# frying pan for home use



## chiffonodd (Feb 21, 2015)

just full of questions today...

Next on the list will be a decent frying pan (10" - 12") for home use. I grew up using crap nonstick pans, which make it very difficult to brown/carmelize and deglaze.

what's a good non-nonstick frying pan that won't break the bank? I've heard all clad is a good choice?

I'll be using it to sear fish, shrimp, etc, for example.


----------



## Seth (Feb 21, 2015)

Carbon steel de buyer, or cast iron. Much cheaper than allclad and much better. You will have to season - no big deal.


----------



## chiffonodd (Feb 21, 2015)

Seth said:


> Carbon steel de buyer, or cast iron. Much cheaper than allclad and much better. You will have to season - no big deal.



Thanks for the suggestion - does the carbon steel pan require special care in the same way that a carbon steel knife does? Is it reactive?


----------



## ptolemy (Feb 21, 2015)

chiffonodd said:


> Thanks for the suggestion - does the carbon steel pan require special care in the same way that a carbon steel knife does? Is it reactive?



Once you season it, it stops being reactive. I would never leave mine in water... handwash, dry, rub with thin later of oil and after a while, you won't even need oil.


----------



## WingKKF (Feb 21, 2015)

+1 on a carbon steel pan. One big advantage of a carbon steel pan over a cast iron is the handle. You can install a silicone grip on the handle to make it much more user friendly than the stubby cast iron pan handle. If money is a concern, Paderno carbon steel pans are cheaper and works close to the same as a Debuyer or so I heard.


----------



## chiffonodd (Feb 21, 2015)

ptolemy said:


> Once you season it, it stops being reactive. I would never leave mine in water... handwash, dry, rub with thin later of oil and after a while, you won't even need oil.



What's your preferred method of seasoning the pan (carbon steel)? There are about a million different suggestions online


----------



## chiffonodd (Feb 21, 2015)

WingKKF said:


> +1 on a carbon steel pan. One big advantage of a carbon steel pan over a cast iron is the handle. You can install a silicone grip on the handle to make it much more user friendly than the stubby cast iron pan handle. If money is a concern, Paderno carbon steel pans are cheaper and works close to the same as a Debuyer or so I heard.



Great idea but I also want to keep the pan oven safe so I can finish seared seafood. I'm guessing the silicone grip might be an issue but then again it's probably removable


----------



## chiffonodd (Feb 21, 2015)

chiffonodd said:


> What's your preferred method of seasoning the pan (carbon steel)? There are about a million different suggestions online



Oh I see you already wrote about washing/drying and coating with a thin layer of oil. I'm talking about suggestions I've seen like oil and bake the pan upside down . . .all sorts of stuff. Is that worth it or necessary?


----------



## EdipisReks (Feb 21, 2015)

Seth said:


> Carbon steel de buyer, or cast iron. Much cheaper than allclad and much better. You will have to season - no big deal.



I certainly disagree with the idea that carbon is "better" than All-Clad, or similar. It's very different. Deglazing in a carbon steel pan is likely to cause seasoning to flake off, and it can be significantly more than "no big deal" to fix that. I love my carbon pans, I love my All-Clad, I love my copper, and I love my cast iron. It's all different.


----------



## jphy (Feb 21, 2015)

I love carbon in a professional setting. I prefer my all clads at home. They both perform the job of searing perfectly. I know that my pans are actually clean at home though. The wife is nowhere near as efficient or proficient as my dish dogs. Although I do get a lot more sticking with my allclad. I blame that on my crappy electric stove though. If I have the allclad preheated properly food releases just as the sear nears perfection.


----------



## EdipisReks (Feb 21, 2015)

The All-Clad sticks more than carbon because stainless steel sticks more than carbon. For building fond, it's not a bad thing. Stainless interior pans are my favorite for making pan sauces, because of the sticking and browning, which promotes fond.


----------



## chiffonodd (Feb 21, 2015)

EdipisReks said:


> I certainly disagree with the idea that carbon is "better" than All-Clad, or similar. It's very different. Deglazing in a carbon steel pan is likely to cause seasoning to flake off, and it can be significantly more than "no big deal" to fix that. I love my carbon pans, I love my All-Clad, I love my copper, and I love my cast iron. It's all different.



So a favorite of mine to cook these days would be a pan seared fish (eg sea bass), finished in the oven, and then deglazing the pan with white wine to start on a citrus beurre blanc. Do you think a carbon steel pan wouldn't hold up well through this process because of the deglazing and the acid in the lemon?


----------



## EdipisReks (Feb 21, 2015)

I've removed lots of seasoning from more than one carbon steel pan, doing exactly that. I then fix it, the next day. It's not a big deal if you're used to it.


----------



## fergie (Feb 21, 2015)

all ive ver used is allclad..its worth the money as you will never buy another pan.. ive had the same 2 pans for 15 years and they still look new beacuse I also clean with barkeepers friend..
nonstick is for lack of skill .. ANY pan is non stick if used with correct heat and correct oil


----------



## EdipisReks (Feb 21, 2015)

fergie said:


> ANY pan is non stick if used with correct heat and correct oil



if that were true, fond wouldn't be a thing.


----------



## tcmx3 (Feb 21, 2015)

fergie said:


> all ive ver used is allclad..its worth the money as you will never buy another pan..



how do you know there isnt something better given your own admission?

followup question; why doesnt your lack of context preclude your advice?


----------



## fergie (Feb 22, 2015)

in my vast experience decades in the business...privey to use of practically every line out there...thats how I know.....when it was time to invest for my personal use it was the easy choice.


----------



## chiffonodd (Feb 22, 2015)

fergie said:


> in my vast experience decades in the business...privey to use of practically every line out there...thats how I know.....when it was time to invest for my personal use it was the easy choice.



Ended up going with an all-clad 12" stainless series. SLT has a promotion right now for the pan with a lid for $119. strangely the same pan WITHOUT a lid is $154 because it's not part of the promotional set. Go figure.


----------



## Roger (Feb 22, 2015)

Stainless steel pans are great, I got a bunch of them. The only non stick I use is a ceramic pan for eggs. I have a steel pan but I rarely use it because it needs more maintenance but it's very good for high heat searing on gas stove top.


----------



## chinacats (Feb 22, 2015)

fergie said:


> in my vast experience decades in the business...privey to use of practically every line out there...thats how I know.....when it was time to invest for my personal use it was the easy choice.



You know for the same reason you can call a knife best ever after only two cuts



EdipisReks said:


> The All-Clad sticks more than carbon because stainless steel sticks more than carbon. For building fond, it's not a bad thing. Stainless interior pans are my favorite for making pan sauces, because of the sticking and browning, which promotes fond.



This...but instead of 'not a bad thing' I would say it's a good thing


----------



## tcmx3 (Feb 22, 2015)

fergie said:


> in my vast experience decades in the business...privey to use of practically every line out there...thats how I know.....when it was time to invest for my personal use it was the easy choice.



then maybe you should say that?

your two statements are contradictory because your first post was underspecified; do you expect us to be mind readers or is this bizarro world where I can safely assume the opposite of what you write?


----------

