your advice on what carbon steel brand and items have you tested? Thanks!!
Wee are looking for toxicant free wok for Asian cooking. What do you think of either pre seasoned or not pre seasoned carbon steel woks, with wooden handles.
Examples
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07VJ5LGJ9/ref=sspa_dk_detail_4?psc=1&spLa=ZW5jcnlwdGVkUXVhbGlmaWVyPUExVUoyTzU0VExZUEhOJmVuY3J5cHRlZElkPUEwMzcwOTc4MUNTNFBWNjZYTTAwTiZlbmNyeXB0ZWRBZElkPUEwMTgwOTkxMU40ODBLUkI5Q1dWWSZ3aWRnZXROYW1lPXNwX2RldGFpbDImYWN0aW9uPWNsaWNrUmVkaXJlY3QmZG9Ob3RMb2dDbGljaz10cnVl
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00PUZT9MU/ref=sspa_dk_detail_0?psc=1&pd_rd_i=B00PUZT9MU&pd_rd_w=sPC6q&pf_rd_p=f0355a48-7e73-489a-9590-564e12837b93&pd_rd_wg=bf9pc&pf_rd_r=0NR8WXNK0PFXGT6Y0FQ5&pd_rd_r=f387acfc-e298-4503-8ba4-de193c8b3005&spLa=ZW5jcnlwdGVkUXVhbGlmaWVyPUFFWEc5VjBUSFBXSUYmZW5jcnlwdGVkSWQ9QTA0MDU5MjYxWEdVVDJYSDhPQlJRJmVuY3J5cHRlZEFkSWQ9QTAzMzA1MDkyVkRBNTU3STdJMUpUJndpZGdldE5hbWU9c3BfZGV0YWlsX3RoZW1hdGljJmFjdGlvbj1jbGlja1JlZGlyZWN0JmRvTm90TG9nQ2xpY2s9dHJ1ZQ==
Your educated guess would be very helpful!
Did you get a reply to this? I am looking at exactly the same things at the moment and prefer the look of Carbon Steel pans to cast iron which are so heavy. did you end up finding out ? many thanks Julie
I did not get any confirmation from anywhere. I guess it’s hard to get a confirmation unless Tamara tests it. However, I went ahead and bought a wok that seems to be made of only carbon steel and natural wood. I looked for something that would not have any paint or plastic and my guess was that this item fits the bill (link below).
I must add the cooking experience of using a carbon steel (in my case wok) is quite different from that of cast iron pan. My wok requires high heat. It heats up and cools done very quickly. It suits my needs but just thought that you might want to research that.
Hope this helps!
https://www.amazon.com/Bottom-Traditional-Hammered-Chinese-Mammafong/dp/B07MXK3QHJ
Yes I came across this they look amazing although I’m a bit scared of all the pre-seasoning ongoing stuff and not being able to use washing up liquid to clean it – bit off putting to me but I do like the idea and they are very traditional . Thanks so much for getting back to me Julie