What is stoneware? Why is Torres Ferreras stoneware the best for your ceramic tableware? Do you know the difference between our plates and kitchenware made from other types of clay? If you need answers to these questions, do not miss on this article and you will always know how to choose when buying high-quality tableware.
First, not all ceramics are the same or have the same characteristics. To begin with, we need to differentiate between low-temperature ceramics (fired at around 980ºC – 1000ºC), and high-temperature ceramics (reaches between 1200ºC and 1300ºC in the kiln). Explained like this, the difference may seem minimal, but they are two totally different worlds, with clays and pastes specific to each one that do not work in the other, and with characteristics that make tableware change completely.
What are low temperature clays or pastes?
- White or majolica paste. Its origins lie in the search for the porcelain formula in Europe. Thus, it was possible to make a very white and beautiful clay to decorate on top, but it was not possible to match the firing temperature or the hardness of the desired Chinese porcelain. In La Rambla, our town, it is the most used and is manufactured here.
- Ferruginous clay. We all know it as red clay or terracotta. It is very common in the soils of Spain and Mediterranean Europe. It is very good for working on the potter’s wheel and very common in traditional pottery pots from many Spanish regions, such as Granada or Jaén, as well as for gardening.
- Manganese paste, which owes its name and its dark brown, almost black color to manganese dioxide.
- Other local clays such as the one in the soil of La Rambla, also called “greda”. In Spain, and throughout the planet, there are natural clays in the form of sediments in our soils, which were discovered to be plastic and were used for modeling and making pots. These clays have different characteristics depending on the area where they are found and the elements they have been dragging, which give them different textures or colors. In Spain, these clays are mostly low temperature. In Andalusia, for example, they are usually albarise and calcareous clays, with some iron, which gives them a yellowish or reddish tone. It is with this local clay that the famous La Rambla botijo -a traditional earthenware pitcher- is made, for example.
Furthermore, many times we speak in general terms about earthenware, when referring to the material with which ceramic tableware and household items are made. And many times, this earthenware term is used to refer to some of these other types of low-fired clay.
What are high temperature pastes?
- Porcelain. Yes, porcelain is ceramic, but it is a type of ceramic. It is the ceramic paste used to manufacture tableware and kitchenware that cooks at a higher temperature, which can reach up to 1300ºC. It is completely white, very hard and resistant, and even slightly translucent. Did you know that if you hold a very fine piece of porcelain up to the light, you can see how the light passes through it?
- Stoneware. Exactly, stoneware is a high-temperature ceramic paste, which shares many features with porcelain, such as its hardness and resistance, but it is never 100% white. Torres Ferreras stoneware is light bone or cream color, sometimes verging on grayish. But there are brown, dark and light reddish colors. It is not so common in Spain, and in La Rambla we are the only ceramic atelier that manufactures this material in a 100% handcrafted way.
Why is high-temperature better for tableware?
First of all, there are ceramic materials that are more suitable for certain purposes due to their characteristics, but this does not mean that they cannot be used in many different ways. This is the case of tableware, which we can find made of low-temperature clays or pastes, especially in traditional Andalusian and Spanish ceramics. However, contemporary ceramic workshops are increasingly using stoneware as a support. Torres Ferreras stoneware is the best option for your tableware because:
- Stoneware, like porcelain, vitrifies and closes the pore. Low temperature clays are porous even when they reach their temperature. This means that if we pour a liquid into a low-temperature pot cooked at 1000ºC, that liquid will end up filtering and coming out through its pores. This is what happens with jugs and the trick of cooling them. But this does not happen with stoneware, so stoneware tableware is more suitable for use with solid and liquid foods. It does not enter the pores of the piece and does not accumulate dirt or bacteria and does not corrode the piece with time.
- By closing the pore and vitrifying, the body of a stoneware piece is much less brittle than that of a low-temperature clay piece. Our stoneware differentiates us greatly from the rest of the pottery workshops in Andalusia because our pieces, although they are handmade and may have traditional designs, are very hard and resistant and withstand the small knocks of everyday life in the kitchens of our homes, restaurants and businesses.
- High temperature pieces are much more refractory, that is, they withstand thermal shock better, having been subjected to higher temperatures in the kiln during their manufacture. How does this affect our dishes? Some stoneware plates, bowls or pieces of tableware are suitable for microwaves, as well as for ovens and dishwashers. This right here is a key difference from low-temperature tableware. It is very common for white or terracotta pasta dishes to end up cracking in the oven or getting chipped when they come out of the dishwasher. This is something that will very unlikely happen with our stoneware pieces. What’s more, in our catalog you can find oven trays, tagines or our popular microwave fryers.
- Finally, one of the most used fluxes in low-temperature glazes for ceramics – lead – volatilizes at high temperatures, therefore, it is not used. For this reason, Torres Ferreras pieces have 0% lead in their glazes. This makes them much safer for food use.
You can see a summary to understand it even better in this video:
In short, you now know why Torres Ferreras stoneware is the best for your tableware. It is a safe investment that will last forever, that will always look beautiful without deteriorating in your kitchen or on your table. If you are a restaurant owner, it will give you the comfort of working without fear of breaking it easily or damaging it in any way.
