# deBuyer frying pans



## Edgy Guy (Aug 31, 2011)

I want, for home kitchen use.
I realize this is a knife forum, and you guys directed me to JKI where I got my two beautiful Konosuke White #2s, which I love.
I have heard posters here talking about deBuyer pans so . . .

I'll start with a 20mm (8") for cooking eggs for one and add larger sizes later if I like it.
I cannot use non-stick coated pans since it creates fumes toxic to birds.
I hear these carbon pans become non-stick after seasoning and use and I LOVE my old cast iron skillets so I'll give these a try.

From deBuyer's website I see they come in 3 steel thicknesses:
Lyonnaise 1 - 1.5mm
Force Blue 2 mm
Carbone Plus 2.5 - 3 mm

Who wants which thicknesses and why?

I'm looking online for a vendor that sells the Force Blue (I think) , with no luck.
I'm in California so NOT in California would be nice.


----------



## G-rat (Aug 31, 2011)

buy from capital city restaurant supply @ www.capitalcityrestaurantsupply.com. They are in Bismarck ND

I own one mineral fry pan and one Carbonne. The mineral is 10in 3mm thick and the carbonne is 11in 3mm thick. The Force blue are made of steel but arent as thick. The Carbonne is awesome. It is large enough to do very large omeletes or a couple of filet. It retains heat really well. The mineral is smaller but retains heat better. It is made of iron. In the end I wish I had an 11 or 12 inch mineral pan at 3mm thick. It is an awesome pan. Will never warp. Sears incredibly well, miuch better than any lodge or even older american cast iron like Wagner that we have in the kitchen I work in.


----------



## kalaeb (Aug 31, 2011)

I love DeBuyer pans, although I only have a 10" mineral. The pans are heavy and with proper care season easily and quickly. I did not force any seasoning on mine, but rather let it develop on its own, which did not take long. I used it for every meal for a few days and it was good to go. Keep in mind when buying the pans the diameter they list is measured from the rim of the pan, not the bottom...my 10" pan only has 7.5 inches of cooking surface. I would say skip the 8" and go straight for the 10", it is perfect for eggs. I have had no issues with warping, even at high heat and cannot imagine any warping from anything 2mm and above. 
Try Amazon, it is where I got mine.


----------



## welshstar (Aug 31, 2011)

Hi

I have the 12 inch mineral pan it is great for steaks etc, it is so easy to use. About six months ago I purchsed a 9.5 inch Black steel pan from Amazon for $20, it is awesome. It heats and cools in seconds, it is totally non stick now, it is light and bullet proof. 

Dont misunderstand, the mineral pan is the goto pan for the big boy stuff like steaks, Tuna etc but for day to day value the Paderno stell pans are awesome.

BTW the Mineral pan 12 inch should not cost you more than $58, thats what i paid. Thats the for high grade pan, not the blue which is there cheaper steel version. I would avoid the Debuyer blue, either go mineral pan or go Paderno steel

Alan


----------



## obtuse (Aug 31, 2011)

Paderno world cuisine is one of the best bargains in carbon steel. Good build, thick 2.5mm steel, amazing deal on Amazon.com... but made in China. The Debuyer is made in France, great quality in their mineral line. Both will last a lifetime (or two) with proper care.


----------



## PierreRodrigue (Aug 31, 2011)

Hahaha! I read the title of the thread as deburring frying pans! I looked again as I sputtered "What the hell!" :happy2::slaphead:


----------



## ajhuff (Aug 31, 2011)

G-rat said:


> buy from capital city restaurant supply @ www.capitalcityrestaurantsupply.com. They are in Bismarck ND
> 
> I own one mineral fry pan and one Carbonne. The mineral is 10in 3mm thick and the carbonne is 11in 3mm thick. The Force blue are made of steel but arent as thick. The Carbonne is awesome. It is large enough to do very large omeletes or a couple of filet. It retains heat really well. The mineral is smaller but retains heat better. It is made of iron. In the end I wish I had an 11 or 12 inch mineral pan at 3mm thick. It is an awesome pan. Will never warp. Sears incredibly well, miuch better than any lodge or even older american cast iron like Wagner that we have in the kitchen I work in.


 
I'm confused. Is the pan cast iron or steel? Looking at the deBuyer website they all look like steel to me.

Thanks,

-AJ


----------



## UglyJoe (Aug 31, 2011)

They are both steel. Steel has carbon content up to 2.1%. Cast iron has carbon content of 2.1-4%. All the de Buyer lines fall into the steel category, they just market them as 99% iron because it sounds more organic/green that way.

Also, I was looking at these pans and considering getting a country fry pan. What do you guys think of this style? I have a bunch of fry pans already (cast iron, copper, aluminum clad with stainless, etc.) and don't really have a reason to buy another fry pan right now.


----------



## ajhuff (Aug 31, 2011)

Thanks, that's what I thought. I have to say that using the word "organic" and anything metal really rubs me the wrong way. Only think worse for me is organic salt.

-AJ


----------



## G-rat (Aug 31, 2011)

Uglyjoe. Cool I didn't know that.

Ajhuff. I forced a cure on my mineral pan at my kitchen burning it on with the hood on using lard and allowing it to cool. After a while of use I could "fry" an egg with no oil and it wouldn't stick.


----------



## Edgy Guy (Aug 31, 2011)

G-rat said:


> Uglyjoe. Cool I didn't know that.
> 
> Ajhuff. I forced a cure on my mineral pan at my kitchen burning it on with the hood on using lard and allowing it to cool. After a while of use I could "fry" an egg with no oil and it wouldn't stick.


 
How does deBuyer's Mineral line differ from their Carbone line?


----------



## UglyJoe (Sep 1, 2011)

Basically fit and finish... and I think the Mineral line has more recycled materials. Some of the pans are a little thinner. But they are close to the same. I've read that the mineral line has a better polish on the interior so that after a few cooking sessions it's already very non-stick, while the Carbone is a little rougher and takes a little more time to get that non-stick quality.


----------



## Lefty (Sep 1, 2011)

I'd get the biggest crepe pan you can find for regular egg duty, and then another 8" crepe pan (if you make omelets and crepes, this size is fantastic).
I'm a huge cast iron fan, and my deBuyers outperform my cast iron in all areas of cooking, except crisping up starchy foods.
The mineral line is insanely heavy when you get up to 10" and over, and the taper is quite dramatic. You lose a lot of cooking area because of the taper, and this is the main reason I still pull my cast iron pans out so often, over a deBuyer.
If you just need a wonderful, flat, non-stick surface to cook on and the height of the sides isn't important, the crepe pan really is the way to go. 
On to the country pan...I'll be getting one fairly soon (yay gift cards), so I'd say grab one of them too! Just look at it as a multi-purpose tool, and you should be happy with it too.
In my experience with deBuyer (a fair bit), I like the 2mm bleu series the best. It combines the incredible heat retention, and control with a good amount of heft, without becoming unwieldy. I have also found the mineral line likes to stick more than the bleu for some reason, even after a lot of use.


----------



## chazmtb (Sep 1, 2011)

I have two pans, both force blue. One is a 9.5 fry pan, and the other is a 14" country fry pan. For me, the force blue is about as heavy/thick as I want a pan to be. I have tried handling the mineral 12.5" at Williams Sonoma and that thing is a tank. If you like tossing things arround in a pan, you gotta have some really strong forearms. My 9.5 force blue is perfect for small task and tossing things around. The 14" country fry pan, I use in place of a wok, when I don't want to use a wok.


----------



## Lefty (Sep 1, 2011)

^ I like this guy!
I should also apologize for my interesting spelling of blue. For certain things, I seem to think in French. Damn you post Secondary education and family in France! Haha


----------



## Edgy Guy (Sep 1, 2011)

Thanks everyone.
I've decided on the de Buyer Mineral 10" and maybe a 12" and a country pan.
A local William Sonoma has them in stock at the same price as Amazon, plus I get them immediately.
I have to pay 10% sales tax, but that would probably be about the same as shipping.

WS's website says season them by boiling potato peels in water, but de Buyer's site says to season them by heating up cooking oil.
Are these processes both equally good?


----------



## Lefty (Sep 1, 2011)

The potato thing is hit and miss. I've had more success with oil, but I'm only one guy.


----------



## obtuse (Sep 1, 2011)

I've had great results with burning on coconut oil and other saturated fats. I find that polyunsaturated fats tend to leave a gummy finish that often peels of in use. I think the potato thing is used to remove the factory finish. Just give it a Good scrub before seasoning and You should be fine.


----------



## Edgy Guy (Sep 2, 2011)

Well I got 3 pans.
10" mineral fry pan
12" mineral fry pan
8" crepe blue - which came with a goofy William Sonoma crepe mix and wooden crepe flipper - I feel like SUCH an airhead stylish trendy white American Yuppie! LOL

Wow, these pans ARE heavy!

I could not find coconut oil at the markets so bought Crisco vegetable shortning, which is apparently palm oil that's been screwed with by 1960s scientific geniuses (genui?) so it's solid at room temp, and probably never spoils and is so NOT-FOOD that it is rejected by starving cockroaches.
I also bought 4 large russet potatoes.
I may return the 12" unused to William Sonoma and order a 14" online since 10" and 12" are so close together.
I wanted an 8" but WS does not carry it.


Tomorrow I'll start to season the 10".
I'll peel the four poatatoes and boil the peels in water for, oh, 10 minutes maybe? (What the hay could potato peels do? is this some which craft Voodoo thing? Seriously, whats in potato peels? some super duper acid that removed all gunk from iron prior to seasoning?)
Then I'll cool the pan.
Next I'll glop in a bunch of that gross Crisco goop and heat it up.
de Buyers says 1 cm deep.
I'll get that hot and cook it for, I think, 10 minutes.
Then discard the grease (God knows where I can discard grease like that).
Maybe if it returns to solid state I'll put it in a plastic bag and toss it out on trash day.
If it stays liquid I'll freeze it till trash day.

I'm really looking forward to the experience of using these pans after they are well seasoned.
Thanks to all of you.

Would occasional reseasoning with Crisco be wise (for these de Buyers or my Lodge cast iron) or can I get that horrid stuff out of my kitchen?
The ONLY fat I ever use for anything is EVOO.
I have cancer and am very careful about which fats I consume so I can stay alive longer.


----------



## Eamon Burke (Sep 2, 2011)

Dude, I have to add my 2 cents here. If you have cancer, you should not put Crisco in your pan. You will eat whatever you season your pan with.

Season it with a nourishing fat, like natural (read: perishable, not the shelf-stable stuff) lard.

I don't feed Crisco to my family, and nobody here is infirm. We hope to stay that way.


----------



## kalaeb (Sep 2, 2011)

Yup, can the Crisco...I have been using grapeseed oil with great sucess. Just heat it up, put some oil in the pan, cool it down and repeat. Then use it every day and you will have a solid seasoning in no time, just add a little grapeseed oil and heat after each use.


----------



## Edgy Guy (Sep 2, 2011)

Thanx.
I kept the receipt and can return the unopened can of that Leave-it-to-Beaver-era mystery-sludge.

Confession time - I've used EVOO for years exclusively for "seasoning" my Lodge cast iron pans.
I know EVOO is not a high temp fat but, Hell, I ain't croaked yet.
I don't know; perhaps a superior non-stick coating has eluded me but ignorance is pretty bliss.

Grape seed oil?
I HAVE seen that at the markets.
Why is that good? IOW is high temp tolerance the main goal when choosing a fat for seasoning pans?
IOW again, if you season it with a fat that tolerates the highest temps the pan will ever see is that seasoning more bulletproof?

Yeah, in a few weeks the butchers are cutting out my prostate.
Hopefully all the ickies have not migrated elsewhere yet.
I wonder if I can ask them to use my Konosukes Whites.


----------



## Ratton (Sep 2, 2011)

Edgy Guy said:


> The ONLY fat I ever use for anything is EVOO.
> I have cancer and am very careful about which fats I consume so I can stay alive longer.



Hi There,

I would suggest you look into and start using "Rice Bran Oil". It is a very healthy oil, contains goodies like vitamin E, has one of the highest smoke points, even higher than peanut oil, and really is tasteless so it doesn't add any flavor to what you are using it for. It is extracted from the bran of brown rice.

I first started buying it on the net, actually Amazon, but now I have found it a my local Asian market.:my2cents:


----------



## olpappy (Sep 10, 2011)

Where can one buy the "Force Blue" line? It doesn't seem to be easy to find for sale


----------

