Cooking foil

[lucca]

Why does cooking foil have a shiny side and a dull side? Does it make any difference which side you place towards the food? TIA

[tinkerbell23]

good question !! lol mabye post in how it works section too...ive often wondered...i do shiney side out lol x

[ELVIS68]

Shiny side should be in to reflect the heat back

[tinkerbell23]

D'OH!! haha oh well that shows me then...really though i use it most to wrap sandwiches in and hardly ever cooking x

[atsgran]

I have always done shiney side out as well, don't know why

[Clanad]

This question is asked frequently... it makes no difference which side is in or out... the shiny vs. dull side is simply a result of the manufacturing technique... While it is true that the reflectivity of bright aluminum foil is 88% while dull embossed foil is about 80%, it's equally true that cooking doesn't involve visible light but, rather, infrared (which isn't visible) and isn't affected by "reflectivity". Additionally, have you ever seen a smooth, non-wrinkled piece of aluminum (yes, that's the correct spelling here in the U.S.)? If there's any reflectivity involved it stands to reason the wrinkles would destroy any effect on the item cooked.
Alcoa (the largest manufacturer of the sheet metal) will tell you that it doesn't make a difference which side is in or out when using foil. But, use whatever method turns your crank!

[lucca]

Thanks for all the replies, especially Clanad. Is it sunny in the U.S.? (or is it the middle of the night!)

[ainitatyb]

Shiny side in tends to stick less to the meat I find

[Teddio]

Metals are excellent reflectors of non-ionizing electromagnetic radiation. Aluminium foil is, therefore, an excellent reflector of infrared radiation.

[heathfield]

The foil is passed several times under pressure between two highly polished steel rollers. It becomes thinner each time. Eventually, it is so thin that on the final pass, two sheets of foil are placed face to face and these are passed through the rollers together. The side of each foil next to the polished rollers comes out shiny, while side of each foil next to the other foil comes out dull. Voila!

[Sandy-Wroe]

Is it true that if you line your hat with it, shiny side out, it protects you from Venutian mind-control beams from UFO's?

[white van ma]

Hi Sandy-Wroe.
I did try this on Wed when i was on a day trip to a planet in the galaxy & yes it doe's work.