Thursday, January 8, 2015

Rudimentary Roaster Report - Corning Ware Roasters

So many roasters, so little time.

In a world dominated by recipes that require the standard 13x9 (Pyrex) Baking Dish, I feel it's time to explore the menagerie of roasters/baking dishes in the Corning Ware world.  Their measurements are a little different, but the overall area of the dish works out pretty much the same...

A 13 x 9 baking dish gives you an area of 117 square inches of dish.  While a 12 1/4 x 10 (A-21-B) gives you an area of 122 square inches... a little more, but not enough to create a casserole catastrophe, by any means... So let's take a REALLY close look at ALL the Corning Ware Roasters, both P and A-series, for they all have different measurements leading to different square inch capacities.

These are the three P-series Baking/Roasting pans.  The P-332, P-21-B and P-76-B.

These are the three A-series Baking/Roasting pans.  The A-18, A-21-B and A-76-B (There is an A-21-B-N, but I will touch on that at the end)

While standard Corning Ware cooking dishes switched to the A-series in 1972, the new A-series roasters did not make their debut until 1976.  It should also be noted that the P-332 hung around until sometimes around 1982-84 before it was discontinued, which just happened to be about the time that the A-18 and A-76 were removed from the market as well.  The A-21 hung on until about 1986 when it got a makeover and became the A-21-B-N.

Here are the comparisons....

The P-332 (bottom) and the A-18-B (top)...

The P-332 is 11 1/2 x 7 1/2 (87sq). This is my "Go To" pan for a single batch of Lasagne

The A-18 is 10 x 8 1/2 (85sq).


The P-21-B (bottom) and the A-21-B (top)...


The P-21-B is 13 x 8 3/4 (114sq)  Which is slightly bowed out. (there is a reason for this, but I will cover that at the end)

The A-21-B is 12 1/4 x 10 (122sq)


The P-76-B (bottom) and the A-76-B (top).....

The P-76-B is 15.5 x 9.75 (151sq)

The A-76-B is 14 x 11.5 (161sq).  It's almost a square.

After 1986, the A-21-B was modified and became the A-21-B-N...  One of the major differences was the addition of handles at each end, instead of having the bent rim all the way around. The A-21-B-N is also significantly heavier than the A-21-B, as the glass is much thicker like the cookware.  The dimensions, however, are extremely similar, being 12 1/2 x 10 1/2 (131sq).  It's basically 1/4 inch longer and 1/2 inch wider than the A-21-B.


Now, lets get into the reason for the bowing in the P-21-B.

It was all because of this....   The P-19 Broiling Platter.

When using an electric oven (which produces a drier heat than a gas oven) you can place water in the P-21-B and sit the P-19 Broiling platter on top...

Thus increasing the humidity inside your electric oven and producing a much moister roast, or so the theory goes.

So there you have it... A massive crash course in Corning Ware Roasting/Baking Pans.

Where is your Corning Ware??
~~

27 comments:

  1. Hi
    I have a Corning Roaster Pan numbered "B-2L". Have you ever seen one of those? It looks like a P-21 but it apparently isnt....

    Shawn

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    1. Hi Shawn....

      Sorry for the delay... I have been moving and for some reason, I am not getting notifications via email when people leave comments.

      To be honest, I would have to see pictures of the roaster to make an identification. Corning often had issues with the bottom stamps not being applied correctly. But the P-21 predates the switch to liters. I suppose it's possible that you have found a piece of Corning Ware that was bound for Europe, before the factory was built in the Netherlands and the name was changed to Pyrosil Ware. I have discovered that just about anything is possible in the world of Corning Ware.

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    2. My roaster has black printed information on bottom that says "P-21 Roaster, is this the same as the P-21-B mentioned here? I'm trying to understand when it was made!

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  2. Thank you for this interesting and informative post. I have a question to which you might know the answer. When I was around 11, my parents bought an in-wall combination regular/microwave oven, which I think was the Thermador Thermatronic II CMT-21. I am almost positive it came with a Corning Cornflower Blue roaster, which I'm guessing was model A-76. After my mom died, my dad held an estate sale and sold this roaster without checking if I wanted it. Now I'm trying to find one again, and I've seen them on several sites. However, I know it came with a single wire rack that fit inside perfectly (not A-21-R). Do you have any idea what I might be talking about? I've been Googling this for about three years now, and I can't find the rack I need. Thanks!

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    1. I have not seen a rack specific to the A-76 itself... But it's completely possible that a special rack was made specifically for those roasting pans that accompanied the Thermador oven. Corning often packaged things differently for special clients.

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    2. Two and a half years later, I wanted to follow up on this. I found the exact roaster and rack today that I'd been seeking. I had stopped looking for a while, but today it popped into my head, and though I didn't think I'd find one, it showed up very quickly in my Google search. The eBay listing was at https://www.ebay.com/itm/112990153430. So it did exist!

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    3. @caniche_noir, not sure if you'll see this or get notification on my reply, but I'm interested to know more about this A-76 wire rack or see a photo or 2 of it if you have any. I believe I may have one, as I bought a mixed set of Blue Cornflower items online about 6mo ago, but sadly the A-76 arrived shattered. The wire rack is still in with my baking pans, so I'm wondering if your mystery rack matches the one I have. Just curious! Can email me at protazoey@hotmail.com if you see this, as I'm not sure I'll get replies from here either. Thanks!

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  3. My sister-in-law is requesting a Corning Ware or Pyrex casserole approx. 14"x20". Is there anything that large and, if so, what should I be looking for? Thanks.

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    1. Sadly, No. The A-76 and P-76 are the largest roasters.

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  4. What is the difference between the P-76 & P-76B?

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    1. They are the same roaster. Corning used both model numbers, it just depends on which re-order form you look at. The -B suffix refers to "bottom", as opposed to the lid models ending in -C for "cover". Technically a roaster has no lid, so the -B is kind of useless, but they used it on occasion, for some reason.

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  5. Hello, second try at comment - I found a P-332 roaster at a thrift store yesterday that came with a drip pan that fits inside and a grill/broiler top that fits inside of that ` any info available on this?

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    1. Historically, the P-332 was labeled and sold as a baking dish, instead of an actual roaster. So it is interesting that there were accessories. I do not have any information on these, but it is not beyond Corning to make up a special set as a promotional item for a customer. It would help greatly, if I could see some pictures of the extras that came with your baker/roaster. You can email me at corningware411@gmail.com.

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  6. Hello! I have the A-21-B-N. Did it ever come with a glass lid? I've been searching for a long time. Thank you.

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    1. Sadly,none of the roasters have lids. There have been a.couple times that I have really wished they did, but no.

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  7. Shane, love your blog! Have you heard of the A-21-B-N in plain white being called Winter White? I can't find much on this, only lines called All White and Just White. I recently found a white A-21-B-N in a Salvation Army in Detroit, yes Detroit, for $4.99. It was covered in baked on grease and took some serious cleaning but now it's sparkling. Sadly I rarely find Corning Ware anymore in the thrift stores that is NOT dirty.

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    1. Congratulations on your find! Yes, the Just/All White pieces are often called by Corelle names, such as Winter White, Frost White, Ice White and so on. The A-21-B-N was produced after 1987 so it's technical name would be "All White", as that is what would have been printed on the box as pattern information.

      Its true, I rarely find any piece of Corning Ware anymore that is not completely filthy and mistreated. LOL

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    2. I am baffled to find these dirty dishes. Do they go through the dishwasher, grease remains intact, but the owner thinks "oh it must be ok, it's been through the wash?" I recently picked up a Blue Cornflower P-116 range top percolator for $7 at an estate sale and it was literally as thought the owner made coffee in it, bought a Mr. Coffee one day, and then never cleaned the percolator again. I bought it initially as a collection item, horrified at the thought of actually making coffee in it, but it actually came out sparkling after a long scrub with Barkeepers Friend, even the stainless steel "guts" (as my Dad would say.) So I am actually going to forgo the Keurig this weekend and fire up the percolator (I grew up in a home where there was no drip coffee maker or microwave until long after I moved out, so I am no stranger to perked coffee!) I think it says a lot of our beloved Corning Ware that most of the time it cleans up like new even when we least expect it.

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  8. I'm looking to replace my old rectangular roasting pan that had 2 wire racks with it. Sadly, I broke it during the holidays. I've use the large roaster for years, and it is great for cooking dressing, ham, or turkey.

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  9. Your blogs are the best Shane! Si

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  10. Just found a p-19 raoster at the rescue mission for 4.00 missing the metal insert though

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    1. Just found a P-21 a few days ago for the same price, at the humane society thrift store. It has marks from an insert and was googling one, which led me to this post.

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  11. My wife dropped and broke a p-76 roaster that belonged to my grandmother, she swears the pattern was spice of life and have been trying to replace it for years, is there a p-76 roaster with a spice of life design, if not what patterns do the p-76 come in, thanks for any possible help, Capt. Doug

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    1. I have never seen a P-76 roaster in Spice O' Life, only the P-21.. there is an A-76 though.

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  12. Hi Shane,

    Shout out to the Columbia River Gorge, one of America's treasures. Great labor of love you have created here, cudos.

    I recently saw a Cornflower roaster P19 with no model number, and made in Canada. Can you elaborate on Canada Corning Ware?

    thanks much
    SM

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  13. Looking for a roasting pan A76 blue coneflower design could someone help me locate one thanks.

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  14. Thanks VERY much for this website! I just bought a P-332 at a thrift shop, marked down from the already-low price. I was puzzled by the "for range & microwave" on the back. Your info assures me it will be fine in the oven part of my electric range. It also has a number of "friends" with the classic cornflower decoration.

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