I bought some cake pans from Ebay. The seller said that they were "professional pans". When they arrived you could definately tell that they were homemade. The apperance was not a big deal to me as long as the cake came out fine. It did, but I noticed that the aluminum discolored where the batter was. I have other pans that have never discolored after many uses. I am concerned about the discoloration and what caused it. Maybe an inferior aluminum? Used the same batter in another one of my pans with no problem. Does anyone know why this happened and should I be concerned about it?
TIA

If by "homemade" that you can see the solder on the seams, they're most likely from Mexico or Malaysia. That's how companies in those countries make their pans out of sheet metal.

We're used to aluminum pans that are treated to not discolor (unless they're put in the dishwasher....). The sheet metal in those countries usually isn't treated and can discolor in the presence of acids.

The oxidation could discolor light batter cakes. I'm not aware of any other problems that it might cause to the baked goods.

Rae

Thanks Rae for the info. So you think that the pans and the solder are ok or should I return them?

Well, I'll be honest.....I've always avoided pans where I could see/feel the solder......I worry about there being lead in the solder. I don't know if it's a well founded fear, but I think I'm stuck with it.......

Rae