Here in the United States, whenever I find the PYREX with capital letters in the resale or thrift stores I try to buy it because it's made of borosilicate glass. The new pyrex glassware with the lower case letters Is made of cheaper soda lime glass that can't take anywhere near the same thermal shock which is what you need if you're going to be cooking in it. It's sad that overseas they still make it out of borosilicate glass, but here we can only get the cheap stuff new.
For food storage containers I care way more about being resistant to physical shock than temperature shock. I am much, much more likely to drop a container than i am to go from fridge/freezer straight to boiling temperatures
Are you sure you did your research properly? Because the original Pyrexx with a capital P made by corning ware so the rights to another company who can market Pyrex with a lowercase P, which is not as durable.
Borosilicate glass is better for temperature shock but far weaker for physical shock, like dropping it or hitting it as they tend to fracture much easier.
At least that's what the companies that sell glass for cooking want us to believe. Although they don't mention that it's so much cheaper for them to make and they can sell it for just as much.
I rarely disagree with ATK, but soda glass can take knocks and hard bumps more readily. Borosilicate glass is better with thermal shock. I have a full set of borosilicate in my kitchen for specific uses on the stove but have broken them with little effort at room temperature comparative to today's pyrex glassware. Choose accordingly.
@littleblizzard7591 I would continue to use your pyrex casserole dish since finding a borosilicate casserole would be extremely rare. I'd make the move to borosilicate if you intend to move or experiment with molecular gastronomy, where extreme and sudden changes in temperature is likely to happen in your recipes. For example, if you intend to plunge your project from the oven into an ice bath, use borosilicate.
the average home cook is more likely to shatter a glass by dropping it or whacking it against something than thermal shock imo. the tradeoff for soda lime glass was worth it.
Been using these for years. Never knew that they were borosilicate. If you're in Tx, HEB grocery stores carries a line of kitchen ware that's borosilicate glass. Three sizes of mixing bowls (my fav), casseroles and measuring cups. Good stuff.
Back in 1962 my gramma dropped her large Pyrex bread bowl. She would use this bowl to make triple batches of bread. When this bowl hit the kitchen floor it shattered into a million pieces. Back then we wore dresses so when the Pyrex shattered it sent splinters flying into our legs. Gramma couldn’t get the splinters out of our legs so we went to the hospital to have them removed. It took over 3 hours to get them out. When we were done they put iodine on our legs. When the Novocain wore off, WOW! It was over a week before our legs felt somewhat better. The splinters they missed took over a year to come to the surface so they could be removed. Gramma went out and bought another Pyrex bread bowl. When I grew up ~ No Pyrex for me!
I've used Pyrex and Anchor borosilicate for more than 50 years. Its all mostly 40 to 60 years old.. Yours is the worst story I've ever heard. Quite frankly, statistically I can't imagine you'd ever have another experience like this. If you are using glass in your oven that is not borosilicate (the cheaper soda lime stuff) you are much more likely to experience that same problem again.
